Officially a fan of an 0-2 team

The Seahawks are now 0-2 which sucks. The sad thing is once they get healthy, they will probably win the division... it's that bad in the NFC West. I will just be glad when we can get a play in the offense that goes for over 20 yards in the playbook. If you don't believe me watch the Hawks play--quite ugly.


Since a lot of people aren't political I'll be a little light today. Here's some good humorous political commentary that anybody can enjoy from Jon Stewart, the video below characterizes the flipity floppity floop nature of the Republican Party these days.




Here is also a story of the McCain marriage that you probably don't know about. CNN did a report on this when they exposed the "real" John McCain and Barack Obama during a special back in August. John McCain was a jerk based on that CNN report. Basically this story exposed that he was dealing with some "issues" and his ex-wife had to deal with all of his antics.

From this report he is an inhumane scumbag, to say that lightly. Thanks to Tarik Pain for finding this. I don't think it is morally acceptable for someone to put another person through that situation especially knowing she has an unconditional love that will not tear you down. Drawing from a similar situation, former President Clinton was scum for extramarital affairs that occurred while he was in office. Right now, we know about extremely dirty misdealings and have the opportunity to prevent such a man going into office. I vividly remember the attacks President Clinton's character took while the sex scandal went on... but I doubt there will be similar actions taken.

In music stuff F-150 face Curtis Jackson bka 50 Cent dissed Kanye, video below. I am by no means a Kanye fan but this is just lame. The fact that people still 50 is a sign the world is coming to an end. Really we need to get it together America.


Ramadan is going well and I am developing the spiritual connection that is essential to growth and development during such a time.

OH! And the San Diego Chargers lost a game today because of a rule... I am thinking we should make sports rule books like the constitution or the Bible and interpret them as living documents. Ed Hochuli (Mr. Man of sports referees) knew he blew the call but because of the rulebook he couldn't make it right. Now the Denver Broncos are 2-0 and the San Diego Chargers are 0-2. What did we learn today? Politics are screwed, music is screwed and sports is screwed... good luck out there in this cold, cold world!

Salute

Saturdays and Sundays are gonna suck for a while

I am going to find solace in the fact that "Montlake" Jake Locker will be in Seattle for two more years and Mike Holmgren is retiring... but still it is going to really suck getting thru this football season. I won't even address October--when basketball starts and I have to start being a fan of a new team.

Hurricane Ike hit Texas and pretty hard it sounds like. There aren't official damage numbers or death tolls, but I am sure there will be a significant amout of damage and a far higher number of deaths than should be. For whatever reason some people did not heed the warnings and decided they would just chill. Yesterday, I saw footage on CNN of some guys walking with their dog right up where the water was surging over barriers... bleepin' stupid.

Gas prices rose dramatically, as there are a great deal of the country's oil refineries are located in Texas. Gas has risen 6 cents nationally, I think about 20 cents in Kentucky and certain areas in Texas don't have gas at all. I wouldn't be surprised if gas stays a few cents higher after all of this is resolved. That's what they do.

I would say this is further proof that we need to find something else to do besides drill for oil and build pipelines. The fact that we are having exponential increases in price of gas because of a seasonal natural disaster is even more proof. A pipeline from Alaska and offshore drilling aren't solving this problem either. You cant completely get rid of oil dependency, but you can definitely become less dependent.

For those who are not as cynical as I am, here's a little story about the U.S. Interior Department in relation to oil companies.
It is pretty lengthy, but definitely worth the read. We have so many problems in this country that need exposure... this is a really big step.

Since I took the semester off in Fall '05 I have been more up on what goes on in national news. From that point I have heard quarter after quarter of record profits by the oil companies as prices rose and rose. This article alleges that there were improper benefits, not collecting federal royalties, drug usage, sexual impropriety, and many other ethical practices and actions. This is just plain sickening considering the American people are feeling the brunt of said decisions... and those making the decisions and enforcing rules can't keep their pants on, their noses clean or their minds right.

Back to sports, I didn't think Ty Willingham was on the hot seat going into the season, but considering the field goal attempt before the half with 1 second on the clock, I think he just put himself in that seat. You're down 34 and you need to score points, you gotta go for the TD. The kicker missed the field goal, so it's easy to criticize the decision, but if you're down at that point, you go big or go home.

I feel really bad for this Husky team because the schedule has been tough, facing three top 25 teams in the first three games of the year. Not only that, but the team isn't getting any breaks going back to last year. I keep waiting for them to turn the corner and get back to that prominence that I grew up accustomed to, but it just isn't working. Last year they lost a lot of close games to a lot of good teams and many fans figured this year things would yield a few more wins, but it hasn't worked out that way.

