Headlines - Super Bowl Prediction, I'm Cold

Back into the deep freeze... high's in the barren wasteland today of 14 above... this weekend's high temperatures are forecasted at 7 below...yes, the high temperature for Super Bowl Sunday for the barren wasteland is SEVEN BELOW ZERO... it is freakin' cold now and this is the warm part of the week...ugh...

Yesterday the Giants and the cheater had agreed to a contract but the commissioner will not ratify the deal. Why? Because apparently the Giants had provisions in his contract that would protect the club if Bonds was indicted the Giants would have the right to terminate his contract. Which all seems reasonable but of course it violates the players union's cba agreement - but I thought Bonds' was his own entity and was above any organized entity in MLB? Also in the contract it appears as if the Giants are going to actually try and control Bonds...making him adhere to team rules rather than his own...for some reason I don't think Bonds has any desire to be a part of any 'team' and is only playing baseball for his own selfish reasons and to show the world that a person can get away with cheating and still be a hero to many.

I have kind of stayed away from the whole Iraq debate because it seems as if new evidence of bureaucratic bullshit seems to be at every turn. A report came out stating that the U.S. may have assigned the wrong agencies to train Iraqi police. Another report is stating that tens of millions of dollars have been wasted on Iraqi aid. The Bush administration is so eager to try and tame this conflict in Iraq they took the easiest, quickest approach to try and fix it...throw lots and lots of money at it and see what happens and in most cases nothing or the problem gets worse so those that are profiting from ill-gotten-gains can continue to do so.

Alright, I better get into the Super Bowl mood... first, I'll make my prediction. I think the Bears aren't that good. The NFC isn't that good and the Bears just happen to be good enough to beat all the mediocre teams in the NFC. I thought that any AFC team would beat any NFC team in the Super Bowl and I still believe that to be true. I think the Colts will shut down Thomas Jones and any running game the Bears attempt and force Grossman to throw the ball while on the other side of the ball, the Colts obviously have the fire-power to get into any kind of shootout the Bears would take...but that isn't what the Bears want but I think that's what they are getting. In the end, I don't think the Bears will be able to stop the Colts and the Bears does not have the offensive weapons to get into a shootout. The end result is a lop-sided Super Bowl...an oddity of late but that's my prediction... Colts 37 Bears 17. As an ending note...it is insane every year to hear about the money that people spend for this one game. The funny thing is, I'm willing to bet that the people that are spending the most money to get to and see the Super Bowl really don't care about the game itself, it is a social event to them. They are the people you see at a Super Bowl party that talk during the game and want you to be quiet during the commercials.

Chargers' safety Terrance Kiel, who was arrested during the 2006 season for shipping illegal cough syrup, has now been cited for public urination. The list of Charger players in trouble right now is only surpassed by that of the Bengals...but the margin is closing.

Headlines - Bonds Signs, Long Goal

Barbaro put down. Last year's Kentucky Derby winner and many thought had a chance to win the triple crown (but isn't that always the case with the Derby winner?), was put to sleep. Barbaro broke his leg in last year's Preakness and most times the horse is put down at that time. But everything was tried to save Barbaro but with new ailments slowly consuming his rear feet the pain was too great for the horse. I really don't get too sentimental about horses and right now I really have an ambivalent feeling, but it did seem as if many people had a special connection for Barbaro and were pulling for his recovery even though he would never race again.

The most famous cheater in MLB will be back next season. When is baseball and/or the government going to stop him? The day he comes within 1 homerun of Aaron?

The T'Wolves stop the Suns? As I have mentioned before, I really don't watch too many NBA regular season games but with the Rangers-Bruins game a massive blowout I decided to check it out since the Suns are suppose to be the shiz-nit, winners of 17 games in a row, whereas the T'Wolves, from everything I've heard, should be fodder. But the T'Wolves not only beat the Suns, did so in non-buzzer beater fashion. And now the T'Wolves will go on to lose 5 straight to the weakest teams.

Armed & Famous gets the axe. One stupid reality show is cancelled....1,376 to go.

UND played Minnesota in hockey this past weekend. Minnesota the #1 ranked team in the nation right now while UND hasn't been playing that well. When UND left Minneapolis Saturday night after beating the Gophers - completing the weekend sweep - the team has to be fairly happy. But the big story was the rink-long shot that UND scored against the Gophers that has added the salt to the wound. In case you missed it, here it is:

Headlines - Idol Rules, Nash Gets Screwed

I follow the NBA more than I watch games during the regular season because it is the NBA but after stating that first, I'll make the following comments: To further prove of what a farce All-Star games are, Steve Nash - 2 time MVP and likely a top candidate for the MVP award this year - is not a starter on the Western Conference All-Star team. But of course that is fan voting where Shaq, who has played (what?) 2, 3 games all year is a starter on the East... it isn't who is good, it is who people want to see.

How bad is it when you hire a guy and tell him that he will be offensive coordinator and if you don't find anyone better, heck, you can be head coach. Well that is what Jerry Jones did for the Dallas Cowboys. Making Jason Garrett offensive coordinator and say that he might be the head coach. I'm guessing so far Garrett is the only person who has said that he will put up with Terrell's bullshit...and unless someone of more prominence is desperate enough to do so as well, the job will likely be Garrett's.

Chris Henry is currently sitting in jail. He really picked out some real winners to party with...underage girls. Your an NFL player, you can easily get some more respectable, hot, legal girls...if you would just try.

NASCAR is building it's Hall Of Fame. Not sure how many inductees they will their first year but I'm guessing Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. are in that group.

I am the only person in the world that doesn't watch American Idol. I am also proud to say that I have never watched even 1 second of the show. And still to this day, one of my most viewed blog posts was my rant on Why American Idol Sucks so maybe I am not the only person in the world...but close to it.

