Sometimes, good things happen in Wisconsin

I love this story. According to the Janesville Gazette, two professors at Concordia Univeristy plan to launch a joint, bi-partisan, challenge to Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner together.

Political scientist Jeff Walz, 40 will run as a Democrat. Historian James Burkee, 39, will run as a Republican.

The two men will publish a document that lays out the ground rules for their campaign. It will include a pledge to avoid personal attacks and not accept money from special interest groups.

Walz and Burkee say they disagree on many things but want to show district voters what they believe campaigns ought to look like.

If, by some chance, Burkee manages to win his primary challenge, the two have pledged to travel the district and debate every day between the primary and general elections.

What's not to love about this story? It is too bad they aren't challenging someone a bit more vulnerable. I wonder if they'll have any staff or consultants and if so if they will hire them jointly. That could be really interesting. Could you imagine joint television commercials?

Actually, you could save a lot of money under this model because you wouldn't need nearly as much staff or as many consultants.

I wonder if it will work.

$10 for Breakfast food

The family would like to go out for breakfast food tonight. Unfortunately, I can only find one good local joint that serves great breakfast food AND stay open after 3:00 PM.

As a result, our choices are IHOP, Village Inn, Mimi's Cafe and Sam's No. 3.

Now Sam's is great but we were just there last week so I don't really want to go again.

I'll give $10 to the first person who can provide me with a list of good local restaurants within 20 miles of Lone Tree, CO., that serve breakfast food at night.

Edwards, Clinton, Obama, Biden, Richardson

I've gotten some feedback regarding my Obama post from the other day AND I watched the entire CNN - YouTube debate last night.

A couple of people took me to task saying that I mis-represnted Obama's position and that Obama thinks it's better for UN forces to deal with genocide than US forces and that he would not stand by twiddling his thumbs.

OK. Maybe I got a little carried away in my language as it applies to Obama. I still think he's wrong. When genocide happens, the United States shouldn't wait for someone else to act. The United States should lead and lead by example.

And that leads me to my next point, I thought Joe Biden was great at last night's debate. He was forceful and acted like a leader -- a bit of a goofy leader -- but a leader. Joe said we need boots on the ground in Darfur. The other candidates largely passed the buck to the UN or others, although Clinton deserves some credit for outlining how she would use US forces in the region.

I thought Biden and Richardson won the debate. Clinton and Edwards tied for second with Obama coming in next.

I thought the most remarkable moment of the debate happened when John Edwards was asked about gay marriage. You really could see him struggle with the question. He says he's against it but I think he's mostly confused and conflicted. It was almost painful to watch.

The best question of the night came from these two guys.




Finally, beacause Anne asked, I'm supporting Edwards. My second choice is Clinton and then it is either Obama or Richardson, I'm not sure which.

Obama is wrong

Senator Obama says that the U.S. military shouldn't be used to stop genocide.

"Well, look, if that's the criteria by which we are making decisions on the deployment of U.S. forces, then by that argument you would have 300,000 troops in the Congo right now - where millions have been slaughtered as a consequence of ethnic strife - which we haven't done," Obama said in an interview with The Associated Press.

"We would be deploying unilaterally and occupying the Sudan, which we haven't done. Those of us who care about Darfur don't think it would be a good idea," he said.

I think he's wrong. And I'm not sure I want a President who is willing to stand by and watch genocide happen.

And what's up with the "which we haven't done" portion of his quote? Is he really going to base his foreign policy decisions on things that the current administration has or hasn't done? I thought part of the rationale for Obama's candidacy was that of change.

As the world's last remaining superpower I think stopping genocide ought to be a high priority for our country. Obama says if stopping genocide is a priority then we would need to be engaged in the Congo and in Sudan. I don't see anything wrong with being engaged in those countries.

I have no interest in supporting Obama in the primary.

That's right, you're not from Texas

See I was born and raised in Texas
And it means so much to me
Though my girl comes from down in Georgia
We were up in Tennessee
And as we were driving down the highway
She asked me baby what's so great
How come you're always going on
About your Lone Star State

I said that's right you're not from Texas
That's right you're not from Texas
That's right you're not from Texas
But Texas wants you anyway

That's right you're not from Texas
That's right you're not from Texas
That's right you're not from Texas
But Texas wants you anyway

My girl (from down in Florida) and I saw Lyle Lovett perform at Red Rocks on Friday night. His opening act was k.d. lang. Not a bad pair to go see. Concerts are Red Rocks are great! I encourage everyone who loves live music to make the trip to Morrison, CO to take in a show. The temperature at show time was about 85, there was no humidity, there were no bugs and the entire amphitheater had the feel of a community festival.

One of the things that amazed me was that almost everyone in the audience seemed to run into someone they knew at the concert. That was really fun to watch.

In addition to getting to see and hear some really great music under a Colorado sky, I also confirmed something I've always thought. While I really miss being a Texan and all that conjures up, I do not miss living in Texas.

It was gorgeous in Morrison and great to be in Colorado.

Avoid Cheap Tickets dot com

Cheap Tickets released their list of the top 10 places in America to enjoy bar-b-que on the Fourth of July. I've always liked bar-b-que but I learned a lot about it when I lived in Central Texas for eight years. If you are looking for red meat, then you've got to eat your bar-b-que in Texas, Missouri or the South.

One look at the Cheap Tickets list and even someone from Minnesota would realize that they haven't got a clue. Here it is according to the Memphis Business Journal.

10. Memphis
9. Little Rock
8. Charleston, SC
7. Cincinnati (Chili - not bar-b-que!)
6. Kansas City
5. Dallas
4. St. Louis
3. Washington, D.C. (Crabcakes - not bar-b-que!)
2. New Orleans (Really? I'm going for gumbo.)

and number one is almost too hard to type.








1. New York City

I want to write words that would upset my mother right now.

Here's how you do a top 10 bar-b-que list.

Fly to Austin. Sleep for as long as possible. Get up early, rent a car. Drive to every Central Texas town which has a name starting with the letter "L." Eat at each of the many bar-b-que joints in town. Make sure you get sausage if possible.

As you wind your way through Central Texas stop in Elgin, Gonzales and Marble Falls as well. Actually, just stop every time you see a bar-b-que joint. Finally, stop and pick up a six pack of beer and head for the Salt Lick in Driftwood. I know they've got one in the airport and one in Las Vegas but nothing beats the BYOB, Texas countryside feel of the original.


Finally, if you can't make it to Texas, I'd recommend Sonny's bar-b-que at locations throughout the South. Or you can stop in just about any city from Myrtle Beach to Kansas City and find much better bar-b-que than anything you'll ever find in NYC.

Lady Bird Johnson, 1912 - 2007

"I sometimes look back and almost say to myself: 'Gee, was that really me? Did it all happen to me?' It was a wonderful life. It took vigor and forbearance and a lot of elasticity. But it was an absolutely wonderful life."

To read more please visit the Austin American-Statesman.

Dress up clothes on a summer day

What a disappointment

I had never visited the University of South Dakota nor it's hometown of Vermillion. But one of the things I've come to realize as I've traveled around the country is that most cities that host "The University of ____________" are generally cool cities and most "University of ______________" are good looking campuses. Think about the Universities of

North Carolina
Florida
California
Montana
Washington
Texas
Virginia
Wisconsin
Colorado

just to name a few. So I expected the University of South Dakota to either have a beautiful campus or Vermillion to be a quaint University town.

Unfortunatley, neither is true. I was disappointed. I'd expected I might find an ice-cream shop and buy the kids a cone as we lounged in the shade on a grassy mall.

I'll be visiting the University of Wyoming in the next few months. Maybe that can help me rebound.