Truly by the balls...

And you'll never guess what the guy's name is... you really couldn't make this up.

Dissent of the Day

In response to my Valkyrie post, Anonymous said:

So the terrorist attack on our soil in '01 was all Bush's fault? And the worst economic melt down in 30 years (get your facts straight) is all Bush's fault? The failed policies of the Clinton administration that led to the housing crisis and the fact that Bush just took office when terrorists exposed our vulnerabilities due to Clinton's weaknesses...those things mean nothing for you? Do you realize that in your irresponsible comments you just condoned a murder plot against our president? I thought you had more respect for our system of government and the office of the president than to say something like that. This is why we have elections and term limits (in case you want to talk about disputed elections, at least term limits serve to limit the damage one bad president can do). Instead of having to devise a plot to other throw our govt, and instead of having to hatch a complicated scheme to murder our commander-in-chief, we simply get to elect a new one.

Bush apologists are big on not pinning 9/11 on him. But "he has kept us safe for the last 7 years". You can't have both. 1) 9 months is 20% of his term. At what point in a term is a president responsible for securing the country? 40% in? 50%? 2) Are you aware that he gets a daily security briefing? So, that means that in the 9 months between his inauguration and the attack he had gotten about 300 of these things, including one titled "Bin laden determined to strike in US"! So, yes. I blame him.

As far as condoning a murder plot, let me be clear: I don't put Bush's crimes on par with Hitler's, and I don't support or condone anyone trying to take him out. What I was speaking to was the spirit that the Germans in the movie possessed to do the right thing. The "right thing" in this case is not assassination. I believe that prosecution is the appropriate action for Bush and his guys. I believe he has done tremendous, tremendous harm to our country. I don't think he meant to. I think in his head, he was doing what was right. And that makes him the most dangerous type of dangerous person in my book. The well intended one...

Bush, Ctd.

Scott McClellan, a former White House Press Secretary under George W. Bush and author of the No. 1 New York Times best-seller "What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington’s Culture of Deception", has written a review of Oliver Stone's depiction of Bush and his Presidency. I found it interesting since he was actually there for a lot of the events in the film. Scott had been with Bush since Texas. I expected him to dump on a lot of it as I would expect from anyone who watches a Hollywood depiction of anything they know a lot about. But he wasn't too hard on the film and gave it what I thought was a pretty fair viewing, all things considered.

You can relive my brief review here.

NFL Stories, Ctd.

There are fans, and then there is this guy. I stand in awe of his devotion and his hutspah...

Blago, defiant.

Blago has decided that, despite the crap-tastic storm he's gotten himself into, he's going to name the successor to Obama's senate seat anyway.

I feel bad for the people of Illinois. Even if this Roland Burris guy is squeaky clean, he'll never be free of this slimy situation and people will always question the means by which he got the job.

Light 'em Up

(Jenny Holzer’s “For the Guggenheim” Through December 31, 2008, Jenny Holzer’s “For the Guggenheim” will project on the side of the Manhattan museum. To mark the new restoration of the structure, the Guggenheim commissioned Holzer (one of the U.S. most celebrated projection artists) to immortalize the building. Her own words and poems suffuse the side of the great white spiral, making the building itself a conversation piece on the eve of its 50th anniversary celebration in 2009)

A collection of some great light installations around the globe.

15 and Deadly

Remember when the worst thing you could get in trouble for at 15 was sneaking out of the house? Well, add murder and dismemberment to that list...

NFL Stories

The NFL has a great ad campaign called Super ad. I have collected a few for your enjoyment:

My Favorite: Tony Gonzalez. Best prank ever.

Close Second:
Jake Delhomme. Cool breeze...

Tony Wragge, from Home Depot to the NFL.

"Barack The Magic Negro"

Me-thinks the Republican National Committee can count this guy out of the running for its chaimanship.

Valkyrie

I went to go see Valkyrie on Friday with my family with reluctance. I had read a few reviews that had removed any desire I had to see it, so, I went in with rock-bottom expectations. That being said, I really enjoyed the film. It being a true story immediately gave it added weight and a seriousness not present in most movies. I wasn't familiar with the story, so, I learned a lot and was entertained.

