Friday, February 15, 2019
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Taxing Wealthy: Poking the Bear
I try not to make political blogs, but there's times where I feel necessary to discuss certain things. Now, I don't really care much for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. I think she's a loudmouth bimbo who thinks she can do whatever she wants. One thing she wants to do is tax the wealthy and have a 70 percent tax rate on them. This is something that Microsoft founder Bill Gates is not exactly fond of. Surely, he thinks there should be some taxes, but should be handled in a different compared to what she and others like Bernie Sanders have in mind.
Personally, I do think a number of people should get taxed with a high rate. I would apply it to all those Hollywood stars who get 10 to 20 million pay checks for a movie they do. Hell, I'd do it to the cast of The Simpsons since they make 10 million or more a season. Baseball players I think are grossly overpaid. No reason to have 30 million a year to play a season of baseball. Same with basketball and football. I would do it to some of the politicians. I kind of get what Cortez is doing.
However, to want that high of a tax rate is ridiculous. Gates is worth 100 billion. He would be left with 30 billion following a 70 percent rate. But the thing is he does stuff with his money compared to most other billionaires. Both him and his, Melinda, are trying to make a difference in today's world. And it's not like that couple and many others are just sitting on piles of cash. To me, I have no idea how things work with hedge funds and all that. I think 70 percent is way too high despite what I said about the above examples. I think there has to be a healthy medium. For Cortez to go right for the throat that early into her run as a representative of New York is not smart.
Honestly, she would need to convince a lot of people to go with this idea, but I also believe this is a double edged sword. While Cortez is trying to be one for the people and try to make the government and the United States different, this could bite her in 10 to 20 years from those same people if they became millionaires or billionaires. I don't see her lasting that long in Congress. She has no idea what she is doing and I don't see many agreeing with her ideals. Cortez will experience a lot of hell from other senators and representatives all over the country.
Personally, I do think a number of people should get taxed with a high rate. I would apply it to all those Hollywood stars who get 10 to 20 million pay checks for a movie they do. Hell, I'd do it to the cast of The Simpsons since they make 10 million or more a season. Baseball players I think are grossly overpaid. No reason to have 30 million a year to play a season of baseball. Same with basketball and football. I would do it to some of the politicians. I kind of get what Cortez is doing.
However, to want that high of a tax rate is ridiculous. Gates is worth 100 billion. He would be left with 30 billion following a 70 percent rate. But the thing is he does stuff with his money compared to most other billionaires. Both him and his, Melinda, are trying to make a difference in today's world. And it's not like that couple and many others are just sitting on piles of cash. To me, I have no idea how things work with hedge funds and all that. I think 70 percent is way too high despite what I said about the above examples. I think there has to be a healthy medium. For Cortez to go right for the throat that early into her run as a representative of New York is not smart.
Honestly, she would need to convince a lot of people to go with this idea, but I also believe this is a double edged sword. While Cortez is trying to be one for the people and try to make the government and the United States different, this could bite her in 10 to 20 years from those same people if they became millionaires or billionaires. I don't see her lasting that long in Congress. She has no idea what she is doing and I don't see many agreeing with her ideals. Cortez will experience a lot of hell from other senators and representatives all over the country.
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
Digital Taxes
I would say there's probably more people into digital services and products. Netflix and Hulu are enjoyed by many for their original material and the shows and films they acquire. Video games have tons of games on sale constantly. Music might have vinyl love, but to have something on your MP3 or phone is impressive. Georgia is one of the latest to propose or at least enforce a digital tax on services. And I'm not surprised.
The last four months or so, PlayStation digital stuff is taxed for me. I also look at the fact that more people are into the digital services. Physical is still something I will go after for a product, but it doesn't change what is going on. Businesses are struggling if it isn't for some making bad decisions. To get feet into their places is more important to them than it was 20 years ago. Even if there is physical copies, there is digital download versions for the same prices. It's just a matter of wanting to go to the store, or to do it in the comfort of your own home.
