The economy is probably worse than you think...

This is a column I wrote for the Citizen of East Alabama: It ran the week of April 19.

The economy is probably worse than you think

By Skip Hansberger

I thought this was supposed to be a capitalist/market economy, in which you either succeed or fail? Stupid me.

How can the government honestly justify giving bailouts to some of these companies? I could understand "bailing out" the individuals who work(ed) for these companies, who stand to lose their retirement options, etc. But giving the companies money with no real strings attached and expecting them to do the right thing is asinine. And what about the mom and pop stores that are failing? They don't get bailouts. But then again, the government doesn't have money invested in THEM... Ridiculous if you ask me.

The banks are one thing - as far as freeing up credit and loans - but come on, be reasonable (and responsible)!

All these bailouts are doing is sending inflation through the roof! Mark my words, inflation is going to be the biggest problem facing this country in the near future. You can't just keep making dollar bills to throw at (our?) problems.

It's basic economics - supply (effectively equal to the national debt) goes up and value or worth (demand) goes down. The single dollar will soon be worth, what, $.50?? That’s how much money the government has literally created to pump into the economy.

I think if the government honestly wants to help the economy and the future of the country it needs to pump money into education (since it seems hell-bent on pumping OUR money into something).

Also, most people think our jobs are all going overseas. But that's not true. The jobs are still here; they're just different. Technology is on the rise and we, in this country, have done a poor job, as a whole, teaching people how to work those jobs. So immigrants are coming in and doing the things Americans don't yet know how to do (like IT and tech support, etc.).

Jobs are not going overseas; overseas are coming to our jobs.

More of our schools' curriculums need to be expanded to account for this shift in the importance of technology so that the next generation will be ready. Then we (America) can again compete in OUR job market and unemployment will not be such an issue.

People don't seem to understand that there is no quick fix for the problems we are experiencing. Only with time and well thought out and properly invested money will things get better.

Right now, we are being robbed.

I am likely going to have to retire much later in life than the previous generation and even later than the one before that. At least, that is if I am going to rely on Social Security, which will probably not even exist in 30 or 40 years.

So the generation after me, what are they going to do?? Many people in this country are largely ignorant - blissfully ignorant. And most of those who aren’t ignorant are simply shortsighted. Unfortunately, some of them are ruining – I mean, running – our country. And that's a problem that is immeasurable.

Urban 'Crier' has issues...

Why on Earth would you want to play for this guy? I understand that you'll probably win a lot of games - so if that's what you're all about then by all means... but if you want to play for a quality person who understands the bigger aspects of life and the world, then I must ask, "Why?.."

Check out this article from ESPN.com:

Meyer: Ex-Gators need to support us

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Shane Matthews played quarterback at Florida and says he supports the Gators and coach Urban Meyer.

But when Matthews criticized Meyer's game strategy during Florida's upset loss to Mississippi on his radio show last fall, Meyer was not happy. And though he didn't mention Matthews by name in a recent Gator Club appearance, it seemed that his comments about ex-players pledging allegiance to the orange and blue were made with Matthews in mind, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

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"If you want to be critical of a player on our team or a coach on our team you can buy a ticket for seat 37F, you're not welcome back in the football office," Meyer said, according to the report. "You're either a Gator or you're not a Gator."

The rift apparently started when Matthews criticized the offense following the 31-30 loss to Mississippi -- the game that produced Tim Tebow's now-famous postgame speech.

"When I watched the Ole Miss game and Ole Miss played our wide receivers about 90 percent man-to-man, it was a slap in the face to our wide receivers and passing game. I can't understand why we didn't take advantage of that," Matthews said at the time, according to the report.

The Sentinel reported it could not reach Matthews for comment to respond to Meyer's remarks. But in a recent appearance on a radio show in Birmingham, Ala. -- hosted by two former SEC players, Al Del Greco of Auburn and Jay Barker of Alabama -- he stood up for his remarks.

"If [the offense isn't] attacking the weakness of that defense it drives me crazy, that's what set me off early in the season," Matthews said, according to the report. "I am a supporter of this program no matter what, but I'm going to give my opinion when things go wrong. When things go well, I state that as well, but a lot of people don't hear that."

“

If you want to be critical of a player on our team or a coach on our team you can buy a ticket for seat 37F, you're not welcome back in the football office. You're either a Gator or you're not a Gator.

