Real Kato Comments

Comment on 'It's Just (a) Lunch (Scam)' by Shannon (Guest)

Shannon (Guest) — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 20:24:56 -0700

Hello, all. I'm just now living a similar experience with IJL in DC. In the past year, I have had two dates - yes, two dates. Two others I was supposed to go out with have canceled on more than one occasion. I am a professional African American in Washington, DC - Chocolate city! And still, two dates in twelve months. I am writing my letter to the corporate office now. I know I won't get my money back, but I will continue to spread the word of their incompetence.

Thanks for allowing me to vent!!!

Comment on 'Controversy 1: Gay Marriage' by Jen (Guest)

Jen (Guest) — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 16:21:11 -0700

I went to my childhood church in Ann Arbor today with my parents and my children. This was in the bulletin:

"As congregants of the First United Methodist Church of Ann Arbor, we welcome and affirm all persons. We are intentional in being inclusive of those of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender orientations, all genders, ethnicities, and abilities."

This is on the church's website about inclusiveness:

"The word "homosexuality" was not coined until the late 1800s so it does not appear in a rightly interpreted translation of the Bible. As readers of the Bible, we must rely on the translations of Biblical scholars for their understanding of what Scriptures mean. Scripture does not speak to loving, committed homosexual relationships. And Jesus did not say anything about homosexuality.

Perhaps what we need to keep in mind is that Jesus' message overwhelmingly encourages us to love our neighbor, be humble, avoid being judgmental, and to care for people who are hurting and marginalized by society."

Also, I'm not at all surprised that you spent so much time on this. Sounds like something I would do if I felt like I had the readership to make a difference (and a public blog) (and people reading it who were not already in agreement with me on this issue).

In other news, Huron Players' reunion on June 6th, 2009. Are you coming? Someone else is planning it!

Comment on 'Las Vegas 2008' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:23:31 -0700

I love the photo of you all! Takes me back...

Comment on 'Las Vegas 2008' by Ken

Ken — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:14:49 -0700

No catch, just someone being friendly! I did check my pockets afterward, though.

Comment on 'Las Vegas 2008' by Phil

Phil — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 12:29:57 -0700

At first I thought the guy in the orange tee looked a little old to be one of your crew...

Yay for the Free Hugs woman. Was there any catch, or is she just another nice person surfing a great idea?

Your observation about the sweetspot was very nice.

Comment on 'Tables Turned' by crouchinghamster

crouchinghamster — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 23:32:57 -0700

Well said!

Comment on 'Tables Turned' by Phil

Phil — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 11:54:34 -0700

"One thing I really want to point out: During the Bush years, Republicans urged everyone to stand behind the President, because to do otherwise would embolden our enemies, especially during wartime. And standing behind the President meant agreeing to every policy decision he made, without question."

Awesome reminder.

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 00:19:09 -0700

I just saw Oprah crying. And then I saw Jesse Jackson crying. I hope everyone understands, as they seem to, what a historic moment this is.

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 00:16:51 -0700

I just got chills listening to the acceptance speech.

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 23:46:24 -0700

Obama takes the West Coast, and Florida. North Carolina and Indiana are still up for grabs. But it doesn't matter any more. McCain has (graciously) conceded, and our long national nightmare is finally at an end. We have a new President. The world has just become a better place. It's not the Democrats who won tonight; it's all of America and all the world.

I have to wonder, though... when Democrats lost in 2004, we all threatened to move to Canada. Where would Republicans go?

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Jenn (Guest)

Jenn (Guest) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 23:07:23 -0700

WooooO!

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 23:02:37 -0700

it's done it's done it's done

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 22:50:18 -0700

Obama is over 200, and California hasn't been called. At this point, the only question should be the margin of victory.

Now, why is there a virtual black person on CNN? "Help me Obi-wan, you're my only hope."

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 22:10:34 -0700

They sure are taking their time calling the other swing states...

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:33:49 -0700

Amy's comment: this is like a pregnancy test; we pee on the election and hope it turns blue.

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:28:10 -0700

Mitch McConnell wins his Senate seat back; that may end the Democrats' chances of taking 60 Senate seats.

But oh! Obama takes Ohio! Whooo!

Comment on 'Live Blog' by Ken

Ken — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:14:56 -0700

Shaheen takes Sununu's Senate seat. McCain holds Georgia and North Dakota.

Comment on 'Voted' by Jon

Jon — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 12:50:45 -0700

Wow...can you do that? Take a picture of your ballot? We had the no cell phone use, etc. rule at our precinct.

If it makes you feel better, I think Tina Fey said she wouldn't have continued even if McCain/Palin win. It made for very long days coupled with her 30 Rock commitments.

Comment on 'And By the Way' by Jenn (Guest)

Jenn (Guest) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 22:16:07 -0700

After this is over, I never, ever want to hear the word "maverick" again. Can we remove it from the English language altogether?

