You Must Be Connected to EA Servers to access...

Many who have had the misfortune of owning any of the recent iterations of the Tiger Woods golf game in the past few years, produced by EA Sports, has seen the dreaded message that begins something akin to "You must be connected to EA Servers in order to access the online features of this title..." The problem being that you KNOW you have a perfectly good online connection at the time this message appears. Unfortunately, like many of the previous years of this franchise, the 2010 game is subject to these rolling blackouts of accessibility to their servers. They will tell you all about the memory cache of your router, problems tracing your connection paths etc... The theme being, it's on YOUR end, not theirs. Wrong. Other game titles, not made by EA Sports, play in their intended online fashion on the same connection, just not this title. Hmmm. Seems to be a trend. I've read a million exchanges on gaming forums reflecting the same frustration by many EA Sports TW golf gamer. Memo to EA, this is beyond frustrating, please get it fixed, or EA Sports will not be able to access the features of the legal tender located in my wallet for any future game they produce.

Can We Get You to Commit to a Lane Please

Have you ever been driving along in your designated lane of traffic and when you notice that the car ahead of you in either adjacent lane is slowly starting to veer into your lane? And if not for your quick braking, or swerving if there's room to allow it, they'd surely have just side-swiped your car. It's like they have a blind spot reflex to just start drifting 8 feet right or left as soon as somebody is nearing them in an adjacent lane. The addendum to these white knuckle moments is that the Mensa scholar that just nearly rammed into your side is invariably looking at his/her cell phone, talking to passengers in their car, etc.

Having had more than my fill of such highway drama, I now simply hit the horn when their wheels begin to cross the line into my lane. And I don't mean one of those polite little chirps of the horn, I mean Detroit Redwing hockey goal horn for a good 3 seconds. Then I'm the bad guy...right!

Another time we'll discuss the slow drivers that inexplicably speed up when you attempt to pass them. What's up with that? Are you offended that someone wishes to drive a higher rate of speed than you? Were you simply born to lead, even if at 53mph? But mysteriously, when you're being passed you stomp the pedal and accelerate like Kyle Bush? If you'd been breaking the sound barrier all along, I wouldn't be trying to pass you.

I may have a stroke.

Memo to Seth Rogan and Janeane Garofalo

It seems during a Q&A with some grade school children while promoting the Disney Pixar movie Monsters v. Aliens, Seth Rogan, who plays the voice of the one of the characters, was asked by a child which he would rather be, a monster or alien? He responded by saying something along the lines of "I'd rather be a monster because this country doesn't treat aliens very well". Really?!? That would explain why every imaginable nation's citizens are risking life and limb to get here right? Oh and thanks for not being garish and politicking to a 5 year old.

Many hard working people follow the existing laws and processes of becoming a United States citizen legally. Something for which they can be proud. They have to learn about our form of government, US history, the Constitution etc. These law abiding people are rewarded with a very moving swearing in ceremony to reward her for their going through the process the lawful and legal way.

Meanwhile illegal aliens from drug cartels in Mexico are running through our borders kidnapping women and children in Texas and Arizona to such an extent, local law enforcement is increasingly unable to keep up. Juarez, just south of the US Mexico border, is a war zone. Gee Seth, I guess the US owes you an apology for attempting to control emigration. I know it must be tempting to use your fame as a pulpit to vomit your opinions to uninterested parties everywhere, but please just say your lines and hit your marks on set and leave it at that!! You have less than no clue about the real world economic impact of the fairy tale ideology you espouse.

As for Janeane Garofalo, she may be the only person on the cast of 24 that doesn't require a script. She was born to be the one admonishing all the other agents about civil liberties while they try to save the country from an imminent pandemic. Mr. Rogan, while you and Janeane are collectively trashing the notion of border security and labelling anyone concerned enough about taxes to protest peacefully in the recent tea party as racists , the rest of us will keep trying to eek out a living under the escalating tax burden, among other things, to insure the millions of illegal aliens that we allegedly treat so poorly. Have I got it right Seth? Stay close to Judd Apatow, and far away from the open microphone.

Maiden Voyage

So Chinese "fishing" ships are actively seeking out US Research vessels in the Yellow Sea and confronting them in clear violation of international maritime conventions. These are international waters, and even if the US is gathering sonar data in the area, it is well within it's rights to be there. As are any other country. The reports indicate the Chinese "fishing" boat was as close as 30 yards from the US underwater vessel at one point, acting in a clearly aggressive manner according to one observer. This is the 4th such incident in a short period of time in that region. Make no mistake, these boats are acting under the direction of high ranking authorities. They would all fear to do otherwise. Let's not forget about a US plane that was shot down by a Chinese fighter and forced to crash land at a nearby airfield not long ago. I put fishing in qoutes because the old Soviet Union used to send out so-called fishing boats to conduct military recon. They were dubbed "Tattle Tales" by the US intelligence Agency. I have no vent other than this is very troubling at a troubling time in world