Chris Paul / NBA Fiasco

I've been getting so excited for the NBA season (that is a sentence I never thought I would type) yet the NBA is trying to find Selig-like reasons for me to turn my back on it. First the lock out, which everyone expected would result in a cancelled season. Since that's what we expected, everyone is delightfully surprised when they actually decide they will play 66 games for the sake of the game. Fine. The season needs to be shorter anyway.

But then this Chris Paul / Lakers trade / non-trade happened, and it's outrageous. I understand why the owners are mad. I understand why fans are mad. Like it or not, the CBA agreement was never going to prevent CP3, Dwight Howard, Deron Williams, and future superstars from going to the big market teams. And in reality, it has nothing to do with money so much as exposure, because the NBA has a maximum contract, it's not like a Albert Pujols situation, where he goes to the highest bidder - everyone in the NBA bids the same. So with that in mind, of course players are going to go to where they can be more marketable and hopefully make more money of sponsorship.

The CBA agreement is about market share, revenue sharing, and trying to limit these massive player contracts (that the owners originally agreed to, which is why we're in this mess when Rashard Lewis makes 20 million a year to play 20 minutes a game). The CBA will help limit that. But it won't stop superstars from going where they want.

What happened yesterday was abominable. It's worse than calling the MLB All Star game a tie. Because what happened was a fraud. New Orleans knows CP3 won't resign. Why not try to get some value (and they got pretty decent value for him BTW) now before turning it into a Carmelo Anthony situation last year, and he become more of a focus than the team. And if you don't trade him? You just lose out, making your team worse off than trading him.

Now? The NBA can't possibly trade him anywhere. At all. And if they do - Lakers should file a lawsuit. Seriously. They got conned. If the Hornets & the 29 Owners of the Hornets didn't want CP3 to be traded, it should be been clearly established from day one. But it clearly wasn't - and the GM was acting with the best interest of the team in trying to get good young talent before CP3 walks away and New Orleans gets nothing.

Is the NBA going to try to block every trade? This is a very slippery slope if this is what they're going to do. The NBA Owners picked the GM for NO, so it's not like they couldn't of seen this coming. They need a serious reality check.

It angers me that we're now thinking of what could of been if the Angel of Stern wasn't so concerned about the image of the league and it's bigot owners (I'm calling you out Dan Gilbert.) Let's be honest - the Hornets aren't going to be much of anything. Maybe a 6 seed. And that all depends on if they decide some point later down the line that it's "within the best interest of the league" BS that they pulled yesterday. The Lakers went from "eh, likely to do well, lose in WCF to Mavs or Thunder" to "NBA Finals vs. Heat" to "eh, well, does Odom even still want to play in LA?"

This is an absolute disgrace. I pray they make it right today. Because otherwise, this is really, really bad for the image of the league.

Penn State

This is a tough post for me to write. There's no real easy way to talk about any of this.

Let me describe why this matters to me so much. Beyond the disgust of all of it.

Penn State was/is my school. I would of gone there if I was accepted into main campus. I grew up on Penn State. I believed in Joe Pa. That's Philly's college football team. Every year I would play NCAA football as them. So even though I didn't go there, I had a close connection. I have plenty of friends - best friends - who went there. It's part of me.

So with that in mind, there's a million emotions going through my mind. I'm trying to maintain a relative calm, because I was beyond angry reading the indictment last night. Angry isn't the right word. You can't classify a word for this, because its so awful we're not supposed to have a word for it.

Before we get too far into this, it's important to note that nobody knows the whole story with regards to the cover up. We only know bits and pieces, and I wouldn't be shocked to see if there is more behind that. And I'm sure there is more to the perverted old man too.

The bottom line is the overall: The kids involved. Again, words cant describe how horrible it is. You read that indictment and your stomach ties into a knot. How how how how how did this ever happen? What in the hell was going through anyone's mind? It's awful.

The crime here is life-changing. And any type of "justice" that this old bastard gets is truly far from justice. He'll go to prison for the rest of his life. That's still not fair. These are one of the times when I don't believe in the justice system. Our legal system failed these boys several times, and could have saved more from these acts. I can't say my suggestions for true justice. But it's not good. And I don't want to just kill him either. I rarely get truly angry. This was one of those times. Jail is not fair. Jail is an easy get away. No way.

As far as Joe Pa: He's like everyone's grandfather. Always high in spirits. It's been sad seeing the slow decline, yet he still flashes brilliance every now and again, making him so lovable. I never met Joe. I've seen him. It's hard to hear this and think that he knowingly ignored what happened. I can't justify it. The only possible thought I can have is: He never saw anything (to the best of our knowledge.) So to make an accusation on behalf of McCreary, that's not totally on him. That's an easy out though. It still should have weighed on his conscience. It weighs on me, and I wasn't told about it.

It's tough for me to say what should happen to Joe. He's probably been with the University longer than anyone else (and I don't just mean the football program). He's built the reputation of the school, the program, etc. Penn State is much bigger than football, but that's what most everyone associates with the school. It's hard for me to bring the hammer down on Joe, but I think his time has come. I'm hoping they let him ride this out. I believe in mistakes - if you correct them. Clearly the disgusting man made the mistake more than once - and there are rumors it could be as high as 20.

The school's name will be dragged through the gutter because of this asshole. He was in a position of power and abused it. I honestly don't even want to say his name, because it makes me sick. The onus will fall on the program. It won't truly ruin it, but who knows if it will ever become what it once was. And that's a damn shame. This man was so selfish and acted with complete disregard for these kids, his peers, his employer, and the millions of fans who live and breathe for this university.

It's amazing that at a University that prides itself on their academic and athletic excellence, something entirely different brought the team down. It wasn't boosters. It wasn't money. It wasn't anything anyone would expect. Instead it's one of the worst stories you'll ever here.

It's hard to find any positive in any of this. Penn State has handled it awfully. They don't know what to do. Nobody looks good. Everyone is just upset and distraught. I am too. I honestly had a hard time sleeping last night, thinking about how angry that indictment made me.

There's no easy resolution to this. There's no way to look past it. It will fade away with time, but never truly disappear from the legacy of Penn State and Joe Paterno.

The Throne

I went to Kanye West / Jay-Z's show last night in the Meadowlands. Was very much of a last minute thing, but man I'm glad I did.

Rap concerts are weird. Because their shows can go two ways. It's either a live band in the background playing the beats, or they play a loop of the tracks. So literally the entire show the performer has to be bringing the energy. That's the genre. But when there's a track you can't do a random song. You can't take requests. So in that sense, it's not like music the way I see it, but it's still music. Does that make sense? It's not my definition anyway.

Anyways, so the show felt just on an epic scale, but the thing is that it didn't really sound like the album at all. And that to me is always a good thing. The voices just felt more ummmph. Like they were angry, but not Eminem angry. Like they wanted to be louder than each other. And that's great. It ran through the building and made it sound awesome.

Part of the excellence of the show was that they scripted it to have an excellent balance between Jay and Ye, and both at the same time. They touched on the hits (although let's be honest, between both of them, if they played all of their popular songs it would of taken over 8 hours).

I know I've written on Kanye before, and I think he's excellent. He's annoying. He's cocky. But he is damn talented. And he's always trying to be new, better, on top of everything else. And I love it. Jay is calmer, cooler, got more swag. He's more talented lyrically, but also more reserved. He just loves life. Whereas Kanye is tortured. He wants to be perfect but his instincts pull him other directions.

Something I realized around the last MTV VMA's, there are those artists that a super popular right now, but then there are always those artists that are truly larger than life, even if they're not in the spotlight right now. Jay-Z is like that. Beyonce. Hey pregnancy blew up Twitter. Like Gaga and Rihanna are extremely popular, but Beyonce is trumps them. Britney trumps her, even though she is a blow up doll and on enough drugs that she's not really there. (I really don't listen to much from either of them, but that's one of the better examples I can think of.) It comes with time. It comes with being the best. Kanye isn't there yet. He's on the cusp. But Jay is there. Coldplay is kind of like that too. Respect your elders. Whatever you want to call it.

So anyway, these guys are at the top of their game, and it's sweet to see them tour together. Because we forget how tough touring is - we don't do it. It's probably lonely. Especially when you are a solo artist. Yeah you have your groupies and you've got your posse and you're not really alone, but you're on the road alot. Living literally in a tour bus. So for them - both friends/mentors/etc - to go together, and then perform, is awesome. You can just tell they're having fun. It makes the show that much more fun. It's annoying that they haven't varied the setlist much.

That's another thing (clearly I've got some ADHD tonight) about concerts - part of the fun is seeing something truly unique. Bringing it to Bruce, his catalog of music is so large, one night he can play Jungleland and the next play Thunder Road. He can do whatever he wants. He's the Boss. It feels special when the concert you see perform a song that's rarely played, hasn't been performed in years, whatever. It makes it feel more awesome. I have that feeling with Bruce. Again, Kanye and Jay don't have quite as extensive track list, but it would be cool to see Kanye all the sudden decide to play Chain Heavy. I dunno, it's still early in the tour, there's room for it.

I'm rambling. Show was sick. I suggest going. Go. Watch. The. Throne.