It will go a long way when they get their act together and gain that confidence and swagger that you see from winning teams, but until then Jake Locker & Co. are really struggling with being a young, inexperienced, not good team. Jake Locker is capable of turning in a Herculean effort that will inspire his team to glory and I feel that effort coming very soon. The team WILL be galvanized by these experiences, mark my words!

I still have hope for the Huskies, like I do the country which is in the midst of being dealt a lot of bad breaks, especially politically. If more of the injustices and misdealings are exposed the United States can turn it around. Go Huskies! And Go USA! After November 4th you'll get your leader that will deliver the Herculean effort.

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A Disappointed Seattle/Washington Fan

Right now is not at all a good time to be a sports fan in the state of Washington. I don't know where to start... so I will start with what I saw less than half an hour ago.

The University of Washington Huskies was a powerhouse in the Pac-10 as I grew up and a couple of years while I have been in Kentucky. Recently that has not been the case, but currently UW is lead by Tim Tebowesque quarterback named Jack Locker. The problem is the rest of the team is no where near as talented as Florida, and consequently, Locker has not had the ability to develop as much as Tebow. Well, just a little while ago UW drove down the field against #15 BYU and scored with 2 seconds left. Jake Locker being the man that he is, made a gutsy play to run into the end zone, bringing the game within an extra point of being tied. After scoring the TD locker threw the ball behind his head and celebrated with his team... 15 yard penalty, PAT blocked. Game over.

I am not necessarily mad that BYU won because it was a good game from the jump. I just have a problem with the referees taking the game out of the hands of the players. The officials clearly were on the field during the game, so they knew the struggles Washington was endured over the course of the game. Not to mention, the celebration wasn't any more excessive than the touchdown that lead to the game tying PAT in the Ole Miss/Wake Forest Game--and even then, you cant take away the game from the players like that. I realize the Huskies had the opportunity to convert the PAT from 35 yards... but think about that for a second. A celebration with your teammates with 2 seconds left taking away the game. I guess they call them the same. Make a play and celebrate with your team on the field 15 yard penalty. Make a play and your entire team runs on the field to celebrate 15 yard penalty. What a joke.

As far as basketball, I will be brief. I am now a Portland Trailblazers fan. They have a couple Seattle guys on the team and are right down I-5 from Seattle. Howard Schultz former Seattle Supersonics owner rescinded his lawsuit against the current Oklahoma City Thunder management so the team is gone for sure. Lame. But I am glad there is some closure.

Brandon Morrow, the Mariners top draft pick from a couple of years ago made his first major league start last night and looked incredible. That's something to look forward to. Also, the Seahawks will no longer be coached by Mike "playnottolose" Holmgren after this season, so I won't have to worry about my team snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Remember last year's NFC divisional playoff game against the Packers? The Seahawks were up 21-0 and went to prevent offense and promptly 3 and outed 4 straight series. Green Bay went on to win obviously and I was a sad Seahawk.

Optimism courses through my veins and I know the Mariners will be alright eventually. The people in charge keep saying stupid stuff and will be fired sooner rather than later. The Huskies will return to prominence if they just hang in there and do things the right way. Ty Willingham has struggled yes, but he is bringing in his players and getting close and starting this season, and if he is around next year, the Huskies will make significant progress. The Seahawks will learn to step on teams throats and really be successful starting next year. And the Blazers will be a dominant team. I know Seattle will get another team once the city gets it together, but I don’t know if I can go back…

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Funny Stuff

Maybe it’s just me, but when I see college students walking I just laugh. It's not that they look funny or walk strange, but you can kind of tell where they are and where they are going in life.

Some you can just tell aren't getting anywhere because of the lack of urgency they have when getting from point A to point B. Some have that same absence of a sense of urgency, but can afford to (or at least they think they can) because they are amateur athletes at the university. You have those students who are so focused that they miss everything going on around them. That's funny too…just an observation.

The LPGA backed down on a rule that would make all of its players speak English. Now I watch a lot of Sportscenter (purely for the purpose of score watching, PTI’s Big finish, and criticism), and the only players I know besides Michelle Wie, Juli Inkster, and Paula Kramer are foreign. Annika Sorenstam, Lorena Ochoa, and Karrie Webb speak English, but several of the players do no not, specifically the Korean players who have started to win more and more tournaments.

