Conference USA Men’s Basketball Preview: Rice

Next stop on our tour de CUSA, going all the way across town from Houston to the Rice University Owls. The Owls are going to be looking for greener pastures this year after sending their former coach up the river and picking up Ben Braun. Braun who has a track record for turning teams around had a less than stellar season at Cal last year and they thanked him by terminating his contract. However, the Golden Bears loss is the Owls gain. Braun can bring in the type of player Rice desperately needs on his name alone, and that’s good for him because Rice doesn’t offer a whole lot to work with.

Rice put up numbers that would make any head coach consider putting his resume together and looking for a new job, finishing up 3-27 over all and going spotless in the win column in conference play at 0-16. Having only defeated Eastern Illinois, Texas State and TCU in the regular season one would assume Rice has no where to go but up from here. If you’re an Owls fan, you would hope that as well but it may not be so.

Granted Coach Braun is a bit of a miracle worker in the world of basketball, but the key pieces aren’t there this year and the rest of the conference has been continuing to build up and get better. Braun came a little later than everyone would have liked so he didn’t have time to put together a good recruiting class, though he has started to do that already for next season. However, bad news for the Owls, they can’t sit this year out and wait for greener pastures to appear. There is an upside here, the Owls are a very young team, and I mean very young, only five players are  upperclassmen. With any lucky Braun can put in a system that will benefit these players, or maybe some of these players will fit systems he has used in the past.

Of course the downside of having a couple more years with players is you don’t have a lot of leadership on the court at first so there may be quite a few mistakes by this team throughout the year. There is one other thing worth noting, Rice is a private school, and private universities tend to have the added benefit of having some money to throw around. So if the attitudes of the school administration are in the right place a team on the rise could also benefit from new training facilities in the near future, which tends to also be a fairly big recruiting draw.

Rice Owls Men’s Basketball Schedule 2008-2009

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Date	Opponent / Event	Location	Time / Result
11/15/08	vs. Portland State	Tudor Fieldhouse	3:00 p.m. CT
Basketball Travelers Invitational
11/20/08	vs. Cal Poly	Provo, Utah	6:00 p.m. CT
11/21/08	vs. BYU	Provo, Utah	9:30 p.m. CT
11/22/08	vs. North Florida	Provo, Utah	7:00 p.m. CT
11/25/08	vs. Lamar	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
11/30/08	at Texas	Austin, Texas	2:00 p.m. CT
12/04/08	vs. Texas-San Antonio	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
12/06/08	vs. Texas State	Tudor Fieldhouse	3:00 p.m. CT
12/17/08	vs. Harvard	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:30 p.m. CT
12/20/08	at Duquesne	Pittsburgh, Pa.	1:00 p.m. CT
12/22/08	vs. Oklahoma	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
12/28/08	at Arkansas-Little Rock	Little Rock, Ark.	TBA
12/31/08	vs. Texas A&M	Tudor Fieldhouse	3:00 p.m. CT
01/03/09	at Richmond	Richmond, Va.	11:00 a.m. CT
01/10/09	at Tulane	New Orleans, La.	2:00 p.m. CT
01/14/09	vs. SMU ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
01/17/09	vs. UCF ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	3:00 p.m. CT
01/21/09	at Memphis ^	Memphis, Tenn.	8:00 p.m. CT
01/24/09	at UAB ^	Birmingham, Ala.	2:00 p.m. CT
01/28/09	vs. Tulane ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
01/31/09	vs. East Carolina ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	1:00 p.m. CT
02/07/09	at Houston ^	Houston, Texas	8:00 p.m. CT
02/11/09	vs. Southern Miss ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
02/14/09	at East Carolina ^	Greenville, N.C.	6:00 p.m. CT
02/18/09	vs. UTEP ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	7:00 p.m. CT
02/21/09	at SMU ^	Dallas, Texas	7:00 p.m. CT
02/25/09	at UCF ^	Orlando, Fla.	6:00 p.m. CT
02/28/09	vs. Houston ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	3:00 p.m. CT
03/04/09	at Marshall ^	Huntington, W.Va.	6:00 p.m. CT
03/07/09	vs. Tulsa ^	Tudor Fieldhouse	3:00 p.m. CT

Rice looks to keep to a fairly challenging non-conference slate, perhaps under the mind set of that which does not kill us makes us stronger. Maybe one day but for the most part I see Rice struggling once again this year, maybe a few improvements in the year but I would not be expecting many miracles here. The Owls finish up the year 5-26 and 1-15 in Conference USA, even the losers get lucky sometimes.