The Legal System

This post is fueled by the Amanda Knox legislation today.

I think our legal system is inept. There are a lot of problems with it. It's not perfect. How do we fix it? That's not my department. I don't hate it. I plan on not really participating too much in it. However it's there.

I don't understand how/why most people get so invested in these cases. They act like they are directly related to the verdict. Can't believe that someone got off/was convicted.

So like today with Amanda Knox. I never heard of her until today. I didn't care. I don't care really. Until everyone is tweeting about it. I don't know the full story. Again, I don't particularly care to know it. She was held in Italy for four years due to some mistrial and other difficulties and today was determined not guilty and let go. Everyone seems so excited.

However, that forgets the whole point of the trial - someone has died. And how did they die? Someone probably murdered them. So while Amanda Knox may not be the one who did it, someone did. And yet our focus is on if they did or didn't.

Same thing with Casey Anthony a few months ago. She got off. People are mad because the believe she did it. Of course it looks like it, but did she really? Who knows. People get so angry and upset. Maybe they should focus their frustration on trying to find the real killer, because at the end of the day, there is a poor child who didn't get to live the life it was given.

Some of the fascination might be because it's real. The same way I've been talking about sports as the ultimate drama because it's unscripted. These cases aren't scripted (although they are scripted into a Lifetime movie.....). It's not what you'll see in a episode of Law and Order or whatever show. It's real. These are people's lives. Amanda Knox was in jail for four years for what determined to be something she didn't do. But how does this affect my life? It doesn't.

I suppose I'm harsh. I should care more about the people in this world. I ask how the outcome affects me but people will think I'm weird when I can't sleep because the Red Sox didn't make the postseason this year. You could make the same rationalization. I have no real connection to the Red Sox. Okay I lied, maybe I do. People can create that feeling with anything - including a cases in the legal system. Everyone's allowed their own interests. I just don't understand the interest in the legal system. You'll never hear of Casey Anthony in a year. You'll hear of the Red Sox every year. But again that also depends on where you come from/your background etc.

I know this post makes no sense, as I just criticized one sect of people and then rationalized it. However it gets back to our greater point - the ineptness of our system. There are so many parts of the process and so many things that make it all a fraud. I don't believe in the death penalty because I believe that there's the possibility that someone could of been innocent. But nobody knows for sure. So the idea of spending four years in prison and then dropping the case is nothing compared to when you are executed and then they find that you're innocent after the fact. Then it's too late. But don't worry - your family can sue and start the legal process all over again!

Let's just stop killing each other and get along, yeah?

About Last Night - MLB Wildcard Edition

I'm going to try and be as non-bias as possible. However, as a Sox fan, last night was far from "pleasant."

What is there to really say about what happened last night? It was unbelievable. Four games, three of which came down to the last at bat. Four teams competing for two spots, with their fates being controlled by some of their rivals.

The night captures the beauty of baseball (dare I say romance?). You can play for six months, 161 games. And it comes down to one game for your team. And another game that you have zero control over.

From the Red Sox perspective, it seemed clinched. And that was the problem. They thought they had the Wild Card clinched September 1st. The Rays were down 7-0 against the mighty Yankees. The Rays aren't known for their hitting prowess. It was a slam dunk.

Around the time of the rain delay, I did some other chores, turned away from the TV, only to check in 20 some minutes later, to see the Rays making a comeback. The Sox were flirting with blowing the game in the 7th.

Meanwhile, the Phillies/Braves game goes under the radar because of the drama from the Sox and Rays, but that doesn't mean the game wasn't just as good - again coming down to the wire and the Phillies were able to pull it out.

Last night was the equivalent of MLB's version of March Madness. Four games, all going on at once, all determining the playoff picture. You needed four TVs to keep up. I could only flip between two games, because doing four was just impossible. My head would explode.

What I find to be the most interesting is that the Phillies and Yankees had the option to "help" guide a team to the playoffs. They could of rolled over and played the scrubs. Or could have gone out with every intention to win it. If I was the Yankees? I would of rolled over. I wouldn't want to let the Sox in the playoffs and worry about them in the ALCS. Those bats can turn on in a minute. Although after last night, the Rays might have a different confidence when it comes to playing the Yanks. If I was the Phils? I would of rolled over again, allowing for a 1 game playoff today, and praying the Braves won. The Cardinals are a much better team than the Braves are, when matching up with the Phils. I wouldn't want to face them at all. Now they've got them in the first round.

Of course, teams will frown upon teams "letting" another team win, but it's their right - they've already won their divisions. The future could be determined by them. I think that's great that they both went and played most of their starters. I understand resting a few guys. But go out there and get it. Same for the O's - they could of rolled over, but they were in it to win it. The Astros probably couldn't of won the game if they tried.

The sour point of yesterday? Jose Reyes. Reyes bunted in his first AB to get on base, and told his manager to pull him from the game to preserve his .337 batting average, which would make him the batting champion for 2011. Honestly, I lost a lot of respect for Reyes after that. On the last game of the year, in front of your home fans, in possibly your last game as a Met, when you're the only attraction to coming to the ballpark, you're going to pull yourself out after 1 inning? Wow. Selfish much? Let me give you a history lesson.

Exactly 70 years ago yesterday, Teddy Williams was leading the league in batting average going into the last day, about to play a doubleheader. He was sitting at .399. His manager offered to sit him so he wouldn't lose any points. What did Williams do? Go out and play both games. Went 6 for 8. What was his final average? .406. Nobody has hit over .400 since. I'm not saying Reyes was going to get to .400, but you shouldn't give a damn about your own statistics if it hurts your team's statistics - which really comes down to wins and losses. Teddy Ballgame is a legend, for this story and many many more (including the frozen in carbonite stuff). Jose Reyes will never be at that level because of this selfish foolishness.

Jose Reyes is a punk. This kid has been praised as the "next big thing" in the MLB for over 10 years. He's never met that level. Okay so he's been hurt. But he acts like he's the best shortstop in the MLB. Far from it. I could think of 2-3 others I'd rather have. Team players. Players who aren't out for number one. They are out for the team. It's disrespectful to your teammates, the fans, the organization, and the sport. Talk about the romance of the game - Jose Reyes is breaking every rule of that romance. Go enjoy your fake batting title. Ryan Braun had 24 more at bats than you. He deserves it. His team is going to the playoffs. Yours is not. Enjoy yourself. I pray that the Sox or Phillies don't sign you.

Finally, last night captured why sports is truly magical. You can't script this stuff. You can't write it yourself. You probably couldn't even dream of it. Because it seemed so improbable. Yet it all happened so quickly that it was as if you were watching a Hollywood movie. It's absolutely beautiful. Better than anything else you could of watched on your Wednesday night.

There's only one October.

Moneyball

Few things to preface this post:

1) I think making sports movies that really resonate with the viewers is tough. Sports is the ultimate drama because it is (hopefully always) unscripted. Most of the storylines are boring. But every now and again you get a storyline that captures the country and everyone is invested in it - even non-sports people. So for Hollywood to try and capture that on screen is tough. And usually the best sports stories (except the Mighty Ducks, obviously) are based on real events. There isn't always a Hollywood ending. Baseball is also my favorite sport. I couldn't totally say why, but there's just something about it. The movie called it "a certain romanticism about the game." I don't know if I would use the word romance, but I could see it. It's a beautiful game.

2) I read Moneyball in 2005. It was a little over my head, and I honestly can't say I remember much from it, however I remember being mind blown at the time. In 2005 I was also 16/17, so I was still not fully understanding all the statistics.

3) I barely remember much of what happened to the Oakland A's in the 2001/2002 seasons, being only 12/13 years old. I do remember that team being great, more on that later.

I've been super excited about this movie. I was curious to see how it all came out on screen, because I was worried it would of been too dumb-downed for viewers or it was going to be too Hollywood-ified and taken away from the real story.

I was pleased with the movie. I think I laughed more than most, because I found Brad Pitt's composure and cocky attitude to be dead on with what I've heard about Billy Beane. I've seen very little of Beane compared to Pitt, so it felt like Pitt just being smarter than everyone else in the room.

The development happened too fast without totally explaining it to the non-baseball fans. I guess most people who would see this movie would already know what the movie is talking about. But that limits the appeal of the movie. I heard them talking about statistics and started getting all excited.

What's interesting was the dynamic of how Beane was breaking traditional baseball rules, which were ridiculous, and was using new statistics to determine probability of success. I'm not a mathematician, but it all makes sense. And it tears away all the usual scouts looks: "He hits well." But why does he have a terrible average? "He can run quick" So why does he have 4 stolen bases? "He's got no confidence because he has an ugly girlfriend." Is that what that really means??

I don't buy in to all of the statistics baseball has created. You can talk about them till you're blue in the face to me. WAR makes sense to me, but at the same time it doesn't. Who is that replacement? How do they determine that? Again, it's all over my head. But, I trust/believe in the brainpower smarter than me to know. And it works for some teams that understand it, embrace it, and do it correctly. You can't half-ass it. You either do it 100% or you don't do it at all.

