I have some more rants (just what you guys and gals are probably 
looking for) this week:

Rant 1 - Allen Iverson:  First of all, I think it is past time to trade 
Allen Iverson.  I understand that he is the most "popular" player in 
the Sixers' locker room, and that he puts a lot of asses in seats.  The 
problem is that Allen is not a team player - I know, this may come as a 
shock to all of you.  A few weeks ago, Allen was complaining about the 
lack of heart his team has displayed.  Monday, he missed practice (for 
the umpteenth time).  That doesn't show any heart to me.  He is 
hypocritical.  He's also getting older, and his skills haven't improved in a 
few years.  He doesn't pass well, he doesn't shoot well, and he doesn't 
play defense well.  He is not even 6 feet tall.  These are not good 
"qualities" to have in a basketball player.  Now, granted, he doesn't have 
a good supporting cast, but anytime the Sixers have tried to give him 
some offensive weapons, Allen has clashed with them, because he takes 
too many shots, doesn't run the offense well, and isn't a good leader.  
GET RID OF HIM NOW!

Rant 2 - Computer Purchase: I'm in the market to buy a computer, and to 
tell you the truth, I'm not having a lot of fun.  I'm not knowledgeable 
to know what kind of computer I need, and what price is a good price.  
Friends at work say I should build a computer, and that they'd help me.  
They say I'd be saving lots of money. The problem is, what if something 
went wrong with the computer?  Who would I call?  Who would pay for it?  
So, I have been looking online to see if I could find a computer that 
performs well and is decently priced.  I'm not having much luck with it.  
It's really frustrating, especially with the fact that right after you 
buy a computer, it's pretty much outdated. Blech! If anybody can help, 
please e-mail me at losrulz2002@yahoo.com.

Rant 3 - Corner Entertainment Centers:  How difficult is it to find a 
good corner entertainment center? Sue and I spent months looking for 
one.  We found one online that we liked, but shipping would've costed 
$200.  Others we kind of liked were either way too expensive, or we never 
really got a good look at them because stores never had them on their 
showroom floors.  What's up wid dat?  Finally, we drove to Lancaster last 
weekend, hoping one of the wood-working places had them at a good 
price.  We weren't so lucky.  Most of the stuff looked exactly the same from 
store to store, AND the ones they did have were overly priced and not 
that attractive. On our ride back, I decided to take route 41, instead 
of route 30.  As luck would have it, we found a furniture store on route 
41 that actually had the corner entertainment center we wanted at a 
good price.  We had to travel to East Bumblefu*k and back to find it 
though.

Rant 4 - Winter time - I'm sick of getting these rinky-dink 2-3 inch 
snow storms.  I loved it last year when we got 23 inches of the white 
stuff!  I was out of work for 2 days, plus I got great workouts shoveling 
the stuff!  These small storms are nothing but a pain in the butt (and 
back).  I still have to work, I still have to shovel, and I have to 
wash my car.  

Rant 5 - The New York Yankees:With the exception of Bob Queercetti and all of the rest of the Yankeesfans (how difficult is it to choose the Yankees as your favorite
baseball team?), I think most people agree that George Steinbrenner is Satan
himself. He has single-handedly ruined the game of baseball. Before
you start yapping, Bobby, let me explain. About a year ago, the Onion
ran a story about the Yankees acquiring every player in baseball. It was
funny at the time, but it is getting more and more truthful.
Obviously, Steinbrenner is doing everything he can to ensure another title, and
there is nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately, he has an unfair
advantage - he owns a professional baseball team in New York - which means
immediately that the team has major value (and tons of fans in the
area). Secondly, he owns a media empire that caters directly to his beloved
Yankees - with the exception of the Braves, no other team has this
advantage. Thirdly, he is a money-grubbing jerk (but that doesn't play
into this). The fact is that it is nearly impossible to expect any team
in baseball to compete against a team that has a team budget of nearly
$200 million. The next closest team, I believe is the Mets (heh,
another New York team), but they are about $75 million behind. Now, I admit
it is fun seeing the Yankees get eliminated from the playoffs, but more
times than not (it seems), they are either winning the World Series, or
just losing it in 7 games. Things have got to change - there must be
either some sort of salary cap (much harder and lower than the current
one), and revenue sharing (which Steinbrenner is obviously against).

Rant 6 - Hockey -The Impending Hockey Lockout/Strike: I love the NHL. For many years,
hockey was my favorite sport - and in some ways, I guess it still is.
First of all, hockey is not as fun as it used to be, back when super
stars could be super stars, and fights were not only allowed, but
practically encouraged. The days of Gretzky and Lemieux are unfortunately
long-gone, mainly because of the new defenses (clutching and grabbing of
the neutral zone trap), the bigger players, less room in the neutral
zone, focus on ending fights, etc. This league is in need of an overhaul,
and they may get plenty of time to do it in the near future. Hockey
needs, first of all, a salary cap. The Flyers, Red Wings, and Rangers can
practically pick up any players they want, while teams like Minnesota,
Carolina, and Columbus (in addition to the Canadian teams) struggle to
survive. Secondly, the rules have to be enforced - this clutching and
grabbing is illegal, but hardly ever called. If these penalties were
called, the trap would become a thing of the past (and New Jersey would
never make the playoffs). Also, the season should be shortened,
probably to about 50 games. This would make each game count (of course the
owners would never go for it - they'd lose too much money) - remember
how exciting 1994 was when the league had to fit 50 games into like 60
days because of the strike? The playing surface should be made bigger,
because there isn't enough room for these bigger players to make cooler
plays. And let fighting in again - the fans love it, and it serves a
purpose (enforcers protect star players). Of course, I'm sure none of
these will be addressed, and the NHL is in major danger of folding.