Vista is on it's way. So there will be a new Windows operating system coming out next week which means everyone has to get a new computer. This better not suck like ME did Microsoft.

Buzz Beer was just a gimmick on the Drew Carey show where they invented caffeinated beer. Well, why not put caffeine in a doughnut? But I say why stop there? Put caffeine into everything, use it like a condiment...but make sure you keep all those nasty drugs like pot illegal...

Headlines

Wow did Roger Federer prove his tennis dominance against Andy Roddick in the Australian Open. I am going to DVR the replay of this match just so I can watch it myself...but there is little doubt in my mind that Roger Federer is probably the best tennis player ever. 7 Grand Slam finals in a row now and he is squashing his closest competitors.

Tiger says he would skip the British Open if the birth of his first child should happen during/around the event. I'm betting you the TV execs at ABC are crossing their fingers hoping that circumstances do not cause Tiger to miss the British Open.

Newsflash, some college athlete is suspected of taking gifts and money while in college. That never happens. But apparently Reggie Bush isn't going to get away with doing what probably every other big college athlete does, take money and gifts.

Last night's NHL All-Star game was a scorefest, as usual, with the west winning 12-9. A fun game to watch, lots of action and scoring.

I haven't played a Wii gaming console yet...but having the ability to get news with the machine is a pretty cool feature for a gaming console.

YouTube sued by Fox. Posting clips from an episode not aired yet will draw the attention of most any network. YouTube will have to be a strictly original content site - and enforce it 100% - or be shut down.

Norway will sue Apple if they don't make their iTunes products compatiable for all players. When will people learn that no matter how 'neat' and 'spiffy' Apple products are, they eventually will and do always suck. And I say that about the iPod as well.

American oil companies raking in the cash, American car companies taking it in the ass.

Headlines

So of course I watched the NHL Skills competition last night rather than the State of the Union address. Mike Emrick, announcer, couldn't be more annoying than he was last night. I hadn't noticed how unfunny he is yet he tries to be. Sure, he does pbp adequately - but even then is fucking up occasionally - but in interview and live ad-lib situations he is horrible. And I do not know if some of the issues were related to the venue or from television but they had to manually time the speed skate event because the electronic timing equipment was having problems. The young stars game shouldn't even be played despite that UND alumn Zach Parise won the MVP with 6 points - and that is why it shouldn't be played. No defense, no checking, pass and shootfest, but I'm sure the NHL wants as many 'stars' as it can get for All-Star festivities.

The music industry refuses to believe it, but the television industry might become believers. That is the internet isn't bad and to allow your content to be freely obtained via the internet doesn't mean lower viewership, but the opposite. The music industry is developing methods to obtain their media via the internet and it sounds as if television will become more freely obtained via the internet...so that just leaves the original hater...the RIAA and the music industry left to persecute all users of the internet.

The Chargers promote their runningbacks coach, Clarence Shelmon, to be their new offensive coordinator. Here's his resume: Started as graduate assistant at the University of Houston (1975-76); served as running backs coach at Army (1978-80), Indiana (1981-83), Arizona (1984-86) and USC (1987-88) before being promoted to running game coordinator at USC (1989-90). Joined NFL as running backs coach with the L.A. Rams (1991) and served in the same capacity with Seattle (1992-97), Dallas (1998-2001) and the Chargers (2002-2006). So we'll see how that all works out...

And not that I would be watching the NFL Pro Bowl anyways, Phillip Rivers pulls out with a foot injury. Also in that article you'll note that Shawne Merriman signed a new agent, Tom Condon, based on past experiences, a guy that doesn't seem to negotiate well with the Chargers.

Headlines

After a long weekend, here's what's been going on...

The big tuna retires from coaching. So that likely means TO will remain a Cowboy...I knew only Parcells or Owens would be returning to the Cowboys next year. The Raiders hire the youngest coach in the NFL. Offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin is the next Raiders head coach. The Dolphins hired Charger offensive coordinator, Cam Cameron to be their next head coach. And the Steelers hired Mike Tomlin, Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator, as their next head coach. So with that, I think the Cowboys are the only team currently without a head coach.

And of course over the weekend the Super Bowl teams were determined, Chicago and Indianapolis. The NFL is pretty smitten with itself, never having a black coach make it to a Super Bowl they now got two of them in on the same year. Watching the Chicago-New Orleans game and the way the Saints played reminded me of the Chargers. The Saints came out sloppy, fumbling the ball and made mistakes, they rally and come back in the third only to revert back to sloppy, mistake filled play and lose. Both games were good and Manning finally shook the monkey off his back and impressively so, coming back from a 21-3 deficit, the Colts rally to beat their nemesis, the New England Patriots.

Yippeee, the State Of The Union address is on tonight. The time a president showcases anything that is good about America at the time, which by the advance press release means lots of talk about domestic issues, not so much so on global issues. Gloss over problems, be showered with applause and attempt to lift the spirits of over-taxed, over worked Americans.

Looks Isreal is electing heads of state that want to rival America's presidents in criminal and suspect behavior. Apparently he is accused of rape and other crimes against female employees. At least Clinton had a willing partner. And speaking of Clinton, of course this past weekend Hillary Clinton announced what everyone already knew, that she will be running for President in 2008. Her qualifications: carbet-bagging, whitewater real estate scams, pharmaceutical scams and having a love-less marriage with the most notorious adulterer in history are just the ones off the top of my head. She will likely win in a landslide with those credentials.

Headlines

Nukes, nukes, nukes. It won't be much longer and everyone will have a nuclear weapon. Jordan wants nukes now. North Korea has agreed to talks about its nuclear program, but you are a moron if you believe anything North Korea says. The reason they have nuclear weapons now is because they covertly developed them using funding and resources given to them to prevent them from building nuclear weapons in the first place. And now China has missiles that will take out satellites, that would really shut the eyes on American intelligence. Thinks are looking really bright in the world right about now.

