Blind Auditions for Musicians Are Not Only For Blind Musicians

Maybe I could have written the title above better. Allow me to try again...

People Who Can’t See Are Not Excluded From Blind Auditions. Nor Are Blind Auditions Only For People Who Can't See.

Still confused? Read on. It gets less confusing...Or does it?

The original intent of Blind Auditions was to have musicians perform behind a screen to shield their identity. This was done to address the belief that there existed a longstanding exclusion of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color from Orchestras.

Blind auditions were successful in some regards, but the percentage of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Musicians has not risen significantly over the years.

Is it time to rethink blind auditions? Many are stepping up to offer new ways to approach the audition process to create more Diverse, Equitable American Orchestras.

Fella has to tread lightly here because he wants to quibble about the original objective of Blind Auditions. The reason why it has not increased the mix of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color musicians is because the chosen-hidden-behind-the-screens musicians are not not being chosen because they are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color musicians but because the people behind the screen being chosen to play in the orchestras are the people who play best from behind or in front of a screen.

The surest way to increase the number of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Musicians in any orchestra is to not audition anyone behind the screens who are not Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Musicians.

Do we not want to listen to the best music coming at us from in front of the screens? If we do, we need to pick the Musicians who play the best music from behind the screen, so when they come out from behind the screens we will hear the best music.

Time for a Fella Irrefutable Logical Point (which a lot of people will attempt to refute)...

If The Blind Screen Audition Results In the Very Best Musicians Being Selected and They Play The Finest Music Possible and Every One Of Them Looks Exactly Like Albert Einstein On  Bad Hair Day Then That’s the Best Outcome That The People Who Pay Good Money To Attend Symphonies Could Hope For

Ok, start arguing about that.

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If we were to discontinue the Blind Audition and instead set up a Quota System that would openly be intended to increase the number of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Musicians regardless of the playing ability of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color musicians we will definitely get more inferior music coming out of our orchestra pits.

Did you just say, “Ah ha! Fella, you are guilty of believing that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Musicians cannot play as well as White Musicians!”

To that Fella says, “Absolutely not! Take a look at these two bullet points”...

Ø White Musicians will not play as well as they once did because they will not practice as much as they once did because they will know they cannot get a job playing music.

Ø Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Musicians will not play as well as they once did because they will not practice as hard as they once did because they will know they don’t need to be real good to get the job.

It is time you, My Dear Readers, to say, “Fella, that’s a brilliant point. Music in the future is gonna stink!”

Fella will not go that far but he is confident that music of the future will not be as good as it could have been.

See, I told you it would become less confusing and it did...Or did it?

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Hello Grandchild of Mine. Do You Want To Hear Me Drone On About The Old Days Again?

 

Here are a few observations from a Retired Mind which remembers things you probably don’t want to hear about...Or do u?

Ø Did you know that, when I was young, postage stamps did not have glue on their back and (hold your nose) we were required lick them with your glossa? (Google It) We had no idea what yucky stuff was lurking back there.

Ø When away from home we had to go into a phone booth to make a phone call. These phone booths were the same places that some people often used for urination.

Ø Since Steve Jobs had yet to be invented to invent the Cell Phone, we had to go into those smelly Phone Booths to make phone calls but now cars are Phone Booths and we hardly ever urinate in them. That’s progress.

Ø Since the Button had yet to be invented, we had to reach up and pull down the lift gate on the back of our SUVs to close them.

Ø Since the cell phone had yet to be invented, we had to drive with both hands on the steering wheel.

Ø We did not have little self-sticking return address stickers with pictures of cute little doggies on them for our envelopes. We had to write in the Return Addresses by hand. This was a tremendous time waster.

Ø Because the Flicker had yet to be invented, we actually had to get up out of our chairs and walk all the way across the TV Room (which had just been invented) to change TV Channels.

Ø You are going to find this one really hard to believe...The Electronic Key Fob had yet to be invented and we actually carried around Medal Keys to stick in our car doors just to get into our cars. What a pain that was!