The main thing I walked away from the movie with was a sense that I had seen what true patriotism is all about. Patriotism isn't about chanting at a ball game or about agreeing with every decision made by your government, but about doing whats right for the country. Especially when the government is unwilling to.

The movie is about Nazis in Hitler's army who didn't agree with what he was doing and their attempt to take him out. They don't succeed, obviously, but it was a powerful testament to what a few men of good will can accomplish.

Looking at the movie through the prism of our current government was the next logical step. When we look back on the last eight years of US history we'll find a preemptive war against an imaginary foe, the greatest economic collapse in a generation, the worst terror attack ever on our soil, torture sanctioned by the highest levels of our govenment, and God knows what else. The men in the Valkyrie story frequently say "We don't want Germany to go into the history books as Hitler's Germany. We were not all like him." I ask myself sometimes, what have we allowed the United States to become? I hope we have some patriots left...

Flame On

Burger King has launched their own cologne, Flame. Which "captures the love for the Whopper" and "gives it to you with a hint of flame-broiled meat".

You can't make this stuff up.

Muntadhar al-Zaidi

Muntadhar al-Zaidi is a brave person. I've had some fun with the shoe throwing incident on this blog, but I spent some time thinking about it over the last couple of days and its actually an amazing thing he did.

I don't know how pre-meditated the incident was. He had to have known for sometime that he would be in the same room with Bush, and his detain for the man had obviously been present for some time. So, knowing that he would be sacrificing his job,freedom, and putting himself in the cross hairs himself, he choose to make the statement he felt had to be made.

When asked why he thought he had shoes thrown at his head, Bush suggested that the guy probably wanted to get on TV. That's unlikely since the guy is a TV reporter by trade. (As an aside: is there anything George Bush is worse at than self-reflection?)

So, what becomes of him after his release. He has been made a hero in much of the world. World leaders from Malaysia to South America and everywhere in between have praised his actions. You can't go back to reporting muggings after all that, can you? My prediction: after Bush is out of office, he is released quietly. Once he gets out, though, who knows? He's an international superstar now, maybe he'll got the Joe the Plumber(TM) route and get a publicist, book deal, and a recording contract.

If he's smart he'll run for office. Maybe he'll land an ambassadorship to the USA. Then we can realy hear what he has to say.

Countries of the World

The first time I saw this video i was about 10 years old. I didn't know much about what made something great, but I knew that what I had just seen was of a higher quality than just about any thing else I had seen on TV before.

It has withstood the test of time well:

Pardon Me

It seems fitting to me that this administration found a way to actually botch a pardon.
The story is: after issuing the pardon they learned more about this guy through the news reports that surfaced afterwards that made them want to think twice about pardoning this guy. Yes, you read that right, they learned from the news....

I hope we've learned something....

And we're back...

I hope you al enjoyed your holiday week. I've got much to share, so, lets get back at it......

Such as....

I'm not sure much more needs to be added to this. Another classic. Enjoy:

Happy Weekend

I'm not sure how often I'll get to a computer to post next week. So, this may be my last post for a little bit, I'm traveling to see the in-laws for the holiday.

Thank you again for visiting my blog. I hope you're enjoying reading it as much as I am writing it.

Please become a follower if you dare (upper right hand corner).

To you and yours....

Top Ten Like No Other

Ladies and Gentlemen, Jim Carrey:

Blago World

The embattled Governor of Illinois made his first (serious) statement since his arrest on a litany of corruption charges last week:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

My gut read on this guy since the story broke was "This guy is slimey". But I've also been put off by the rush to throw him out of office and strip him of all power. This is still America, right? We still have the whole presumption of innocence thing working for us, no?

So, in all likely hood this guy will do time for his infractions, but lets let the facts be judged in the appropriate venue.

I will say, though, as I watch this video I think there are one of three things going on internally with the Gov'na. 1)delusion. 2)ignorance. or my favorite 3) lie, lie till you die. Actually, its probably a little of all three. When the US attorney's office says they have you on tape trying to hauck and extort your way to easy street, its a little more than a witch hunt.

