Let the Games Begin

February 23rd, 2011. A day that will live in infamy.

Okay, that's a stretch but the gauntlet has been thrown nonetheless. On that fateful Wednesday evening in the basement of a local eatery, two great minds collided in a battle wits matched only by the showdown in Florin.  Man vs. Woman. Strength vs. Speed. Glen Livet vs. Texie Guinan.

The goal: Create the best ten-athlete roster from yesterday and today.

The rules:

1. Teams will consist of ten athletes drafted by each of us.
2. One athlete per sport. If an athlete plays multiple sports, you must declare that sport (i.e.- Deion Sanders can play baseball or football, not both)
3. At least one female athlete. I thought this would be tough but I realized the advantages of having a smaller frame running around out there.
4. Only one dead athlete. It just makes the discussion easier.
5. The teams will be based in a fantasy sports world. A "computer" will spit out a sport to which each team must adapt. This could range from football to curling to rhythmic gymnastics.
6. Two coaches will also be chosen. These will be the assistants working for the drafter.

So there we sat. A piece of paper and a pen on the table. A beer and a whiskey in front of us. Texie is first.

Surprising to most, but not to me, Texie's first pick is Jim Thorpe (most girls probably think Jim Thorpe is a John Wayne character or something). Couldn't pick a better number one star. For some reason, despite the fact that it isn't in the rules, I decided I also had to pick from the track: Jackie Joyner-Kersee. As a heptathlon competitor, I figured it was a nice well-rounded female pick. No Thorpe, of course, nor a great first round draft pick but if you're going to blow it, might as well blow it on Sports Illustrated for Women's choice as the greatest female athlete of all time, right?

Second round. She takes Jim Brown. My eyes raise up. An interesting pick. A tremendous runningback, sure, but to my knowledge he never really strayed from the realm of the gridiron. Not like my response: Frank Thomas. Thomas was a pretty good footballer in his own right, excelling at tight end for Auburn. Naturally I took him as a baseball player, but to get that kind of size and skill was invaluable to me.

Third round. Michael Phelps. Shit, I dropped the ball on that one. One of the greatest olympians of all time. A long body with tremendous endurance and lung capacity, Phelps would be a great asset in a variety of sports. My counter? Patrick Roy. Yeah, seven rounds too early and I paid for it. You'll see why in the next paragraph.

Really Texie?? You took Mohammed Ali? Dammit. Size, speed and balance? Power and quickness? Okay..I'm taking Tiger. Eventually your guys will have to use some form of hand-eye coordination and between Tiger and the Big Hurt I think I have you there.

And then Pele. Now personally I don't think soccer is a sport, but I will admit at least that many soccer players are good athletes much the same way a distance runner is. Pele was the best of all time in a "sport" that requires a lot of agility and endurance. I responded with what was actually a tough decision for me. I wanted either Sugar Ray Robinson or Sugar Ray Leonard. I went with Leonard. It's a huge debate as to who the "pound-for-pound" best fighter is and I don't know much about boxing. I went with the guy who fought in my lifetime.

Now is when Texie started falling apart. Any good sports fan knows that drafts are won in the late rounds and I believe I have that edge. She picked her favorite athlete of all time, Steffi Graf. Listen, I'm fine with saying she's the greatest female tennis player. She might have been. But would I want a female tennis player without the Williams sisters' steroids? I don't know. I countered with Michael Vick. Vick might be one of the most gifted athletes to ever play in the NFL. Maybe not the greatest passer or the fastest runner. Maybe not the smartest quarterback, either, but one thing you can't take away from him is his ability to lead a team and make plays with his eyes, arms and feet. I want that on my team.

Now she takes Bonnie Blair. I don't now what to say about her other than the fact that she might have the largest thighs on either team. This is when I play a wild card. I want a bad boy. A rule-breaker. I want Dennis Rodman. The Worm wasn't picked for his ability to rebound. He was picked to dig into opponents' brain and throw them off their game. I can't tell you how many times I watched all-stars and hall-of-famers crumble on the court due to his antics.

Texie now went with the ProStars approach. Back-to-back picks from the 90s cartoon, beginning with Bo Jackson. Now..we're taking these players in their prime, so I suppose his bionic knees aren't in play here. I just think it's funny she had to take the antithesis of Frank Thomas (better football player, worse at baseball..both from Auburn. Weird.). Maybe a wasted pick for me, I took Mia Hamm. I wanted another woman to counter her two women, and I figure if I had to pick a soccer player, it might as well be a chick. That's about all.

