Back in the Old Form

The Braves, under GM John Schuerholz, is back up to their old mid-season tricks. As I write this, about an hour until the MLB trade deadline for 2007, they have traded for Texas first baseman Mark Teixeira, filling what had been more or less a hole in their lineup with the well-paid slugger, and getting lefty reliever Ron Mahay. The Rangers come out fairly well on the deal, getting up-and-coming catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who had been backing up all-star Brian McCann and filling in at first base, in addition to three minor league prospects.












They also added powerful reliever Octavio Dotel, sending promising, if inconsistant starter Kyle Davies to the Royals. This move should help them to shore up their bullpen, which was the bane of their team's existance last year, and a real weak spot since John Smoltz returned to the starting rotation, dominating it in the way he did the Braves bullpen. While the starting rotation remains a bit of a question mark beyond Smoltz and Tim Hudson, these trades give the Braves what should be a competent relief staff, and with the addition of Teixeira, one of the most powerful offensive lineups in the National League. If they weren't seen as a contender before, they certainly will be now, and barring some unexpected injury, I will be surprised if they aren't back on top of the NL east by October. The Mets and Phillies did do a little patchwork, but in the end, I'd say they should watch their asses, because Atlanta will be coming up fast.

Evanescence: Now Officially Amy Lee Show

As announced last week on their website, guitarist John LeCompt and drummer Rocky Gray are no longer with Evanescence. The reason is not really clear; the official statement from the band is that they were "ready to move on," though LeCompt claims he was "fired for no good reason," and that Gray quit over the events. Apparently, they have a new band now. We'll see how that goes. The two were replaced with the guitarist and drummer from Dark New Day, a band that's been around for a while, but found little in the way of commercial success. Anywhom, this means that Evanescence now consists of all of one original member. Amy Lee is all that is left of the group that recorded Fallen in 2003, and while LeCompt had one writing credit on The Open Door, and sang the male vocal part of Bring Me to Life in concert, I imagine very little will change practically with the band, as this confirms what their critics have been saying from the beginning: Evanescence is Amy Lee.

Hewie Lewis Needs Time to Create

Well, as my begin-the-semester post promised, I've been a busy guy. Though I haven't had to take up residence in the library yet, I have been considerably out of action as far as fun and hanging out go. Another thing I've missed is reading the news. I did a little bit of this lately, and I'm pleased to report that it's just as funny as ever. Who needs The Daily Show? Headlines like this take care of themselves.

Though it's not really funny, the biggest news for me lately has been the beginning of the Olympics. This biannual international athletic spectacle has always been one of my favorite things to watch. The winter ones are so much fun. I mean, who'd have guessed you could make so many sports out of sliding around on ice? Come to think of it, curling is kinda funny...he he he, brooms.

In international news, Muslims are upset (and by upset, I mean rioting in the streets) because a Danish newspaper published a comic depicting the prophet Muhammed as having a turbin that was actually a ticking timebomb. And it's not like there are a few looneys trying to get political in the streets...in nearly every Muslim majority country, people have been gathering in throngs to chant anti-Danish slogans and burn Danish flags, parliaments have passed resolutions comdemning newspapers. In some cases, the rioters have stormed embassies and newspaper offices. Can you imagine if this sort of thing happened in the US? What if the Republicans rioted in the streets every time a cartoonist depicted Bush as a monkey? Or, even more parallel, what if mobs of Christians razed local FOX affiliates every time Family Guy depicted Jesus in an insulting way? None of us would get a moments peace, or American Idle for that matter!

Iraq has recently elected a new prime minister, who happens to be a Shi'ite. The Sunnis say they're being oppressed as retaliation for the oppression of Shi'ites under Saddam Hussein, and the Kurds say that they're not getting enough sovereignty. Meanwhile, a large U.S. military force occupies the country, trying to keep the three factions from being blown to bits while they chomp at eachothers' throats.

Speaking of Saddam Hussein, they made him come back to his trial. He responded by screaming things like "Down with Bush!" and "Long live Iraq!" and calling the judge a criminal. I can't really say I blame him though. Nobody stays in power for 30+ years by being stupid, and anyone with half a brain would know he's totally going down. I guess he figures if he's going out, he might as well do it with a bang.

Speaking of dignified politicians, VP Dick Cheney shot some guy this weekend while they were hunting quail. Nobody died, but tell me, is anyone surprised by this, at all?