Now I am not against women having the right to play sports, I am just against having womens sports shoved down my throat, i.e. U.S. Womens Soccer, the WNBA, and golf. Aside: I so wouldn't be mad if they showed more volleyball, indoor and outdoor. Most of the time the women look good and are tall and athletic...the kind of woman im looking for LOL. Anyways, this is one of those times where its important, because its purely indicative of the world we live in. If they are playing well just let them play who cares about what language they speak. I don’t watch LPGA interviews and press conferences. Honestly, very few people are watching anyways golf anyways, that is if Tiger isn't playing.

Last night, Senator John McCain closed out the RNC with his acceptance speech. I watched the majority of the big speeches just like I did with the DNC, and I will say his was the worst. That speech was long as hell and lacked a lot of specifics. He constantly went to that little smile he has that looks so fake and out of place. Like he would say something negative and smile…oh wait that was intentional.

One of the big issues I fundamentally disagree with Republicans that leans me to the left is in opportunities and values—actually it’s just half of that. I will say I agree with a lot of the values that conservatives cling to, but I recognized that it’s not my place to make my values other people. So I cannot expect my religion to be applied to the governing of people who may not believe the same.

On the opportunity side, I feel like there are opportunities if you have all of the available resources, but the GOP doesn’t always realize that some people have a different set of opportunities to make into success. For example, I have friends that have a lot more than I do, and it’s not because I don’t want more, but I started with less and when it comes time to make long term decisions, I have less of a cushion.

Like I have a friend who has been in school for a few years and this friend doesn’t know what they want to do, but everything is taken care of till they figure it out…and if they don’t they got a job waiting. Then I have another friend who has been out of school for a few years and will have to scrape and scrap to get back into school. One probably is more talented or “better” than the other…but the other has a better chance circumstance and starting opportunity.

Speaking of better and worse, in that hour long lecture, John McCain dropped that we need to help those that are less than us. Last time I checked, nobody is better or worse than anybody. The next guy may not have more than me but he most certainly isn’t better. I just found that word choice particularly interesting…kinda like McCain and his wife lying about their ages to each other when they first met. That’s why these kids lie about their age on Myspace and R.Kelly types are always getting caught up.

That’s all for now… tell a friend, show me some love in a link, oh and do the right thing.

Salute

Labor Day: No Work=Music

It's now Labor Day and I have an extra day off to blog. YAY!

On a serious note, please be praying for New Orleans. Hopefully, all the evacuation and precaution doesn't equal Gustav being as devastating as Katrina. I was watching CNN Friday night and one of the commentators said that the levees are only about 20% to where they need to be... I also hope that the Republicans and the RNC don't have to deal with such a disaster during their convention.

Moving on to lighter business, College football started this weekend and the NFL starts next weekend. I started to do a serious in-depth comprehensive breakdown of both, but I don't get paid to do it so I'll just stick to predictions. The two best teams in college football are USC and Florida. I would like to see them both play in the BCS title game so I'm gonna pick Tim Tebow, the first three Heisman winner, and the USC Trojans, with NFL talent up and down their roster. A team like Oklahoma, Missouri, or Ohio State (whom the BCS seems to love) could stop that matchup because Florida will most likely not go undefeated and one of those teams, in weaker conferences has a better opportunity. USC ain't losing though, watch what they do to Ohio State next week. They are incredible.

Likewise are the New England Patriots. My roommate will tell you that the second the Pats got my man Randy Moss, I said they weren’t going to lose a game... I was almost right and this year I think I will be totally right. Actually, I’m lying—I have no idea what they will do. That defense got really old really fast last year, and aside from being a little healthier the only thing that happened was getting older. That said I hope they do it, but I don’t think they will. They’ll get that Superbowl though. Why? Because they are Incredible too.

Speaking of incredible Mickey Factz has a song called, guess what? Incredible. The beat is hot especially during the chorus and already the likes of Skyzoo, Cory Gunz, Tyga, Travis McCoy (of Gym Class Heroes), and a few others have already hit this beat which will probably get a lot of play. As far as Mr. Factz goes, I’ll say he’s pretty good. I found this track about 5 weeks ago and have been on a quest to find more and more of his music.

A few other people to check out are Wale, Charles Hamilton and Grafh. I have listened to Grafh for a while and I can say without a doubt the man is really nice lyrically. He has more of a hard, raw style, but is still prolific with the words. I’m not going to link any of his music, ‘cause Grafh is a little more explicit than most (but if you want to find him you know who he is now).