Ø The manufacturers of Luxury Cars love this one...It appears Car Thieves are having a field day by electronically hacking into cars and driving them away all over the Fruited Plain. I have been noticing that the number of luxury cars on the road has multiplied a whole bunch. The thieves are driving their stolen cars all over everywhere and the Luxury Cars Manufacturers are selling new Luxury Cars to the rich people who had their cars hacked and driven away and they are driving their Replacement Luxury Cars all over everywhere.

>If you search something like “thieves hacking key fobs” you can read reports about this happening all over the Good Ole USofA.

>Here is just one... https://duckduckgo.com/?t=piriform&q=thieves+hacking+automobile+key+fobs&iax=videos&ia=videos&iai=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dxk_fTTlGcMA

>Here is where you can buy protection... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=protect+key+fob+from+hacking&t=piriform&ia=web 

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Lagniappe: This message from Amazon sounds very important but actually it proves that a computer does not know the difference between a Significant Price Change and a Teenie Weenie Price Change...

Important messages about items in your Cart:

1 item in your Saved Items has changed price.

Items in your Shopping Cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages.

• Ikea Bevara Bag Sealing Clips 30 Pack has decreased from $6.90 to $6.89

It’s Going To Happen But Can’t We Be Smart About It?

Took a Smiley Face out on 9/1/22 cuz it appeared in the posting as a triangle with an exclamation point in it & when re-published it became published 9/1/22 & not the real date of 5/2/13.

Supporters say the Internet Sales Tax Bill is about fairness for businesses and lost revenue for cities and states.

Yes, that’s the Good Ole USofA today ... We are all about Fairness and Revenue.

As much as I wish Congress were not going to start taxing Internet Sales, it is going to become the law of the land. I am resigned to that fact because it means Increased Tax Income to several levels of government and there appears to be no stopping our various governments once they see the possibility of getting more money out of us.

What I am about to convey to you in this Blog Posting is not straight out of my usually foolish head. I will be parroting an article in the Wall Street Journal by a John Donahoe on April 23, 2013. Mr. Donahoe opened my eyes about this issue maybe I can do the same for you.

I have no such hope that Congress will open its eyes like I did. They are too obsessed with “fairness”. In their way of thinking, it is not fair that Mom & Pop Stores on Main Street have to collect taxes but that evil Internet Stores up in the clouds do not have to collect taxes. This results in Evil Internet Stores having an unfair sales price advantage over Main Street Mom & Pop Stores and that is not fair.

If we really want to level the playing field, what they ought to do is require that Mom & Pop Main Street Stores charge for shipping like Evil Internet Store have to charge to get their product to you. When you protest, “Why should I have to pay shipping when you did not have to ship?” You can be told, “It’s only fair.”

The first new fact I saw after Mr. Donahoe started opening my eyes was that Mom & Pop also reside on the Internet. Actually there is a GigaTon of such small stores on the Internet. Mr. Donahoe has this to say...

• Today small businesses that operate online are responsible for collecting sales taxes on purchases made in the state where they are located. That is fair. But the proposed bill would require them to collect sales taxes on behalf of every state where they make a sale. That would make it difficult, if not impossible, for them to succeed.
• Mr. Donahoe says small businesses with fewer than 50 employees or with less than $10 million in annual out-of-state sales should be exempt from the chore of collecting sales taxes nationwide. This is a reasonable exemption, equivalent to other federal standards, such as those set by the Affordable Care Act.
• This bill, as it now stands, could put entrepreneurs like Colleen Rast out of business. Colleen and her three employees run all of their business operations out of a small office in Kalispell, Mont. Although her apparel-sales business is located in a state without sales taxes, the Marketplace Fairness Act currently under consideration would require Colleen to track and comply with the tax laws of more than 9,600 tax jurisdictions across the U.S. It would create costly paperwork and accounting burdens and subject her to potential audits and litigation from tax collectors in states that could be thousands of miles away from where she lives and works.

I am responsible for the bolding in the above bullet. Don’t you think it was a very appropriate place to put in bolding?