I of course enjoy the Colbert Report show on Comedy Central and last night was somewhat of a special show. In case you missed it, Bill O'Reilly, the man and show Stephen Colbert mocks, appeared on the Colbert Report. I did not know that they each appeared on each other's show last night, but I doubt I would have tuned into the O'Reilly Show. But O'Reilly really didn't give much of an interview. He basically took whatever jabs Stephen threw at him and basically just sat there willing to be the punching bag.

Not much else catching my eye this morning. Have a good weekend everyone.

Headlines

If G.W. didn't have a war on his hands he would likely enjoy great popularity because America's economy seems to be rosy. Oh, but that's right, the best thing for a country's economy is a war machine...it's just a matter of how long will a war remain popular with it's people.

And in world news...looks like Iran is ready to go to war over having nukes. Great. now another conflict for us to get tangled in. If America just said fuck it and left every country alone would they leave us alone? I think so. One of my favorite Thomas Jefferson quotes is: "Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations; entangling alliances with none." Makes only perfect sense.

Mike Vick may have been caught with some herb. With all the money these guys have don't they just make sure some pot is waiting for them at the airport? Why do you have to carry it on your person? He probably could have easily stashed it in his luggage and would have been fine. But the description of the drug sounds more like hash than pot...but we'll wait for the lab results and find out then.

Chargers' Cam Cameron talking with the Dolphins. It was just yesterday when I heard sports pundits talking about that if the Chargers fired Marty that they would lose a lot of their coaching staff because they are all loyal to Marty. Lofton talking with the Raiders, Cameron with the Dolphins...which coaches are so loyal to Marty? The ones that help make bonehead calls and mismanage the game? Yeah, make sure we keep them.

Here is yet another example of why MLB is a joke. It isn't the players that are opposing stricter penalties for drug use in their league, it is the owners. Yes, it is clear that the owners endorse drugs in baseball because they know when they have a hopped up player that can hit 70 homeruns a year they will be raking in the dough thanks to sold-out stadiums.

Sampras inducted into the International Tennis Hall Of Fame. One of my all-time favorite tennis players and the man who introduced the world to the big serve, Pete Sampras gets inducted into the HOF. A class act and Wimbeldon king. In other tennis news, of course the Australian Open is underway with lots of big match-ups coming up. I really liked Martina Hingis and am curious to see how she will do after coming back last year after a long lay-off from a foot injury.

iPhone's now! It only gets funnier for Apple Inc. (formerly Apple Computer). Last week Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, comes out with much fan-fare and hoopla to announce Apple's latest product, the iPhone. A all-in-one device that will let a person email, listen to music, cell-phone, internet, etc.... (and yes they are already available now but called PDA's). The device's most note-worthy quality, a touchscreen rather than buttons. Well, you don't have to wait until June and for Apple's iPhone, LG is releasing a similar looking device available in March. Next month Jobs will be out touting Apple's latest, greatest gadget the iToast. It will play music and toast bread at the same time...they will most certainly have the early jump on that market.


The Doomsday Clock was set to 5 minutes before midnight yesterday. With North Korea having nukes, Iran getting Nukes and the volatility of the global political scene right now, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, the creators/caretakers of the Doomsday Clock, have moved the hand to 5 midnights before doomsday...the first movement of the hand since 2002. It was previously at 7 midnights to midnight.

Schottenheimer To Remain Charger HC

And this answers everyone's question...

The Chargers will not win the Super Bowl next year either...

STATEMENT OF DEAN SPANOS
President and Chief Executive Officer
San Diego Chargers

“I have decided that Marty Schottenheimer is the best person to lead the Chargers in the 2007 season. General Manager A.J. Smith and I agree on this fundamental point. That is why we are pleased to welcome Marty and his coaching staff back for Marty’s sixth season as head coach of the San Diego Chargers.

“We are all bitterly disappointed how this season ended, but we can’t allow our disappointment to cloud the achievements of our franchise over the past few years. Only two teams have won more regular season games over the past three years than the Chargers. We have 24 key players under long-term contracts through at least 2009. This is a fine young team, with great chemistry, and right now stability is important for this team. I’m already looking forward to next season.

“That is why we are also offering one-year contract extensions for Coach Schottenheimer’s staff, through 2008. We also offered a one-year $4.5 million contract extension to Marty, with a team option buy-out of $1 million for the 2008 season. He decided not to accept this extension, and I respect his decision.

“Now it is time to put this issue behind us and move forward together. That is what I told both Marty and A.J. when I met with them this afternoon. The entire Chargers family will do whatever it takes to bring a championship to San Diego.”

Chargers Maybe Eyeing Mariucci

There has been no official word from the Chargers about whether Marty Schottenheimer will be retained as the Chargers head coach. But there is this rumor that the Chargers might try and get Mariucci as their next head coach. If there is any crediability to the rumor, it would lead me to believe that the Chargers are going to try and have someone in the ready to assume the head coach position before they release Schottenheimer.

Today's Headlines

I have been busy so have been slacking a bit on keeping up on the news... but other than the Chargers loss to the Patriots...what other news has there been?

Ok, there is Castro, probably enjoying his last days. One of the longest enemies of America still in power about to pass away. It will be interesting to see what direction the new leader wants to take with America.

Dennis Green is not interested in coaching the Raiders. But it appears as if Chargers' receivers coach, James Lofton is interested in coaching the Raiders.

Chargers add 10th Pro Bowler. Seemingly as a 'consolation prize', Chargers' left tackle, rookie Marcus McNeill is an injury addition to the NFL pro bowl. Although very deserving of the honor, it doesn't ease the pain at all.

And really that is about it for today...

