Something ridiculous in today's paper

In an AP story in today's USA TODAY covering the announcement that this Saturday's Patroits-Giants game will be on 'free' broadcast TV, rather than just a smaller NFL owned cable network, I read this quote -

"In a Christmas Eve letter to (NFL Commissioner) Goodell, Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., again urged the NFL to make the game available across the USA. He said if it wasn't, he would ask for Senate hearings."

Senate hearings? About broadcasting a football game?

Right here is a GREAT example of what is wrong with government in general, and in particular some politicians! Bullying techniques to force private businesses to bend to the supposed will of people, bullied by those who think they know better about anything. And does the Senate have nothing better to do? If not, perhaps they should all go on an unpaid sabbatical to save the taxpayers some money.

This is also a part of the reason why we have campaign finance problems - businesses are petrified of threats like this that may cause them to be irrationally regulated or driven out of business, so they have to 'legally' bribe politicians with campaign contributions. A few years ago, politicians started pressing for more regulations on airlines and baggage handling for safety's sake. The issue was later dropped. There was also a large number of contributions which appeared in the coffers of the the politicians and their parties on behalf of the airline industry. This was less money then the airlines would have had to pay in upgrades/improvements. Coincidence?

ARGH - okay - I will get off my soap box now.