Trip to hell and Lipstick on pigs

Last night, I got home from a long trip to Grand Rapids, MI that involved cancelled flights in Chicago, a lost credit card somewhere in my voyage, and, to top it off, I got rear-ended in an Intersection in Michigan. To add to the mess, I got to learn that the State of Michigan employs a "no fault" policy in collisions, meaning that I'm responsible for any damages to the vehicle. While I am insured through work with my rentals, it was no fun to site an extra 90 minutes in the rain for a useless police report that still results in my need to flip a repair bill. Ugh.

I got home, put on the TV around 9pm to see who Larry King Had on for the night. Saw Joy Behar and couldn't change the channel fast enough. As I could find nothing else to pique my interest, I flipped on Hannity & Colmes (a.k.a. GOP Spokesman and and creepy bug-eyed conspiracy theorist). I rarely watch the program as I would much rather enjoy a yardstick to my head, but they caught me early on with an "Obama comment" that must have caught fire. Evidently, Obama used the "lipstick on a pig" comment to describe McCain's plans on making changes of his own as President. While, at first, I assumed that it was something contrived by Fox News only, it picked up steam everywhere else. I heard debates over the comment this morning on Smerconish's show as well as the almighty "Good Day Philadelphia".

Here's my take - While the crowd was chuckling and smiling in the background as he was saying it, I don't believe in any way Obama was relating the comment towards Sarah Palin. If he was, that I must have as well for each time I've said the same comment in the last three decades. I'm not a fan of his, but I believe he's got the class to not make such a statement. However, I believe that his advisers should have tried to coach him from such a statement, mainly to avoid the chatter we have today. It will be interesting to see how long this lingers in the public. My prediction is another 48 hours before it dies out for something new.

Despite the horrendous voyage yesterday, I had the fortune to stop by the Gerald Ford Museum in Grand Rapids, MI. The museum is a fascinating place to visit, it's also President Ford's final resting place, and a location I would happily recommend to everyone. President Ford, in my opinion, is one of our country's unsung heroes. He knowingly entered the presidency not elected on a ticket and set out to keep the nation stable through the aftermath of the Nixon Watergate scandal and resignation. He worked the aisle with individuals such as Speaker of the House Tip O'Neil to keep the ship afloat, and I believe those two years were a success because they put the country and its people ahead of party interests. In the end, Ford's Presidential Pardon of Nixon was what ultimately cost him the election of 1976, yet today, I believe that the public has grown to understand that he didn't make it for party interests, he did so to save the office of the presidency and to give the country the opportunity to move on. Ford was awarded the Profile in Courage Award in 2001 by the JFK Library Foundation for his actions.


While many of us relate Gerald Ford to Chevy Chase's antics from SNL due to his occasional clumsiness, I find the former president to be a great role model for future generations. Hard worker, selfless, honest, and dignified, Ford may be the most genuine individual to hold the office in the 20Th century (Harry Truman makes this point worth a fair argument).


By the way, its been several days since Spencerblog has been updated, has our pal Gil finally given up? Has Nostra-Steve-us predicted the end accurately? Stay tuned...