Chargers Out Of Playoffs

Chargers beat themselves. I'm not sure if I will be watching anymore football this year after yesterday's game. It doesn't even interest me. I'm just c/p this and leaving it at that...

Mistakes and missed opportunities were plentiful for the Chargers, and plenty costly. A rundown:

FIRST QUARTER, 10:59

Error: New England faces 3rd-and-8 from its 12. Tom Brady's pass is tipped high and right to Clinton Hart, but he can't make the interception.

Outcome: Instead of taking over deep in Patriots territory, the Chargers allow them to punt.

FIRST QUARTER, 5:21

Error: On 4th-and-11 at the New England 30, Marty Schottenheimer goes for it rather than calling for a 47-yard field-goal try. Philip Rivers is sacked, and fumbles in the process.

Outcome: No points, and the Patriots take over at their 35.

THIRD QUARTER, 5:32

Error: Eric Parker muffs a punt, and is tackled as he tries to pick it up and run with it. New England's David Thomas recovers.

Outcome: The turnover sets up a 34-yard FG to cut the Chargers' lead to 14-13.

THIRD QUARTER, 4:30

Error: Three plays after Parker's muffed punt, Brady is sacked, fumbles and the Patriots recover. But Drayton Florence head-butts Patriots tight end Daniel Graham for a 15-yard penalty and an automatic first down.

Outcome: Instead of 4th-and-21 from the 37, the Patriots have 1st-and-10 at the 18, leading to the field goal.

FOURTH QUARTER, 6:25

Error: Trailing 21-13 and facing 4th-and-5, the Patriots go for it, and Brady's pass is intercepted by Marlon McCree. But McCree tries to return it instead of batting it away or falling down after the catch.

Outcome: Troy Brown strips McCree and Reche Caldwell recovers for the Patriots at the Chargers 32. Five plays later, Brady hits Caldwell for a TD, and the two-point conversion ties the score at 21.

Fire Marty

My new favorite web site.

Chargers Lost

Chargers were the better team but you know now why Marty can't win a playoff game. Eric Parker fumbling punts, you are telling me that if you intercept Tom Brady 3 times and you can't win a game against him???

Rivers didn't lose this game.
Tomlinson didn't lose this game.
The defense didn't lose game.

Marty sucks....

Videos Down

The Charger videos I made from this past season have all been removed from the server I was using...which is the second server I have tried to use. So until further notice, they are offline until I can find a host that will be able to stream them without any issues.

1-12-07 Headlines

It is freakin' cold! This year's winter in the upper midwest has been very mild, to say the least. Last year was the warmest winter on record for this region...so to say the citizens of this region have had it pretty good the past winter and a half is an understatement. That all changed today and the short term forecast has this area in the deep-cold for the next few days. This morning I woke up to hear that the current temperature was minus 13 and the high for the day should be around 1 degree.

Women suing Seau. In what seems very a very suspicious law suit, two unnamed women are trying to sue Junior Seau, alleging that he threw 2 drinks at them, ruining their clothes. This all happened in May of last year...so why are they suing now? Probably because they just found out that he had money. Seems like a pretty weak claim and with it all happening over a half a year ago, I'm sure details will be far from accurate.

Clemens to the Yanks again? Of course the Yankees have the coin and they are interested in obtaining Roger Clemens. Of course they are. Aren't the Yankees interested in any baseball player that is good because they can afford to be?

LOR prequel appearing doubtful for Jackson. The Lord Of The Rings trilogy director, Peter Jackson, and the studio that produced all of the films are involved in a bitter dispute. Jackson is suing the studios for money allegedly owed to him from the first three films. The studio contends that after paying him more than $250 million, how much more do they owe him? The end result is that the Hobbit, the prequel to the three Lord Of The Ring movies, will at the least, not be directed by Peter Jackson but should begin production soon.

Bush's approval rating hits new low. Support for GW Bush is at an all-time low. 32% of Americans approve of his policies...and doing the math, that means that almost 70% of Americans do not approve of GW Bush's job in the White House. And what is up with the urgency the Dems. in congress have? They are in their '100 hour agenda' in which they are just passing any issue they possibly can, thinking that their 'policies' is the norm for Americans. But of course the 'clock' that is keeping track of the 100 hours is stopped and started to suit their needs...so they will successfully fulfill their 100 hour promise even if it happens 5 years from now.

UPDATE

Democrats as big of hypocrites as Repubs. So yesterday's headlines I had the story about the Democrats raising the minimum wage. And of course Democrats are just lying, superficial, disconnected elitists just like the Republicans and to prove that the Democrats are no better than the Republicans, the minimum wage increase bill they passed was chock full of exemptions including a tuna company in Pelosi's home district. So the Democrats 100 hour agenda will only effect some people and not bring fairness or equality to everyone, just the ones Democrats feel more for.

Chargers-Patriots Storylines

In what seems to be a fairly talked about game...and probably so because of so many different storylines this games has...the Chargers-Patriots game will hopefully live up to the early billing it is receiving.

Of course there is the Marty's playoff woes leading the pack. He is currently riding a 5 consecutive playoff game losing streak, where twice in those past 5 appearances he had the #1 seed. In 2005 Marty almost single-handedly lost the game for the Chargers against the Jets by getting a personal foul for no reason. Here is a synopsis of Marty's playoff losses, it is too painful for me to even look at.

Then of course we got Tom Brady who's playoff record is 11-1 and Phillip Rivers who is making his first playoff start. Many sports talkers are saying that the Patriots will most likely focus on shutting down Tomlinson and put pressure on Rivers to win or lose the game for the Chargers. Well, most teams went into their games against San Diego with that exact same mindset and you see how well that worked out for the rest of the NFL. But I do admit that Rivers does need to play mistake free football against the Patriots or else they will exploit every error he makes.