In local reports, in a recent interview with Hornets rookie Chris Paul, former NBA star and TNT commentator Charles Barkley recently refered to Oklahoma, and the city specifically, as a "vast wasteland". Maybe that's because HALF THE STATE IS ON FIRE! He also said that it "wasn't a place for" black people. Well, anyway, Paul responded by calling Barkley lazy. This whipped the local media into a frenzy, with every leading personality from the local TV stations and newspapers, and even the Governor to challenge Barkley to come to the city and enjoy a Hornet's game, dinner, et cetera. He'd probably change his mind if he came, but then, that might not be a good idea, as some overly-proud country boy would probably punch him in the face.

So, that's my take on the weekend's news. Feel free to leave me comments, and I will feel free to make fun of, I mean answer them.

Happy Memorial Day, have a croissant.

In the news here at home, it's Memorial Day. So, happy Memorial Day everybody, and enjoy your holiday, if you're lucky enough to get one.

All the fun news is going on in Europe right now. In the E.U., there is a new charter up for approval. It was signed last October by leading officials, and is now must be approved by all 25 member nations in order to take effect in 2006 as planned. Its purpose is to "[unite] ever more closely, to forge a common destiny" for the organization's members. It includes many economic provisions that free up trade restrictions between member nations, and provisions that alter the legislative structure. It is a document that moves the union closer to the super-state it seemed, in recent years, destined to become. It has already been approved by nine countries. What brought all this into the spotlight was the vote in France. The nation that essentially founded the E.U. voted to reject the charter yesterday in a referendum election, with over 55% of a 70% turnout voting "non". The vote is making waves throughout France and Europe. President Chirac's opponents have called for changes in the government, the most radical of which have called for his resignation, and even dissolving the National Assembly. While nobody will be getting rid of the French parliament, Chirac has promised changes within the government to be announced soon. Perhaps the most significant result for Americans is that in the day since the vote, the Euro has fallen to it's lowest level of the year against the Dollar.

This vote makes sense for France, it seems. Employment is high there right now, and many have been dissatisfied with Chirac's leadership on economic issues. It seems there are varying reasons for opposition to this charter, depending on location in the French political spectrum, the proposal is opposed on economic concerns, such as loss of jobs and trade imbalance, sovereignty issues, or opposing Chirac issues.

Personally, I don't like the further unification of Europe. If the E.U. keeps getting stronger, more unified, it won't be long before it rivals the U.S. economically and politically. Look at the U.N. security council. The five permanent seats are occupied by the U.S., Great Britain, France, Russia, and China. That's two of five nations in the E.U. already, and if Russia eventually joined (which wouldn't happen for many years) that's over half, not to mention the European nations in the rotating seats. Now, I don't take much stock in the U.N. (that's for another post) but it's a telling example. Were I a citizen of one of these nations, I would probably opposed the E.U. on sovereignty grounds. I don't think, as a German, or a Spaniard, or a Latvian, I would be happy to be under the authority of a Frenchman, or an Englishman, or an Italian. This, thankfully, is not an issue for me, living in the United States, but it always seems to be in my mind when I hear about the E.U.

Back to the matter at hand, this vote in France is a major statement by the French people. While officials and commentators insist the charter is not dead, and there will be another vote, the French people have asserted their right to govern themselves, whether they're opposed to being governed by the rest of Europe, or by Jacques Chirac. It will be interesting to see where this goes in France, and in other important E.U. members, with votes coming up in Great Britain, the Netherlands, and others. While no one can call the charter dead, it is equally true that no one can deny that the political landscape has changed.

A few interesting occurences

The most interesting occurence in my life in the last few days is the arrival of new registers at work. Yes, Albertson's now has shiny new cash registers, with big, sexy, plasma screen monitors. Also, the credit card/ check system is more efficient. Woo-wee, let's hear it for modern technology.

A historical realization: Al Gore did not invent the internet: the Civil War did.

I left a comment on Sean's blog that's longer than any of my blog posts to date. I'll give you three guesses on what the subject is. (No, this is not a cookie opportunity; too easy)

Shoes are in. They're blue. I pick them up tomorrow, before I get my brakes checked.

Papa John's All the Meats pizza is a wonderful replacement for NY Pizza and Pasta's pepperoni and sausage during their remodelling.

I'm being stalked by a Mexican. Se llama Miguel. He keeps calling me. I said he had the wrong number. Entonces, dije que tuve el numero incorecto. He didn't seem the least bit deterred by either. If he calls again, I'm going to attempt to explain to him that I don't know him. Poor Miguel. He's probably wondering around area code 209 (Dallas?) sin amigos o dinero. O drogas, if that's his thing, but you know, whatever.