Comment on 'Vote' by Monty (Guest)

Monty (Guest) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 04:21:19 -0700

Regardless of who you vote for, this maverick reaches across the isle for change....and cuteness:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HGp8vqX0rw

Comment on 'Vote' by Monty (Guest)

Monty (Guest) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:31:23 -0700

Your headline reminded me of this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKueV7_eXA0

Comment on 'Vote' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 09:29:34 -0700

Interesting that some of these actors are Canadian. But, whatever!

Comment on 'The State of Michigan Football' by Jon

Jon — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 11:28:50 -0700

If you switch allegiances, I'm never coming back here again.

Go Blue!!!

Comment on 'Election News' by Jon

Jon — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:34:41 -0700

Can someone please tell me why Rush Limbaugh is still allowed to exist? I have seen first hand (unfortunately from visiting my parents) how his rhetoric gets taken for biblical fact by too many people. How does he get away with saying things like that?

Comment on 'Obama-McCain Debate #3' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 14:25:34 -0700

Ken, I assume you saw the "McCain walking off stage" photo right? The moment he was told he was going in the wrong direction?

Comment on 'Literal Version of "Take On Me"' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 14:15:55 -0700

The guy even hits that totally gay falsetto high note spot on!

Comment on 'Literal Version of "Take On Me"' by Cori (Guest)

Cori (Guest) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 15:10:38 -0700

Fantastic! I've listened to this over and over now.

Comment on 'Albatross' by john C (Guest)

john C (Guest) — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 21:51:03 -0700

Congrats on the sale is this craptacular market. But please, is this the young man who used to enjoying making cool patterns in his parents yard with the mower?

Comment on 'Albatross' by crouchinghamster

crouchinghamster — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 19:54:30 -0700

Congratulations! I felt a huge sense of relief reading your post. Ahhh.

Comment on 'Albatross' by baketown

baketown — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 15:36:15 -0700

Congrats on the sale. If you were in Bakersfield you'd probably still have it on the market. It's bad here.

Comment on 'College Football Recap' by Jon

Jon — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:07:01 -0700

First of all, I appreciate you not rehashing the craptacular trip to South Bend. I was getting tired of telling people "If you take away the turnovers and look at the stats, it looks like a Michigan win." But of course, under better circumstances, I'm more than willing to tell other people at times (Spartys, Leprechauns, Buckeyes) that the turnovers happen and you can't take them away. The shoe's on the other hand now...

Of course, there was much dismay in seeing that it looked like there had been no practice in the two weeks since the ND game. It also seemed to indicate just how bad ND must be if we could rack up that many yards with our offense. At least that was the thought I used to comfort myself while on the floor in the fetal position sucking my thumb after yet another turnover/3 and out.

I will never say that I've never WANTED to stop watching a Michigan game. But I will say that I never HAVE stopped watching. Over my tenure as a Wolverine fan, I've seen us lay some serious eggs in the first half, only to come roaring back in the second half. 1995 Virginia game, 1997 Iowa and 1998 (I think) Minnesota to name a few. Of course, I've also seen the opposite where we've blown the game in the 2nd. 1988 Miami(Fl) remains the pinnacle to me.

The point being, there is always something in the back of my head that says "We can come back," no matter what the odds are, or what the logical side of my brain says. Saturday, it was actually right. And it proves that when the offense settles down and executes properly, good things happen. After all, the whole point of Coach Rod's spread offense was to give an overmatched/undertalented team a fighting chance in any game. And with the youth we have on offense, we are definitely the "overmatched team" this year.

I had something else to add, but now I've forgotten. Probably just as well since I'm typing way too much for a comment.

Comment on 'Obama-McCain Debate #1' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:42:23 -0700

I'm sad to say that when ever McCain licked his lips he looked like a pointy tongued lizard. Not that this should matter, I'm just sayin'.

Comment on 'Insert Your Own Joke' by Brett (Guest)

Brett (Guest) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 19:43:38 -0700

Did Obama actually refer to himself as "an old fish"?? :)

But enough seriousness, time for the big finale joke....

Ummm....What's the difference between a human erection and a pitbull's erection...?

Lipstick.

(Because dog boners look like lipstick)

Comment on 'Insert Your Own Joke' by baketown

baketown — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 16:27:46 -0700

I dunno Ken. Those are hard to beat.

Comment on 'College Football Recap' by Jon

Jon — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:41:13 -0700

I have to say that I was quite worried about the prospect of our kids going into South Bend and playing in the shadow of Touchdown Jesus. But it appears that ND hasn't improved much since last year. It only puts both teams on equal footing, but I'm more confident about a win than before I got to see what ND put on the field.

As for OSU, I think Beanie Wells will be back, but I don't know how effective he'll be. Not sure if it was the dreaded "look ahead to USC" ploy or if Wells really is that important to the Buckeye offense.