There was an interesting article in Sports Illustrated this week by Tom Verducci about how the Red Sox took Beane's formula and put it on steroids (baseball references intended). By having the resources that Oakland couldn't, the Sox could take on players who are good for the system and work together. It's how they got David Ortiz when no one else wanted him.

Back to the movie, it didn't really capture how good the team was before they implied these Moneyball stats. The team had 3 of the best pitchers in the game. Miguel Tejada was an MVP candidate every year. Eric Chavez was considered the best third basemen in baseball (what a quick fall from grace eh?). Jermaine Dye was also a solid contributor. So they had a great core to start with before adding Hatteberg and everyone. The streak of 20 games was improbable. No one could ever predict that. To give Beane all the credit is facetious. Chalk it up to the baseball gods and dumb luck.

Was the movie a "home run"? For me, yes. Only because I love baseball so damn much. To an average baseball fan? Probably not. It didn't have that Hollywood "our hero sees success in the end" storyline. And that's fine - because that's what happened. I don't think it'll go down as my favorite movie ever, or my favorite sports movie ever, but I certainly enjoyed it, and am looking forward to seeing how everyone else embraces it - or doesn't.

It's a beautiful game.

Blink-182 - Neighborhoods

This post is half album review, half reflection on Blink 182. You have been warned.

Blink-182 always has a special place in my heart. Without trying to sound too dramatic, Blink-182 is the reason I love music. I'm not going to tell you they write brilliant music. The lyrics and chords won't see themselves into any lists of "Best Ever." That said, Blink-182 had catchy beats and lyrics that the 9-14 year old in myself could relate to. That young of an age determines the path of your passion and hobbies - will you like music or are you the quiet type? Do you like sports? Which teams? You don't see many people change allegiances after these early adolescent years. They define most people.

Take Off Your Pants and Jacket was the first album I ever listened to front to end - in a CD Player - and I probably listened to it literally over 200 times. By that time Napster and pirating was taking off, so getting into more Blink songs certainly wasn't difficult. So they were truly my first musical love. When your young you don't know how simple the music is, you're living a simple life. When you're an adolescent and experiencing all different types of emotions, you start to connect with what the music says. The songs were never that deep, but a 12 year old can make them deep in their imagination. Okay, well I don't know if everyone did, but I did.

One of the random subplots of what makes Blink interesting musically - they have two singers who split songs. And it's not like they back each other up, they're alternating on different songs. Tom's got that whiny voice. Mark doesn't really sing, he just talks. It still works for both of them. Most bands only have one frontman on the music.

So Blink begat my love of music. It turned into an obsession over Green Day when American Idiot came out. Which lead to a Springsteen obsession that has settled down, but it still at obnoxiously high levels.

Blink 182 split in 2004. That was an upsetting time for me. I remember hearing it on the Philly radio. Their self-titled album was a different sound, but I still was into it. I'm not sure if I was blinded by Blink or what.

It's been an interesting eight years since Blink's last album. They went their separate musically. Formed two different bands. Tom produced three albums with Angels and Airwaves. Mark and Travis made +44, which felt like Blink incarnate, just without Tom's whiny voice - except for the song about how much they can't stand Tom and don't want to be friends with him. Mark went on to produce for other bands and do other behind-the-scenes music work. Travis was working on becoming a quasi hip-hop drummer/solo artist/rap sidekick.

The music they made felt like the trajectory of the self titled album - less stupid catchy hooks and toilet humor and more serious songs about whatever. Some of the music was good. Some was too much - mainly Tom's stuff, as he was aiming to achieve, what he called, "the best rock album ever." It was too much. Too heavy. It wasn't going to carry. I don't know if his ego got the best of him or what went wrong, but he talked too much game about an album that was good, but not epic.

So with all of that background, I've acquired Blink's new album, due out next Tuesday. I've been listening to it for the past few days - and I saw them live in Camden as well. The album, again, is the natural progression of their music. It feels like they've taken the best of their solo experiences and worked together to express themselves. It's got Tom's big guitar riffs and Travis' quick beats, all working together.

The lyrics reflect some of the more serious things that they've had happen to them. They aren't stupid 20 somethings getting drunk, making fart jokes, and screwing around. They're older now. They have families. Travis almost lost his life in a plane accident with DJ AM. Then DJ AM died (random sidenote - I was at the Saratoga show when DJ AM died, Blink cancelled the show. Weezer put on a great show, but it wasn't the same.)

I honestly don't know if the album is great or not. I like it. I think I might be blinded by the idea of Blink-182 being back, writing a new album, etc. The little kid in my loves it. Makes me want to go back to being 13 when it was cool to have emo AIM away messages about how much I can't stand girls. Well, not really, but sort of. You know what I mean. Oh, you don't? That's awkward.

The new album won't win any awards. It won't go down in history. But I'll be listening to it for a while. I'm not sure at what point I grow up. Am I still listening to this when I have kids? Who knows. In the meantime, I'm enjoying the feeling from the album, and it's bringing me back to my high school days - who doesn't want to relive that feeling again?

What's my age again?

ESPN loves the NFL

I think I'm different than your normal American 23 year old. I like football. But I don't love football. I don't obsess over it. I get excited over important games. Every now and then I get way into a game. But again, I don't live for the sport. I get annoyed at the stop-and-go of the sport. The "5 seconds of an incomplete pass followed by 35 seconds of replay and stats" that happens every play. I love baseball. People tell me baseball is boring. I disagree. Baseball is perfect for me. There's no politics of running the clock out or making sure you run out of bounds to stop the clock.

The problem I have? ESPN loves the NFL. I wish there was a stronger word I could use to emphasize it. They totally live for it. I tweeted last night, ESPN might as well be called NFL Network 2. Just last week, the NFL and ESPN agreed to a $15.2 billion contract for coverage of the NFL on ESPN.

$15.2 billion. For that price, you could buy every team in the NBA and still have $4 billion. You could buy every team in NHL twice.

It's an absurd amount of money when you think that ESPN really only has 16 games on it's network. Part of what this deal also entails is more NFL coverage on ESPN. ESPN's pregame show is now 3 hours instead of 2. Everyday they have (as far as I can see on ESPN.com's site) two hour long shows dedicated to what's going on in the NFL.

In case you know nothing about the NFL, nothing really significant happens between Tuesday and Saturday for most teams. So the idea of having at least 2+ hours a day dedicated to nothing is absolutely outrageous.

I get why it is like this. The NFL is the most popular league in pro sports. Why not dedicate more of your programming to something so popular? However, I don't think it can be done at the expense of everyone else. There's still a race to October for most of the MLB. The NHL season is about to get it's game together. College football has always been more exciting to me than the NFL (less BS, more teams, exciting games. BCS is the only problem)

The problem is, as with all media, ESPN is dictating what's "important" in sports. Since they are setting up a huge deal with the NFL, it's natural they are going to give the NFL much more time than the other leagues. And that's worse for leagues that don't work with ESPN (cough NHL cough)

Yesterday I listened to the Around The Horn and Pardon The Interruption podcasts. The first 2 of 3 segments were completely dedicated to the NFL. You're going to tell me that's not on purpose? It's a pro NFL bias. And most of the country doesn't mind because they can't get enough football. I've already had enough, and it's only been the opening week.

What can be done about it? Well, for me I think I'm going to be making the jump to the MLB Network. I don't like the idea of these Network's run by the leagues, because they can be too corporate and just BS. But I need my baseball fix. I've heard MLB Network has been having better coverage than ESPN for a while now. Change is never easy when you're used to something after 10 years.

Meanwhile, ESPN will brainwash you until you bleed for the NFL. Don't give in!

MLB is Moronic

One more 9/11 note - there was a semi-controversy involving the sports / 9/11 tie-ins.

The New York Mets wanted to wear FDNY hats instead of their normal MLB ballcaps. They did it after 9/11/2001. They were going to do it yesterday. What happened instead? MLB said no, and mandated that the players wear the official MLB cap.

What's so special about the MLB cap? Glad you asked. MLB honors patriotic days (Memorial, July 4, Labor, 9/11) with special hats that do something different each year. Different colors. Different flags. ETC.

How much do these hats cost to buy? Again, glad you asked. You can buy them for 36.99.

Are you kidding me MLB? Are you so corporate and greedy that you can't let the team pay tribute to the real superstars of that day? Again, we treat sports stars like heroes. But our "heroes" want to honor the real heroes. Take the spotlight off them and on the people who deserve it. And instead the MLB just looks like it's trying to make a buck. Have a human aspect to you. Baseball is meant to be fun. It's a beautiful game. It's not the end of the world if a team violates the uniform policy for one game out of 182.

Have a heart MLB. Act like your real. What would be the better statement? Seeing the Mets wearing FDNY hats or wearing a normal Mets hat with a flag on the side of it?

Sometimes I can't stand how much I love baseball.

9/11 10 Years Later

Two posts in one day? I'm on a roll.

Yesterday was the 10 year anniversary of 9/11. It's been a somewhat nauseating week with all of the 9/11 coverage. There's been so much coverage. Everyone involved in that day has a story. People in the buildings. Tourists. Firefighters. Literally everyone. It's heartbreaking to hear these stories. Being honest, I got semi-tired of it. It's just emotionally exhausting.