I think he's trying to hold onto his job for as long as possible because its the only thing of value he has to offer in a deal. The people of the state will suffer everyday he's still in office, and he wants to use that fact to shave some time off his inevitable sentence in the big house. I don't think he believes any of what he is saying here....

Wrap it up, dude!

Its called birth control people, sheesh.....

Don't Forget The Reason For The Season

Report: Nation�s Wealthy Cruelly Deprived Of True Meaning Of Christmas

(Hat Tip: Jeremy G.)

Top Mug Shots of 2008

(same guy. before and after)

The Smoking Gun presents their top 20 mug shots of 2008. Their staff of three people combed through tens of thousands of these things. And there are some doosies....

Slumdog Millionare

I hadn't planned on watching this movie, but everywhere I look it keeps popping up as one of the best films of the year and I'm beginning to wonder if I'm passing on a good thing. It looked to me, at first, as another sappy love story, but it appears to be much more than that. I suggest you give it your attention.



Roger Ebert:

The film uses dazzling cinematography, breathless editing, driving music and headlong momentum to explode with narrative force, stirring in a romance at the same time. For Danny Boyle, it is a personal triumph. He combines the suspense of a game show with the vision and energy of "City of God" and never stops sprinting.

I can invest in something like that. You?

Person of the Year 2008

(Image: Obama, surrounded by friends and family, on an elevator preparing to address a crowd after securing the Democratic nomination in June)

..at least according to Time.

His official theme was change, but a specific kind of change: the nuts-and-bolts kind you can see and measure. Voters were invited to believe because Obama kept delivering the goods. Certainly he made mistakes and gave up on some ideas while doubling back on others — his promise to stick to the existing campaign-finance system, for example. On the whole, though, he was a doer. Obama told people that a black man could win white votes. In Iowa he proved it. He said a broad-gauge campaign could win in GOP strongholds; along came Indiana and Virginia and North Carolina. He declared that a new approach to politics would topple the old Clinton-Bush seesaw, and topple it he did. He sank the three-pointer with the cameras rolling. Made a speech in a football stadium feel intimate. Some might say these are not exactly Churchillian achievements, but in the land of the hapless, the competent man is king.

Runners-Up:

Palin
Paulson
Sarkozy
Yimou

The Butler Did It

Rasul Butler, of New Orleans Hornets fame, had the sickest single sequence I've ever seem in an NBA game last night. Block, steal, save, jumper all in about 5 seconds. (It comes about 50 seconds into the video)

Boom Goes The Dynamite

A classic, so I felt it deserved special attention here.

May none of our failures ever be this publicly humiliating:

Dubai, Ctd...

After I wrote my post on Dubai, I came across this article about it. It looks like my hunch was correct.

Take the new Atlantis resort, for example. It is a joint project between South African developer Sol Kerzner's group and Nakheel, the Dubai development company that built the Palm Jumeirah island and other even more extravagant real-estate follies up and down the coast. Days after the grand opening, Nakheel announced it was laying off 500 people, or roughly 15 percent of its global workforce. "The people with Nakheel spend $20 million on fireworks and don't have money to pay their own people," says a Lebanese businessman with extensive interests in Dubai. "It's a disaster."

Romantic Comedies Ruin Your Love Life

You've always suspected it was true, now you have proof.

"We Can't Get Fooled Again"

Our President and Vice-president are war criminals. Is this news to you? It shouldn't be. The facts have been out there for some time and are indisputable. That doesn't mean that people won't dispute them, but there are facts after all.

It saddens me to know that they won't be prosecuted for their crimes, but crimes they are. Our country, the United States of America, has tried, convicted and hung people for things they now freely admit to. We can argue about if they had good reasons for breaking the law, but we can't debate whether they did or not.

Andrew has been on this story for some time, so, I'll guide you to what he has laid out for us. I hope you take time to read it.

But if you're not a big reader, here is Rachel laying it all out for you:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

This is our country, we're in control. We can't get fooled again.

Laugh of the Day

I've never video of models falling on the catwalk particularly entertaining, but this one beats them all. What makes it so great is she doesn't go down right away but continues to try to self-correct, but she overcompensates and manages to weebble-wabble for a while before she bites it. I've seen this many times, and I'm still laughing....