Conference USA Men’s Basketball Preview: Houston

This will be the first of an on going twelve part series taking a look at each and every men’s team in Conference USA basketball. So fret not sports fans I will be previewing your favorite C-USA team at some point.

The Houston Cougars, from a little town you may have heard of, Houston, TX prepare for their 63rd season of men’s college basketball. The Cougars embark on their second season under the team goal of NCAA Tournament or Bust. The Cougars of course coming up bust on that goal last season and have not seen the NCAA Tourny since the 1992 season, the year they also won their last conference championship way back in their Southwest Conference days.

Coming off a 24-10 season with a 11-5 conference record the Cougars managed a bid in the newly created College Basketball Invitational Tournament. Coach Tom Penders enters his fifth year as Houston head coach and much like the Cougars has a foundation in the Southwest Conference and was the coach of the team that split the championship title with Houston in 1992.

Houston continues to age gracefully as a team with only one senior on the entire squad, Marcus Cousin the center out of Baltimore, Maryland. Not much of a presence on the Cougars bench, aside from spending most of his days on it, Cousin has already seen more playing time in Houston’s two games. Klevin Lewis remains on the Houston roster the junior guard averaged just over 10 points per game last year and should continue to produce for the Cougars. This year also should see the addition of true freshman Desmond Wade, who has given some hints of his abilities in the early season games for Houston.

The Cougars have quite a few players on their roster that have been silent, not registering any minutes over the past few seasons and have rumors of ability. That has yet to be seen but judging by the caliber Houston has seen and has continued to possess I wouldn’t write these perennial bench riders off. The Cougars have been putting together a deccent squad and things have been building, with the CBI bid last year the team should have some proof that they are capable of playing basketball, they will have to build on that though.

Houston Cougars 2008-2009 Men’s Basketball Schedule

Date                (Day)        Opponent Site Time
Nov. 10-11 (Mon.-Tue) 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer Durham, N.C.
Nov. 10 (Mon.) vs. Georgia Southern 3 p.m.
Nov. 11 (Tue.) at Duke or vs. Presbyterian 5 p.m./8 p.m.
Nov. 15 (Sat.) WESTERN KENTUCKY HOFHEINZ PAVILION 3 p.m. (DH)
Nov. 18 (Tue.) ALCORN STATE HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Nov. 20-21 (Thur.-Fri.) 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer Championship Rounds New York, N.Y.
Nov. 20 (Thur.) vs. TBA (Semifinals) 6 p.m./8 p.m.
Nov. 21 (Fri.) vs. TBA (Championship/Consolation) 4 p.m./6 p.m.
Nov. 29 (Sat.) NORTH TEXAS HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Dec. 2 (Tue.) at Middle Tennessee Murfreesboro, Tenn. 7 p.m.
Dec. 13 (Sat.) MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Dec. 20 (Sat.) at Toledo Toledo, Ohio 6 p.m.
Dec. 28 (Sun.) IOWA STATE HOFHEINZ PAVILION 5 p.m. (DH)
Dec. 30 (Tue.) MASSACHUSETTS HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Jan. 3 (Sat.) at Mississippi State (CSS) Starkville, Miss. 3 p.m.
Jan. 6 (Tue.) TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Jan. 10 (Sat.) * UAB HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Jan. 14 (Wed.) * at UTEP El Paso, Texas 8:05 p.m.
Jan. 17 (Sat.) * at Southern Miss Hattiesburg, Miss. 4 p.m.
Jan. 21 (Wed.) * EAST CAROLINA HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Jan. 24 (Sat.) at Arizona (Fox Sports Arizona) Tucson, Ariz. 5 p.m.
Jan. 28 (Wed.) * UTEP HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Jan. 31 (Sat.) * at Memphis (CBS College Sports) Memphis, Tenn. Noon
Feb. 4 (Wed.) * at UCF (CBS College Sports) Orlando, Fla. 6 p.m.
Feb. 7 (Sat.) * RICE HOFHEINZ PAVILION 8 p.m. (DH)
Feb. 11 (Wed.) * at SMU Dallas, Texas 7 p.m.
Feb. 14 (Sat.) * TULANE HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m. (DH)
Feb. 18 (Wed.) * at Marshall Huntington, W.Va. 6 p.m.
Feb. 21 (Sat.) * UCF HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
Feb. 25 (Wed.) * at Tulsa Tulsa, Okla. 7:05 p.m.
Feb. 28 (Sat.) * at Rice Houston, Texas (Autry Court) 3 p.m.
March 4 (Wed.) * MEMPHIS (CBS College Sports) HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
March 7 (Sat.) * SMU HOFHEINZ PAVILION 7 p.m.
March 11-14 (Wed.-Sat.) at Conference USA Championship Memphis, Tenn. TBA

