Quicktakes...Issue 2

Military Intelligence???
On the news this morning, I hear that we've bombed the hell out of a couple of huts in Pakistan because the head terrorist was going to be there for a holiday meal. Turns out he most likely wasn't there. Why? Because our military had recon planes circling the place for a few days prior to the attack. Now I'm not the brightest person on the planet for sure, but how many brain cells does it take to figure out that if you fly over the place scouting it out that maybe, just maybe, someone is going to alert your target that he shouldn't come? I am proud of our troops for doing their job. I have family members who have fought over there. But somewhere up the chain of command someone needs to sneeze and come across a clue once in a while.

Offically Mistaken
Way back in November, I had to watch as my beloved Oklahoma Sooners got supremely jobbed in Lubbock Texas. It wasn't at the hands of Texas Tech but at a herd of zebras hell bent on handing the Red Raiders a victory and thus assuring their safe passage out of town. I have historically been fairly critical of officials. They have so much technology at their disposal now it seems to me that it should be rare thing for a call to end up wrong. Imagine my displeasure as I watched the college bowl season which say poorly called games too numerous to mention and then on into the NFL playoffs which have been so badly messed up that even the site commentators AND the studio hosts have felt the need to comment on it...something usually regarded as taboo. Are the officials all getting too old? Is there some kind of under the table code where we don't want to overturn the field officials too often, making them look bad? I don't know the answer, but in a day and age where we have an abundance of cameras available and the technology of instant replay I don't see why 99% of the calls can't be the correct ones.

How Much Is Too Much?
I don't know how much play this has gotten outside of Oklahoma...last week an Oklahoma State alumnus, Boone Pickens, gave a financial gift to the OSU Athletic Department that totaled $165 million dollars. It's the largest single gift to a university in history. This isn't the first gift he's given and he's said it won't be the last. I think the quote I read was "This is only the beginning". Pickens is in the oil business, and has had a very good couple of years. He can afford it. My question is...when is it too much? How much has he given to his alma mater's cultural facilities or to acedemic endeavors? Did those contributions even compare? I will grant you that OSU athletics needs help. They have a wonderful basketball arena but are otherwise well behind the other Big 12 teams in almost every sport. They need help. But it bothers me that this man is trying to do it all on his own. I would have preferred to see him give more money to causes that will further humanity. Help cure a disease, help kids who otherwise would be unable to get teh enjoyment of learning to play a musical instrument. Pickens isn't a bad guy at all and I admire him for wanting to help his school. I just hope he pays as much attention to those other areas of need as he does to sports.

Hallmark Holidays
We are still a month out, but the biggest Hallmark Holiday of them all will quickly be upon us. No matter the origin, Valentine's Day has been comercialized to death. Here, go get a bunch of cards to tell the people you love how you feel when you should have been doing that all year long. Hey, go buy some roses for your lady...sure you'll spend about 4 times the usual amount on them, but you are supposed to do so! Get a reservation to an overcrowded restaurant to eat mediocre food and pay half a week's wages for it. Suzanne and I agreed a long time ago that we wouldn't do these things. When I buy her roses, it's on a Tuesday in August or a Monday in May...out of the blue and when she least expects it. I tell her I love her every day. I don't need a card to do it for me. Don't get me wrong, we always make sure and hug and kiss a little bit longer on February 14th. We may order chinese delivery or go eat somewhere casual with our kids that night, but we just don't get caught up in it. I challenge you to do something for your loved ones now. Do things for them later. Make a point to call them more often and tell them how you feel about them. Valentine's Day is a good time to do any of those things...just make sure it isn't the only time.