Comment on 'Football Season Starts Boo' by Jon

Jon — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:25:40 -0700

Yeah, I obviously check your blog out on a timely basis...

That's a very good point about the zone blocking scheme. It's why Michael Hart became such a stud. I was thinking that even Lloyd couldn't get this collection of linemen to block any better, which is true, but you're right in that McGuffie and Shaw would be free to pick their spot.

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part III' by Brett (Guest)

Brett (Guest) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 19:00:10 -0700

Again, I never said "THE reason." I won't defend the guy as far as all his decision making processes go, either.

But, it had been a running joke that whenever anything bad happened it was somehow Bush's and/or his Administration's fault, regardless of what happened. No personal accountability. People acted as if their entire lives were dictated by what Bush and his Administration did that day. Where as I don't believe the government is put in place to wipe our bottoms, hold our hands and tell us everything is going to be ok.

Anyway, wasn't trying to start a debate. Disagree that McCain will buckle under the far-right Republican agenda if he were elected (my opinion). Abortion will never be illegal, regardless of who's in office (my personal opinion), none of the candidates from day one supported gay marriage (fact) so it shouldn't be an issue, and I believe there's a substantial difference between illegal immigration and legal immigration and it's not fair to those who have gone through the motions of doing it legally, nor to taxpayers (personal opinion). Will welcome rebuttals and I'll call it a day (but no cheap shots, eh).

Nibb High Football Rules...

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part III' by Ken

Ken — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 13:16:11 -0700

Bush never had a chance to be successful because he's not smart enough to understand that an issue might be more complex than can be expressed in a sound bite: e.g., "They hate us for our freedom." And note that Bush had PLENTY of support from Americans of every political stripe after 9/11, not to mention from people and politicans around the world, but rather than take advantage of all that good will, he decided to squander it on an ill-advised and poorly planned war.

Any talk of him being a "uniter" was just that: talk. Bush was a more polarizing president than any we've had in decades, if not ever.

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part III' by John Corey (Guest)

John Corey (Guest) — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 21:19:16 -0700

i think the Dems learned that trick (lack of cooperation) when the Republicans tried to shut down the executive branch of Clinton. After Clinton passed the very conservative and cooperative bill (only 5 dems voted for it) NAFTA.

McCain just sees this as his moment. That is why he is more willing to follow the party line.

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part III' by Brett (Guest)

Brett (Guest) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 17:51:26 -0700

Cooperation, the lack there of, has always been one of my biggest pet peeves with national politics.

I imagine there are so many great ideas and possibilities that never see the light of day because of people's unwillingness to cooperate.

I still believe it's one of the reasons Bush never had a chance to be successful. He had no support from the "He's not MY president" crowd, and in his attempt to try and appease to them to try and prove he was a "uniter," he lost his support from Republicans. And in essense, this country tore apart. (Should be noted, I'm not a huge Bush fan, but I think had Bush done everything the exact same, and our citizens acted better, our country could have been better off)

My biggest issue with Hill-dog is an issue out of her hands. I believe that if she were elected president, she wouldn't be given the chance to be successful because Republicans would have played the same card that Dems played with Bush... and refused to cooperate. It wouldn't have been fair to her, but could Dems really say "we're allowed to do that, but you can't"? Both cases, I think is bogus.

You don't have to agree with the President on everything. But I think there are better ways to show your dissapproval.

It's the 'people' that make this country great, not entirely government. I'm a believer that if you don't like something, do something to make it better. And when you do, say "because it's the right thing to do."

Final 2 cents. If we're looking at over-all cooperation, I believe McCain would get more of it, than Obama would (minus the McSame crowd).

Regardless of who's elected, I wish them both well.

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part III' by Ken

Ken — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 08:01:07 -0700

No, I didn't say that McCain will personally make it a point to enforce the agenda of the Republican party if elected. I said (here, and in my earlier post) that McCain is currently allowing the party to define his positions for the sake of this election. And my point is that he is not alone in running the executive branch; regardless of his own willingness to reach across the aisle, the other members of his party (and the special interests that fund them) will not necessarily be so cooperative.

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part III' by Brett (Guest)

Brett (Guest) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 23:36:51 -0700

Noted.

So in your opinion, you believe McCain will enforce all the social agendas of the far Right of the Republican party and refuse to work with Democrats and Independents, upholding only the beliefs of his Republican Party?

Top of my head; Al Gore ("The Assault On Reason" positive references), Joe Lieberman (speaking at the RNC), Joe Biden (various speeches), and Ken Kato (http://www.realkato.com/blog.php?pid=1306), amongst others, would disagree with that.

And the fact that Ann Coulter hates him never hurts, either.

Comment on 'Republican National Convention Part II' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:45:07 -0700

The difference between a pit bull and a soccer mom is lipstick? I'm sorry, I don't get it.

