Well with the Republican victory, morality and justice immediately broke out all over the world. And by world I mean a six foot radius near a small town in Vermont. I would love to talk about sports this week and only sports. However the headlines and fines and fights preclude such a thing.
1. Maybe you've heard about a small fight breaking out at an NBA game in Detroit. (if such event was to happen lets be honest detroit in combination with Ron Artest was bound to do it). Ron Artest charged into the stands to combat a cup thrower. Other Pacers raced into the stands to save Artest and for a pound of flesh. Fans raced onto the court (Jermaine O'Neil knocked one of the fools out for such a stunt). Yes there's been a lot of hand ringing over this as well as there should be. But this has not been an isolated incident. In recent years there has been a growing trend of violence between fans and athletes (KC manager attacked in Chicago, Texas throwing chairs into the stands,etc, etc). But the NBA will not move its seats back (lose revenue, heavens to betsy no). The NBA will not restrict beer sales while it gets large endorsements. So the hammer was dropped on the players. David Stern playing the PR game showed the world that out of control athletes would be reigned in. Its not important if they are relative to fans (and in no way do I condone athletes attacking fans. violence is the last resort of the incompetent) but in a world where money talks, who do you think was going to get the brunt of the punishment well-paid athletes or the source of the league's money.
2. Well on the subject of hypocrisy the recent Monday Football's advertisement of Desperate Housewives foots the bill. Once again the usual suspect (Terrel Owens) was involved in the not as typical flash point. Terrel was involved in a scene where (gasp) you could see a woman's naked back. What will the children think? Sure they are exposed to brutal hits and sickening injuries. Sure they are flooded with advertisements for erectile disfunction drugs. But a naked back, well thats just over the line. Did ABC know it was coming? I don't know. In a climate where stations are now censoring "Saving Private Ryan" on Veterans day nobody knows whats in the bounds of "appropriate". But did ABC really think that the US has advanced enough that a naked white girl can jump into the arms of strong black man? It was a week before the event that Bob Jones University wrote Wubya a letter telling him to save this country from "paganism". I know Mike Holmgren worships Pan the Goat god and I've been known to leave libations to various stone idols but I don't think paganism is breaking out across the country. Apparently peace and tolerance aren't either.
3. Well thats a lot on the serious side, what have we learned about sports this week. The NFL is a two-tier league: contenders and the rest. New England, Pittsburgh, Indianopolis and Philadelphia are in a completely different class then any other team. These teams win and they will win in the playoffs. Everyone else, each week is a crap shoot. Somedays they show up and somedays they don't. Yes the Chargers, Broncos, Jets and the Falcons have great records. Yes they could even pull an upset in the playoffs. But is anyone convinced that Drew Brees will beat New Englands D when Oakland took them to the limit? Does anyone really think the Jets can contain half-Manning half-Amazing?
4. Seattle Supersonics are the Gonzaga of the league. They are dropping 3s and jump shots like browns receivers drop passes. Thats why they are winning. Can they keep hitting 60% of their 3s all season, probably not. Would I want to play them while they are hot, no.
5. Parting thoughts: Turkey, Stuffing and football are important parts of Thanksgiving. No thanksgiving is complete without these 3 things. Hats off to Orlando for their good start. They were a dark horse for a lot of writers but nobody thought Grant Hill would ever score over 30 points ever again. Can it continue is the million dollar question. OSU-Michigan was what rivalries are all about. No matter the record, the weather or the location; Its a tough game full of heros and goats. No exception this week. Bowl game I am looking foward to : Utah and whoever they play. Smaller tier schools gateway to the BCS has officially been opened (and if they win the door is wide open).
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There certainly are a lot of things to discuss after the last week. Good point about the NBA sticking it to the players, but as we all know, Artest went into the stands which you can't do. Good point about paganism, considering the country becomes more conservative each day and we creep closer to W requiring school prayer. I can't believe how many people focus on just one isolated back. What's next? Complaining about the women in the WWE? Complaining about the dresses at the Oscars?
...Of course I LOVE any Gonzaga references, and any NBA team that can shoot 60% from 3-point land is my kind of team. The other teams have no idea what to do. Hell, there's no way to defend it when 4 guys can each shoot.
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