Wale and Charles Hamilton are listening byproducts of listening to Mickey Factz and the people he says know that he is incredible. Charles Hamilton’s style is nice and I really like that he’s a Sega nerd. He will drop all kinds of references to the 16 bit Genesis a lot, and if you visit his blog you’ll see what makes him tick.

Wale’s “The Mixtape About Nothing” is kinda hot, I’m not gonna lie. It’s also kinda big so if you download it have a few minutes to download the .zip file and unpack it. I’m feeling kinda lazy so I won’t critique it either… just know it has my stamp of approval, whatever that’s worth.

In completely unrelated music, go get Coldplay's new album. Chris Martin is a genius, he has the rare talent of putting together good sounds in a way that a black man can enjoy "white" music LOL. Really though go buy "Viva La Vida", it's good. Since they are mainstream artists I'm gonna say go buy it, in fact I may drop something in the Kernel about buying music... hmm

Happy Labor Day, pray for New Orleans, and tell a friend!

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My thoughts on elitism...

I have heard the topic of elitism being thrown around for several months now and I want to properly focus people on what elite is. (I won't go attacking a guy who doesn't know how many houses he owns, because that's not what I am here for. In fact, I don't think I could accurately describe the situation to really grasp how crappy it is.) Anyways, since sports is my thing I will use sports to describe true elitism.

I'm an American, proud to be here--don't plan on leaving. But I will say we have an elite mentality when it comes to sports. Let's take soccer, which is great. The rest of the world eats it up. The world cup final literally has billions of people watching it... but not many of those numbers come from America.

Take Olympic Basketball and the "Redeem Team," as they have been dubbed. I understand why it is a big deal that we need to win the gold, but we have this elitist mentality that we shouldn't lose. So what do we do? Put together a team with 2 guys that are there for one skill (Tayshaun Prince and Redd), a guy who would be a great counterpunch to some of the crafty power forwards of the international game (Carlos Boozer), and Jason Kidd, whom I will not address because my opinion of him could fill seven, 20k word posts.

Even our spin on the medal count shows massive amounts of elitism. The United States will come out with more total medals than China, but China will have more gold medals. We say we won in real sports and real events. I have also heard the sentiment that if you subtract events that weren’t subjectively/arbitrarily by people, we have won just as many gold medals as China. While I do think the system is flawed, China won and minus the small children in gymnastics, they were better (gold medal wise) than us. We have the same opportunity to play badminton and table tennis like they do. Let’s be gracious.

I want to reiterate the fact that I love America and think it’s the best large place/country ever (the state of Washington is the best place in general). Yet I think it’s worth mentioning this sports elitism because it spills into other aspects of life. The fact that a country turns its nose up to the “beautiful game” and calls it a sport for wimps is a testimony. Or maybe its visible major sports talk radio widely ignoring a world athletic competition, save Michael Phelps, USA basketball and a little Usain Bolt. And for what? To talk pre-season NFL football!

Upon winning the gold medal in Olympic basketball the theme of what the “Redeem Team” did was the first gold since 2000. Last time I checked, the Olympics happen every 4 years. So basically, we didn’t win in ’04 and that’s it. It wasn’t the end of the world. The team didn’t play well, but Americans in general were generally ungracious. When the Pistons lost in the NBA finals a few years ago the media vilified the team for not giving credit to the Spurs for beating them and being better.

The American response to not winning gold in Sidney was quite similar to that of the Pistons who failed, which is funny because the world really has caught up. Argentina has 6 NBA players and one player that was a staple in the league for years. Spain has eight players that have been or will be in the NBA either last year or next year. Aside: Rudy Fernandez of the Portland Trailblazers abused the US defense, and he made Dwight Howard look bad when he dunked on him. Fernandez was born the day after I was and he plays for my new favorite team so he must be a good guy. Other teams also have NBA regulars and really talented players who can hold their own anywhere. In basketball you only need to have the best five guys on the floor…

In short, well not so much, we have to get a hold of ourselves, realize that there is more to life than America and American sports, and be a gracious people. The elitism we have in sports manifests itself in our media, politics, and lifestyles and I hate that it has spilled to my favorite thing in the world. Please guys let’s just play nice!

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A big beef with sports

I love sports. In high school people thought something was wrong with me for only being able to hold conversations about sports. At work, there is a random lady who only associates me with sports. When I go to my mom's in Louisville and I run into people I know...they ask me if I am still playing sports.