• The $10 million exemption would protect businesses like Colleen's. To put the exemption in perspective, Amazon makes more than $10 million in sales every 90 minutes. This would be a reasonable exemption that recognizes that small businesses are vastly different from the nation's billion-dollar retailers. These are very small startups, mom-and-pops and entrepreneurs whose businesses and cost structures are nothing like billion-dollar retailers. They should not face the same tax-collection burdens.
• This isn't a debate pitting Internet Store Sales against Main Street Store Sales. This is actually about big retailers, like Amazon, trying to undermine small online businesses. Amazon supports the bill, while at the same time it negotiates local tax exemptions across the country where it builds warehouses. Small businesses don't have that kind of bargaining power.

Do you think Big Businesses like an Amazon would be sad if their many small competitors went out of business? The Smartfella does not think they would shed a single tear if their competitors were reduced in number.

The late Paul Harvey just came in and asked me to tell you the Rest of the Story. Mr. Donahoe is the president and CEO of eBay Inc. This means he has a vested interest in seeing Mom & Pop Small Internet Businesses survive.

That being said, it is up to us to make up our own minds. The Smartfella believes that asking small businesses to comply with 9,600 Tax Jurisdictions is asking too much and (are you ready for this?) is Unfair!

This posting is so serious that as I was writing it I sometimes became confused that it was really me. I kept saying to myself, “Self, this isn’t Foolishness!” Can you ever forgive me? I’ll get back on track next time. 

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

More: If you want to read all of what Mr. Donahoe had to say, click here... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323735604578438643723029594.html

LiveJournal Tags: Internet Sales Tax,Marketplace Fairness Tax,John Donahoe

I Did Not Write These Words...But I Wish I Had

 

I believe in American exceptionalism.  I can’t understand why any clear-thinking citizen of this great country could possibly disagree with any of what was written below by Mr. Anonymous...

Ø America pioneered Representative Government guided by a Written Constitution.

Ø We fought a war with 620,000 dead to End Slavery.

Ø We defeated Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.

Ø We liberated the Death Camps.

Ø Twice We saved Europe from Tyranny in the 20th Century.

Ø After World War 2 with American Investment, Innovation, Resourcefulness and Generosity, we Rebuilt the Economies of 17 Nations of Europe and the Nation of Japan.

Ø Our arms Kept Communism from Conquering the World.

Ø Our factories and workshops produced a flood of Inventions and Products that Benefited Humanity.

Ø We built the Greatest Most Respected Medical System on Earth.

Ø We earned Ten Times More Nobel Prizes in Medicine than Any Other Nation on Earth!  

What country has done as much - especially in only 246 years, a relative hiccup in time?

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Lagniappe: Did I hear someone say, “Yea, but...”?

Dogs in Motels Used To Be a No-No

I know many of you are going to get angry at me for saying this but Dogs Should Not Be Allowed Into Motel Rooms.

This is from my own recent Motel Experience...

Ø I walked into the Motel Lobby and saw several dogs. Most were barking but only one of them was urinating.

Ø I was behind a Person Checking In With His Dog and overheard the Check-In Clerk Person tell Person Checking In With His Dog that they would love to have his dog As A Guest.

Ø He said the up-charge for the dog guest would be only $10.

Ø The Person Checking In With His Dog said he would pay the exorbitant up-charge but he would be writing a letter to his congressman as soon as he got home about this blatant rip-off charge levied against a Member of His Family.

Ø The Check-In Clerk Person kept smiling as he informed the Dog Person that the motel was computerized and every time his dog barked after 10pm there would be a $5 Dog Disturbance Charge placed on his bill.

Ø The Person Checking In With His Dog went berserk and started shouting something about Dog Discrimination and saying he was not going to wait till he got home to write a letter to his congressman but he would be texting his congressman as soon as he got into his room.

Ø The dog was looking at his shouting caretaker with great pride. I have the ability to read dog minds and this Fido was thinking, “You go get him caretaker! Sic ‘em!”

Ø During the night I heard several dogs barking outside my not-sound-proof room door and I thought to my groggy self, “This hotel is making a fortune in Dog Up-Charges!”