”-- Urban Meyer

Other former college football players in the media came to Matthews' defense, but added that former athletes turned commentators need to be honest to do their jobs.

"Shane, because he bled and sweat for the Gators, has a right to say whatever he wants about the program," former Miami defensive lineman Dan Sileo said, according to the report.

"Urban Meyer's not a Gator. He's a caretaker of the Gator program," Sileo said. "Most times these coaches think they're the programs, but really, the program is the players. That's the problem I have with coaches whose egos get too big for their britches. If Urban doesn't like it, that's too bad."

Meyer came to Florida from Utah after the 2004 season and has won a pair of BCS national championships, in 2006 and 2008.

Matthews says he'll keep supporting Meyer and keep voicing his opinions, according to the report.

"The last thing I want to do is stir up anything because there's nothing there," Matthews said, the Sentinel reported. "It's almost crazy when I sit 

Tiger Prowl came through Phenix City today...

For those of you who are unaware, the Auburn coaching staff has taken an unprecedented approach to recruiting. Instead of using this time period, which is generally alloted for seven coaches to go out on recruit evaluations, to send coaches out to as many schools as possible, the Auburn staff has decided to group all seven together and send them in a stretch Hummer (decked out with AU magnets, flags, etc.) to select schools around the state. 

They say this sends a message that Auburn is no longer going to be beaten in Alabama. And I AGREE.

I got the awesome opportunity to meet and speak with all seven coaches for about an hour and a half today as they went about their business in the school. I was only able to get an interview with Luper because they were so short on time, and only had time for a couple questions; I wish I could have asked about ten more... But anyway, They are absolutely as cool as can be. 

The plan was also for them to go to Smiths Station High, Auburn and Opelika Highs, Stanhope Elmore and Prattville High today. I know they made it to Smiths Station (for about 10 minutes), but I don't know about the others.

Basically what they did at Central High (Phenix City) is sit and talk with different coaches (about them, their families and different players/prospects), meet administrators, tour the facilities and watch kids if they are working out or practicing, etc. A few kids tried to converse with the coaches but all they replied with was War Eagle before the HS coach took them aside and explained the rules.

Today, coaches Luper, Taylor, Roof, Lolley, Malzahn, Rocker and Thigpen were on the Prowl.

Oh, and by the way, I asked Coach Roof why he had a different shirt than everyone else yesterday and the day before and he said he spilled coffee on it (haha!) and his wife had to get it dry cleaned. So that's that.

Check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDvFrQLh4TU

I talked to a High School coach today...

and he confirmed that AU DEFINITELY has some silent commitments. Granted, I can assure that NONE are from his school, but he did say he has recently attended a coaching clinic at Auburn and plans to bring his team to a passing camp there soon. Apparently he has had some contact with these coaches and, like I said, is positive we have some silent commitments. Don't know exactly how he would know, but he said it.

I didn't try to get names, but the way I see it, if they are silent, they are silent for a reason and I would hate to be the one to violate that, right?? Not to mention my previous suspicion about what LB7 said a few days ago ( I said I was pretty sure one of the big three guys we've been talking about was one of those silent commits) - I have no further proof and actually am less sure than I was when i posted that. BUT, what this coach told me makes me feel pretty good.

He also gave me some insights as to how Satan recruits. And he said basically everything we talk about as far as helping family members find jobs and suitcases "appearing" on doorsteps is true.

IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THIS COACH IS NOT AN AUBURN FAN.

Check it out:

I know this is a copout as far as a new blog post goes, but I enjoyed reading this article and made a few personal references to Auburn and the possible complacency of the Tommy Tuberville staff.

It's an easy comparison to make, but I guess it's just nice to see that Auburn is not the only school that suffered due to key coaching changes (ie, Borges, Franklin, etc.)

The bottom line is this: Tuberville and his staff have never really produced great offenses. They usually have a strong running game and extremely stout defense. Nine out of ten times, this results in wins. But then there's that tenth time when other teams stack the box, stop your run and begin to wear out your defense (= loss). That's what happened last season and I absolutely loved Tommy Tuberville as Auburn's head man, but it's good to see a defensive guru at the helm who has connections on the offensive side of the ball. Hopefully, when some of his guys begin to leave for other jobs, he'll continue bringing in good coaches who have good chemistry with his other coaches.

Anyway, here's the link:

http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=3971150&name=feldman_bruce&action=login&appRedirect=http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=3971150&name=feldman_bruce