It was weird for me this year because I was in New York. I lived in the Financial District for 2+ months. I was 10 minutes away from the WTC. I walked by it on Saturday. The police were everywhere over the weekend. There was a tense-ness in the air regarding the threat of a potential attack. My cab was pulled over before it was allowed to cross the Manhattan Bridge. It was all just very tense.

Last night I went out to dinner with my friends, but came home to my apartment. My roommate is gone, so it was just me. I went up on my roof, and could see the bright lights of the two towers that they turn on. I haven't spent that much time on my roof by myself in a while. It's powerful just to see them. Strong strong lights that illuminate the skyline. A symbol to demonstrate what once was there and how we will never forget what happened that day.

For me/my friends, 9/11 happened when we were 12/13 years old. It was 8th grade. I remember that day more than most from grade school. I remember watching the TV. I remember walking home from school. I remember all of it, but I stil never processed it. It's the true loss of innocence moment that you talk about in your high school English classes after reading To Kill A Mockingbird.

I was watching coverage of it last night, the CBS special by Robert DeNiro, it was powerful. I cried. I'm glad it wasn't overly political. But the footage, the raw footage, was so gripping/emotional. The craziness of that day. The way the firefighters just ran in. The untold stories. There was also coverage on MSNBC of "9/11 as it happened" which was literally them showing their broadcast coverage from that morning. They also had interviewed the broadcasters, talking about the impact of that day, how they saw it, how it changed them, etc. As if it was 9/11, I literally could not turn away. I was up till 3AM watching this stuff.

You think about the chaos of that day. The craziness. Not to trivialize that day, but I've only had that sense of chaos one other time in my life - when I first saw the Dark Knight. That true sense of absolute chaos that the Joker had on Gotham was polarizing. The way Osama Bin Laden controlled the chaos of a nation by hijacking four planes is gripping. It grabs at you. The difference is 9/11 was real. The Dark Knight was not. And that drives it home more. Living in New York, it hits me more now than it did 10 years ago. I never really knew the towers to be anything, but my parents have a picture of them on it. It's in movies I watch. It's another amazing aspect of this great city. And in a matter of hours they were both gone.

I'm far from trying to praise Osama Bin Laden for what he did. But, it was a well strategized attack. All of these things happened within a short amount of time - which felt shorter because of the un-realness of it. And you think about United 93, what that could of been. If it hit the Capitol, or the White House, how awful that would of been. It's truly a blessing that there weren't more planes involved, more targets.

The other aspect of the day - how people try to tie it in to everything. Specifically sports. Everyone is asking players what they remember from that day. To be honest, I don't give a damn what they remember. I lived that day. We all did. These athletes aren't really heroes. We talk about them and treat them like Rock Stars. Yet they didn't run into those buildings. They didn't work 24 hour shifts. Their kids will have a father and have more toys than a firefighter's kid because of the millions they make. It's absolutely bogus that we live like this. It won't change, because we only really reflect this time of the year. Come October, we will be singing the praises of Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee and 9/11 will be far from our minds. State Farm won the day with that ad though. Mad props to them.

One last thought - of course it's a Springsteen thought. I listened to the whole album of The Rising this past Saturday. The album was inspired by 9/11. And if you listen to it thinking about 9/11, the lyrics all make sense. It's another moving piece of it. I think of Bruce as the American storyteller in terms of music, the American Dream, etc. And what did that album tell us? That we have lost some brave and strong men. But we still have our country, our freedom, our friends, our family. Our future. And it's not yours or mine. It's ours. Bruce captured the feeling of a nation, and it makes the album that much more powerful.

We won't forget. We can never forget. We carry on with our lives. Our country is changed. But the emotion that was felt on that day, it'll never go away.

The Entourage Finale

Last night was it for Entourage. As far as it being on HBO. I wrote earlier my thoughts on the previous 7 episodes of the season. It's been a bit of a let down, but it's been a let down since season 2. It hasn't lived up to the hype yet we're still captivated and motivated to watch. Mainly because of Drama and Ari.

So what did I think of the finale? It made sense within the scope of it. It ended like I said it would - with everything being figured out. Even so, it all felt like it was being done with zero repercussion. Vince is getting married? Really? And everyone's just like "Okay, yeah, marry the reporter you've known for less than a month. I'm happy for you bro." There's a difference between support from your friends and blind support "because your friends." More on that in a minute.

The whole Sloan/E thing doesn't make sense. Sloan is so angry and anti E. E is breaking down and doing whatever he wants. Yet end of the day he still loves her. She loves him. They both just can't let it work, but can't make it work with anyone else.

I've always felt more of a connection with E than the other guys. It's become kind of standard for guys to compare their friends to the guys in the Entourage. Nobody ever wants to be Turtle. It's somewhat of a accomplishment to be Drama. It actually takes a lot of work to Vince. Anyways, I've always been compared to E amongst my friends. I don't hate it. I watched it last night and felt like - again - that I was more like Eric than ever. I don't have a Sloan, I don't have a movie star best friend, I didn't get any girls pregnant, and I didn't hook up with anyone's mother. But, just the qualities, the way he acts and carries himself (besides sleeping with Melinda, even though I find her attractive, but Sloan looks better) I feel such a connection with him. And I feel like I have friends who fit the other roles of the Entourage. Maybe I'm dreaming too much. Or trying to make my life seem cooler than it is. But I can't really help it.

The most disappointing aspect of last night? There really wasn't a sense of closure. And that's because they set it up to make a movie. To see what actually happens to the boys. It's fine, I'll see it, whatever, but I don't want that to be a "part" of it. The finale just felt like all a set up. Which is what the whole season has been. And what will the movie be? More of the same. More of the ridiculousness.

I had a relatively good weekend. It was most certainly a "bro" weekend. My good friend from school came in. My other close friend had his friend from home in. The 5 of us walked around and did whatever we wanted. It was kind of Entourage-esque, without the girls/money/cars/clothes. So far from it. But it's the base of what's behind Entourage - the friendship between a group of guys. How they all treat each other as next of kin, putting them above anything else. Like the way Drama and Turtle talked to Sloan and said "It's our baby" as if it's for all of them. That's kind of how my life feels like. Again, maybe I'm dreaming or forcing it. But whatever, it's okay to dream right?

emotion alert. I think about my life, and I think about how my friends - mostly male. I've got 5 or so super close/best friends. I love them, I talk to all of them almost everyday, they're part of the fuel that keeps me going. I think about the future of my friendships, and I hope that we always stay in close touch. I know it can't be like this forever - things happen and interrupt it. But, I've enjoyed the time so far and never want to let that go. But at some point, it does, right? Not like that truly "scares" me, but it's sad to think about. Yes I'm sure (at least I'm semi-confident) that I'll get married/have kids & do that whole thing, but where do my friends fit into that puzzle? Are we going to live near each other? Or are we going to be across the country? Know what I mean? Family changes all of your priorities. Yeah it's crazy and yeah maybe I'm being too melodramatic, but this is what goes on in my head. (To the girls reading this, have I won you over yet? Are you single? Email me! I'm not kidding. Well, I'm laughing, but I'm not kidding.)

On a quick "I don't understand the storyline" comment - Vince booked a plane for E to go wherever he wanted with Sloan. You're going to tell me he didn't go to Paris for Vince's wedding and be a best man? Isn't that kind of crazy? It breaks all the rules of the bromance. Maybe we'll find out once the movie comes out. To me, the idea of getting married is serious. Yet they just kind of throw it around and are just like "okay" with it. Whatever.

With regards to Ari, going to Europe doesn't make total sense, but whatever. Let him do whatever he wants. Although he's come back to take that job or whatever. More in the movie I guess..

I know I'm being super cynical about the show. Even though it's been disappointing, that's only because we want/expect great things from it. The story still captures your attention. It's cool. It's still the lifestyle every guy wants to live. So with that in mind it's great. The movie(s) that come will be great. I'll see them more than once. It's been a great ride.

Anyone trying to hug it out?

Obama's Last Stand

Insert typical "I don't know everything about politics but I hate the system" speech here.

I generally like Barack Obama. Or I thought I did. He had the charisma that seemed like he could lead a country (as opposed to McCain). He's lost a little bit of that "swag" as the kids are calling it.

Truth is, he's not following through on everything he promised. And to be fair, it's a hard system for anything to get accomplished. People can talk a big game about 50 different issues, but for that issue to actually pull through? Much more complicated. Talk is cheap. These politicians will say anything to get your vote. Most people don't understand how difficult it is for bills to actually pass (although maybe they do following the potential default) through the various halls of congress.

I was watching the Republican debate last night. Well, to be honest, I was also doing my fantasy football draft and was talking to my friends on the phone. But I did hear the conversation about border patrol, and I was just getting nauseous listening to these politicians talking about their plan for border control. Everything sounds good, but to pull it off? Not possible. Financially. Resources can't be expended. Etc. And all these politicians are saying is "Put up a 90 foot fence, feet on the ground, have UAVs flying in the air, use satellite technology." All sounds good. But not easily pulled off. How much will that cost?