Runway Model Falling - video powered by Metacafe

Dubai

(Image: Burj Dubai. When it opens in 2009 it will be the largest man-made structure in the world)

I have a love affair with Dubai. I have wanted to travel there since I first started learning about it and the amazing advancements that are being made there. But since that time I've grown more and more wary of the over the top opulence that continues to come out of there.

Last month there was the celebration for Atlantis The Palm in Dubai:



Then there was the whole moving building concept:

Premiere architecture dynamique au monde à Dubaï
by allcurious

None of this is wrong in any moral sense, mind you. But couple it with the island building, the indoor ski resorts, and then you throw in a refrigerated beach, you begin to get the feeling like the city is setting itself up for a big fall. I'm all for pushing the envelope and creating new and exciting things. But in a world that is being challenged economically the way we are, I'm not sure how wise or sustainable all this is.

I'm reminded of the great monologue from The Matrix where Agent Smith tells Neo about what a plague on the Earth the human race is. When I see this stuff, I begin to think he may have been onto something...

Wolverine

When I first heard about this movie, I wasn't too excited. I was a big X-men fan as a kid, but Wolverine wasn't one of my favorites.

Looks like I may have been way off base:



And, yes, that was Will-I-Am you saw...

(Hat Tip: Adrian L.)

Palin for President

McCain gets it now.

Speaking to ABC's "This Week," McCain was asked whether Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin could count on his support.

"I can't say something like that."

PostSecret

PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people
mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard.

Its a very interesting collection of people's raw, honest thoughts and feelings. Some are funny, some, as you see above, are quite sobering. I find reading them affirms my own humanity.

PostSecret Archive

Liberators, Ctd...

If you loved The Shoe, then you'll love this. Gotta love the web...

Pete Carroll

Watch CBS Videos Online

If you know me, then you know I'm a much bigger pro football fan than a college football fan. But after watching this story, I'll be rooting for USC whenever I see them on TV. You don't even have to like football to appreciate this because this story isn't about that. Its about what a quality human being Pete Carroll is. After you watch this, no matter your allegiances, you'll root for him too...

Publish my Dreams

The Japanese know no bounds.

(Hat Tip: Andrew)

Here we are now, entertain us....

17 years later, the Nirvana baby is still swimming after dollars.

"We'll be greeted as liberators!"

Yesterday I asked a conservative friend of mine what he thought the legacy of George W Bush would be. He proceeded to talk about how he's kept the US safe from another terror attack. When asked why 9/11 doesn't count against him, he said he was only 9 months in and it was more Clinton's fault (never mind that 9 months is about 20% of a term). Then he proceeded to talk about how the economic meltdown was a combination of several factors (which is true) and he can't be blamed for that either. At the end of our chat I was left wondering what he thinks Bush is actually responsible for.

There may be some debate within our borders as to what W means, but as for the rest of the world, as this shoe symbolizes nicely, there is no doubt.

Follow Me

I'd like to thank those of you who've come to my site over the last week. If you like what you see, please become a Follower of the blog (link in the upper right-hand corner). You never know, I may shout you out from time to time. I will focus on the posts that you comment on and try to give you more of what you like. Tell your friends!

See you monday....

I'd like to thank the Academy...

Your next Oscars Host.

Andrew Sullivan

I discovered Andrew Sullivan by chance flipping the channels one morning is February/March. He and Christopher Hitchens were on Tim Russart's show (RIP) discussing the election. As you know I turned into quite the election junkie at the turn of the year. I listened to every pundit, read every web-site and followed every election show I could find. In that crowded field of voices I never found one smarter or more impressive than Andrew's.

When the show was over I couldn't remember his name but I did remember he did have a book that they had mentioned on the show, some thing about The Conservative Soul. After a quick web search I found him and his gold mine.

As it turns out, our friend Andrew is one of the world's most well known bloggers (yes, I have patterned my blogging style after his) and has a lot of interesting things to say. I've been reading him daily ever since.

I don't agree with him on everything. But what I respect most is the fashion in which he expresses his thoughts. He is very self aware, which I find very attractive in an author, and he's not afraid to be proven wrong.