How it took us nine rounds to take His Airness, I don't know, but Texie completed her pair of ProStars with Michael Jordan. I'm still not certain I'm mad though. I'm not sure I'd want him and Tiger on the same team. I just don't see them getting along and they'd probably go off and start gambling on golf before a late breakfast at Perkins to check out the service staff. I brought out my favorite tennis player here, and as ironic fate would have it, I took Steffi's husband, Andre Agassi. No one does camera commercials like Agassi and I'll take his serve in case a doubles tennis match shows up.

I suppose if you like a small frame combined with speed, balance, agility and power, you'll like Texie's final pick: Nadia Comaneci. Hard to argue other than I'm not sure I'd want three women on my squad. Take her instead of Bonnie Blair and I'm on your side. And while we're in gymnastics arena, I'm taking Paul Hamm. I'm not sure why, I think it's because he's funny and I really respect what male gymnasts can do with that much muscle and flexibility. It's insane.

Next up were the coaches. I so win this. The greatest American philosopher, who apparently loved to coach basketball is the obvious first pick. What athlete wouldn't want to play for John Wooden? No one can touch his pedigree or the respect held by his peers and players and family and friends and strangers and fans and..well..everyone. I need an X's and O's guy, too, though. I need an innovative mind with a proven track record. I want Bill Walsh, the father of the west coast offense. Yes. That will do.

Texie's coaches aren't bad either. Not sure I'd take Lou Holtz like she did, but damned if he isn't one of the greatest motivators of our time, if not all of time. People love and respect that little bugger and the gods know that no referee or umpire would want to cross him. Her second pick was perfect. I knew who she needed for her list of prima donnas and egos, and she nailed it: Phil Jackson.

I win. I know I win. She doesn't have the size or speed that my team possesses. Sure she has balance and agility and maybe quickness but not all of the events are done with a pommel horse or rings.

In the future you'll see articles discussing our teams match ups in regards to specific sports. This is just the first part of what will be many, many blogs, I'm sure.

Enjoy. Discuss. Critique.

Let the games begin.

The Suicide of Dave Duerson

What is it going to take to get people to start helping these guys? Former professional football players (and I'm sure a lot of college and younger kids, too) are getting serious brain issues later in life.

Former Chicago Bear and Notre Dame defensive back, Dave Duerson, is the latest in a long line of deaths that are being directly attributed to brain damage caused by football injuries. Ironically, Duerson was an NFL Players Association rep as a member of a six-person committee that weighs disability claims for retired players. This same committee has come under fire from high-profile former players such as Mike Ditka as well as medical organizations and fans for denying benefits to veterans.

You can read more about Duerson's tragic suicide here: Duerson sent texts before suicide (ESPN)

The NFL isn't helping anything. Flagging and fining players for head shots isn't the solution. Hits to the head happen. It's just flat out part of the game. Nothing can prevent the brutal damage done due to the sheer size and speed of these players. I, myself, sustained more than a couple of concussions while merely playing high school ball. Now add a decade of seasons and an increase in talent.

What the NFL needs to do is focus its money and attention to preventing the damage, not the hits. The helmets need to be reevaluated and redeveloped. There has to be a way for some company to rake in on a patent for the helmet of the future.

I like the new rules on entering a game in which a player has sustained a concussion. I'm glad they're paying more attention to doctors than the players now. No NFL players wants to the leave the game. There are too many bonuses and incentives built into the contracts for skill players, and the others play for the love of the game. They don't want to lose their starting positions and they don't want to be called a baby by teammates and fans.

Players and coaches should not be allowed to make the decision on when someone is "healthy enough" to go back into the game. Doctors should be paid by the league and not the team. They should be an impartial entity designed specifically to ensure the safety of the players.

If the NFL is serious about protecting their players then they absolutely **MUST** start doing things to prevent injuries. Defensive players making upwards of ten million dollars a year don't care about a $50,000 fine for hitting a wide receiver "too hard". Sure they don't like to lose money, but they won't change the way they play the game. They've been playing the game a certain way for as much as twenty years and you can't un-teach that kind of mentality.

Build a better helmet. Give doctors more power.

Do something.

Reactions to the 2011 Conservative Political Action Conference

I know this circus conference is little more than an extremely early pep rally for politicians and voters, but its never too early to poke fun at some of the funnier quotes and moments brought to us by our red-wearing neighbors.

Generally looked upon as an early introduction to presidential hopefuls it seemed that the list of favorites is a who's who of people not named Mitt Romney (Idaho senator John Thune please stand up).

Romney appears to be one of the favorites having taken the last couple of years off after leaving the governor's mansion in Massachusetts for his last presidential run. His batteries are recharged and he has stayed out of the spotlight recently which is probably a good thing since he favored a mandatory health care reform that mirrors President Obama's and segregated himself from die-hard conservatives.