The other problem I had with the debate? The stories these idiots would tell. "I was talking to a farmer on Pluto who is losing his farm to homeowners." It's not last night's fault - that's the BS of politics. I get it, but I can't tolerate it. Let it die. Stop blowing us around.

Anyway, tonight is Obama's jobs speech. He's feeling the pressure because there's 9% of the country unemployed (including me). I'm curious to hear what he has to say, but I doubt this speech will actually do much of anything. Again, talk talk talk. Put $300 billion (where does this money come from again?) into the economy. From what I understand, jobs are the last thing to see an increase in a growing economy. Companies need to feel stable, which comes from consumers spending comfortably.

Ultimately, this is going to cost Obama the Presidency. People are angry. People are tired. People are depressed. I'm all those any more. It's awful. I don't entirely blame Obama. I think our system is so large, convoluted, corrupt, that it can't work. Everyone wants to make their personal statement. Their personal stand. Republicans have been working to repeal Obamacare

since it started. Forget Obamacare - fix the economy. Or do something, for God's sake. America has a lot of work to do to restore it's reputation.

Summer 2011 TV Thoughts

Because it's the slowest week of August.

1) Breaking Bad

Easily the show I'm most interested in, but that's not saying much. I really like Breaking Bad. I don't watch it as if I'm on the edge of my seat and am imagining scenarios like I would with LOST. I probably never will reach that LOST level crazy - that's probably a good thing too.

What I like about BB is that they set an end date for the series after next season, so they know when can appropriately time it out. I don't really know what's going to happen. I do enjoy watching it and agree that it's the best written show on TV right now. The show will be more satisfying in the long run than season to season because of how Walt "breaks bad" and goes from terminally ill boring teacher to a murdering drug lord making $7.5 million a year to cook the best meth in New Mexico. My gut says it will end with Walt being caught or killed. We shall see what happens.

I'm annoyed with how sometimes it feels like it's moving too slow, but if you were to watch the previews for next week it's like the storylines are (finally) going to collide. Eventually they have to. That's the whole point of the show. But if you watch the previews, you'd think Gus and Walt will meet face to face and there will be guns involved - which has been far from the case.

2) True Blood

After a lackluster season 3, this season has been at least more interesting. I'm really not invested at all in any of the storylines outside of the witch/vampire thing. The Eric/Sookie thing felt like a let down after three season of building tension because Eric wasn't the Eric that girls swoon over. I don't care about Jessica and Hoyt/Jason. The whole Lafayette being possessed by a baby was an annoying storyline that would of been more satisfying if it was the ghost of the dude from season 1 or something.

When this season started I was annoyed that they were adding more supernatural creatures, but they've done a nice job of keeping it interesting. That episode where Marnie casts the spell to kill all vampires was one of the best moments of the series - I think. Honestly nobody should listen to my commentary about this show because I usually don't give it my 100% attention. Now I'm rambling.

3) Entourage

Ugh. I could sum it up there, but I feel compelled to write more.

This season is a fraud. It's all predicated on the "need" to have a new season. THEY DEDICATED ONE ENTIRE EPISODE - which was a nauseatingly short 22 minutes - TO A PISS TEST. It's been so dissatisfying. I feel like I'm only watching it out of "need" to see what happens because I've invested so much time into this show/characters.

Thanks to HBO GO, I've seen the second to last episode of the series. I won't ruin the surprise, but it involves Sloan and Eric - which unfortunately is the only quasi-interesting storyline this season. Ari and Mrs. Ari? Just seems like a mess. Drama's drama with Dice Clay? More whatever. The whole "Vince had an epiphany in rehab, wrote a script that sucks and now is trying to get Drama a Movie of the Week" line is miserable. Turtle is just a prop to get cameo celebrity spots.

The last and final episode I'm sure will right the ship. Ari and Mrs. Ari will get back together. Eric and Sloan will be back together. Vince will get a movie opportunity of a lifetime. Drama's show will be green lit for a second season. Turtle's business will pick up. It'll end how it always does - with people feeling good. It's sad to see the show end, but it can't go on forever. The nature of the show gets boring after the same thing happens over 90 some odd episodes. The roller coaster ride of success-fail-success-fail is done.

4) Jersey Shore

Everyone says this season sucks. I don't know if it sucks, it just feels like not much is happening. It sounds like the producers struggled to get enough content to make a season. But what did they expect? Sending them to a country where these morons can't speak to the locals, can't make pizza, suffer from separation anxiety because the furthest they've been from home was season 2 in Miami.

The Ronnie/Situation fight was a letdown, mainly because Situation caused himself the most damage than anyone else with the headbutt against the wall, and then security stepping in the way. I don't understand how security can interrupt that fight but doesn't interrupt the girls. At the same time, I think Ronnie could do one more damage with the infamous "One Shot" than Snooki could do with her lobster arms.

I would think the show would be more interesting if they kept playing the language barrier. I'm sure there is footage that everyday Snooki not understanding what some boy is saying to her. That's another uninteresting aspect of this season - Jenni and Snooki with boyfriends. Seeing Snooki trying to get boys dudes at the club was a stupid fun part of the gig.

I pray Ronnie and Sam is over. I don't think it is. It can't be as long as they are always around each other. It's not their fault. It's clear it won't work out, but it's clear they can't avoid each other, and thats the fault of the show. It's too bad, because Single Ronnie - which is so ridiculous that we have this concept - is one of the more humorous things. Watching him stumble and "dance," speak incoherent English, steal shots, it's hysterical.

Whether the season sucks or not won't make a difference - people will watch. It's the highest rated show every week. We're invested in these idiots. They'll be back in Jersey whenever that premieres, who knows what's after that.

6) Curb Your Enthusiasm

For whatever reason I haven't seen the last few episodes. Just lazy I guess. But what's more interesting is that Larry David is writing his best stuff still at season 8. How many shows can say that? Certainly not Entourage. Most shows don't make it this late while still seeing such success. Larry is honestly at the top of his game. It's hyserical.

7) Mad Men

I miss you.

Reasons Why I Don't Understand Politics #728 - Ames, Iowa

This picture has nothing to do with this post, but I find the ridiculousness of it to be hilarious.

Every political post comes with a discliamer: I don't really understand everything there is about politics. It's grown into too big of a system that it can't work itself out right. The best thing I've heard about politics is what Barry said this week: "There is nothing wrong with our country. There is something wrong with our politics." Makes the most sense in the world. But how do we fix this? Too damn late.

Anyways, this anti-politics commentary revolves around how candidates are determined to run for the elections (which is only 15 months away). From what I understand, the Republicans have a primary/caucus in Ames, Iowa that helps weed out some of the potentials from the idiots (Viva Ron Paul!).

How, how, HOW, can our potential next president be partially determined by a small town, population 60,000? What does that really show us? How does that determine what the rest of the country thinks? Now believe me, I don't want us to have national primary after national primary after primary to help figure out who's real and who's not.

There's no reasonable way for this to be done. The system has become so large and convoluted that it doesn't make sense. Ames, Iowa determines the future of our country, as far as which Republican will move to the next phase of the election - which leads to more caucuses and primaries and bogus run arounds.

Meanwhile, can we figure out how to fix the economy and unemployment rate? It'd be helpful!

Watch The Throne

Monday marked the release of one of the most anticipated albums of the year - the collaborative effort between Kanye West and Jay-Z titled "Watch the Throne." As something that Kanye had been talking about for almost 10 months, it has been on almost everyone's radar for quite some time.

The end result? I'm not entirely sold. It feels like Kanye just wanted to make some wild beats and was begging Jay to lay it down with him. The tracks all sound like something you've never heard before, which is refreshing, but that doesn't necessarily make them good.

It's been a long year for Kanye, who has been putting out free tracks every Friday for the second half of 2010. Some of the tracks were awful. Some were amazing - some of my favorite songs he's ever made. It feels like Kanye just went overboard a bit and carried those overboard tracks onto WTT.

There isn't that one song where I go "damn that's awesome" and listen to it repeatedly for the next 24-108 hours. There are songs that sound good. Not great. For example though, when I listened to "All of the Lights" I think I told everyone how good it was back in November - before it was released in January. And I couldn't stop listening to it. I still can't. I can't stand that the radio version got rid of the bridge - why do radio stations always do that? Are they afraid of the 15 second lull that might have listeners change stations?

The problem is that the expectations were just too high. Both were coming off great albums - Kanye's best, another great one for Jay - and people expect more the same when the biggest guys come together.

Part of what made their last albums great were the guest spots. Kanye's had someone on almost every song. The album just had a flow and this feeling of epic greatness to it. Like we were listening to an experience. WTT didn't do that. It was just Kanye and Jay talking about how much money/success/fame they have. There are a lot of racial overtones, anti-white/government establishments. Typical, but it feels like the suggestions are getting worse with every album. As if Kanye really doesn't understand. Or maybe I'm just offended as the people he's picking on.

Overall, fun album. Not my favorite. I'd rather listen to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy than WTT. But that also speaks to how good MBDTF was. This is also coming from a guy who doesn't like much hip hop/rap, just the mainstream stuff that everyone likes. Keep that in mind when taking me seriously (or not). Otherwise, I want music with guitars and rock n roll.