And of course there is LaDanian Tomlinson, the league's MVP. How will he perform after a spectacular season. Shawne Merriman, who has the steroid cloud hanging over his head at almost every mention. He will most certainly be 'juiced up' (pardon my pun, but too irresistible) to put on a good show.

Just announced today that former Charger, now Patriot, Rodney Harrison is out for Sunday's game. He is still a fan favorite for many Charger fans and would have likely gotten a good cheer from the crowd for his years as a great Charger player. I also think that Rodney is a big part of the Patriots defense. I also do believe he was their defensive captain when the Patriots won their last Super Bowl, and if so, you can see that he also has that leadership quality that good team's need.

On the Chargers side of the ball, Luis Castillo healed up and will be starting this Sunday. That is really good to hear because it does seem that on big downs Castillo has made some big plays.

I've heard about 50/50 on people picking this game. I am hoping it is a good game (for the Chargers) and if you look at the 'big' negatives for the Chargers - Marty, Brady, Rivers - the negatives really aren't that bad. Marty, don't coach at all this Sunday. Stand on the sidelines and watch the game. Merriman, you sack Brady on every pass attempt. And Phillip, you hand the ball off to LT and once the Patriots are sucked in, play-action pass it to Vincent Jackson for a touchdown. Bam, Chargers win!

1-11-07 Headlines

Apple continues to show it's ineptness. Steve Jobs last week unveiled Apple's latest, greatest gadget, the iPhone. But Cisco Systems holds the trademark for iPhone, Jobs was aware of this before the announcement of their phone and is willing to gamble that they will win any trademark cases that Cisco brings to them. I didn't know hiring lawyers and going to court had such profitability and I would think a company would try to avoid those scenarios if possible.

Bonds' test positive for amphetamines. Looks like Bonds uses speed as well as roids to juice himself up to play baseball. And in true Barry Bonds fashion, it wasn't his fault it was someone elses. What is even more sickening that despite all the evidence and circumstances surrounding Barry Bonds, ball-less Bud Selig is still letting this lying, cheating ball player play baseball and will likely break Aaron's home run record because Selig is too spineless to do anything that even resembles justice and fairness for past ball players.

Minimum wage passes the house. The Dems have passed a minimum wage increase through the house and it appears as if it will have few obstacles in the Senate. In one year the wage will be increase to $7.25 an hour, which is about twice as much as the minimum wage when I was young and making 'minimum wage'...ah the memories....

Update:

Beckham coming to America. Americans don't care about soccer but apparently the biggest soccer star in the world will play in the American soccer league. Like every major sport, regardless of popularity in other countries, athletes all know that America is the biggest stage to showcase your talent...even if no one is watching you.

1-10-07 Headlines

Dems in power, universal health care sought again. Is it me? Or does it seem like anytime the Democrats get into power the first 'issue' they run too is universal health care. The out of touch, disconnected politician this time is Ted Kennedy. If these morons knew how much health care costs the average American they would realize it is an impossible dream to have quality care for everyone. How about starting off with making it affordable? No, that's not good enough for pie-in-the sky politicians...

Ripken and Gwynn make the Hall Of Fame but McGwire not even close. In what seems as some justice...for now...Cal Ripken and Tony Gwynn both get elected to the Hall Of Fame. But what is the story is the fact that Mark McGwire got less than 24% of hof votes (needing 75%) to make it in. This is why the whole steroid era sucks. First of all the fact that two really good ball players, and both seemingly decent fellows, getting voted to the Hall Of Fame but they are not really be talked about, it is the fact that a steroid user didn't make it...that is the headline. Next, how long will the roid-boys be snubbed? Some have said that the hof voters are purposely 'sitting' McGwire for a few years but that as time goes on, they will likely change their mind and vote him in eventually. To me, that is just plain lame. Voting him eventually is all that he (and Pete Rose and Barry Bonds and the rest of the cheaters) is really hoping for, to be immortalized in the baseball Hall Of Fame and he was willing to cheat to make sure that happens. MLB becomes a bigger joke every day.

Coughlin to remain as Giants head coach. All I've heard on the sports talk scene since the Giants lost to Philadelphia is how Tom Coughlin must and will be fired at the end of this season. All season long he has had players criticize him and I thought he would be happy to leave...but apparently the rumor is that he is going to remain.

The Australian Open starts next week. Always billed as the 'First Major Sports Event Of The Year', tennis' Australian Open begins play next week. A really nice event if you are out late on the weekends and get home at 1 in the morning and want to watch a live sporting event. Otherwise you will watch reruns of matches you already know the results for...which is why this might be the suckiest major sport event of the year.

Senior Al-Qaida chief might be dead. So has America successfully killed every Al-Quida member except Osama Bin Laden then? Seems like it..

Football rules the ratings. The Saturday night Cowboys-Seahawks wild card game during prime time was the highest rated wild card game in history... wonder how long it will be until the NFL has their playoffs exclusively during primetime? Friday, Saturday, Sunday & Monday for the first two rounds would be my guess...

Apple Electronics

Today Apple unveiled it's new iPhone and also renamed itself from Apple Computer to Apple Inc. The reason for changing their name? Because they have"...matured from a computer manufacturer to a full-fledged consumer electronics company." Or, in my opinion, Apple has realized that they no longer can over-hype their underpowered, incompatiable computers and since their iPod is such a big hit they have decided to hitch their wagon to the market sector that they are at least making a profit in. Of course once the morons that got an iPod for Christmas realize the difficulty to use their iPod wise up, I suspect these sales should begin their decline. The Apple computer heads had best relish their 'awesome' machines while they can. I'm guessing support for them will decline even further until extinction.