Ron Paul is back, taking John McCain's place as the old guy that many voters assume hates kids on his lawn. I actually kinda like his gun toting Texas attitude. It's cute like Yosemite Sam. Despite being considered one of the more conservative members of congress especially regarding the second amendment and abortion, he actually opposes radical legislation such as the Patriot Act, federal use of torture and the use of national identification. These views are easily pushed to the right by Paul, citing his firm belief that state governments should have maximum control of social laws.

Former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty is essentially Mitt Romney from ten years ago. Well known in republican circles and to his constituents but on a national level his name is just slightly more recognizable than John Thune (sorry Idaho). It'll be interesting to see how he postures himself as time goes on.

John Thune is from Idaho. I'm sorry, I just don't have the time to look this guy up just because he gave a speech. Michelle Bachmann is that chick with weird eyes than can't look into a camera, I think. Rick Santorum just needs to stop talking. He's a fairly young conservative with some potential in the republican party, but his inability to soften his language against gays and clergy will force the party to isolate him.

An interesting (and more personal) candidate may or not be Governor Mitch Daniels from Indiana. Personally I hate this guy. He's in his last term, thank the gods, but hasn't ruled out a push at the presidency. I'm pretty sure he'll try to sell off New Jersey to the French in order to reduce the debt. Selling the toll road is how Indiana has a surplus. Well, how Indianapolis has a surplus. Frankly the guy comes off as a con man.

He spoke of radical changes to social security and medicare; helping the impoverished and ending the war involving social issues. This mindset is going to rally a multitude of Americans who don't want debates over abortion and gay marriage but instead over fixing the deficit and creating more fiscal competence in the federal government.

But if he's so fiscally responsible why did the Bush administration, which hired Daniels as the budget director, create such financial problems? Why is Indiana's budget, although shrinking, relatively successful when it has one of the lowest educational rankings and highest unemployment rates? These issues must be addressed by a man who appears like a white knight in a land of red ink.

So to sum up, I'm not sure how to react to these candidates. I feel like it's similar to the ones running on the democratic side in 2008 minus the perfect storm of Barack Obama (youth, oration and a good smile). Hopefully they have to beat each other up so much in the next eight months that all the ammo is there already for the democrats to jump on.

I'm just glad we didn't have to listen to Sarah Palin.

Valentine's Day Irony in Indiana

It's almost Valentine's Day. Cheesy quotes and fluffy cards will be circulated with chocolates and flowers. Men will scramble for that last second gift in hopes to score some points with their ladies. Women will sweat wondering if their man will do something right or if they screw up yet another Hallmark holiday. Love is in the air and retailers are counting it by the c-note.

During all this fretting a serious debate looms in the Indiana House of Representatives. As early as Monday, the Republican-heavy House can vote to push forward a new amendment that seeks to ban gay marriage. As it stands, the marriage laws in Indiana explicitly deny same-sex marriages.

According to the Indiana constitution (as read on http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title31/ar11/ch1.html):
IC 31-11-1-1
Same sex marriages prohibited
     Sec. 1. (a) Only a female may marry a male. Only a smale may marry a female.
    (b) A marriage between persons of the same gender is void in Indiana even if the marriage is lawful in the place where it is solemnized.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.3. Amended by P.L.198-1997, SEC.1.

Proponents of the law site that, as written, the law is susceptible to higher courts over turning the amendment. The new amendment, which would still need to be passed through the Republican-held state senate, must pass through two concurrent legislative sessions. In 2005 the amendment passed through one, but democrats took the House in 2006 ending the push.

With the Republicans holding majority again, it is less likely that the motion won't pass a second time in either 2013 or 2014. After a second passing, the amendment will find its way onto the next year's public ballot similar to California's (in)famous Proposition 8.

So enough of the social studies lecture. We need to fight this now.

According to the 2000 census, Indiana has over 16,000 same-sex couples raising children. That's just open relationships with children. How many are couples living in a shroud of secrecy aren't counted? How many have added to that total in the last ten years? How many aren't raising children for various reasons?

I'm scared for this state and this nation. I'm scared that we're disguising hate and intolerance in the name of fundamental religion and morality. I'm scared that louder conservative faction is covering up the growing progressive side.

For the first time since polling began on same-sex marriage, neither side holds a majority (CNN article). Based on an overwhelming social movement, Don't Ask-Don't Tell was revoked by the US court system. Conservative politicians and religious organizations are teaming up in many states hoping to write iron-clad legislation that they hope will supersede federal action.

We can't let our state fall to this tactic. We need to stand up and voice our beliefs louder than the opposition. It's time to stop being the silent members of society. It's time to stop letting this country be shaped by religious fundamental groups because there was no opposition in their way.

Contact your district representatives and tell them that the cat lady with a cross in her front yard doesn't speak for you. Tell them that your Jesus taught love and tolerance, not hate and exclusion.

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It's time to let our voices be heard and not to sit by and watch.