Insider a Blogger's Mind

I read an interesting piece in the New York Times over the weekend titled "An Ex Blogs. Is It Okay to Watch?" I found it to be quite interesting. Not so much for the ex-relationship cyber stalking aspect, but thinking about it from myself as a blogger.

I write a lot. Not as much as I wish I did or as I used to, but I share a lot on here. And the thing that I found interesting was thinking that anyone can read my blog at anytime. Anything I've written since I've started. Most of the things I write about are benign commentary about TV or whatever is popular at the time. But it still is a look into my crazy little head. How I think, operate, rationalize, etc.

Over my 18 some months blogging I've heard from people I hadn't heard from in a while talking about how they love my blog or a certain post or whatever. It's intriguing that literally anyone can read this at any point. Old friends. New people. Random people. Potential employers.

When you have a real conversation with someone, you may not always get all your points in. Or you may not talk about certain topics. When you run into someone you haven't seen there is usually the BS "how are you? good!" conversation that doesn't dig deep at all. Yet you can go online and read about whatever has been on their mind.

I don't really know where I'm going with this post, but it's just something I thought I would share with you (the random people who are stalking my life). Carry on.

What is wrong with AMC?

I know very little about the television business behind the scenes. I don't know what it really takes to make a show/movie/etc. The money, the organization, shooting, I know it's a large effort. A 30 minute episode usually takes at least a week to shoot. That's all I know.

So anyway, AMC has been producing quality programming since 2007 with Mad Men. Between Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Walking Dead, they've got three of the best shows right now in television on their network. Usually that's something only HBO could ever claim. But this small (lame) cable channel which usually only plays old movies 8 times a day pulled it off. The shows are winning multiple Emmy's for Best Drama, Acting, and so on. This isn't happening by accident.

These shows cost significant money to make. Again, I don't know the financial scheme that goes into making these shows. What I do know is that AMC is trying to cut costs to make these shows. They did it a few months ago to Mad Men, trying to cut characters, lowering costs of production, etc. Then they cut production costs to Walking Dead by about $200k an episode (which speculated why show creator Frank Darabont left the show). Now they're taking on Breaking Bad - opting to cut $250k an episode or making the show's fifth (and presumed last) season to 6-8 episodes.

I know everyone wants to save money to make more money of spending less money. BUT -- when you are making an established, quality product, it will eventually cost more to maintain the level of quality. Cutting the costs of a show can consequently cut the quality, which cuts the fans faithfulness to the show.

AMC doesn't really have any leverage here. They have 3 top of the line shows that cost money. It's not like this is a terrible show on CW that is barely staying alive. The shows have all the power because of their critical acclaim, so AMC just looks selfish instead of honoring the shows that made the channel actually worth watching. It's definitely brought in more business and helped boost revenue for the station, so why can't they respect that? What does that say about AMC when future shows consider having their show made by AMC? Might steer them away towards a HBO or something else.

I don't know, it's annoying that shows that so many people enjoy/adore cannot be seen the way it was intended. Shows cost money. Making shows that are critically acclaimed usually cost more money. To keep making critically acclaimed shows costs more money than that. That is business. And AMC is showing their lack of knowledge over business. All this arguing over a few million dollars? You're going to tell me AMC doesn't have it? Their parent company doesn't have it? Can't they charge more for advertising? Seems to make too much sense.

iPhone Switch

Last month I made the plunge and continued my to brainwash myself with Apple products by buying an iPhone. It had been a long time coming. I was hoping to wait until the next iPhone, but the Blackberry was failing me. They battery couldn't last 8 hours. It kept restarting (which took at least 45 minutes, and draining battery at the same time) for some unknown reason. I never really used it for internet because it drained the battery. Everything about it sucked.

So I switched to the iPhone 4. It didn't change my life. Not yet, but it's so helpful. Apps that are relevant. A battery that lasts 24 hours. Everything is just simpler.

My biggest complaint? The keyboard. I've got big fingers. Fat fingers. Whatever you want to call it. Consequently, I miss some of the keys when I hit it. When trying to type for speed, it's not going to win any battles. Between mistyping and auto-correcting (something that messes me up almost every message). I hate the idea of sites like DamnYouAutoCorrect.com but it's so true. Autocorrect makes sense, but it's just not helpful yet. Supposedly it learns the words you say more often, so I've got some work to do.

I'm really looking forward to iOS 5 to see the new developments, because what Apple demonstrated a few months ago looks great. I'm really happy with the device.

Random tangent - I think it's weird to play games on your phone all the time. I've downloaded some of them and screwed around a little bit but I just don't have fun with it. Maybe I'm too much of a hardcore video gamer, but it doesn't do anything. I'd like to think our ADHD doesn't require us to play crappy games to keep us occupied while we're waiting/traveling/etc. I'd rather check Twitter or read an article. Yet you go on the subway and see everyone playing some kind of game. Pathetic.

Paying College Players

I've been reading a lot lately on the sports blogs about the idea of paying collegiate athletes for their 'contributions' to the school. It's certainly a hot-topic debate, because it crosses the line between amateur and professional.

It makes all logical sense that athletes should make money in programs that generate revenue. Those programs are really limited to football and basketball for the top schools. Most every other sport loses money, for one reason or another. So it's wrong to just pay the students who make money for the university and not those who contribute in other ways. That's not fair. Which is why it can't work.

The students are already being given a free ride to "go" to school (I use go very cautiously, because I believe the jocks at the top programs don't really go to school, they just play. That isn't to say that every college athlete doesn't go to school - far from it.) That's somewhere around a $200,000 paycheck right there. I'm sure there's more than that when factoring in the training and "tutoring" and things like that. So in that sense, the players already are getting paid.

There's a ton of things we don't know about collegiate athletics. How much benefits they receive from those notorious boosters. How they all pass their classes, because we know some of them still struggle speaking English. How any of their lives happen. I firmly believe situations like USC and Ohio State happen at every major program. It just comes with the territory. Players are treated like they are larger than life and afforded opportunities they wouldn't get anywhere else. The NCAA expects everyone to turn a blind eye to all the trouble going on, until someone uncovers it one way or another.

Regardless of if these students go to class or not, they still are committing a huge amount of time to their sport. In that sense, it's not crazy to pay them. We're not talking about a full-time salary with 401k and stock options. I'm saying a couple hundred bucks a game for each player. Even if these players have a free ride, there's still everyday "cost of living" expenses that college doesn't cover. These players can't have a part time job because all of their time is spent with their sport. So in that sense, they may really need money - which begets all of the corruption in the first place - to get by or whatever.

Schools facilitiate part time jobs for normal students - doing administrative tasks or cafeteria or whatever the case may be. So it seems stupid that collegiate athletes can't be paid the same way these students are. They're sacrificing their time to make some extra money. But we say no. And the reality is, not every athlete on every team (I'm thinking the smaller teams - tennis, volleyball, etc.) is on a scholarship, so they're paying to sacrifice their time.

It makes sense. It really does. BUT - always but - you can't just pay players in top programs, otherwise that presents a huge unfair advantage. And you can't just pay players in profitable programs - it's everyone or nothing. With that in mind, it won't work. It can't work. The schools will just lose more money. The corruption will just grow into more extravagant examples of gratuitous lifestyles for 'amateur' athletes.

The NCAA is a sham. Anytime I hear about their latest plan it all just seems like a maneuver to generate more money - which is what capitalism is all about. However, when you promote yourself as providing a quality experience to youth in helping them grow into better people, making more money just seems like greed. The NCAA says they put that money back into colleges, but who knows. I do know that the President of the NCAA made 1.14 million in 2009. That speaks for itself. Money Money Money.

Why do we like Entourage?

Unless you're living under a rock, you know that the last and final season of Entourage premiered Sunday. I don't subscribe to HBO, so I couldn't watch it immediately, but saw it yesterday. As the series is coming to a close, it gets me to thinking why I/everyone loves this show. I've been thinking about the storyline - what has really even happened? When did you watch it and go "Wow, that was awesome!" or "This show is so good." I only came up with the episodes at the end of season 6. And maybe that's just because the show sucked so much for 4 and 5, so seeing any good stuff out of the show felt great.

But for real, I was trying to put together what exactly happened over 7 seasons. You could narrow it down to Vince and his success. But is the story really good? When was it good? Season 1 was the only time it was really worth anything. The focus was an emerging superstar taking his friends (and old decaying brother) to Hollywood with him for the ride.

After Season 1, there were expectations. There actually had to be a story that could continue the show. They had to out-do the previous season. And it continues to grow and make everything the previous season seem insignificant. But doing something "better" will make it less realistic/fun. It turned into just a gimmick. Everyone was mad that the Entourage was always succeeding no matter what, so then the writers had Vince take a downturn. Then he came back. Now he's a drug addict. The ride of up and down can only be done so many times before people lose interest.

So what about it was so captivating that we all need to watch it still? I think it's just to see where it ends. We've invested seven seasons into it, hoping for it to recapture the magic of the first season. Every now and then it does. Most times it doesn't. The thing that keeps it worthwhile is Ari and Drama jokes.