The road for the Cougars doesn’t look overly difficult, nor challenging until one remembers that having to play Memphis isn’t fun for any basketball program. Houston is ready to step up and take the challenges that lay before them trouble is, so is the rest of Conference USA. It’s going to be a fun season of college basketball in CUSA this year, I know I’m excited, and good news for the Cougar faithful, there’s going to be a lot for you to be excited about too. My prediction for Cougar basketball in 2008-2009, 26-7 overall and 11-5 in conference. A slight improvement over all but around the same in conference play. Depending on the level of play in the rest of the nation and league it may be enough to get an NIT bid this year, but Cougar fans may have to settle for a repeat trip to the CBI.

Rice at UTEP Preview

This week is Halloween, and what could be more fitting than bringing you the fright fest that could occur when the Rice Owls travel to face the University of Texas-El Paso Miners. Rice comes into this game 4-1 in conference USA play and 5-3 over all. Thanks to the Rice defense not playing like zombies they marked another in the win column last week against Tulane. Texas El Paso despite not registering on many people’s radar aren’t playing like Frankenstein’s monster. The Miners are currently part of a three way tie in Conference USA and are 4th in the strong western Division. The Miners are 3-1 in conference and 3-4 over all right now after playing a strong non-conference schedule early on, but most importantly for the Miners, they had a week of rest prior to this game and they are in the Sun Bowl this week. Rice head coach David Baliff isn’t shifting his focus this week either, he knows the threat El Paso can bring and he isn’t worried about the post season yet.

Once more the senior quarterback Chase Clement will take the field, and I don’t see much changing. The Miners will have to bring their A game, and probably the A game of The University of Texas at Austin to slow down the Rice attack. The Rice Owls are 14th in the nation in total yards, and 9th in passing yards averaging 325 yards per game. The Owls are also averaging 40 points per game, another top 10 national statistic. Despite the statistical disparity El Paso head coach Mike Price is confident and hopes to have the community behind his team this weekend.

On the notion that there will be a lot of points scored I couldn’t agree with coach Price more, but I doubt he’s going to like which side of the score board is being lit up. This Rice team has shown it can overcome just about anyone this year, well, as long as they’re in Conference USA and they don’t play in Oklahoma. Nonetheless the similarities between Rice and Tulsa this season have been evident, and the Miners have already faced that Tulsa squad, the outcome was not pretty for the Miners as they fell by a large margin.

The three headed monster that is Chase Clement, Dillard and Casey is going to be in full effect on Saturday and I doubt the Miners have much that can contend. Barring some sort of revamping of the Texas El Paso defense, or some miracle play for the Miners, this one is going the Rice way, and doing so quite impressively. Once again, I’m putting my perfect record on the line and on the backs of the Rice players as I’m confident they will drive the steak through the heart of the Miner’s hopes and come out on top in this one. My prediction, Rice Owls 49, Texas El Paso Miners, 21.

Army at Rice Preview

This week the Rice Owls return home to roost as they prepare to take on the Army Black Knights. The Knights who aren’t known for much in the way of football excellence find themselves reeling once again and probably won’t stand much chance against the well oiled offensive machine that are the Rice Owls. Rice head coach David Baliff has a lot to be thankful for as we head into November football with the strong performances of quarterback Chase Clement and wide receivers James Casey and Jarrett Dillard. Clement after last weeks nail biter against Texas-El Paso is poised to smash through school records at Rice with 2700 yards passing this year. both receivers Casey and Dillard are preparing to break the barrier of the millennium club as well with around 950 yards each. The Owls offense is tenth in the nation for total yards per game and sixth in passing with 334 yards per game, its no wonder they’re getting on the radar for awards season. Not to mention one of the more important categories, they are ninth in points scored and the most important award, the post-season which Rice is eligible for at 6-3 this year. Much less noteworthy are the Owls opponents this weekend, the Army Black Knights. 3-6 overall. If this were academy award season the Black Knights should be looking for nothing more than a nomination for best supporting actor as they help propel the Owls further and higher along their path to glory. Army shouldn’t be expecting more than the ability to return to West Point and live to play another day as they head to Houston, Texas. Kick off is scheduled for 3:30PM and it should not be any different than it has been for this star studded record breaking season the Owls are on. My call, and it will be another perfect weekend, Rice 49 Army, if they’re lucky 21.