Ø The next morning I stepped in a Doggie Deposit as I made to turn into where they keep the elevators. There was Person Checking In With His Dog from yesterday and his dog. I said, “Did your dog do that?” The Person Checking In With His Dog defiantly responded, “It’s not Rufus’ fault. This rip-off not-dog-friendly motel does not have any of those plastic bag dispensers in the hallways every 20 feet like the Waldorf Astoria does!”

All of this made me certain that the factory that used to manufacture “No Dogs Allowed” signs would not be re-opening anytime soon.

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

2020 Census Mistakes...Or were they?

If you can't trust the Census Bureau, who can you trust?

This is a terrible injustice to the people in the states that were undercounted:

• The Electoral College is Misconfigured for the rest of this decade.
• Representation in Congress is Not Correct for the rest of this decade.
• Billions in Federal Funding is Going to the Wrong Places for the rest of this decade.

Excerpts from the Shocking Report about all of this (1^st 4 paragraphs & 12^th paragraph):

• In a shocking report, the U.S. Census Bureau recently admitted that it overcounted the populations of eight states and undercounted the populations of six states in the 2020 census.
• All but one of the states overcounted is a blue state, and all but one of the undercounted states is red.
• Those costly errors will distort congressional representation and the Electoral College. It means that when the Census Bureau reapportioned the House of Representatives, Florida was cheated out of two additional seats it should have gotten; Texas missed out on another seat; Minnesota and Rhode Island each kept a representative they shouldn’t have; and Colorado was awarded a new member of the House it didn’t deserve.
• These harmful errors also mean billions in federal funds will be misallocated. Funding for many federal programs is distributed to the states based on population. Overcounted states will now receive a larger share of federal funds than they are entitled to, at the expense of the undercounted states.
• Unfortunately, the federal statutes governing the census and apportionment provide no remedy to correct this problem.

To read the whole article click here...https://www.dailysignal.com/2022/08/18/census-errors-will-distort-elections-funding-for-next-decade/

Would they kid us?

Smartfella

How to Get Rich in the Good Ole USofA (Or Anywhere Else)

Come up with an idea that promises to Make People...

• Rich
• Better Looking
• Healthier

Come up with a TV Commercial where your Spokesman is...

• An Imitation or a Real Doctor (The most important thing is that he wears a white coat when he speaks his prepared-for-him­-by-someone-smarter-than-he-is lines as if he knows of which he speaks)
• A Sports “Hero”
• A Celebrity

Come up with Believable Evidence that what you are selling is true...

• Fake Believable Evidence is a perfectly good substitute for Fact Based Believable Evidence as long as it sounds Believable.

This Blog Posting will talk about getting Rich.

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For years now we have been seeing a TV Commercial that has been making a fortune for the people putting on a TV Commercial that is unbelievably unbelievable but people still believe it. Not a quote but this is what the Commercial pitches to us...

If You Buy Silver From Us, And If Silver Returns To Its All-Time High, You Are Gonna Be Rich

Here it is “proof” from one of their experts:

Silver has been known to experience Massive Price Swings. I expect Silver to reach $300 an ounce. 

Fella Question of the Day...If you buy their Silver you are going to be rich. If that is true, why don’t the selling people who already own the Silver now just keep it, and then when it goes past its $300 an ounce, they will be rich instead of you being rich?

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

 

My Local Park Forgot Something...Or did they?

A County Park near where I live thinks life is Simple but they forgot something that is important, or should I say, Used To Be Important?

They forgot Work!

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

After Sending $312 Million We Are Down To One of Two Possible Reasons for the Heat Out There

A Gaggle of Scientists have been researching this troubling issue for the last 12 years. Thank heaven our Congress, which never runs out of money, saw the importance of coming to an understanding about why in recent years it has been so hot in the Good Ole USofA. Congress gave the Scientific Gaggle a Federal Grant of $312 Million to figure it all out.

After 7 years of research Congress got anxious for results and called a hearing about why the research was taking so long. The hearing came to a surprising conclusion when the First Testifying Scientist told the First Questioning Senator that the research was going to take another 5 years or a total of 12 years.

The Senator’s eyes became as big a baseballs and he leaned forward in his very plush chair and he said, “Just because you are a spitting image of Albert Einstein you should not for a second think you are going to get away with throwing a 12 year completion date around like that as if you were not talking to intelligent people. Be advised the members of this committee are smart people because, if we were not smart, the citizens of this great country would not have elected us to represent them”.