If you had to pick your favorite episode, what would it be? I don't think there's one that really stands out, which could mean two things: Every episode is great and flows together (like most great shows), or there isn't a single most memorable episode where you get excited when you see it on reruns.

I can think of funny moments. Ari with the paintball gun comes to mind. But I couldn't tell you what episode was really my favorite from season 2-7. That's sad. I've been thinking about rewatching it, but I just don't see any point. I think it's partially because I'm becoming a "tv snob" and enjoying the drama's more than the comedy's/dramedy's (I really can't stand that we made that a word. The English language breaks down more and more every day) and expect Entourage to be on the same language as The Wire and Breaking Bad. It isn't. It's not meant to be.

End of the day, Entourage is a fun show. That's it. Enjoy it. It's not great television, there's no amazing story arc that's going to make people go "damn, that's great." People will smile and enjoy the 25 minutes from it. That's really it. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Most of America doesn't want a show that makes them think too much. Let's hug it out.

All Star Lame

Quick post - I watched the All Star Game last night, and felt extremely disappointed in the game. The fans weren't given the true stars of the game. In reality - the AL missed out on several of their top pitchers, which ended up being the difference in the game. David Price, CC Sabathia, Scott Shields, Justin Verlander all couldn't play because they pitched over the weekend. Beckett got hurt while warming up as well.

I'm all in favor of saving their arms and not pitching on two days rest. BUT if the MLB wants to claim "this time it counts" to determine home field advantage, isn't it imperative that the teams field the best possible players at every position? Yet that wasn't what we had. We had some of the best, but not the very best.

I don't know what the correct solution is. Ideally, get rid of the "this time it counts" BS for home field in the World Series and instead make it count towards which league gets home field in next year's all star game (or the next one that hasn't been planned, which I'm sure is a few years down the road.) That would make sense, until I learned last night that the MLB was instituting the DH rule in every All Star Game, even if it is in a NL park. What kind of amateur hour is Bud Selig running? The rules are the rules. They can't be changed to allow an extra 6 All Stars to make the team.

Speaking of an extra 6 All Stars, there wer 84 All Stars selected. 84. That's more than the September 40 man roster on each team. Those dugouts must of been packed. I don't want to take this away from any of the 84, but it seems outrageous. We shouldn't dilute the numbers to make more All Stars, to allow for every team to have an All Star. I'll be honest - I've been a little out of touch with baseball this year. I haven't had enough time to keep up with every team, watch Baseball Tonight, etc. But I had not heard of half of the players in the game last night. It's a great opportunity for the MLB to showcase it's younger stars to turn them into faces of franchises, but this is absurd.

In the end, I can't believe that home field advantage for the World Series was determined from this game. A game where the NL didn't see the AL's best pitchers. How can something so important be taken so trivially. And the players who didn't show up, acting like they were too tired to appreciate the fans and the game. It's disrespectful to the history of the game. What a disgrace.

Robbery

So my house in Philly was robbed last night. I'm in Brooklyn, so I don't totally know how it looks. Based on what my parents told me, all the bad guys took was my Mom's jewelry. And ripped through all our drawers looking for more. Our house wasn't destroyed. They didn't take any electronics. Sounds like they left some cash that was out in the open. Doesn't make total sense, but it is what it is. We have to be thankful it wasn't worse.

I live in a nice neighborhood at home. It's not super nice/extravagant/rich, it's fine. My parents were gone, my dad downtown and my mom running errands. My neighbors saw a large black man walking up to our driveway, but didn't think anything of it.

Needless to say, when my mom told me I was furious. Mainly because I could of been home working from home. The 60 miles away Pat said I would of beat him senseless. The reality is I would of been scared out of my mind, ran somewhere and called the cops. It's scary. It changes the sanctity of your home, which is supposed to be a safe place. I lived there for 15 some years and then winter/summers after that. Terrible.

It really gets me thinking about the sad state of our country. I've talked about it before and don't need to elaborate again, but we just live in an unbalanced country, where there are the have and the have-nots. The have's live in Leave it to Beaver land, and think they're safe and work hard to get by. The have-nots do whatever it takes to get by, including stealing from the haves (and from each other.) It's a sad country we live in. We choose to ignore the problems and focus more on what happened with American Idol or weather Weiner sent a picture of his Weiner or not. We ignore how we've failed the city and the 10% unemployment rate. I'm not innocent either.

I don't know, this post is more for my personal therapy than anything else. It's a sad sad world we live in.

Making Sense of the Flyers

I'm really behind in posting anything. Sorry I'm not sorry?

The Flyers were my first favorite team. Before the Sox. My room at home has Flyers posters, wallpaper, bedsheets, pillow cases, blankets, etc. So the team is sort of like my first love. You always come back to your first. Or something like that, right? Love isn't real, right?

So anyway, this week the Flyers seriously risked my fandom with their trades. If you're not a fan or under a rock, they traded two cornerstones of the franchise, Jeff Carter and the captain Mike Richards. Both 26 years old, entering their prime. While the Flyers were terrible in 2006, they were promoting Richards and Carter as the future. Now they're the present. They both signed long term deals (11+) because they wanted to play here. Together. They didn't take so much money that the team would be crippled financially, they wanted to win in Philadelphia.

The Flyers have an overflow at the forward/center position. Richie and Carts are the most tradable of them. The Flyers have a glaring weakness at goalie - I wrote about this several times. It's like a curse. We went through 3 goalies in one series - none replaced due to injury. So they wanted to sign Bryzgalov. So they needed to make the cap room.

I can't really wrap my head around it until I see it in person. I don't know anything about these players we picked up - I've lost touch a bit with everything around the league since the lockout - baseball replaced it. Anyway, so I have no idea about these players we got. I know about the players we gave away. Not okay.

I believe in loyalty. In life. In sports. In everything. Richie and Carts committed to the Flyers. The fans committed to believing in the Flyers goal that the future was coming with Richards and Carter. So I think everyone feels betrayed by the Flyers. Everyone who bought a $200 jersey. Everyone who watched all 82 games every year for the past several years.

I think I/the fans somewhat get blinded by what's best for franchises because of our affections for the players. The office management are more cutthroat and know what is best. I would rather drown with the ship personally. I don't have the balls to pull the trigger like that. That's why I don't work in sports.

I couldn't believe it. I don't want to believe it. I had a rough Thursday. I wanted to give up on the Flyers. I've sobered up a bit from that stance, and believe the Flyers know what they're doing. At least I'd like to believe they know what they're doing. Time will tell. We got the goalie we desperately needed, I just don't know if the price was worth it.

The Big Man

Took me a few days to gather my thoughts on this, plus I wasn't around a computer to write. Sorry I'm late to the party.

Obviously I'm a Bruce fan. But when people talk about Bruce, it's not just him. It's the band. And who is the soul of the band? The Big Man, without a doubt.

Something that makes E Street classic is the saxophone. You don't see it in many rock bands. You don't see it much in "mainstream" because it's associated with a different genre. Yet Bruce took a chance with it and it worked beautifully. Think about every hook of every song. It relies on Clarence's sound, working harmoniously with Bruce's chords and moans. It was the noise.

What's great about Clarence was his larger-than-life stature. He was massive. He seemed mysterious. There was something special about how he was presented. The story of lore of how they met was a large black man walked into a Jersey bar on a stormy night and played his saxophone with a young rocker trying to make it. The rest as they say, is history.

I'm obviously very partisan here. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band is the best show I've ever seen. I was lucky to see them four times. It angers me that I didn't see them more times with the core intact. The thing is I could have. I heavily considered it several times, but if it wasn't the money/distance/friends, it never came to fruition. Even in those four shows, including one with my father, it was a gift to see them. I have every show in bootleg (along with 100+ others) and enjoy every one.

It's sad because I knew it was coming. I know this sounds morbid, but it's real: everyone passes. It was going to happen. I didn't have the luxury of knowing Big Man in his youth. I only knew him from when he was 60+. He couldn't move well. He was out of breath after every time he did Jungleland. He couldn't stand the whole show. It's hell getting old, and it's sad to see that his time has come. It reminds you to take advantage of all the time that you have here on this Earth.

When I try to pick my favorite song involving The Big Man? Everyone points to Jungleland. I would argue it's The Promised Land. Thunder Road is also another beautiful option. I could also change favorite songs every day. Right now it's that, because you know it's coming in Jungleland, but it's somewhat forgotten in some of the other songs. You forget that they happened until you really think about it. People go nuts when Big Man plays a solo on Bruce's songs. Or when he sings ANYTHING. He gets bigger ovations than Bruce. He was the key crutch of the band. He was Santa Claus in Santa Claus in Coming to Town. What more needs to be said.

It's possible that I've listened to every Bruce song since Saturday night. I've tried imagining a song without him. Would Bruce have been so successful? So catchy? I don't know. I believe so, but you never know. Bruce's songs were still intact, still focused on the American Dream of making it on your own, being your own man, finding your Jersey Girl, etc. The message would have stayed the same, but who knows where it would of ended up without the Big Man in the picture. Yet he was. So it doesn't matter to waste time on it.