Living in Kentucky makes my sports fandom a little more difficult to enjoy because overwhelmingly I am subject to the sports views of the masses, as opposed to the view of the 14th largest television market in the United States win which I grew up. In Seattle area I was able to watch most every game of the teams I loved. It was nice.

However in Kentucky, I am constantly being force fed an absurd amount of Red Sox/Yankee, LeBron, and Pittsburgh Steelers games, as the media caters to a majority of fans and the supposed national sports interests.

I don't begrudge the networks for that decision, because at the end of the day they are around to make a profit. I don't blame the fans, because at the core most people don't care as much about sports as I do. Therefore I can't expect casual fans to have the deep-rooted fanatical memories associated with the successes, and more customarily the failures, of being a true sports fan. Still, I find it necessary to sling blame somewhere so I will put it on the respective leagues and America.

In reference the leagues, one of the most common statements I hear for all sports, save golf when Tiger is winning, is that ratings are down. I know that if I had the ability to watch, listen to, read or live sports... I would. Easy. But why can't I? This is where America comes in.

This unrestricted form of capitalism is ridiculous. I understand the need to make profit and to further your business interests--but the prices for tickets; the inaccessibility of sports to non-cable television, the limited selection of sports on cable, and the outrageous conglomeration of "inside information" are ruining sports. There is very little a casual fan can get for free to bring them in.

Aside: LeBron made an INCREDIBLE block against China on Sunday. (It was Kenyon Martin back at Cincinnati with two good legs esque). I didn't see highlights of the feat until Tuesday because of the Castro-like grip NBC has on the images. How is that good for the Olympics?

As I said I understand the drive for profits, but at what cost? The reason kids don't play sports, the reason people don't go to games, the reason ratings are down, the reason our nation is growing more and more obese, is because we are selling everything. You don't see the connections?

Part of athleticism that gets kids going is the desire to be like someone. So how can you be "like Mike" or now like Kobe if you only see them once a week and maybe twice after NFL ends? Or why would you want to play baseball if nobody your color played professionally? Would you play football if the only thing you heard about was Brett Favre and his legacy?

Attendance at most games is constant, but the average American family cannot go out and cop $120 tickets for nosebleed seats at an NFL or NHL game, or $80 for a NBA game. Shoot, I haven't been to an MLB game in years, but I bet those prices kill people too. And don’t get me started on the food...

So if you don't identify, and you can't go, why watch if you have to pay to get the premium accessibility to major pro-sports. NBA TV, the NFL network, MLB league, and whatever the hell irrelevant network the NHL has combined with ESPN INsider, and services like rivals.com and scouts.com monopolize the coverage of what you want to see as a sports fan. It's turning sports almost into a secret society...damn near a grand to follow all 4 major sports just on television and the internet.

So what do you do instead of spending that kind of money on sports? Turn to things like World of Warcraft, Halo, the Hills, or the worst VH1... anything to entertain you that you can watch with consistency that is either cheap or free. Instead of activity, we have lazy people who fail to interact.

It is becoming more and more expensive to buy sports equipment, kids have to play on increasingly more teams to remain competitive at the sport they choose to play. And then kids can't play more than one sport because of time, money, injuries etc. The system lends itself to alienating/segregating people before they get started.

Athletes make millions to play games, which makes people want to be like them. But also fosters a hate for people who cannot be like them, which feeds into a lot of racial tension, especially with basketball and the NBA.

I could go on forever about this because I believe sports is one of the places you can assess a lot of the nations problems. In addition to having a screwed up sports system, we place so much value and we strive to profit off things that you just shouldn't profit off of. Hell I have said it before and I'll say it again: making profit off of someone's health (health insurance), general security (insurance), and retirement (social security) is not good. When someone profits, someone else loses.

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I don’t care. Make it stop.

I only have two desires to get in to journalism:


1. To help people through investigative journalism or well thought out opinions in columns and books
2. To overthrow ESPN. And when I say overthrow I could do it from within or from the outside.

Why do I have such a problem with ESPN? The past two months Favredom is a mega-microcosm of the problem. (I have been sitting on this for a while, but I think my rage has subsided enough to make a point… I hope).

The other I found myself screaming profusely at the zilumboanyangebillionth hour of Brett Favre coverage on the four letter network, because it was interrupting my beloved Around the Horn. I couldn’t help but feel like an idiot. Not because I was yelling at an inanimate object—but because I know that even though I am right for being mad. This Brett Favre malarkey needs to go away, but it won’t. Why? Because for whatever reason people want to see Brett F. Favre board private jets like a CEO, riding round rural Wisconsin in a cherry Red Escalade on Urlachers like a boss, and scurry to secret meetings like the president. Case and point: The Favre circus covered the man running a lap for fumbling a snap… expletive, expletive, expletive who cares!!!!!!