Fifth Down and One To Go

That’s right, just like Mizzou in 1990 I’m taking an extra down. With some luck however I will use it to my advantage and not end up a loser like the Tigers. So, what’s the play on fifth and short? Well that’s the million dollar question in Conference USA, with all the teams in contention separated by only a pair of wins it’s still anybody’s game. Would I have made this claim just a few hours ago? Probably not but then undefeated Tulsa fell to a lackluster Arkansas squad. Currently Rice are playing ball at a level close to Tulsa and if the Golden Hurricanes slip again, Rice will be more than glad to replace them atop C-USA West.

In the East division things get even more dicey, with Marshall currently holding a slim lead at 3-1 in conference and East Carolina occupying the number two slot at 2-1 currently and capable of continuing to stay close to the top. Central Florida isn’t out of the mix either and a win over ECU could prove to be a big boost for the Golden Knights. Providing Marshall and East Carolina don’t show how pathetic they can be in games that are considered to be automatic, Memphis despite sitting third in the division is almost out of this. Though as stated, Marshall and ECU have proven that no win is automatic.

Four weeks are left to be played in this college football season, Conference USA has two teams with the requisite six wins to become bowl eligible, four more teams are two wins away from reaching the mark. UAB and Southern Methodist have become mathematically ineligible for a post-season and should be looking to just escape this year with some dignity or something to build on. However, with both teams only playing conference foes the best that can come out of it is the faith your team can beat conference opponents, and maybe a benefit for someone else in conference if things continue to be this tight.

Central Florida, Southern Mississippi, Tulane and Texas-El Paso all have to win the remainder of their games in order to be bowl eligible and for some of those teams it’s going to be easier said than done. With some teams having yet played Tulsa it may be a losing battle, or it may not as Tulsa have shown they are not the BCS busters people wanted them to be this year.

Conference USA is a tight race this year, as a result it looks a bit amateur from the outside if you only take the overall record into consideration, but when you have twelve teams playing with something to prove upsets happen, predictions are usually wrong and anything can come out of any given game.

America In The World

(Note: This was written in the spring of 2008 so some of my views on it may be a bit changed or out of date at current.)

I cannot say how or when the American experiment of democracy will come to an end but I am almost one-hundred percent sure when I say we will do it to ourselves. At our current rate one can only assume the date will be very soon, though again the how is quite impossible to tell. We are faced with many ways of ushering ourselves out the door and we seem to enjoy all the choices laying before us.

There are of course the obvious reason for our undoing and that is war. As we seem to pride ourselves on war in this country, and why not we’re getting rather good at it. Though as our armed forces diminish and the rest of the world continues to improve their technology and tactics our edge there is hardly the great power it once was. As we continue to over extend ourselves abroad we only further our weakness at home.

The other result of our shoot first, ask questions later policy is even more simple, the more people you bomb, kill or render homeless or worse country-less, the more people you give a reason to hate you. We have been doing this for just over fifty years now, and we have multiple regions of the globe that know what we have done and they do not appreciate it. Our desire to mingle in the affairs of foreign countries has not impressed those who inhabit those countries.

Of course there is the most troublesome way of ending these American states, at least for Americans themselves. The chances of electing a leader who would use lies and deception to destroy all that is American. An administration that would begin to remove rights from its citizens, black out lines in the Constitution, and flex its muscle. We have seen shades of this today, we have seen it in the past, and we will continue to see it in the future, but it becomes more dangerous every day. In this modern day America where it is better to follow than think and form opinions, this method of destruction becomes all the more likely.

There are also the factors that we continue to ignore regarding our environment and this becomes just as dangerous as any threat we face. Neglecting to right our wrongs done to this planet will send shock waves beyond our borders as it already has. Reaching a point in which the planet is no longer able to support America, reaches a point in which the planet is no longer able to support many countries. When that time comes it does not matter if you’re American, English, French, Russian, Israeli, Saudi or South African. It will not matter then who you pray to, or what color your skin is, nothing will matter at that point.