The First Testifying Scientist was not intimidated in the least and he shot back at the First Questioning Senator, “Don’t you get all high and might with me, First Questioning Senator, it is the fault of Congress that we are required to take 12 years to complete this project. The fact that Congress gave us $312 Million means we must take 12 Years to complete our research. If we had been given $306 Million we would have wrapped it all up last year. Be glad Congress did not give us $349 Million because that would have meant that our Task Completion Goal would have been 49 Years”.

The Einstein looking guy did not let up, “We have been under the gun to wrap up this project because we were coming to the end of our required 12 years of research last week. We were in our big palatial conference room having narrowed the possible conclusions for these high temperatures down to Global Warming or Climate Change. We were about to flip our Scientific Coin to pick one of the 2 when the janitor who was emptying our trash cans overheard our 2 choices and he said, ‘It could be hot out there because it is August’.

Immediately that sent a shock through the Scientific Gaggle and we stopped working on conclusion paperwork and began working on a proposal to ask Congress for another Federal Research Grant in order to really drill down deep into this mystery. We all were aware of the need for urgency in this matter, so when you see our submitted proposal I’m sure you will appreciate the fact that this time we only asked for $311 Million”. 

That having been said, the Committee Chairman adjoined the Hearing and went to Happy Hour early but not before telling the members that they will reconvene in 11 years.

This is why the other 3 Einsteins did not get to testify.

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Lagniappe: Further proof that the committee members were not smart...

Ø The Testifying Scientist looked like Albert Einstein because he was wearing white going-in-all-directions wig and a very big white mustache that he had bought from a Dollar Store.

Ø The other 3 members of the Scientific Testifying Panel (who never got to testify) also had been to the Dollar Store and they also looked exactly like Albert Einstein.

Ø When the 4 man Scientific Testifying Panel was seating themselves at the beginning of the hearing a Congressional Committee Member leaned over and said to his adjoining Congressional Committee Member, “I thought Albert Einstein was dead”.

Ø The adjoining Congressional Committee Member responded, “Me too but, more importantly, I never knew Albert Einstein was 4 people”.

Remember, “Be advised the members of this committee are smart people because, if we were not smart, the citizens of this great country would not have elected us to represent them”.

 

You (WHO) Gotta Be Kidding...No You (WHO) Ain’t

This Blog Posting is a result of the ongoing confusion coming out of the World Health Organization (WHO). Specifically I am referring to a News Article explaining (or does it?) why WHO is re-naming Monkeypox to something other than Monkeypox. Fella will not try and explain the News Article to you because he can’t understand enough of it to explain it to you or he is too busy laughing or he is too busy scratching his head over it.

Here is a short excerpt from the News Article. The excerpt may be all you need to read to know that you don’t want to read the whole article. On the other hand, it may wet you appetite for Foolishness, and if it does, go right ahead and “educate” yourself.

The Excerpt:

"Current best practice is that newly-identified viruses, related diseases and virus variants should be given names with the aim to avoid causing offence to any cultural, social, national, regional, professional, or ethnic groups, and minimise any negative impact on trade, travel, tourism or animal welfare". 

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Did you do a double take when you read the words, "Animal Welfare"? Did you understand the use of or did you start laughing or did you scratch your head when you read these 2 words? I assume WHO is talking about Monkey Welfare. Just how are Monkeys harmed if some not-sensitive bozo says "Monkeypox" while sitting in a barber chair in Toledo? 

I have thought about this and my thinking came up with these possibilities (notice I did not say "Distinct Possibilities")...

• Will people get so irate at Monkeys that they will start signing up for Safaris to Africa to go shoot them?
  
• Will children on zoo visits start booing monkeys instead of laughing as they always have when the Monkeys perform one of their time-tested tricks in the Monkey Enclosure?
• Will Hollywood start scrubbing the image of Cheeta out of Tarzan reruns on TV. This is really going to be strange when we see Tarzan and Jane looking down a screen smudge where Cheeta used to be and talking to and laughing at the smudge.