1-9-07 Headlines

Florida beats Ohio State for BCS title. I admit that I am not a big college football fan and I have yet to hear anything about last nights game between Florida and Ohio State. What I do know is that OSU was favored to win and by not winning, I am presuming, will throw a whole wrench into who really is the best college football team for 2006-07. And that is why I really don't enjoy college football. Every other sport on the planet has a playoff system and a definitive method of determining the best for any given season except college football. And unless the #1 ranked team wins the BCS bowl game there will always be debate about what team is truly number 1 and what team(s) got the shaft.

The "war on terror" means strikes Somalia. Bush is probably hoping a new front in Somalia will get him some better press than the war in Iraq.

Just ban smoking and get it over with! One thing I am growing increasingly tired with is the demonization of smoking. Yes, it is not good for. Yes, it is harmful and will kill you. And I am not opposed to banning it in the workplace with the exception of bars. But now you have a town (Bangor, Maine) that is banning you from smoking in your car if children are present. This country is just law happy. Why keep making all these laws that prevent people from using a legal product and just ban it outright. Then the government and all the health agencies will miss out on all that free funding from the smokers and the gangs and the mob will have a even more diserable and cheaper product to push.

Dolphins courting Pete Carroll. Is this the same Pete Carroll that was boo'd regularly and basically flopped as an NFL coach with the Jets and Patriots? Win some college championships and apparently all is forgotten.

Gates: You fear no one. Antonio Gates has the attitude going into this weekend's game against the Patriots that I like to hear. You have respect for your opponent and practice hard, but in the end you can not fear even a veteran playoff team like the Patriots or else you will lose.

As I mentioned last week, the Golf Channel was going to have a female lead announcer for their PGA Events. I did tune into some coverage last week and have to admit she did a fine job. Overall I thought the Golf Channel's production was pretty solid. Occasionally a poor camera shot but the directing and overall production was solid. I also will mention that Kelly Tilghman is also very easy on the eyes as well as a very capable golf announcer.

Van Halen, R.E.M., Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five all new inductees into the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame. Not that the RNR HOF had any credibility ever, it seems to lose more every year in my eyes. There are more note-worthy performers not into the RNR HOF and now they are inducting hip-hop acts...Kenny Rogers should be on the short list for inductees soon.

The dude that came up with Scooby-Doo dies. Iwao Takamoto is not a household name, but many of the entities he worked on are including Scooby-Doo (which he created), Flintstones, Peter Pan, etc. has passed away.

Rock Star Training

If you have a child age 10 or older and/or contact with any college-aged person, odds are you either have or have heard about Guitar Hero. I puchased the game last week for my family and it is a big hit. My daughter still needs to practice some of the songs but if she does, she is able to play them after a bit. So I will most likely need to purchase a second guitar so she can rock out with someone else. My son isn't old enough to grasp it yet, but if everything holds together, the game will be waiting for him in a few more years...and who knows by then there may be even more sequels to this game.

My son calls says this game is 'Rock Star Training'. They have songs ranging from Kansas to Megadeth. It's fun to play when you get a group of people together and really rock out!

1-8-07 Headlines

Well we'lls start with the obvious....

New England beat the Jets 37-16. So they will play the Chargers Sunday at 4:30 ET in San Diego.

The early line has the Chargers at -5. It seems as if there are plenty of people on the Charger bandwagon right now.

Also yesterday the Eagles beat the Giants so they will be playing New Orleans. It was fun seeing Eli lose.

Here's the AP matchup capsule for all of the divisional playoff games.

AP announced their All-Pro NFL team today. Of course Tomlinson headlines the story. Other Chargers making it are Antonio Gates, Lorenzo Neal, Jamal Williams and Shawne Merriman. The Chargers lead all teams with the most players voted All-Pro by the AP.

The Atlanta Falcons have hired their next coach. Louisville's Bobby Petrino will be the next head coach of the Atlanta Falcons.

Microsoft sounds like they are gearing up to actually release a new OS. I don't like hearing that Microsoft is going to 'jazz' it up. Just tell me where the option to revert my entire desktop and usability back to the Windows 95 appearance is and I will be fine, thank you.

Plutoed is the word of the year in 2006. I've never heard of the word ever being used in the manner that won Pluto the award...so I'm not sure how it could be word of the year...but evidently this is an award that geeks hand out so whatever.

From Golden Boy To Goat

I am really not too interested in the NFC Playoffs but last night's game between the Seahawks and Cowboys was entertaining enough to keep me watching...and I'm glad I did.

I'm no Cowboys fan by any means. When earlier this season when Bledsoe was benched and Tony Romo came in and won his first few games he was the new annointed one in Dallas and some had the Cowboys as the new NFC favorite to go to the Super Bowl...I grew tired of that quickly and was glad to see the Cowboys lose to good teams and the Romo buzz quickly quieted.

All Tony Romo had to do last night was handle a snap on what would have been the go-ahead field go late in the game and he bobbled it and the Cowboys lose. So how will Cowboy fans react to his blunder? Let's face it, it was probably unlikely the Cowboys would have advanced much further in the playoffs, but with the NFC as shitty as it is this year, who knows...

1-5-07 Headlines

Few things for today's perusing...

Just a couple of NFL coaches either getting fired or quitting. Of course Art Shell getting fired after a 2-14 season isn't that big of surprise. And Cowher leaving the Steelers was talked about before Thanksgiving. It almost seemed as if Cowher and the Steelers knew this was a lame-duck year.

Jason Taylor wins the AP defensive player of the year award. Although many, including myself, think the Chargers' Shawne Merriman was probably the defensive player of the year but severely hurt his chances of winning this award because of his positive steroid test earlier this year.

Now Pittsburgh is willing to bargain. Yesterday Penguins' officials, namely Mario Lemieux, were in Kansas City checking out a potential new home after years of haggling with Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania officials and not getting anywhere. And upon his return Lemieux then met with Pennsylvania officials...who are probably going to do 1 thing extra to try and keep the Penguins to stay in Pittsburgh. Screw them, they had their chance and now they are just trying to do the minimum to keep the Penguins in Pittsburgh. Go to where you will be appreciated, it might not be Kansas City but it is clear it isn't Pittsburgh.

