What's funny or sad is that if this were any other team their accomplishment of getting to the Finals would be applauded. Consider the injuries during the year and The Court Case. Consider the opponents in the Playoffs - Houston with Yao Ming, San Antonio - the defending champs with Duncan, Minnesota with Garnett the MVP - a gauntlet unlike any other. For any team to survive that run and end up in the Finals should be held in awe.

But this is the Lakers. The moment they announced the signing of Malone and Payton the expectations were nothing less than the Championship and they almost did it. Despite the injuries, the feuds, the scrowl, the lack of triangle - they almost did it. But Detroit showed what it takes to win - teamwork, hard work, attention, desire, and focus. Congratulations to Detroit and next year we'll see them again - same time, same place, different outcome.

Iraq and al Qaeda
Not surprisingly another report (9/11 Commission) supports the non-existence of a direct link between Hussein and al Qaeda, despite claims to the contrary by Cheney (oh, he of loud mouth and lack of evidence). The invasion of Iraq had nothing to do with terrorism! What Bush was trying to do was use "The War On Terrorism" to justify his agenda of bringing "Democracy and Freedom to the Middle East". It didn't work. And, worse, Bush is losing the War and failing to bring Freedom. He's brought a demonstrable increase in terrorism and bloodshed to the Middle East. By shifting focus away from bin Laden to Hussein he gave a green light to terrorist groups instead fo a warning signal. By deposing Hussein without a plan for country reconstruction he brought confusion to the Iraqis; he brought mismanagement and fiscal irresponsibility as Halliburton and other companies demonstrate American Business policies.

And we're paying for it. Over $100 BILLION wasted in Iraq, numerous American lives lost in the fraudelent folly foisted on us by Bush. Again Halliburton is being charged and investigated for overcharging and wasteful spending, now tallied in the billions.

9/11 brought home the "War on Terrorism". If Bush had focused on that and had pursued and caught bin Laden from the very get-go, he'd likely find himself validly elected President in November. If he had found valid justifications for his actions in Iraq instead of selective and faulty intelligence, he'd be elected in November. Instead he and his neo-con buddies stupidly tried to use the War to justify the Invasion even though there was no connection. By trying to force the issue and dupe the World they only duped themselves. We live in a world where information travels light-fast, where people can't be as easily fooled because there's always someone online willing to call the bluff or, at least, play Devils Advocate. We called you bluff Mr. "President".

Cruds. Kerry is no great piece of work but he has to be better than Bush. And those who say Bush should be re-elected because he's the enemy we know, I disagree. We've seen what Bush can do and we don't want any more of it. At least Kerry has some intelligence and that's a start, a change for the better.

Fresh French Fries
The USDA with grants from the French Fry industry (whatever they're called) has declared support for classifying french fries as "fresh", as in fresh vegetables in fruit. The reason is that french fries are "minimally processed" and can expire (go bad). The lunacy and idiocy of this policy is well beyond absurd. French fries are coated, cooked, and packaged. Most foods will spoil over time, even man-made foods - that doesn't make them fresh. Honey - which crystalizes but doesn't spoil - would never get classified as fresh by this logic.

"Fresh" should mean lack of additives, preservatives, or cooking. A peach that gets picked, boxed, shipped, and is still edible the next day is fresh. A peach that is picked, boxed, and coated with a preservative isn't fresh. A peach semi-cooked and canned isn't fresh. A peach picked fresh and frozen is "fresh frozen" but not fresh.

French fries aren't fresh and a simple experiement could show the point. Let's make two teams of USDA upper management. We'll give one team real fresh fruits and vegetables for a solid week. The other team will get french fries and any other fruit and vegetables that are coated, cooked, and can expire - for a week. After the week let's compare the weight and cholesterol fot he two groups. My guess is that the group eating real fresh fruits and veggies will be in better health than those on the "fresh" fruits and veggies. So USDA ready for a test?