The thing that bonded me with him fastest was his prophetic analysis of the election. Not only did he see what was coming way before the rest of us, he knew why and explained it better than anyone I've seen. And I've seen them all.

Money Quote:

"...as a simple observer, I really don't see what's stopping [Obama] from becoming the next president. The overwhelming first impression that you get - from the exhausted but vibrant stump speech, the diverse nature of the crowd, the swell of the various applause lines - is that this is the candidate for real change. He has what Reagan had in 1980 and Clinton had in 1992: the wind at his back. Sometimes, elections really do come down to a simple choice: change or more of the same?

Look at the polls and forget ideology for a moment. What do Americans really want right now? Change. Who best offers them a chance to turn the page cleanly on an era most want to forget? It isn't Clinton, God help us. Edwards is so 2004. McCain is a throwback. Romney makes plastic look real. Rudy does offer something new for Republicans - the abortion-friendly, cross-dressing Jack Bauer. But no one captures the sheer, pent-up desire for a new start more effectively than Obama," Andrew Sullivan, May 24, 2007

The Catch

In my football-watching career I've seen a lot of great catches, but this may top them all.

2012

I'm a sucker for doomsday movies:

2012 - Teaser HD [VO]
by Lyricis

If you're gonna go out...

Mama always said: If you're going to get fired, it better be for a good reason.

Ware

If you've seen any of CNN's coverage of the was in Iraq then you've seen Michael Ware. Even before I knew anything about him, it was evident that the man knew what he was talking about and had paid a price for that knowledge. He has been in Iraq longer than our troops have. He has taken citizenship there and spends 11 months a year there. He has been kidnapped and told that he was filming his own execution. That would be enough of an excuse for anyone to leave a job, but he has committed to telling the story. Even at great cost to his personal life, relationships and his physical and emotional health.

After I read about him I was left with one thought: "If this is what war does to a correspondent, what is it doing to our troops? What is it doing to the citizens in who's country this is taking place?

I hope someone, somewhere in a position of authority has a clue as to what they're doing.

Bill Burr

I discovered Bill Burr about two months ago on Comedy Central. I recorded the hour long special, Why Do I Do This, to my DVR and I haven't been able to bring myself to delete it yet. In the last eight weeks I've probably turned it on twice a week whenever I need a chuckle. I sent a message to everyone I know who I thought might appreciate his stuff, and some of them have become big fans as well. I thought he deserved special mention here.

its tough to say why certain people are funny, since different things hit people different ways. I appreciate his style because he has a great way of saying all the things that I think that don't have a place in regular conversation. He's also unafraid to tell race jokes. Most white comics won't go there, but Bill does, and he gets many kudos from me for it.

A Sample:




Bill Burr With David Letterman Jun 2007 - video powered by Metacafe

Slide!

I used to imagine crazy things like this as a kid. Its good to know I'm not alone in the world:

Terminator: Salvation

It won't be the same without Arnold. But I guess Batman is an acceptable fill in:

Say it ain't so, Joe!

So it turns out JTP found himself appalled by McCain. Why am I not surprised? Most Americans figured that one out before 'ol Joe did.

Money Quote:

When I was on the bus with him, I asked him a lot of questions about the bailout because most Americans did not want that to happen,” Wurzelbacher [said]. “I asked him some pretty direct questions,” he continued. “Some of the answers…they appalled me, absolutely. I was angry.

"In fact, I wanted to get off the bus after I talked to him."

Me thinks you won't hear any more 'I am Joe' chants at future McCain rallies.

Man of the Hour

My first reaction to the Blago story was 'What an idiot!'. As if being Govornor of one of the largest states in the union doesn't have enough perks, you have to try to huslte everyone out of every dime you can? Gimmie a break...

My second thought was 'uh oh. i wonder how much of this will blow back on Barack'. If you know me then you know I supported him in his presidential run. Its unfortunate that he has his name anywhere near this, but it looks like he's not going to be implicated of any wrong doing. As a matter of fact it seems as if Obama inadvertantly helped bring him down.