Reno 911 and Chappelle Show to go to syndication. At one time there use to be a 'magic' episode number that a show had to reach before it would be considered for syndication. But I guess not anymore. Yes, Reno 911 has had what, 3? 4 seasons and a person wouldn't see the same rerun constantly in syndication. But the Chappelle Show in syndication? There wasn't but 20 or so total episodes...and they have been reran to death already on Comedy Central, not sure how that is going to work in syndication.

Nontheist uprising. It's good to see that a rebellion against religions is growing. In my opinion I think all religions are cults. Religion is used to manipulate people and that all religions and gods have been created by man and thus there is no validity to any of them.

Bush administration taking away more privacy. The current Bush administration has shown that it cares not about an individuals rights or privacy. They have used the 9-11 excuse the whole time to pass laws that take away an individual's freedom and privacy and continue to do so. Now they can open your mail without a warrant.

LT: AP NFL MVP

Let the award parade for LaDainian Tomlinson begin. He was just voted the Associated Press's NFL MVP for 2006.

1-4-07 Headlines

I'm off to a good start, 2 days in a row! And of course the 'headlines' I tend to comment more on will be sports and media related...

Here's headlines for Thursday, January 4th, 2007... and no, this is not a New Years resolution, I never make one.

Floyd Landis supporters start fund to clear his name. What once seemed as a clear-cut doping case against the 2006 Tour de France winner, Floyd Landis, seems to be losing momentum and public support. Now Landis has a group of supporters rallying behind him and his cause. All this will mean that cycling will be less cared about in America than it already is because of the perception of cheating and unfairness.

Tyson arrested with coke. I almost believed Mike when he said Don King took all his money...which still could be true...but I'm guessing a lot of his coin is going up his nose. Youngest person ever to be the undisputed heavyweight champion, now a coke-head.

Chargers OC - Coaching Candidate. San Diego Chargers Offensive Coordinator, Cam Cameron, is rumored to be a coaching prospect for Arizona and Atlanta. Hmmm... do either of those teams have Antonio Gates, the best tight end in the league, or LaDainian Tomlinson, the best running back in the league? Wonder how he would do without them? We will most likely find out.

Pennington, AP comeback player of the year. Chad was a quarterback I liked 3 years ago. After 2 seasons of injuries I didn't know if he could play at a high level this year but he clearly showed that he could. The Jets, who I'll get to watch in a playoff game this weekend, appear to have a fairly solid team and with Pennington healthy, are clearly a tough team to face.

Tank Johnson's locked and loaded. There has to be more to this story then we know right now. The cops find a small arsenal at Tank Johnson's pad with, of course, a small amount of drugs. Tank's bodyguard was also charged and then killed shortly afterwards. And what got Tank into so much trouble? Oh yeah, having 3 loud pit bulls barking and why not just fire off some rounds in your backyard...no one will care about that and besides, what does Tank have to be worried about? It most certainly wouldn't be all the guns and the 550 rounds of ammo he has.

Penguins to Kansas City? A story that has been well over a decade old...the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins' financial troubles. The Penguins' (most likely) greatest player ever, Mario Lemieux is part owner of the team and has tried everything to keep the Penguins in Pittsburgh. But after what has seemed like eternity, the city of Pittsburgh does not seem interested in keeping the Penguins in their city anymore and I do not blame Mario for seeking another home for the team.

Canada beats U.S. in marathon shootout. UND's Jonathon Toews scores the game winning goal in the 7th(!!!) round of a shootout in the Junior National Hockey Tournament. US loses 2-1.

Juiced baseball's the reason for all the homers. So now we have a company claiming the baseballs used in the '98 season, when McGwire hit 70 home runs had a design that help propel them off the bat. I have a different theory... McGwire was on steroids and so far there has been no proof to the contrary.

USA Network top cable channel in 2006. I only watched golf and tennis on the USA Network but apparently their normal programming is so good that they are the most watched cable channel. My daughter watches the Disney Channel shows which came in 2nd in prime time ratings and all the shows listed there are ones she enjoys.

Trump - O'Donnell Feud. Donald Trump, a person who relishes the spotlight and Rosie O'Donnell, a former comic that was never funny and now a loud, not-funny windbag on a daytime television show have a war of words that required Barbara Walters to intervene. What is the saddest part of this story? Walters showing that she has no credibility left by sticking up for (what?) both Trump and O'Donnell? Or myself, wasting the time to comment on this story?

Downloading movies legally. It looks like the movie industry is trying to take an alternative route than the music industry. Instead of trying to restrict downloading and focus on policing, the movie industry seems to be seeking out solutions to help people download and burn their videos legally. I think most everyone would choose to do things legally if they could choose, but right now there really aren't that many choices that make legal downloading of media very convenient.

Police reunion rumors. The band Police apparently may reunite for a tour in 2007. I liked early Police - Ghost In The Machine and that was about it. I can not STAND "Every Breathe You Take" because it was literally played on repeat on MTV during it's hey-day.

1-3-07 Headlines

Something I am going to try to do more frequently is sift out and post some comments on stories, events and other miscellaneous items that I come across the world wide web... so here's the first installment, and the listing is in no order of importance...

Iverson ejected in the first game against his former team. The 76'ers end up beating the Nuggets fairly handedly as Iverson gets ejected with 1:44 left in the game. In a game that Iverson could display just what the 76'ers gave up on, the sixers end up with the last laugh by winning on the road against Iverson's new team.

Sadam's execution video-taped, official accused. It seems that anything done to any Islamic follower, especially a leader, will bring an outcry from their supporters as well as their opponents and the video-taping and subsequent releasing of the video on the internet and television has certainly stirred the pot. The official that apparently video-taped it on his cell phone is being held in custody and will likely face some punishment.