I lose. This will go on all season. Favre is in New York... more of an excuse to cover his every move.

Maybe television sports media, ESPN, thinks that’s what people want. Hmm I don’t know. But I do know that is whether it be T.O., Roger Clemens, Barry Lamar Bonds, Adam “make it rain” Pacman Jones, or whatever story they leech on and don’t let go of, my brain ends up hurt.

Essentially the same opinion is spit out hour after hour in the form of different anchors, experts and sports pundits… if only there were an alternative. Television wise ESPN has no competitors. I know there is Fox Sports Net, but that is second rate trash. Half of it is Best Damn this or that or some dryly commentated, second rate sporting event. I do listen to Fox Sports Radio a lot, but it’s good to have something to see. Every other network that covers sports covers it anecdotally so the only outlet I have is ESPN. Thankfully I have the mute button… but I miss a lot of stuff for not being able to hear what they are saying.

Thank God the “worldwide leader in sports” has Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson covering the NBA otherwise I would not be able to watch basketball any day but Thursday with Barkley, EJ and Kenny the Jet. So that’s three things Around the Horn, Pardon the Interruption and the A-team for basketball. (And I hope Van Gundy and Mark Jackson stay analyzing, you aren’t coaches you are entertainers.)

Oh yeah I don’t care about what happens to Brett Favre. He is very good; I guess great, but not the best. He did this to himself and I don’t want my favorite hour of the day, 5-6pm EST Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption, disturbed by reports about Favre meeting for 6 hours and possibly being traded to a non-divisional team who may want to pick up his 12 mil contract but may not want to slow the development of their team let alone bring in a man diva mans man who’s feelings are hurt and wants to play after flip-flopping on a tearful retirement…Or as it stands now how much he is going to play in a practice game.

I don’t care. Make it stop! From now on I will boycott that whole situation and he will be referred to as a pronoun in disgust.

Salute

Unity: The Story Part 2

Although Sheila Brooks was the single most important person to meet, I had the very good fortune of meeting some of the high profile sports journalism figures in the game.

At the career fair I had the opportunity to meet Stuart Scott. For about 45 minutes Scott candidly conversed with two other aspiring sportswriters, Spanky, and me. Scott was particularly impressed with Calvin's presence at the convention, as he is just entering his senior year of high school, but in general took an interest in the conversation with the four of us. By conversations end, he offered us his contact information, and more importantly an ear to listen.

On a stroke of chance, my uncle, cousin and I stumbled upon a baseball forum that Unity had partnered with the Chicago White Sox and Major League Baseball to produce. The event featured Kenny Williams, General Manager of the Chicago White Sox and Minnie Minoso, the first black player for the Chicago White Sox.

The setting for the event was very intimate and low key, so when Williams walked in, I was able to introduce myself and congratulate him for robbing the Mariners for a trade back in 2004 in which Freddy Garcia (along with Ben Davis) was sent to the White Sox for Miguel Olivo, Jeremy Reed, and Mike Morse. Sidenote: If a front office is willingly robbed, is it robbery?

Minoso, delivered a speech about the importance of embracing people for who they are and not the color of their skin. Later on, as he enjoyed hors d'oeuvres, he spoke to Spanky and me for about fifteen minutes about his life and his work as a black Cuban.

Over the course of the MLB event, I got to meet several writers/broadcasters I have looked up to including, Michael Ray Wilbon, David Aldridge, and J. A. Adande. I love DA and J.A., but meeting Wilbon was everything I expected and more. When I grow up I want to be like him LOL.

I also had the pleasure of meeting Justice B. Hill, senior writer for MLB.com, Ruben Luna, Sports Editor for the Detroit News, and Coley Harvey, a sportswriter a the Telegraph in Macon Georgia. Each individual had something of great value to impart to a young wannabe sportswriter who has yet to really make a splash in sports writing. I always have felt like you can never know too many people, a philosophy which was reinforced by meeting journalists from the beat writing level to the mega TV stars of widespread fame.

Very little time during the convention was devoted to interaction with students, so I jumped at the opportunity to go to a student forum on Saturday. There I got to meet a few journalism students from around the country and get some new ideas, such as a place to study abroad, an idea to help charter a student NAHJ (National Association of Hispanic Journalists), and some ways to get NABJ @ UK to be one of the award winning student chapters.