Help Me Die

This story is about a man who is diagnosed with motor neurone disease which would rob him of all his motor skills, including swallowing. He ultimately decides to request assisted suicide. The twist is that he hires Oscar-winning Canadian documentary director John Zaritsky to film a documentary about it which will be shown on TV in the UK tonight.

I'm not sure what to feel. Reading his story saddens me. I hope I never presented with the options he was presented with.

The words of a man who knows he's about to die seem to carry extra weight:

Speaking three days before his death, he said: 'There are people who will say, 'Suicide is wrong, God has forbidden it. You cannot play God and take your own life'.
'But if somebody wants to take their own life obviously they feel a reason for that. We may not think it's a good reason but it is that person's life.

'I have had a pretty good run. I think I can take my bow and say, 'Thanks, it has been fun, I would do it again'.'

Wade

When you watch Dwyane Wade play basketball you realize you are watching someone do what they were born to do. This facial was thrown down on an over matched Emeka Okafor last night. Video here.

The Wrestler

A few weeks ago I read this article on Mickey Rourke. I wasn't familiar with his work but he was supposedly the shining light on the hill for the acting industry for a time. His story is a familiar one: great talent and promise combined with destructive habits and poor decision making. The end result is another life turned cautionary tale. The great thing about this story, though, is that Micky is given a second chance in The Wrestler. I obviously haven't seen it yet, but it looks like it will have great redeeming qualities mainly because the character in the story has the same story as the actor who plays him. I imagine it will produce some very powerful scenes, and i hope, the resurrection of Micky Rourke. We all need redemption, no?

LOST

If you've never seen this show, you've at least heard about it. In my opinion, when it concludes in 2011, it will go down as one of the great shows of all time. I think what makes it so great is how deep it got on such a simple premise: plane crash on an island, people are stranded, no one can find them. Sounds like Gilligan's Island Redux, right? Wrong. Quickly in the first episode you find out that The Island is a character itself, and away we go. Four years later and I still can't wait to see what they will unearth next. Its a great mix of character acting and unsurpassed show mythology. So, if you've been a little slow on the uptake, get a Netflix account and catch up. You have until January 21 before it starts all over again:

Top This

Next time you use the words "i can't" in a sentence, think of this picture and then ask yourself if you have truly exhausted all options:

Reconciliation

On the 67th anniversary of the Pearl Harbour attack. Barack Obama names his Secretary of Veterans Affairs. He will be the first Japanese-American to serve in that post. We've come a long way from internment camps...

Chappelle

I was driving home on Friday night thinking about things I can post on this blog that I thought were interesting. Then I remembered an episode of Inside the Actors Studio that I saw with Dave Chappelle as the guest. I was blown away with the depth and wisdom of the man. Both his parents are college professors, so, he can hold his own with an intellectual argument. Most artists get a 45 minute show. Dave's was twice that.

Then i was flipping the channels on Saturday morning looking for something interesting, and the Actor's Studio was on. I thought it ironic since I was just thinking about the show the night before. I turn it on and it is the 200th episode of the show and they've decided to celebrate it by making the host, James Lipton, the guest and having him be interviewed by, guess who... Dave Chappelle.

So, that should tell you, if you don't want to take my word for it, what an amazing person they think Dave is. Of all the great actors and actresses that have graced that stage, to ask him to do that show. Also, Pace University, which hosts the Actors Studio, created a scholarship for students at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in DC where Dave went to school. They named the scholarship after him.

So, when you get a free 90 minutes, take the time to watch this. You won't be disappointed:

Poor W....

Now, i don't think George W Bush is a racist, but this had to have Kanye west saying a few "i told you so"s this weekend.

Not Bad For My First Day

15 posts in one day will be a tough pace to keep up, but i think i'm having fun. i'll be taking the weekends off until i get internet at the crib. but we'll be back monday. please spread the word.

New Website of the Week.

Every friday i'll attempt to post a new website that i've discovered that i find interesting. Hopefully you'll find them interesting too. A treat for making it through another week.

our first contestant: www.howcast.com

Ever wanted to know how to make eggnog or or to start a mob, or how to call in sick? They'll show you.

Case in point:

Change you can Litigate

On the bright side, at least they've moved on from the "Obama is a Muslim" shtick.