All that matters, is as an American one takes responsibility, learns about the world in which we live as it is ever getting smaller in this modern era and that one is prepared to face the challenges of the present and future. That is the only way that this country can continue to move forward in the world, and most importantly with the world.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

(Note: This was written, I believe just after the close of the 2005 college football season, amidst speculation that West Virginia University’s head coach was leaving.)

Coach Rodriguez
Should I stay or should I go – That is the question Rich Rodriguez needs to be seriously mulling over in his head right now. There are quite a few reasons to leave, and in my eye not many worth staying. The only big reason Rich has given for wanting to remain at West Virginia University is that he wants to be close to his family. However, Rich spent alot of time out of the state, well away from his family as he was moving up through the coaching ranks.

If Rich wanted to be a head coach and stay instate he was more than covered in that respect when he was at Glenville. During the years he was at Glenville he lead the team to three consecutive WVIAC Championships and they played in the NAIA Championship. Rodriguez was named coach of the year in the WVIAC in 1993 and 1994. He was in state, he was successful, he was supposedly neer his family where he wanted to be.

All was not well for Rich though was it? He wanted more and he could sacrifice his relative location neer his family for more. So at the end of the 1996 season Rich packed his bags and went to join Tommy Bowden’s staff at Tulane. He served under Bowden for two more seasons and then Bowden left for Clemson and offered Rich a spot on the coaching staff there. Now at this point in his career he could have easily taken over the reigns in Tulane but Rich chose to go to Clemson.

It is this moment in history that makes me realize Rich doesn’t want to be second fiddle in the college world as head coach of a Conference USA program. He wants to be at the big schools, he wants to be the top coach at the top school. So, he served as offensive coordinator until 2000 when the announcement was made that Vince Rodriguez’s little boy was finally coming home.

He has now served as head coach for WVU for six years rising up in the ranks of the coaching world and dragging the football program behind him on a sled. I attribute all the success in the world to Rodriguez and believe without him West Virginia fans would be doing the same thing folks in Huntington are doing now, remembering the “good ole days”. However, his system only works when he has the right players, this case being Pat White and Steve Slaton.

I say this because in his first four years leading up to last season he did well, save for the first year, but who took them seriously enough to talk about ranking them then? No one, they finished above .500 and bowled those years but they didn’t do so hot, enter Pat White and Steve Slaton and you can’t turn on the TV without hearing about the Big East.

Ok, but what does this have to do with him leaving to goto another school. Rodriguez isn’t stupid, or other coaches wouldn’t be going to his camps and taking notes. He is going to look at that other school, whichever it may be, and it is a bigger conference, a bigger venue, a bigger market and more importantly a bigger check. Also, you can recruit at will people that will work in your system from the start alot more easily at a bigger school like the ones in the ACC and SEC.

Rodriguez had a choice in 1996, should I stay or should I go, and he left. Why? Because the pay check was bigger. In 1998 the same question came up, but if he were to stay there is a possible coaching job there, again he chose to follow the bigger pay check, and when WVU waived a fat contract in his face he came home to sleep with them.

So Rich Rodriguez, will he stay or will he go? I say he’s dumb if he stays any longer than after next season, but then again he has got to show up for next season to stay longer than that. Ladies and gentlemen, this coach is for sale to the highest bidder, and believe me when I say Alabama has a much bigger wallet than WVU can ever dream of.

Tomorrow Never Knows

(Note: This was written originally just after, or near the finish of the 2006 College Football season.)

So it seems to me that the Bowl Championship Series is about as petty as a high school lunch room these days. You now have coaches using their vote in the final poll to try and swing the result to change up who plays in the championship game and crying wolf about a rematch game.

There are teams at the bottom of the BSC standings that currently have no ranking in either the Harris or USA Today polls. Perhaps it is just my opinion but a team that goes 7-5 anywhere shouldn’t be ranked. Nebraska gets beat by Oklahoma and drops like a bad habbit in the final BCS standings, Boston College finishes 4th in the ACC and is ranked. That not enough for you? UCLA was 6-4 last week and not on anyones mind, they beat USC which wasn’t a major accomplishment given how overrated that team was this year and now they’re in the top 25 BCS rankings.

