State of the GOP/ The elephant in the Room

Now, many pundits on the news are saying how the Republican party is in disarray and needs to go more to the center of the aisle. You know what I say to that? Rubbish. When has a moderate candidate ever won the presidency on the Republican side? From Dole, to McCain, to Romney, they all lost. Now, the GOP does need to stop nominating the candidate with the most money I grant you, and it needs to change in general, but not how people are saying.

With that said, however, the Democratic party is just as divided, but people don't see it as much since they are in power. Look at how long it took them to get the health care passed, even with a super majority in the senate and a fair majority in the house it took a year and a half and some back room dealing. After Obama, who will Democrats pick to be their flag bearer? If it is Hillary, that is going back to a time when it was a different country, and she would surly lose against almost any GOP candidate.

Obama's second term

Well, our newly elected president has just been sworn in a couple of days ago, and I am fairly shocked at what he said at his inauguration. I, like most people, was expecting a message of unity after a long and drug out campaign that deeply divided the country. Instead, we got a liberal drawn agenda driven speech that basically said my way or no way. Is this the proper direction of the office of United States president? He said that government was the solution to the problem, where as Ronald Reagan thirty years ago said that government is the problem. It seems America has gone in a full circle. What will we look like in four years? I don't know, but right now I don't like the way things are looking.

                  

Tebow Time Again?

Is it Tebow Time again in Denver? Well, that is certainly what some people are asking after a rather disappointing loss to the Ravens in the divisional round of the playoffs. The game basically ended with Peyton Manning throwing an interception in overtime which led to the Ravens scoring a field goal, ending the game. Now, I feel bad for Peyton Manning who kind of got caught up in the middle of the Tebowmania after his team, the Colts, drafted Andrew Luck. Here is a picture that shows not much hostility between the two teams.




That is Ray Lewis and Peyton Manning talking after the game. Now, this begs a question, who should be quarterback at Denver?
So far in the postseason, Tebow: 1, Manning: 0. While it is true that Manning had a more impressive regular season, let's not forget Tebow wasn't originally the starter last year. It was originally Kyle Orton, who was terrible and after starting the season 1-4, the Broncos decided to go with Tebow. He surprised everyone when he went 7-4 after that, winning six straight games. He hasn't practiced yet in the NFL in the offseason as a starter, and he will never reach his full potential as an NFL player until he does. Do I think Tebow will be the quarterback at Denver? No. Manning isn't the answer though either. I am a Manning fan, but I think his time in this league is just about up. Tebow, if he was smart, would not go back to Denver after what they did to him. Comment below on what you think.

Wild Card Playoff Results

Well, I admit now I was overestimating the power of Andy Dalton, who contrary to my previous post underpreformed and Matt Shaub overperformed, even though the one touchdown that the Bengals got was off of an interception.

Score: 19-13 Texans

I think that I was pretty close to right when I said, however, that the Packers were going to beat the Vikings.

Score: 24-10 Packers

I was way off on the Colts-Ravens game. While Andrew Luck did play well, they lost because of a factor of an inability to complete a drive, and the fact that the starting lineup is made up of mostly rookies. The Colts didn't play bad, they just let Joe Flacco get a couple of big plays.

Score: 24-9 Ravens


Seahawks-Redskins

Probably the most exciting playoff game this weekend, the Seahawks won it after the dismal first quarter, and the Redskins really lost RGIII soon in the second half.

Score: 24-14 Seahawks

Stalling the Cliff-Not Avoiding

Congress has just gotten through one of the most annoying sessions ever. While the Democrats did technically get a deal passed, it wasn't a good one, nor did they really win. It simply kicked the can down the road for the next congress to deal with, and taxes will still go up on most people. There will be another "fiscal cliff" in a couple of months, and don't expect anything to get done until then. The paychecks will not be increased, and is actually still likely to decrease, and the partisanship of both parties has only gotten worse. This aide for Sandy bill that was just passed in the congress was just to get the new congress started, and it hasn't lasted. It is time for Congress to act as a whole, and it isn't just Democrats or Republicans that were being partisan, but rather both parties. Please Comment below.

NFC Wild Card Predictions

Well, if you have read my post for the AFC playoff predictions, here is my NFC predictions:

Vikings (6) vs Packers (3):

This is probably the easiest pick of the four matchups this weekend. As good as Adrian Peterson is as a runner, since he didn't break the record last week, they don't have the same momentum going into Green Bay and therefore don't have as much to play for, especially in the cold. Aaron Rodgers will have a good game, while Adrian Peterson will underpreform. My guess is Packers beat Vikings 35-17.

Seahawks (5) vs Redskins (4):

This is my overall favorite matchup, because it is with two rookie quarterbacks of very similar styles who have not lost a game in the last five weeks. It is also very difficult to pick the winner, and while my heart says RGIII, my mind has to go with Seattle, and it is simply because they have a better overall football team, if not a better quarterback. My guess is Seattle beats Washington 35-10.

AFC Playoff Predictions

AFC Playoffs:

Bengals (6) vs Texans (3)

My prediction is simple. The Bengals have won 3 of their last 4 games while the Texans have lost 3 of their last 4 games. I think that Matt Shaub is going to underperform while Andy Dalton will overperform. In a simple few words, the Bengals are going to win 21-17.


Colts (5) vs Ravens (4)

Now, this could be the most difficult playoff game to choose. While the Ravens have lost 3 of their last 4 games as well, and the Colts have won 3 of their last 4 games, I still think that the game is pretty evenly matched. They each have more emotion than talent in reality, with the exception of Andrew Luck. Chuck Pagano is back as the coach of the Colts after being gone for a while for treatment for Lieukemia, and Ray Lewis just announced he was retiring. When all is said and done, however, I think the Colts will win it 20-19.