The New Lassie

This video makes me question everything i think i know about dogs.

Lets Get It Started

Won't it be nice to have a President who is ahead of the curve?

Sevenfold!!!

Some friends and I went to go see these boys on wednesday night. If you've never been to one of their shows....you're missing it...

How Politics Should Be

I love the look on the romanian lady's face after being doused. classic!

Don't Be Fooled

As much as Barack Obama's election says about the improved race relations in this country, we still have a long way to go:

Gotta love Blizzy- B!!!

What'chu know about the Blizzard Man?

Pro Bowl

The Pro Bowl is being moved:

Look for this to be the last year the Pro Bowl is played the week after the
Super Bowl. As I reported on NBC last night, the league likely will announce in
the next few weeks the moving of the game to the weekend before the Super Bowl
-- either on Saturday night, Sunday, or Monday night, depending on network
preference -- as part of the pre-Super Bowl buildup. In addition, I look for the
league to play more than half of future Pro Bowls on the mainland instead of
Honolulu, mostly at the same site of the Super Bowl to maximize attention and
focus on an all-star game that has become totally irrelevant. Next season the
Super Bowl is in Miami. I expect the rotation to begin then, with the Pro Bowl
quite possibly at Dolphins Stadium either eight, seven or six days before the
Super Bowl.

I am, for the most part, in favor of this idea. the NFL is the
greatest of american professional sports and yet its all-star game has
consistently been the worst. something needed to change, hopefully this will
give the game more juice. my only problem is that if it is before the super
bowl, then the players of the two participating teams won't play in the pro bowl
since they'll have a big game to prepare for. you might say " well, playing in
the super bowl is a good enough prize" and you'd be right. but there are two
problems with that: 1) a good portion of the players in the pro bowl are likely
to come from those two teams since they are the best. the game will be robbed of
some of its star power. and 2) its a big deal for the players to get to play in
it. its a bonus for all the hard work they put in. some even have contract
bonuses built in if they make the team.

i hope they find ways to get around the problems....

Bush

As President George W. Bush's 2nd term comes to an end i'm trying to figure out how to sum up my feelings about it. Obviously, I'm one of the 70% of you who disapprove of his job performance. If you saw the movie 'W' he was portrayed as a sympathetic figure, More of a victim of circumstance than anything else. I tend to lean toward that view. I don't think he intended to do as much harm as he has. I'm not even sure he was aware he was doing wrong when he was. I believe he is a good hearted man who wanted to do what was right, but was way out of his depth. It will take our country a long time for us to recover from his reign. I hope we learned something...

Care of the Elderly

There is negligence and then there is this. Anyone who knew this was going on and did nothing should be locked away and never heard from again.

Juiced!

OJ finally went down today. and what a spectacularly dumb way to do it. robbery??? really, juice???i feel conflicted. i know most people believe he killed those people, and he probably did. i preferred to remain undecided and not take a position. it amused me to see people get annoyed by him drawing the breath of a free man. i'm not sure what that says about me. maybe i like seeing things get stirred up. my position was always "if he did kill them, there is no escaping The Judge, so, he'll get his someday."well, its over now....

The Way He Is

yesterday i finished reading the memoir of my favorite artist of all time, eminem.
it reads about the way you might expect a book to read that was written by someone who took the 9th grade 3 times and then quit. its very simple, its almost like he was talking to someone and they wrote down what he said. very conversational. but the thing that has always attracted me to him, beyond his talent, has been his transparency. he's a very open person and surprisingly introspective. there isn't a lot of writing, here. he fills up most pages with pictures and copies of his personal lyric composition sheets (which are fascinating to view). but it is a must read for any eminem enthusiast.

My First Blog Post

i'm arrogant enough to think that people care what i think. i've spent the last year or so reading different blogs and i've finally decided that it could be fun. i intend to just post my thoughts and opinions. no subject will be soely focused on nor will any subject be off limits. hopefully i can get enough people to read it so i'm not just one man shouting into the abyss. i'd like your feedback on anything you deem comment-worthy. i want my thoughts, opinions and assumptions challenged. hopefully on the other end we can be better people for having freely exchanged ideas.