Cheeta was treated well after his movie making career was over. Around 1960, after living on Johnny Weissmuller’s estate, Cheeta retired to Suncoast Primate Sanctuary in Palm Harbor, Fla. While at the sanctuary, Cheeta enjoyed watching sports on television, listening to nondenominational Christian music and occasionally throwing poop when he was feeling disgruntled.

Actress Mia Farrow, whose mother, Maureen O’Sullivan, starred as Jane in the Tarzan films, took to Twitter to remember the animal when he died. She tweeted, “Cheeta the chimp in Tarzan movies died this week at 80. My mom, who played Jane, invariably referred to Cheeta as ‘that bastard’.”

If the public had turned against Monkey Welfare would Cheeta have been denied his Royal Retirement Treatment and simply been turned loose into the Homeless Encampment Streets of Portland or San Francisco or Los Angeles to fend for himself? 

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Here is the link to the news article:

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/why-are-they-changing-the-name-for-monkeypox-whats-the-origin-of-the-name/ar-AA10Hys4

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If WHO really does want us to know what it is they say we should worry about, Fella recommends that it should dictate that after every time their new name for Monkey Pox is written out these words should be required to be added...“Formerly Known As Monkeypox”.

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Lagniappe: One thing I did learn from all of this is not everyone spells “minimize” with a “z”.

 

 

I Think Differently

Since I do think differently, you will never see a Senator Fella in political office.

The other day I heard a U.S. Senator say on CSPAN...

“When I was a governor I asked, what is the revenue of this income source or that income source? Once I knew that, I knew what our spending limit was.”

What does Fella think about what this Ex-Governor thinks? He thinks this Ex-Governor is characteristic of too many politicians (all politicians after they have been in office for 5 to 6 weeks?). They think they were sent to Congress to Spend It All.

It is as if Al Gore had gotten rid of all rainy days, therefore, our politicians do not see the need to save any money for a rainy day. Since Al did what he did, politicians see no need to put any revenue into one of those Lock Boxes ole Al used to talk about.

We are surrounded by politicians who whole heartedly believe in the large sign Senator Snidely Whiplash had printed up and hung over the bar at Happy Hour which reads...

We must spend it all as fast as we can and, if we get lucky, some of it might end up being spent on something that might do some good, but if that does not happen, at least we will have the satisfaction of knowing We Spent It All.

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

 

Fella Question of the Day for Today

The Thirty Years' War from 1618 to 1648 was one of the most destructive wars in European History. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a direct result, while some areas of Germany experienced extreme and repeated population declines.

After 25 years the various combatants were looking for a way out of the killing, destruction and/or the cost of the war. Also they may have started to run out of gunpowder, rifle balls, clubs, spears or hobnailed boots (for stomping the enemy into bloody pulps). They started negotiating an end of it all. However even the peace negotiations were difficult. “Difficult” is probably not an adequate word to describe the negotiations considering the fact that the negotiating lasted 5 years and the fighting continued while the negotiations were going on. The fact that one side or the other were winning or losing at any particular time in the negotiations would change their willingness to concede anything about anything or prompt them to increase their demands at the negotiation table.

Fella’s Question of the Day: Do you think Pope Innocent X had strong feelings about the Peace of Westphalia?

The Treaty that ended the 30 Years War was the Treaty of Westphalia sometimes called the Peace of Westphalia. The treaty also effectively ended the Pope's pan-European political power. Fully aware of the loss, Pope Innocent X declared the treaty, "null, void, invalid, iniquitous, unjust, damnable, reprobate, inane, empty of meaning and effect for all times".

Fighting being over for the day it is time to relax and enjoy some Hang Time with the guys...

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Smartphones Make Your Life Better...Or do they?

This Blog Posting will attempt to lay out for you some of the reasons why God called Steve Jobs off of his cloud and sent him somewhere else.

In many ways Smartphones have made our lives more difficult to live...

Ø Many of us feel a dramatic need to always be connected. 

Ø Many of us are compulsively checking our phones multiple times every hour.

Ø We are so obsessed with our phones 63% of us sleep with our phones in or next to our beds.