At the request of the magnificent Sheila Brooks I got to attend the NABJ Hall of Fame Banquet and the NABJ Salute to Excellence Awards. Both events celebrated great accomplishments of individuals and groups working to inform the people. Most people would have looked at it as a free food, but I saw a glimpse of what I need to be working towards… and I got free meals.

Unity ended with a night of parties including NABJ's Kick off to Tampa '09 party. I'm not much of a partier so I won't judge the overall shindig. But I will take this opportunity to say that Funkmaster Flex may be one of most respected DJ's in hip-hop, but he can ruin a party. He dropped songs (starting them and stopping them) repeatedly, played only small portions of songs, and missed some of the songs people love to hear at parties. Still, it was Funk Flex, and I was at a party he DJed so I ain't too mad. I also got to meet Kevin Frasier, formerly of ESPN currently of Entertainment Tonight at the party.

In general it was fun to get to be around family with Uncle Joe and Calvin who attended the conference. I also got to spend some unexpected time with Aunt TaRessa and my cousin Mariah. It was nice.

Overall I would say I'm satisfied. But, I still haven't recovered from flying out so early on Sunday morning without sleep… and I missed Barack L. Maybe next time.

Salute

A very sad day in my life

Today is one of the saddest days in my life, not just my sports life. This is far more heartbreaking than Ken Griffey Jr leaving Seattle. This is more scarring than all of the sports teams I grew up with, save the Seahawks, having losing records... Its a life trauma. 100 years of losing and a curse does not compare to this. I hardly have words to describe it.

My most vivid childhood memories are tied to sports, mostly baseball and basketball, but some football too. And its those memories that keep me coming back as a fan. That said, this time I can't go back. It has been ripped away from me.

The Seattle SuperSonics are no more.

Now somebody may say, "Wesley, you have lived in Kentucky almost 8 years! You haven't been to a Sonics game in 4 years! And every remnant of the team that was around before you moved left when Rashard Lewis signed that mega-deal in Orlando." And I say yes this is true, but being a true fan(atic) is more than just players, names, colors and records.

Being a true fan is why I will probably never be able to love the NBA the same anymore.

But true fandom is what fuels me to follow the worst team in baseball is if its 2001 and they are on pace to set the A.L. single season wins record ....Or why I love a team that has never won anything, and in their only chance to win played like dogs and plagued by a host of terrible calls, including a 15-yard clipping penalty on a quarterback that made a tackle after throwing an interception. It's why my first pair of player signature shoes were those of none other than Gary Payton. Why I nearly cried when Ken Griffey Jr. was traded. And why Brian Blades is my favorite football player of all-time.

Adult life has brought many disappointments to me that have been much worse, but none have hurt this much. I understand why people die, why relationships go sour, why things change whether you like it or not--but I just don't understand how a team with an NBA championship can be stripped from a city to be taken to a city with no professional sports, only a brief history of supporting a team, and a much smaller population with less of, well everything, you need for a major sports franchise.

The second the team was sold to Clay Bennett's ownership group these rumors started, well not rumors. It was pretty clear that Bennett wanted to move the team out of the city, even to ESPN.

I have no idea what the politics and circumstances are surrounding the situation. I know that Qwest Field and Safeco Field have been built within the last ten years and that has not been forgotten by tax payers. I know that the second Howard Schulz DECIDED to sell the Sonics there was very little effort to field a competitive team, evidenced by role players such as Antonio Daniels not being resigned. (Daniels was key in the Sonics taking the eventual NBA champion Spurs to a game six with two of their top three scorers, Vladimir Radmonovic and Rashard Lewis, injured after game 2). I know that David Stern is the most agenda driven sports figure, and if he wants something, done one way or the other, it gets done. But I don't know why this is happening. I am literally in a daze.

I was going to bed. I can't. This is top 5 worst days of all time. I still have all the memories I had earlier today of the Reign man (Shawn Kemp), the Glove (Gary Payton), Mac-10 (Nate McMillan, who coincidentally was offered an insulting contract offer to remain in Seattle as coach), and even Steve Scheffler.... the thing is they are no longer connected to a great franchise, in the magnificent city of Seattle, in the beautiful state of Washington.

