Latest Observations........

I've been busy and haven't had much time for Thoughts from the Southland the last few weeks. Therefore, here's a quick snapshot on what's on my mind:

1. Tommy Bowden is done at Clemson. Or, Clemson's administration is completely out of touch with the boosters and they keep him around from yet ANOTHER disappointing year. I don't really care for Clemson, but I know a lot of people who do am I'm confident that they've seen enough.

2. Winning at Football is about playing smart and playing more physical than the team you're playing. If you want to see a great example of this pay attention to what Nick Saban is doing at Alabama. If you want to see a good example of what your offense will look like if you don't run physical practices in the preseason and durning weekly practice's see what Steve Spurrier is doing at Carolina. Carolina's Offensive Line was pushed around by the 117th ranked defense on Saturday night. They cannot run the ball effectively and they cannot dominate a team offensively. Thank God we have one of the top rated defenses or this season would be uglier than it already is. At least we're 2-2 and not 0-4.

3. I watched the last half of the first debate on Friday night. I wasn't that impressed with either candidate. I thought McCain was reaching a little bit, trying a little too hard to make Obama look like a flip-flopper. And I thought Obama was rude and arrogant. He often interrupted McCain (who impressively talked right through Obama's interruptions) and seemed to make arrogant, sarcastic remarks when McCain said something he didn't agree with.

My hope is that the next debate actually accomplishes something. I really have no interest in the "He said, She said" tactics.

4. The first round of the Government Bailout plan has been voted down. Stocks have plummeted as a result. I'm trying to decide if now is a good time to invest?

5. Along the lines of the Government Bailout....here's my beef (and understand that I haven't formed an opinion either way yet): Reckless companies have made poor business decisions. However, because of the negative economic impact these decisions have on all of us these companies are getting "a little" assistance from the Government. As a result, the Government gets more control over these businesses. Honestly, it sounds a lot like Socialism, but the question is, because our Capitalistic system has gotten so reckless is a Socialistic reaction necessary?

Next, the Golden Parachute.....Are you serious! You're going to run a company into the ground, yet you think you deserve a Golden Parachute so you can live happily ever after while my tax dollars foot the bill for saving your ass? You know, that Golden Parachute would go a long way to helping YOUR company bail itself out of all the bad investments that you oversaw.

Is too much government involvement a good thing, or a bad thing? I heard an interesting point today that is worthy of repeating. If you look at the most unhappy people in this country....the folks most angry with the system and angry with the government who are they? Are they the ones that are self sustaining, or are they the ones who are most reliant on Government Programs? I think you know the answer. So, why, if these people are so unhappy with the government and the system, why are they so supportive of more Government involvement?