Ø This percent jumps to 73 percent among Millennials.

Ø Notifications are a constant source of interruption and tension.

Ø 28% of us feel annoyed when a notification goes off.

Ø 22% of us get anxious when a notification comes out of their phones.

Ø Still 65% of us say smartphones have made their quality of life better.  

Ø 42% of us would still prefer to communicate in-person but they don’t.

Ø 21% of us choose texting as the next best way to connect.

Ø 16% of us would prefer picking up the phone to communicate but they don’t.

Ø 51% (67% of Millennials) are convinced they could not live without their Smartphones.

Ø 27% percent feel worse about themselves after spending time on social media.

Ø Most young people see social media as a time-suck.

Ø 59% think that the Federal Government ought to make it all better by passing regulations. Can you say Pandora’s Box?

Wherever he is, I wonder if Steve Jobs is sorry for what he has done to us.

Fella Opinion: We should not blame Steve. He only created this modern marvel for us but he did not force us to take off running with it and, don't kid yourself, we are running down hill.

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

 

Here Is A Story about A Record That Never Was But It Almost Was and If It Was It Would Be Unbreakable

Some of you don’t care about Football and because you don’t care about Football you may be tempted to not read this Blog Posting but if you are intrigued by What If’s read on because this is a Great What If.

This Blog Posting is about a Football Touchdown Passing Record that could have been, and if it had been, it would be Unbreakable because it would be Unbreakable.

First, let’s talk about the record that is not a What If Record but an Actual Existing Record.

Drew Brees holds the NFL record (54 games) for consecutive games with at least one touchdown pass. He set the record on October 7, 2012, when he surpassed the streak of 47 consecutive games by Johnny Unitas which had stood since December 11, 1960. Yes, Unitas had held the record for nearly 52 years after surpassing Cecil Isbell's streak of 23, which had been established as the record in 1942. Brees' record streak ended on Thursday November 29, 2012.

Tom Brady, at 52 games, is in 2^nd place. Brady was in 2^nd place to several Brees’ records (Brady was drafted 1 year before Brees). Now that Brees has retired and Brady is still playing that is changing.

Here are some interesting facts about the game where Drew Brees came up short which is something that did not happen to him very often...

Ø Brees almost had it to 55 games in a row late in the second quarter.

Ø He connected with Darren Sproles for a touchdown pass that would have pulled the Saints within three points at the half.

Ø Instead, tight end Jimmy Graham drew a penalty for offensive pass interference that negated that touchdown.

Ø Lance Moore was known as a Sure Handed Receiver.

Ø Moore had a very good game that day (7 receptions for 123 yards with the ball being thrown to him 11 times).

Ø Moore led all Saints in receiving that game.

Ø Moore’s 123 receiving yards was a season-high and just his third 100-yard game of the season. 

Ø  In the 4^th quarter Moore was wide open and uncovered when Brees threw him a short pass for what looked to be a sure touchdown but Moore Dropped the Ball!

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That’s the end of the Record that is the Record. Now I am going to tell you about the Record that isn’t a Record...

Ø The next game that the Saints played Drew Brees started a New Completion Streak.

Ø This streak lasted from December 9, 2012 through November 29, 2015.

Ø I save you the trouble of trying to figure out how many games that was...This streak was 45 games!

The bottom line is, if Sure Handed Lance Moore had not dropped that short pass in the end zone while he was uncovered, Brees’ Consecutive Regular Season Games with a Touchdown Pass Record would be 55 Games plus 45 Games or an Even 100 Games!

Now do you understand why I said above that Drew Brees would be holding a record that would be acknowledged as an Unbreakable Record for the very good reason that it would be an Unbreakable Record!

Where is Tom Brady in all of this? He is still in second place at 52 Games.

If you are one that has no interest in Football, Football Records, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, the NFL or even Johnny Unitas, I am sorry you read this Blog Posting. Go back to the top of this Blog Posting and not read what you just read and that will make it all better and save you a lot of time...Or will it?

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

 

I’m Not Smart Enough!