Ford's funeral. The first president I remember as a child, Gerald Ford will be put to rest in Michigan. Dubbed by the media as a down-to-earth, simple yet smart man. Born and raised in Michigan, those in Michigan have turned out in force to pay their respects to one of their state heroes.

Nick Saban to take Alabama job. Nick Saban seems like a coach that is willing to pack up and move to anywhere that will pay him more. He didn't show much success in the NFL so maybe he is getting out while the getting is good. He may be like Pete Carroll of USC, a good college coach but not so good on the professional level. The details surrounding his departure from the Dolphins does really cloud his character. Some early reports state that Saban did not show up at the Dolphins' headquarters and told his coaching staff he was leaving via conference phone.

Matt Millen to remain Lions president. Millen took over football operations for the Detroit Lions in 2001. Since then the Lions have gone 24-72, worst in the NFL over that same span. Have had top draft picks every year under Millen and the Lions continue to suck every year. Millen has to have something on somebody to have such a dismal performance record and maintain such a lofty position in a football organization. But they hire a new defensive coordinator...that should fix things up...

Peter Forsberg is killing my fantasy team! Peter Forsberg, who just so happens to be on my fantasy hockey team, when playing is about as good a player as you could hope for on a fantasy squad. But this season Forsberg has been hurt more than skating and when you use an early pick on someone like Forsbert your team as a whole suffers.

Golf Channel to begin airing PGA events. I'm not really a huge PGA golf fan, but I do enjoy watching it when it is on, especially the majors. Having DirecTV and the Golf Channel I thought the 'Golf Channel' would be airing PGA events...but only a few select rounds and really, not that much PGA. That all changes this year. The Golf Channel will have full coverage for a few events and early round coverage of others. I always thought why even bother having Thursday and Friday coverage on one of the other cable stations (USA or ESPN) when they only air 2 hours of coverage in the afternoon. If Tiger isn't playing during that time, no one is watching and not to mention coverage would often end with players still golfing...so why even bother? Hopefully this all changes with the Golf Channel's coverage. And to make things tough on themselves, the Golf Channel plans on having a female as the lead-caster for their coverage. I will reserve judgment on her ability until I have heard her, but they could have gotten a more recognizable name/voice that may bring them more instant credibility.

ESPN/ABC trying to lure Barber. The NY Giants are in the playoffs but with word that Tiki Barber is retiring has ABC sports trying to recruit Barber for their Good Morning America show. A popular east coast athlete usually has no problem landing a television deal after they are done playing their sport.

Will Favre retire? Just like winter turns to spring Brett Favre will likely do the same song and dance routine he did last year. He will hold off making an announcement about whether he is returning to play for the Green Bay Packers or will retire until god knows when. What is just plain stupid about Brett Favre is that he truly doesn't give a shit about the Green Bay Packers. If he did what he did last year by not telling the team his status before the draft, after the draft and then hold a press conference to tell everyone that he still doesn't know what he is going to do is just plain bullshit. I think he likes to make sure he remains a story in the off-season but I'm just plain sick of Brett Favre. You got your record and that is all I think he cares about now, is padding his consecutive start record.

The Wheel and Jeopardy signed through 2012. All these new game shows during prime time all SUCK, yes they all SUCK. They are lame and all about filling a time slot. The best game show has always been Jeopardy. Lots of questions, and tough ones at that, with a simple game play. The reason Jeopardy wouldn't last in prime time is because intelligent television viewers are clearly in the minority.

Teens Binge Drink

Here's a wild one for you... a completed U.S. government study found out that nearly 50% of American teens recently consumed alcohol illegally and that most are binge drinkers...that is drinking 5 or more drinks in one sitting.

O.K., I admit that the study to find that 1/2 of America's kids are drinking is noteworthy...but to go on and determine that most are binge drinkers...well, no shit! I have yet to know or meet a teenager that would get home from school and crack open a nice cold beer and relax for a bit. Why? Because their parents would beat them, for starters. And then most teenagers don't even know why a person would consider drinking alcohol to not get wasted, I mean why would you drink alcohol to just drink alcohol and not get wasted?

When I was in high school any Friday or Saturday evening that we could find a location to drink was awesome but that oftentimes was the easy part. You then needed to find someone of age to buy for you and many times that meant you bought for them as well. Which leads to the final obstacle...money. Working a part-time, minimum wage job meant that you were lucky to have $10 at all on any given weekend, let alone enough to spend on liquor. So, if you got lucky, you would grab your warm case of Keystone beer and go out and party like a rockstar. If you were unable to finish all of the beer you purchased it was almost always left at the site because you can't take it home...your parents would find it and/or drink it which is no good to you.

Teenagers binge drinking? Wow, one would never have guessed...

Playoffs Set, Chargers Wait For Opponent

The Chargers, clinching a first-round bye and home field advantage for the entire playoffs, will have the luxury of watching the games this weekend and see who they get to play. If Indianapolis wins then they will play the winner of the Patriots-Jets game. If Kansas City wins, they will play the Chiefs.

I think out of the 3 teams the Chiefs would be the most beatable. They haven't looked good down the stretch. Regardless, I think the Chargers should be able to defeat whichever team they face in their first playoff game.

The Baltimore Ravens have the other first round bye, but will face the Colts in their first game if Indy beats KC...a tough first game.

The AFC is certainly the better side of the playoff bracket and I think that whichever AFC team goes to the Super Bowl, they will defeat the NFC team.

Vacation Over

After close to 2 weeks off, I'm back to work, the kids are back at school and life needs to return to normal. Hopefully everyone had a good holiday season and a happy new year. I was able to hang with the kids all of last week, we even went back to visit my parents and family. It was a nice time.