More and more states are doing this and it's been this way over the last four years or so as states start enacting more taxes on other products. Chalk it up whatever you think it is, but physical has stopped being the main thing to tax. I'd say we are a generation or two away from being fully digital in certain areas. Regardless, this has become the norm and it should be expected now. Getting frustrated is not going to change anything.
The last four months or so, PlayStation digital stuff is taxed for me. I also look at the fact that more people are into the digital services. Physical is still something I will go after for a product, but it doesn't change what is going on. Businesses are struggling if it isn't for some making bad decisions. To get feet into their places is more important to them than it was 20 years ago. Even if there is physical copies, there is digital download versions for the same prices. It's just a matter of wanting to go to the store, or to do it in the comfort of your own home.
More and more states are doing this and it's been this way over the last four years or so as states start enacting more taxes on other products. Chalk it up whatever you think it is, but physical has stopped being the main thing to tax. I'd say we are a generation or two away from being fully digital in certain areas. Regardless, this has become the norm and it should be expected now. Getting frustrated is not going to change anything.
Monday, February 11, 2019
NFL Hall of Fame 2019
A little time has passed and my thoughts a little clearer from last week's Super Bowl. This group leading the 2019 Hall of Fame NFL class is one that is more defensive oriented. Four defensive backs got in along with a tight end and center.
Ed Reed seemed like an obvious choice. In 12 years, he intercepted quarterbacks over 60 times. He was a hard hitting safety who made plays when needed. Nine times to the Pro Bowl and a Super Bowl make him first ballot. Champ Bailey and Ty Law had their own ways of success. Both had a knack for making tackles and each culminating 15 years in the league. Bailey was the type of guy to get 60 to 80 tackles in a season. Law was able to make key plays. His Super Bowl touchdown in the 2001 season was a big moment. He was due at some point, especially considering there are barely any Hall of Fame players for the Belichick-Brady era, which is truly embarrassing.
Converting a offensive guy to defensive can work sometimes. To do that on a pro level immediately is tough. I don't know if being in the AFL hurt Johnny Robinson but for what he did is astounding for his era. He was a running back at first and then switched to defense after two years. The offensive stats aren't bad, but his defensive is rather strong with the eight Pro Bowls and four championships. More interceptions than Bailey and Law. How did this guy not get in earlier?
I don't even need to explain Tony Gonzalez. He was THE tight end. Anywhere from 800 to 1000 yards a year is more than enough. So many Pro Bowls and efforts. That's considering the number of quarterbacks Kansas City had and their run heavy play (Marcus Allen, Priest Holmes, Larry Johnson) over the years. Last of the players is Kevin Mawae. There isn't anything flashy, but to be able to block for Chris Warren, Curtis Martin, and the 2000 yard season of Chris Johnson, that's special. He was instrumental to ground games and did a lot more damage once he went to the Jets. Out of the players, they seem deserving. Not sure how I feel about Law and maybe Mawae, but oh well.
The next two are interesting but worthy picks. First is Pat Bowlen. Since 1984, the Denver Broncos have been one of the premiere teams in the NFL. They rarely have losing seasons. Three Super Bowls, smothering defenses, and phenomenal running backs make him one of the great owners. Lastly is Gil Brandt. While he was part of several teams, his time with the Dallas Cowboys was important. As vice president of player personnel, he helped Tom Landry and the general managers in getting players and winning two Super Bowls in one of the legendary runs for the franchise. Even though he was let go in the massive firings led by Jerry Jones in 1989, that doesn't mean his legacy was horrible. It paved the way for how low tiered Dallas became America's Team.
Next year will be interesting.