 

I just read a news article that convinced me that I am not smart enough to understand what the heck Congress is doing. I don’t feel too badly about my admission of Not Smartness because I am also convinced that most members of Congress are not smart enough to know what most members of Congress are doing either.

Here is the News Article that caused my most recent consternation. If you do read it, I caution you that Confusion Will Result...

Seven Dems vote for GOP amendment, forcing Democratic scramble (msn.com)

If You Took the Time to Read This Foolishness, did you understand what you read?

If You Did Not Take the Time to Read This Foolishness, that may be Time Well Not Spent.

************

An alternative course of action would be to FaGetAboutAllOfTheAbove and read my very old Blog Posting about Congressional Smarts (first published in January 2010). I guarantee it is a lot more fun than the News Article above...

Too Many Members Of Congress Can’t Handle Numbers

Lots of numbers are being thrown around our 9% Approval Rating Congress these days. I watched in amazement recently on CSPAN as one of our elected "leaders" said the following …

"My good friend from the other side of the aisle has just voiced strong opposition to my proposal to spend $10 Billion to convert all states that are using Paper Ballots to Electronic Voting Machines and to convert all states who are using Electronic Voting Machines to Paper Ballots. I continue to be amazed at the short sightedness of the Opposition Party and their ongoing inability to handle basic arithmetic with regard to a mere $10 Billion price tag."

"I am sure that the folks back home have no problem with spending $10 Billion for such a worthy project. They understand that 10 is not a big number. 11 is bigger than 10 and so is 12. If I were asking for 18, that ought to give pause to the taxpayers as to how their money is being spent but 10 is only 10.  It is hardly more than 9."

"Beam me up Lord. I can no longer stand being around these penny-pinchers who are not smarter than a 5th grader."

Ok, I admit I made up all of the above … or did I?

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

 

This Just Does Not Make Sense!

I once lived high up on a mountain in a log cabin 8 miles from Dahlonega, GA and 8 miles from Cleveland, GA. That’s where I learned that Scorpions were not so bad because we had Scorpions inside the cabin but we did not have Roaches. I speculated that the Scorpions must have been eating the Roaches and I really don’t like Roaches so I thanked God for the Scorpions each night as I got down on my knees to pray (after I made sure I was not about to kneel near a Scorpion).

When one lives out in nature one’s mind can wander and here is where my mind wandered...

Ø This was about the time when the news shows started really warning us about China.

Ø We were told that China was our enemy because it wanted to do real mean things to us like: kill us all, blow us all up, invade us and take away our smartphones.

Ø My wandering mind wandered all around these issues and it stumbled into this line of thinking...
>Cleveland, Georgia and Dahlonega, Georgia were very close to each other (still are).
>One day the mayor of Cleveland called his City Council together for a meeting at which he laid out this proposed plan of action...
>>Cleveland gets 75% of its retail business activity from the people who live in Dahlonega.
>>He said he was not sure why Dahlonegans were so infatuated with coming to Cleveland to shop but Cleveland’s Chamber of Commerce has shown him the statistics which documented that this had been the case for the last 20 years.
>>He then proposed to the Council that Cleveland set up its Guided Missile Battalion tonight and first thing in the morning send enough Ballistic Missiles to Dahlonega to wipe Dahlonega off the face of the Earth.

Having heard the Mayor’s Plan of Action the Council held a short discussion and voted 100% to approve what he had proposed.

Do you get my drift? Why would Clevelandites want to kill all the people who are contributing so much to Cleveland’s Economy?

It is not a quantum leap to then ask why does China want to be so mean to the Good Ole USofA a country which is contributing so much to the Economy of the People’s Republic of China.

Time for the Yea’s...

Ø Yea I know this is Silly.

Ø Yea I know it is Foolishness.

Ø Yea I know I don’t know what I am talking about...again.

As Silly and Foolish as this Blog Posting is, can any one of you explain to me why it is not Mind Wandering Worthy?

Would I kid u?

Smartfella

Lagniappe: Isn’t it strange how Communists Countries insist on naming themselves as if they were not Communists Countries...

Ø China ... People ’s Republic of China

Ø Soviet Union ... Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Ø East Germany ... The German Democratic Republic