"My question to Mel Gibson is: 'How many million dollars does it look as if you're going to make off the crucifixion of Christ?'"--Andy Rooney

I like Mel Gibson. Ever since I first saw "The Road Warrior," I've enjoyed his flicks and after reading many of his comments, or seeing interviews he gave, I admired him as being a stand-up guy despite being a part of the cesspool that Hollywood has become. He's been married to the same lady for a quarter century now and he is fiercely devoted to, and protective of his many children. And I've never heard anyone disparage him in any way.

But something has changed as of late. Nearly every time I turn this gizmo on, disparate groups, or individuals have something negative to say about him and his latest project, "The Passion of The Christ." So why the sudden attacks and criticisms? I understand the Jewish folks concerns about anti-Semitism and all, but they whine about that so often, to be perfectly frank, they are getting on my nerves to some degree. I have nothing against them at all, I just wish they'd tone it down now and again.

There are plenty of folks whining about their particular malfunction in the media each and every day. It gets old. Whether it's the NAACP, the ADL, the MADD, the ACLU, the Greens, the Gays, the Enviro-commies, the homeless awareness do-gooders, the circus protestors, the anti-nuke idiots, or the rent-a-mobbers...trust me, it all just sort of melds together and gets ignored by me. "We want our rights." "We demand equal protection under the law." "We should be paid reparations." "If your parents smoke, rag their asses." "We're destroying the ozone layer." "We're not spending enough on education." "Killing unborn children is a woman's right." "Sodomy should be equated with procreation." "'Dumb Blond' jokes promote violence against women." "I'm offended by that comment." "Spirographs are anti-Semitic."

You know what? There's certainly no shortage of people that need to get a f**king grip, a rewarding hobby, or full-time employment.

And now folks are protesting a movie about Christ? Just when Christianity was all but banished in this country, Mel Gibson had to go and get people interested in Christ again. Son of a bitch! He'll never win an Academy Award! Not in this life. Just when the secularists among us had total victory within their clutches, Gibson goes and throws a monkey wrench into the entire, incremental process of separating Americans from their faith. Or was it a cross he threw into that misguided process?

I hope that movie grosses $400 million worldwide. I hope plenty of younger Americans flock to the theaters and then leave with tears in their eyes. After seeing that flick, I hope to see lots of people re-examining their lives and then making a few necessary corrections.

I'll never be accused of being a holy roller, and I have no idea if the Gospels were a work of fiction. But I've come to believe that if everyone at least tried to abide by the 10 Commandments most of the time, a return to the days when we left our doors unlocked overnight would be possible. I remember those much more innocent times and I truly miss them. Politicians can't make those days return. Political activists can't either. The courts, the attorneys, and the cops won't change the nature of the secular beast. Maybe Christ can help. Again.

Bring it on Mel! You've taken on your cross. We need all the help we can get.

Uh-oh...not good. Now I've gone and done it.

I, of course, refuse to travel to Dunmore to see a freakin' movie, so you'll have to fill me in.

I'm sure Private Sector Dude will be heading up Route 81 real soon, so I look forward to his review.

Oh Jeez! From the e-mail inbox:

*******Did you hear that WalMart is being sued?

Seems a lady tried on an Ernie Irvan t-shirt. She hit the wall 3 times before she could get out of the dressing room!*******

BANG! Get it? BANG! For those of you that don't get it, that's a NASCAR joke. Ernie Irvan was a magnet and the walls at the tracks were steel. Ah, forget about it. His driving "skills" rivaled those of now sponsor-less Jimmy "Jap" Spencer. There's a wreck here somewhere and I'm gonna find it.

The finish to yesterday's race was awesome. Junior finished 5th, and Kevin Harvick finished 13th after starting 32nd, so it was a good day at this adobe.

And no, I'm still not impressed by Matt Kenseth. His pit times rarely approach 15 seconds. He goes in 12th and comes out 6th all day long. He's a more than adequate driver, but he always gains his track positions in the pits. I'll take the hard-chargers like Junior and Harvick every time out. They race.

Check this diatribe. From that very same e-mail inbox:

*******Markus,

If Bush didnt lie then where are the WMDS? During the massive pre-war mobilization it was WMDS-WMDS-WMDS and WMDS. What happened? No WMDS. You never address the "AWOL" WMDS while you are so busy defending him. A war for WMDS. But none were found. He's a liar. And 500 of our boys paid the price for it. Yours is not an objective opinion. You are a republican defending a republican. Where are those WMDS know it all?*******

My turn. A Republican defending a Republican? That's an interesting charge to direct at a Republican who changed his party affiliation to vote for a local Democrat.

Let's do this, shall we? The Billy Bob administration went on the record as saying that Saddam had copious amounts of WMD, but never did a damn thing about it. That assessment came from our various intelligence agencies. Then the 9/11 attacks happened, and the terrorists were furiously rattling their sabers, and even threatened to destroy this country. At that point, rather than having the war come to us, Dubya decided that we'd take the war to them. Unlike Billy Bob before him, he actually had a nutsack. He made the tough decisions.

Let's forget what the intelligence agencies told Bush. Let's assume that he lied. Let's assume that all of the half-baked charges leveled against him are true. If he really lied, he had to know that sooner or later, that lie would become a political hand grenade. If he knew that Saddam had nothing more dangerous than a few cases of Raid wasp spray, why didn't he have a damage control plan in place? Why take the merciless beating he's taken in the polls? Why not plant a couple of 55 gallon drums of something extremely toxic in a remote pit somewhere? Why not cover the fact that he lied with an even bigger lie?

Why? Because he never lied in the first place. Based upon the best available intelligence, he made a decision and his motivation was to protect us from further 9/11-styled attacks. And for that, he is being branded as a liar by his political opponents and the dim-witted folks such as yourself that can't sift through the facts without help.

They say if you tell a lie often enough, it becomes fact. What we have right now is the biggest liars yelling "Liar" despite what the empirical evidence tells us. If he lied, where's the cover-up? There is none. His administration has already admitted that they might have goofed on the WMD issue. Or is that a lie too?

Feel free to try again. If I'm in a really good mood sometime, I'll enlighten you as to how babies are made.

To Be Played At Maximum Volume?

Holy Tax Anticipation Notes, Batman! We have a winner!

And the winner is...XXXXX.XXXXX@us.army.mil.

If I was to be marooned on Mars forever, and could only take 10 albums with me due to fueling and space constraints, Ziggy Stardust would be one of those 10 albums.

Playing Mick Ronson's guitar tapestry at anything less than maximum volume would be a travesty.

NOT! I dropped by Wyoming St. today to see the camping/garbage trailer for myself. Nope. No way. Screw that. There's no way that thing, whatever it is, should be allowed to wallow for weeks on end in any neighborhood. Call Waste Management, get a huge yard hopper delivered, and then take care of business. This thing suggests that we've got another propery owner that won't spend what it takes to add something to the neighborhood. The cheap way out adds nothing, and in the end, saps plenty out of the neighborhood. If it doesn't get moved right quick, maybe it'll get damaged. Never know.

Gotta go. I was up at 2:30 am and wandering through the city not much later on. Exercise, folks. The rest of this evening will be devoted to escapism. You know, the headphones are going on and the ears will be ringing tomorrow.

A sonic BANG!