It was a blessing. It has touched so many lives and emotions. And now we carry on. It's great that we live in a YouTube / MP3 / DVD era, where they can truly live on for as long as Google's servers can hold them. I love that I could watch almost any show from the past 10 years online. And I could download even more of them. (I just looked, I have 114 bootlegs albums. One day I'm going to count how many times I've listened to Born to Run. I'm going to guess over 200. Does anyone think I'm cool?)

What I can't wait for is the next tour Bruce goes on. You know it's coming. How does it work? How will it start? What happens when the piano starts on Jungleland? Who is the heir apparent? I pray it's Clarence's nephew, who came out a few times on tour and covered well. I'm excited to see how it plays out, and see what's next for E Street. Next for me: I'm going to read Big Man's book. It's probably not great, but I'll eat up every word. I've been trying to read every article and tribute online in the past few days. I won't get enough. It's really not fair, but that's just me being selfish.

The world was never the same when the Big Man joined the band.

Lebron Lost

Quick post.

First thing - I was wrong. I thought the Heat were going to pull it off.

I also think I'm in the minority that wanted to see the Heat win. Why? Because it keeps the drama going into next season, they would have the target on their back and would have to back it up. Now? They're just everyone's punching bag.

Given we don't know if we'll have a season next year, I'm going to assume we do. What is the better storyline going into the season: The Mavs coming back to win 2 in a row or the Heat coming back to win 2 in a row? It would be the Heat. Nobody really cares about the Mavs.

What else is interesting about this? The way it's perceived. It's not "The Mavs Won." It's "The Heat Lost." Great example of how the media gives it's spin, and that's how everyone interprets/sees it.

Did the Heat lose more than the Mavs won? In my mind, yes. I watched more Heat games this year than almost any other team. They ran the worst offense. Everyone was afraid to shoot. Would always opt for the next pass. I've never seen more shot clock violations from a pro team in one year, from a team with two of the top 3 players in the league. It blows my mind.

The fall will come on Lebron. Is it fair? Most likely. He brought it on himself 10 years ago when he was on the cover of SI. So it's on him and he came up short. Winners embrace the moment, and if they're going to fail, they go down swinging. Lebron went down without even trying. He just gave up. Maybe it's a learning experience. Maybe it's not. However I hope they use this offseason to learn to trust each other's shots, instead of opting to pass to someone else.

Let me put it this way, with 2 minutes left, nobody on that team should be shooting the ball except for Wade and Lebron. Ideally running real plays, not "run to the paint hope for a foul." While on the topic of fouls - MAKE A DAMN FREE THROW. If the Heat made 10 more free throws (of a missed 15+) - would of been an entire different game. I understand missing a few here and there, but that makes or breaks a game, and it's free, so make it count.

For the Mavs - good win. Glad to see Dirk get it. That's really it though. This team will get one year older while the Thunder get one year wiser, and they will be the team to beat in the West next season should Russell Westbrook chill his ego. Even the Grizzlies can click and be a threat. Lakers are old. Mavs are going to be older. Spurs are on the downslide. Thunder are coming. Get ready.

NCAA is Moronic

Weird how a few hours after I posted my Weiner post he came out and admitted everything. He must of read my post.

Anyway, immediately following the outing of the Weiner, I learned that USC had been stripped of its 2004 BCS National Championship

I don't get the point of this. Stripping a school of it's title after 7 years. What difference does it really make if Reggie Bush got privileges that not everyone else got? It's also - we only know what Reggie Bush got, but you better believe other players received benefits. It ultimately does not affect their playing, so it shouldn't affect the outcome. It's not steroids. A car isn't the same.

In the early 2000s I loved USC. I still do (sometimes I wish I went there). But that team from that 5-6 year stretch was truly dominant. I had the benefit of seeing them live at Notre Dame (the infamous "push" game). I don't think we'll ever see a player like Reggie Bush. The way he made a highlight reel out of seemingly every run was fantastic. He was never going to be able to do that in the NFL because the league is bigger/stronger/faster.

By NCAA taking away the title, it makes the league look like a fraud. What's the point of playing these games if they're not going to honor the games? After every year we all complain about the BCS and weather it was legitimate or not and how at least 1 team got snubbed from the National Championship game. But now we can't go back to 2004 and see if the number 3 could of beat 2 (Auburn vs. Oklahoma)

This really does no good. In my mind, that USC team was the best we may ever see from an all-encompassing perspective. Taking it away doesn't change anything in public opinion. In 100 years (pending 2012/rapture) it will be talked about. Reggie Bush lost the Heisman from that year, but you cannot argue that there was truly a better player that year (or in the past couple years that were as dominate as him really)

I hope if the NCAA plans on coming down on this now, they do a FULL investigation of all teams. I truly believe every big time program is "corrupt". I have no proof, but we're hearing more and more of it. I put corrupt in quotations because I believe these students are being exploited for financial gain by the NCAA and the schools. They bring in the money, they old men benefit from it. Seems like total bullshit. Truth is : if the NCAA does investigate, then everyone is losing their title. So I would leave it alone. This is so irrelevant and makes the NCAA look like a joke. Just keep enjoying taking advantage of poor teenagers.

Weiner Massacre

I'm a little late on this post. I don't care. It's my blog and I'll do what I want.

Last week was really Weiner-mania. I never heard of this putz until last week, because I hate politics. You should too. This is absurd. This guy wants to be mayor of NYC? Good luck bro. I'm still voting for The Rent Is Too Damn High guy. Because I'm tired of paying my rent. Sucker eats half my salary. Anyway.

Someone somehow put a picture up of him naked on Twitter and sent it to some random girl. It was deleted. Twitter accidents happen. I made them for my clients. (Albeit mine were tweets about Star Wars, but..) So you delete it and move on. However this one didn't end. All last week Weiner was giving interviews to talk about it. The best line from all of it? "I can't confirm if that is a picture of me or not."

mmmmm, what?

Basically, he's confirming he has (or someone might) have pictures of Weiner's Weiner. Queue the Weiner's Weiner jokes. NY tabloids must of been having a field day.

What does this really say? Unfortunately, while technology is bringing out all these great new advances in knowledge and communication, it also allows our human nature (read: libido) to do whatever sounds good at the time. Alcohol usually helps influence these decisions. And that usually involves taking pictures and sending them out to people. Or making tapes.

Look at all the celebrities that have done it. Blake Lively the most recent idiot. Greg Oden's a personal favorite as a joke. Kardashian. Paris Hilton. Chris Brown. Brett Favre. Rihanna. I'm sure there are several more I'm not even aware of. I'm also sure that these are some of the few to "get caught." And then there are the "normal" everyday people. Who send it to whoever. And you hear about the 14 year old girl who commits suicide because pictures of her spread across the school (can't find the link, but a story very similar happened). Human nature has no control. Technology has more problems than solutions sometimes.

Me personally? I'm not participating in any of it. I'm not just saying that either because I'm blogging about it. I have good reasons (I wouldn't want to look at a picture of myself, why would someone girl?). It's not like I'm "too smart" for it. My life just doesn't go down that road. And I'm totally fine with it. Although it would be cool to be a celebrity and have tons of money, I'm over it. Life is good.

As far as the rest of these idiots, I don't expect it to stop anytime soon. And until there's pictures of January Jones or the T-Mobile girl? I'm just going to keep laughing at these stupid stories and these lame attempts to cover it up and act as though it's a fake.

Time Is Running Out

Time is an interesting thing. It's also interesting how humans react to it.

The best analogy I can use is sports. When you see sports games, one team is up on the other. Nobody panics in the first quarter/period/half. But when you get down to under 5 minutes, people freak out. Time is running out. We have to get the goal/point/touchdown. But it wasn't a problem in the first half to get that score.

I've been watching almost every basketball game in these playoffs (and yes I am quite sleep deprived. Thank you David Stern for having games that start at 9 and don't end until after 1AM.) The one thing hate about basketball is the end of the game when the team who is losing fouls to get the ball back and then they take a time out. It happens in every close game. And it happens multiple times in every close game. It's frustrating. Yet if they were playing with that same intensity throughout the whole game, it would be a different story.

You see so much time wasted in sports (games with clocks, not baseball). In football when they spend 40 seconds to get the play off. Hockey when they just stand with the puck behind the net. Basketball feels like every possession is a waste. (I don't know why I say that. I really like basketball, but watching the Heat last night annoyed me. Terrible half court offense.) That time is irrelevant in the beginning of the game. But then near the end there is a mad scramble to save as much time as possible. It's the natural human instinct "oh we still have 12 minutes left, who cares" vs "crap we have 12 seconds left and we're down by 3."

Another example is work. You spend your 8-9 hours at work every day. But probably around 4-5 you start to scramble to make sure you get your work done for the day so you can get out on time. You spent plenty of time screwing off at 11 though, browsing the web, talking to co-workers, doing whatever. But at 4 you buckle down to make sure it all gets done in time so you can get the hell out of there on time.

There's no real solution here, you can't change the human psyche, but it's just an interesting thing to point out about how we operate. Time is running out, and we freak out.