Ed Reed seemed like an obvious choice. In 12 years, he intercepted quarterbacks over 60 times. He was a hard hitting safety who made plays when needed. Nine times to the Pro Bowl and a Super Bowl make him first ballot. Champ Bailey and Ty Law had their own ways of success. Both had a knack for making tackles and each culminating 15 years in the league. Bailey was the type of guy to get 60 to 80 tackles in a season. Law was able to make key plays. His Super Bowl touchdown in the 2001 season was a big moment. He was due at some point, especially considering there are barely any Hall of Fame players for the Belichick-Brady era, which is truly embarrassing.
Converting a offensive guy to defensive can work sometimes. To do that on a pro level immediately is tough. I don't know if being in the AFL hurt Johnny Robinson but for what he did is astounding for his era. He was a running back at first and then switched to defense after two years. The offensive stats aren't bad, but his defensive is rather strong with the eight Pro Bowls and four championships. More interceptions than Bailey and Law. How did this guy not get in earlier?
I don't even need to explain Tony Gonzalez. He was THE tight end. Anywhere from 800 to 1000 yards a year is more than enough. So many Pro Bowls and efforts. That's considering the number of quarterbacks Kansas City had and their run heavy play (Marcus Allen, Priest Holmes, Larry Johnson) over the years. Last of the players is Kevin Mawae. There isn't anything flashy, but to be able to block for Chris Warren, Curtis Martin, and the 2000 yard season of Chris Johnson, that's special. He was instrumental to ground games and did a lot more damage once he went to the Jets. Out of the players, they seem deserving. Not sure how I feel about Law and maybe Mawae, but oh well.
The next two are interesting but worthy picks. First is Pat Bowlen. Since 1984, the Denver Broncos have been one of the premiere teams in the NFL. They rarely have losing seasons. Three Super Bowls, smothering defenses, and phenomenal running backs make him one of the great owners. Lastly is Gil Brandt. While he was part of several teams, his time with the Dallas Cowboys was important. As vice president of player personnel, he helped Tom Landry and the general managers in getting players and winning two Super Bowls in one of the legendary runs for the franchise. Even though he was let go in the massive firings led by Jerry Jones in 1989, that doesn't mean his legacy was horrible. It paved the way for how low tiered Dallas became America's Team.
Next year will be interesting.
Saturday, February 9, 2019
New York Sports' Most Disgraceful
In terms of New York sports, there has been success in the last 25 years. The Yankees have won a handful of championships. Two stunning Super Bowls for the Giants. A Stanley Cup for the Rangers. They have their pros and cons every year, but they have put together groups that can win it all and it showed. With that comes the black sheep in the form of the Knicks, a team who, quite frankly, should be boycotted.
Since the start of the 2001 season, they have only been good for two years and at least four playoff appearances. Maybe five. Just about every year, it has been losing season after losing season. They've gone through so many coaches and general managers, it's a complete dysfunction. It's like watching the Cleveland Browns in basketball form. The fact that they are valued at four billion dollars is embarrassing. Sure, some of their players do decent, but as a whole, the chemistry just isn't there.
The front office ain't exactly good, either. Just the mere fact that they still have that stupid media policy. New York beat writers can't even do normal stuff without security and a PR guy being next to them. Interviews are next to impossible. You hear stories from guys like Daily News' writer Frank Isola where they get shunned due to how the Knicks run things. I'll chalk it up as owner James Dolan not wanting to hear any shred of criticism. You're going to get criticized. Michael Kay can criticize the Yankees and the YES Network is okay with that. What also doesn't help is their PR person, Jonathan Supranowitz. That guy tries to be secretive and also not allow any criticism.
Unfortunately, these morons in New York City will sell out Madison Square Garden just to see the Knicks lose over and over. Any other team would lose fans. And honestly, it's time to boycott them. They are a disgrace to New York sports, the NBA, basketball in general, and anybody that works in media. Fans who go to the games, stop going. Don't watch the games on MSG or any channel. Start telling people that Dolan and Supranowitz need to be stripped of their power. Get chickenshit commissioner Adam Silver to stop being a complete pussy and overthrow those two. And maybe things could be better. It is absolute torture to see a once delightful team keep finding ways to be a complete embarrassment in sports.
