Gordon Ramsey hosts two competition shows on Fox - Hell's Kitchen and MasterChef. One is for professionals, the other for amateurs. Last on MasterChef, two contestants nearly lost their challenge because they couldn't fry eggs. The contestants on Hell's Kitchen would never struggle like that. Why? Because, as I said, they are professionals. They have learned skills and honed them through thousands of hours of practice. But nobody respects that. Anybody can cook or sell a car.

That was the old slogan for Ugly Duckling (now DriveTime) and it's true. As I reported last week, my car was in an accident and is now undriveable. So we've been making do for the past two days. My wife drove me to the office the past two days. Last night, I had to take the bus home. The entire process, from leaving the office to my front door, took two hours. Yes, people can survive without cars. But they make life a heck of a lot easier in most places.

Two stories have broken in the past few weeks that, when looked at together, create some reason for concern. One is the IRS using extra scrutiny in granting tax-exempt status to conservative groups.  The other is the extensive information gathering by intelligence agencies. The two cases are separate, but could someday be linked. Imagine using similar systems to find tax cheats. And one way to do that is through car registrations. And by tax cheats, I include people who work on tips, like waiters and taxi drivers. They say you have no privacy in cyberspace. Or as someone else once said, "To live outside the law, you must be honest."

Last year, one of the attendees of the NAF Association confernece was in an auto accident on his way to the event (he lives in Dallas and the event is in Ft. Worth). This year, it was my turn. It's not looking good for my 2004 Scion xB. I'm hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. On the plus side, this will provide some good insight into the auto lifecycle. Oh, I'm still heading to Ft. Worth today.

Up until November of last year, I honestly believe many dealers believed the Republicans would sweep into the White House and Senate and save them from the CFPB. Instead, they are stuck with Elizabeth Warren for at least six years. Now some seem to think the CFPB will ignore them because of size. One fellow at the recent NABD Dealer Academy even said the CFPB won't be working with state regulators. Yeah, they will.