This whole system is a vicious cycle based on impressing other coaches, which is flawed from the start. The idea that other coaches wouldn’t rank their teams higher if they had the chance is just plain dumb. My suggestion, much like many accross the country is get rid of it.

Here’s what we can do in its place, keep the bowl games because there is so much money tied up in that there’s no way the bowl games are going away. Division I-A football needs a play off, but first lets start from the bottom and get this wobbly idea on stronger legs.

Lets start with getting rid of all the systems of ranking teams, Harris, AP, USA Today, all those polls throw them out. Teams will be ranked based on how they preform if you’re 12-0 it doesn’t matter if you’re Ohio University or Ohio State University you should be ranked the same. Stay with me here and lets keep going, I believe the post-season bowl game is big for schools, its another non-conference game, its a chance to get your name out there more, its good. However, I believe there are too many.

Right now there are something like half of the D-I schools going to a bowl game, so around 30 or so bowl games which needs to be cut back. My suggestion is you give every conference two bowl games, which makes 22 games total. Division I-A Independants don’t get a bowl game, you didn’t pick a conference so don’t cry to me. Although 22 is still a big number, there’s room to cut back more within that. Football conferences like the Big 12, ACC and SEC have two divisions they’re bigger than say the WAC so they deserve a second bowl game, but I can’t see why the WAC would need to bowl more than a single team.

That would effectivly cut the bowl games back to 16, I can live with that. Now onto my playoff system within this bowl series. My idea for the play off is simple, you take your 12 top teams with the best overall record and have a wild card round and three regular playoff rounds. Once you have your top 12 this is where you can argue over who played the harder schedules and such, like normal folks do when it comes to seeding a playoff.

Its not that vast of a concept, its not eliminating the bowl system, 44 teams still have a post season, and for once you will actually have a definitive national champion in D-IA football. Think about it NCAA, think about it.

This American State

(Note: This was written sometime in May before the election had even shaped up half the way it became.)

In less than half a year we will elect the forty-forth President of these United States and that person shall serve the fifty-sixth term of the presidency. We have seen unity and division and world wars, famine and depression, success and failure. Though we have managed to over come all of these things we are now challenged with fear and deception coupled with our current apathy. It is our disinterest in knowledge and politics that has lead the American populous to our current situation and I am not sure if it is something we can overcome.

Plato left us with a quote for just such times, “Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber.” or something to that effect. Then on the day Ronald Reagan was elected we were faced with just such a situation. This of course was reaffirmed by the subsequent elections of Bush, Clinton and Bush. This is not to say President Clinton was anywhere as bad as the Bush clones and Mr. Reagan, but he was no altar boy by any measure.

My point I wish to make here is we have over the past 28 years voted upon impulses and so-called moral values. We vote along party lines and key note speeches, not on knowledge and fact. It is the right of every American to vote, to know and to act upon that knowledge. I see hope today, though the light of it glows very dim and it is too far away for many to grab a hold of.

This time in American history goes beyond Republican and Democrat, it goes beyond gay, straight, black, white or any other things that we have drawn lines across in the past. This period, this election is about being American, it is about restoring our country, it is about eliminating the false threat of fear. 2008, the forty-forth president of the United States of America, the first step forward, a return to what it means to be American, that is what this is all about.

We hide behind words and use them to destroy people’s careers and credibility. We believe the lies because we don’t have any better reason to hate someone. We conjure up any method of fear to discredit any individual with new ideas, or at least those ideas that have been deemed ‘un-American’ by the current occupants of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Eight years ago, there was hope, it was quite dim but it was there. We were moving forward, we were an intelligent country with respect in the world. America was a power in the world with the ear of many leaders. In less than a decade we have fallen, we have brought shame to all generations of Americans past, present and those to follow us, and for what? We have nothing to show for it, nothing to be proud of, apathy has lead us down this path.

I must echo the sentiment that if you are not pissed off you’re not paying attention. Though it is not enough to be pissed off, Americans have the right and the ability to change things through voting. I know it can feel like you do not, I have felt this way myself, but you have to have faith in the system, you have to carry your message, whatever it is I do not care, as long as it is informed and based upon the facts that is the most important thing. Intelligent, informed Americans exercising their given rights as citizens of this country is what matters. Change cannot come from an un-knowledgeable, non-voting populous.