Since the start of the 2001 season, they have only been good for two years and at least four playoff appearances. Maybe five. Just about every year, it has been losing season after losing season. They've gone through so many coaches and general managers, it's a complete dysfunction. It's like watching the Cleveland Browns in basketball form. The fact that they are valued at four billion dollars is embarrassing. Sure, some of their players do decent, but as a whole, the chemistry just isn't there.
The front office ain't exactly good, either. Just the mere fact that they still have that stupid media policy. New York beat writers can't even do normal stuff without security and a PR guy being next to them. Interviews are next to impossible. You hear stories from guys like Daily News' writer Frank Isola where they get shunned due to how the Knicks run things. I'll chalk it up as owner James Dolan not wanting to hear any shred of criticism. You're going to get criticized. Michael Kay can criticize the Yankees and the YES Network is okay with that. What also doesn't help is their PR person, Jonathan Supranowitz. That guy tries to be secretive and also not allow any criticism.
Unfortunately, these morons in New York City will sell out Madison Square Garden just to see the Knicks lose over and over. Any other team would lose fans. And honestly, it's time to boycott them. They are a disgrace to New York sports, the NBA, basketball in general, and anybody that works in media. Fans who go to the games, stop going. Don't watch the games on MSG or any channel. Start telling people that Dolan and Supranowitz need to be stripped of their power. Get chickenshit commissioner Adam Silver to stop being a complete pussy and overthrow those two. And maybe things could be better. It is absolute torture to see a once delightful team keep finding ways to be a complete embarrassment in sports.
Friday, February 8, 2019
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
State of the Blog 2019
In a few weeks, it will be two years since I started this blog and the increase over the past year has been real nice in terms of pageviews. I am very happy about the last two months. Three of the December blogs have gotten a lot of attention, as well as one from last month. A quick thank you to all that have found this blog and have been reading what I post. As we near 20,000 views all together, here is what my intentions as we go into year three.
I expect a lot more views as I continue to grow this. Most people would probably give up after years. That's not my intention. As long as I focus on my main four areas, Sullivan Entertainment will keep getting bigger. As of now, I have a few blogs lined up that I intend to write and hopefully readers will find them interesting.
The summer and early fall will be one part of the year that I want to improve on. Maybe picking current topics will help a lot more. I would want to continue with reviews and I will as I keep seeing movies in the theater, watch DVD's of TV shows and any games I play. There's plenty more, but I hope to get readers interested in my summer blogs.
Hopefully, word of mouth keeps spreading. And I do believe I can reach 30,000 by the end of February 2020. Here's to another year of fun and finding more of an audience.
I expect a lot more views as I continue to grow this. Most people would probably give up after years. That's not my intention. As long as I focus on my main four areas, Sullivan Entertainment will keep getting bigger. As of now, I have a few blogs lined up that I intend to write and hopefully readers will find them interesting.
The summer and early fall will be one part of the year that I want to improve on. Maybe picking current topics will help a lot more. I would want to continue with reviews and I will as I keep seeing movies in the theater, watch DVD's of TV shows and any games I play. There's plenty more, but I hope to get readers interested in my summer blogs.
Hopefully, word of mouth keeps spreading. And I do believe I can reach 30,000 by the end of February 2020. Here's to another year of fun and finding more of an audience.
Monday, February 4, 2019
Worst Super Bowl Ever: LIII
In the last 20 plus years of seeing or hearing about Super Bowls, I have seen bad ones. Tampa killing Oakland, Seattle harassing Denver. Probably a few others, too. But this one, Super Bowl LIII, has got to be the most boring and worst game I have ever seen. Even the Boston dick suckers will have to agree with that.