Comment on 'McCain's Voicemail to Sarah Palin' by Noelle (Guest)

Noelle (Guest) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 17:56:12 -0700

That was hysterical! "this thing's not hanging up..." LOL!!!

Comment on 'McCain selects Governor Palin as VP Nominee' by crouchinghamster

crouchinghamster — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 08:03:38 -0700

My cat, Mir, is more qualified than she is to run our country.

Mir, Russian for "peace," lived in Athens, Georgia for 6 weeks. Georgia, the state, not the country. But still! It's the same name! So he's got foreign policy experience in spades. He's also vastly overqualified to be ambassador to Georgia. Or Russia.

Unfortunately, he was neutered at a young age by a flaming Ivy league elitist New York liberal, so no kittens for his photo-op.

Comment on 'McCain selects Governor Palin as VP Nominee' by John Corey (Guest)

John Corey (Guest) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 21:30:09 -0700

I know at least 6 women who are out-right offended by the choice. It felt like a cheap attempt to appeal to "Hilary" people, without actually requiring any substance.
"uppityliberal" has a great post about her "honesty" and "experience". Check it:
http://uppityliberal.livejournal.com/135249.html

She is no worse than any other politician I suppose. At least she is brave enough to prove that this whole "abstinence is the way" thinking is utter bunk. Or was that an accident? as daring fireball points out

"Tom Eagleton lasted 18 days before withdrawing from the McGovern ticket in 1972. My money says Palin doesn't last that long."

Comment on 'Football Season Starts Boo' by Ken

Ken — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 15:44:37 -0700

They did that stationary-O-line thing twice. I've seen that on other teams; it's designed to fool the D-line into not rushing the passer.

I still believe a Carr-coached team would have run the ball better. Running the ball was such a point of emphasis for Carr. And also, Carr's zone-stretch play puts the decision-making into the hands of the running back, where we have depth and talent. By contrast, the spread-option play puts the decision-making into the hands of the quarterback, where we have precious little talent or experience.

One other piece of good news: highly-ranked high school QB prospect Tate Forcier committed to Michigan today. He attended the Utah game... and probably saw that there was a good chance he'd be able to start at QB right away.

Comment on 'Football Season Starts Boo' by Jon

Jon — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 15:20:22 -0700

Argh.

I mean, I'm not jumping off a building because this is the first game in what is a transition year. But yesterday crushed any optimism I had of it being a glorious transition year.

Now, it's cliche, but true, that the biggest improvement in a team is between its first and second games. And Game 2 is against Miami of Ohio. But the youth of the offense has a lot of work to do before it makes that leap. Maybe Coach Rod needs to get Justin Feagin on the super fast track to starting. Or, like you said, Carlos Brown.

How about that wild play when the ball was snapped and the O-line didn't move? I mean, it's not like the O-line could do much more anyway.

I would submit, however, that a Lloyd Carr coached team with this lack of talent and experience would not have faired much better.

Another bright spot: I truly believe that the 4th quarter rally was a result of the conditioning program by Super Barwis. That will certainly pay off in the future once we can put this whole puzzle together.

Comment on 'McCain selects Governor Palin as VP Nominee' by Brett (Guest)

Brett (Guest) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 20:46:42 -0700

The first thing I said when I heard the pick was "Umm...is Alaska a swing state??"

But the more I hear about her, I like her. She counters exactly everything Dems dislike about the GOP.

The ever-so popular chant "That's not change, that's more of the same!" Sounds like change, to me.

"Inexperience shouldn't matter. This is new politics." She hasn't exactly been around forever, and she's got her own politics, too.

"Republicans are corrupt." This is a woman who's got involved to make a difference to fight corruption.

"Republicans are for Oil." She fought oil companies, too.

"No more politics as usual." Hardly sounds like politics as usual, sounds like someone who can 'get things done.'

"Obama is down to earth, just your ordinary person, not corrupted by Washington." I think you could DEFINATELY say that this "hockey mom" is an ordinary person, not corrupted by Washington.

"GOP is just a bunch of old white men making our decisions." Old white men and now a young woman.

She holds the EXACT opposite image that Democrats have of the Republican party. As a conservative myself, I welcome that.

I would think Dems would LOVE to have a person like this on their side. She seems to fit Dems criteria.

I'd say her biggest weakness, just from watching a few clips on youtube, is she sounds more like a PTA mom than a politician, which might hurt her in debates. But it may also be something that helps her with a lot of sympathetic women and moms. And from my experience, moms are the (self-proclaimed by moms) busiest people alive.

It'll be interesting to hear and learn more about her.

Comment on 'McCain selects Governor Palin as VP Nominee' by Monty (Guest)

Monty (Guest) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 13:34:04 -0700

Regardless of what happens now, we will either have a female Vice-President or a half-black President for the first time in history.