The city will get anther team. But it doesn't matter. This is a dirty deal and all parties are wrong here involved in this are wrong, starting with the ownership, current and former for setting it up the sale. The city is responsible for not stepping up to the plate and allowing history to walk away. David Stern and his smug attitude that holds a city hostage, making the public fund a private businesses place of operation. (Ownership in Cleveland and D.C. ponied up major cash for arenas). I even blame fans for not seeing through the smokescreen and taking care of a team that is conspicuously doing everything right NOT to stay. I am included in that group. And still, there is much more blame to go around.

I can take a lot.... not this.

Kobe....Why hast thou forsaken me!

Kobe is the best player in the league hands down. Tracy McGrady is the most talented. And LeBron has the most upside. That said you'll hear me saying the most about Kobe not because I like him the most 'cause (AI, Vince, TMac, Jason Terry, Walter Ray Allen, and a few others) I like better. The thing about Kobe is all of the things that Kobe does wrong are magnified and blown out of proportion in comparison to Jordan who he is often compared with.

Because I advocate fairness in everything, I have chosen the not so popular take of calling Kobe the best player ever. Do I believe Kobe is the best player ever--in a word NO. But, if you ask who is the greatest player ever 95% of the people will say Jordan and not even think about it.

My goal in life is to get people to think and I could go into a day long debate as to why Jordan isn't the greatest player ever. Whether or not he is, the problem I have with it all is that nobody even thinks about it. There are very good statistical, observational and logical arguments to say that he isn't the greatest player ever, but those go out the window. That said he probably is the greatest. But let’s not go walking off the NBA cliff 'cause ESPN and the talking heads say so.

And I am not one of those people that is too young to remember Jordan, I am only 23 (LOL at the irony), but I do remember just about everything that has happened in my life. SO I can remember the flu games the 69 points the MVP's dunk contests, tongues out...etc. But I also remember the gambling, the fighting with teammates, the leveraging for contract purposes and keeping teammates around, the cheating, baseball and all of that other crap. Michael Jeffrey Jordan wasn't perfect just like Kobe Bean Bryant isn't. Jordan was the first and probably the last of his kind, he was a trend setter and an transcendent icon, but that doesn't mean on the court Kobe can't be better. But that's the argument I get the most. Without Jordan there would be any Kobe. Here's what I have to say to that:

My analogy for this situation is slightly blasphemous but work with me here. Abraham came before Jesus. He set trends and did a lot for God's people. Had Abraham not did what he did it may not have been possible for Jesus to do what he did. That said, because Abraham came before Jesus does that mean he can't be better?

Now let me get to Mr. Bean. Kobe I am very disappointed in you. I probably slurped more than anybody except Mark Jackson and my boy Barkley....and what did you do. QUIT! That effort was awful. And I normally am not one to blame the team that lost, because generally the team that won out played them. And the Celtics did to a point, but then there was that point where Kobe was supposed to do what Kobe does and he didn't. There was a stretch against the Spurs in game 2 when they lost where Kobe scored 12 in like 2 and a half minutes against the defending champion Spurs; who have defense written on the inside of their jerseys, Bruce "the Bruiser" Bowen, the Big Fundamental Tim Duncan, and Pop one of the best adjustment coaches in the league.

And you mean to tell me Paul Pierce who has never been known for anything remotely defensive and Kevin Garnett who gets posterized more often that any defensive player of the year I have ever seen can stop the best player in the league? Right....

Again, the Celtics did a great job making it difficult and taking Kobe off his spots. Wonderful defensive effort… to a point. But the guy that scored 81 on a team playing 1 on 5, the guy that outscored a team 62-61 in three quarters by himself, the guy Charles Barkley called a nuclear bomb to the pesky Spurs cockroaches, and the guy Mark Jackson said would be an equal match for Jordan, got shut down by them? NO I refuse to believe it.

That said, this isn't like the haircut (you know the fro for no reason....I hate those) so I'm not off the Kobe train. But Kobe.... you owe me! (and I am not a good person to owe)

P.S. Shaq is a _ _ _ _ _. Shaq won the feud a long time ago. Now he does this stupid freestyle....just sad. Its like bitter meets 15 minutes of fame VH1 just saying something because you can. Was it funny? Yes. Did I enjoy it? Yes. But Shaq. You ethered Kobe when you won a championship while riding the Flash who hauled your big self up the championship ladder. So whether or not you carried the team you got one. Let it go.

Also, the absolute funniest line of the freestyle and one that nobody is touching is Shaq saying "thats like a white boy trying to be more nigga than me." America is not ready to attack Shaq....sorta like a player I mentioned earlier in this post that apparently did no wrong. One guy is an asshole the other was/is a marketing legend, just like Shaq doing this.