There's really no excuse for this shit show. As far as LA goes, the Rams are in the gist of getting use to playoff football. A healthier Todd Gurley and more experienced Jared Goff will make things better as I see this team coming back. Maybe not next year, but I think they will get their due. Running the ball better should be one of their priorities heading into next season. You can only do so much on defense without wearing out and it was noticeable. Certainly, the offense was getting better later on, but inexperience can hurt in many ways.
The fact that Tom Brady only mustered one decent drive says a lot about New England. Pure luck is what won him his sixth. One of the keys in my mind was Sony Michel running the ball. What he did was John Riggins and Terrell Davis type stuff for an entire playoff run. Starting the game with him running is also similar to Ottis Anderson back in Super Bowl XXV, a bit of a coincidence for Belichick's days with the New York Giants. The only worthwhile receiver was obviously Julian Edelman. But this doesn't guarantee him the Hall of Fame. Standards have changed and regardless of postseason heroics, his regular season stuff is not anything to smile about.
As far as calling the game, the refs did pretty well, which goes to discussion for the offseason. This Super Bowl will be another part of a very controversial dynasty in New England. This will be questioned for many years, regardless of cheating or not in previous years and all sorts of other things. The playoffs were marred with issues. Pass interference calls will be looked at deeply following the Rams Saints debacle. Rule changes could possibly be made regarding playoff overtime. I could see some other small stuff. Fans deserved a better game. A Rams-Chiefs, or Patriots-Saints, Chiefs-Saints game would have been ten to a hundred times better.
CBS tried the best they could with calling it and there wasn't much they could do, even with as great a commentator Tony Romo is so far in his young broadcasting career. Can't say much on commercials and the halftime show since I didn't watch them. Defense can be good to watch, but it wasn't the case for Super Bowl LIII. No, doubt, this has got to be worst Super Bowl I have ever watched. Three quarters worth of garbage and a mediocre fourth quarter. There's no defending this. This is worth making a podcast episode as well.
There's really no excuse for this shit show. As far as LA goes, the Rams are in the gist of getting use to playoff football. A healthier Todd Gurley and more experienced Jared Goff will make things better as I see this team coming back. Maybe not next year, but I think they will get their due. Running the ball better should be one of their priorities heading into next season. You can only do so much on defense without wearing out and it was noticeable. Certainly, the offense was getting better later on, but inexperience can hurt in many ways.
The fact that Tom Brady only mustered one decent drive says a lot about New England. Pure luck is what won him his sixth. One of the keys in my mind was Sony Michel running the ball. What he did was John Riggins and Terrell Davis type stuff for an entire playoff run. Starting the game with him running is also similar to Ottis Anderson back in Super Bowl XXV, a bit of a coincidence for Belichick's days with the New York Giants. The only worthwhile receiver was obviously Julian Edelman. But this doesn't guarantee him the Hall of Fame. Standards have changed and regardless of postseason heroics, his regular season stuff is not anything to smile about.
As far as calling the game, the refs did pretty well, which goes to discussion for the offseason. This Super Bowl will be another part of a very controversial dynasty in New England. This will be questioned for many years, regardless of cheating or not in previous years and all sorts of other things. The playoffs were marred with issues. Pass interference calls will be looked at deeply following the Rams Saints debacle. Rule changes could possibly be made regarding playoff overtime. I could see some other small stuff. Fans deserved a better game. A Rams-Chiefs, or Patriots-Saints, Chiefs-Saints game would have been ten to a hundred times better.
CBS tried the best they could with calling it and there wasn't much they could do, even with as great a commentator Tony Romo is so far in his young broadcasting career. Can't say much on commercials and the halftime show since I didn't watch them. Defense can be good to watch, but it wasn't the case for Super Bowl LIII. No, doubt, this has got to be worst Super Bowl I have ever watched. Three quarters worth of garbage and a mediocre fourth quarter. There's no defending this. This is worth making a podcast episode as well.
Friday, February 1, 2019
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