Did anyone else watch the Flavor Flav roast last week? I truly believe that may have set African Americans back about 30 years over the course of 1 hour. While in a perfect world Flavor Flav would only be an embarrassment to himself, lets be realistic here (without making this a racial and/or socio-economic debate), Flav is definitely an embarrassment to the Black community based primarily on the fact that he embodies all of the negative stereotypes that society places on Black males. It perplexes me to the fullest extent of mind-fuckedness, when I see my fellow Black males making every attempt to fulfill such ridiculous stereotypes so willingly. As a life-long Public Enemy fan that always saw Flav as sort of a clown and pretty ridiculous guy, it really disgusts me to see him seemingly going against everything Public Enemy once stood for. As far as the roast, I thought it was subpar...but admittedly funny at times. Please tell me why they allowed Bridgette Nielson to speak? The only person she made more sense than was Flav himself.
Ok party people, what the fuck is wrong with these people that get caught by Chris Hansen (Dateline NBC) and his To Catch a Predator show? Ok, aside from the obvious, what are their major malfunctions? Seriously, these are some of the sickest and most disgusting people I have ever seen, and I realize they have serious issues, but how fucking nuts and disturbed must you be to do, say, and plan what these people have in store for these young teen-age boys and girls. I have to admit I absolutely LOVE watching them squirm, break down, and cry once they realize just how deep they have sunk…and more than likely just how deep they are going to be ‘taking’ it once they go to jail. But what has me truly disgusted is the thought of just how many tens of thousands of these sick fucks that are not caught by stings and investigations?
So, reportedly, Mike Vick is a dog-murderer. I don’t even know how to attack that one. Now I am far from a dog-lover, but my GAWD is this story just absolutely horrendous. Allegedly, Vick personally took place in executing dogs by drowning, electrocuting, and strangling dogs that were not successful in his dog fighting ring. As someone that has never understood the attraction to such a heinous and absurd practice, I REALLY don’t understand what Ron Mexico would get out of something like that? Plus, why take such an extremely moronic risk to begin with? I must say that I’m even more distraught and disgusted by this than I normally would be, because I truly wanted to believe he was innocent of these charges. After the even typing about the kiddie-rammers and Vick, I think I need a shower…Vick gives the Falcons a new meaning to the term ‘Dirty Bird’.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Tiger, Fatties, Sluts, and Cosby Kids
El Tigre
Ok party people, can we officially stop calling professional ‘golfers’ athletes? I’m sitting here watching Tiger carve the rest of the field up at the PGA Championship tourney and I just don’t understand how anyone not named Eldrick can even call themselves an athlete. I won’t necessarily place them in the category of ‘professional’ bowlers, I just can’t get down with the whole claim of athleticism for a majority of the field. Admittedly, it takes a definite amount of patience and skill…just looking at most of them, I don’t know that they could come close to breaking…oh lets just say a 10-minute mile. It kinda perplexes me…maybe not so much to the level of how in the hell Marisa Tomei won an Oscar for her role playing the wife of a silly little midget (pun and redundancy intended) while constantly having tantrums with a ridiculously annoying Long Island accent. But I digress, I figure you may ask the question, “Do you think you could do what Phil Mickelson and John Daly do?” (who really cares about Marisa Tomei). No, I’ve never made such a claim, but then again you don’t see me or the rest of the millions of the fat Americans waddling around in the grass on ESPN either, now do you? I’m just saying…
Sloots make the world go round
I really told myself that I wouldn’t do this anymore, but did anyone see that crazy crack-whore (alleged) Miss Federline crash into that the parked car this week? The skank actually had the nerve to ask if she had damaged HER car, and walked away without even looking at the other person’s vehicle. If its not B-Fed crashing into parked cars, its Miss Lohan abducting people and forcing them to take a ride on the coke-whore express…allegedly. Hmmm, still waiting to see which one of the Hollywood debutants OD’s first. Even though Lindsay is coming on strong, I’m thinking Paris MUST be pissed that she has to share her headlines with such amateurs to the Hollywood slut/dopehead-in-denial/elitist immensely undeserving class.
Music vs. Mus-shit
Rumor has it, your boy Fiddy ‘Mush-Mouth’ Cent has issued some sort of guarantee that if Kanye West sells more records in the first week of their concurrent album releases, then he will retire from the rap game. Well, I was going to purchase the Mr. West offering regardless, but now I am urging all of you to do a wonderful deed for humanity (as well as the level/quality of music today), and do the same. Since many of us (myself NOT included) don’t participate in the voting process, volunteer in any sort of community activity, or even concern yourselves with much other than our own well-being, this is your opportunity to perform some sort of civic responsibility…if not duty. I am a true fan of quality of music, and I approve this message.
Ok party people, can we officially stop calling professional ‘golfers’ athletes? I’m sitting here watching Tiger carve the rest of the field up at the PGA Championship tourney and I just don’t understand how anyone not named Eldrick can even call themselves an athlete. I won’t necessarily place them in the category of ‘professional’ bowlers, I just can’t get down with the whole claim of athleticism for a majority of the field. Admittedly, it takes a definite amount of patience and skill…just looking at most of them, I don’t know that they could come close to breaking…oh lets just say a 10-minute mile. It kinda perplexes me…maybe not so much to the level of how in the hell Marisa Tomei won an Oscar for her role playing the wife of a silly little midget (pun and redundancy intended) while constantly having tantrums with a ridiculously annoying Long Island accent. But I digress, I figure you may ask the question, “Do you think you could do what Phil Mickelson and John Daly do?” (who really cares about Marisa Tomei). No, I’ve never made such a claim, but then again you don’t see me or the rest of the millions of the fat Americans waddling around in the grass on ESPN either, now do you? I’m just saying…
Sloots make the world go round
I really told myself that I wouldn’t do this anymore, but did anyone see that crazy crack-whore (alleged) Miss Federline crash into that the parked car this week? The skank actually had the nerve to ask if she had damaged HER car, and walked away without even looking at the other person’s vehicle. If its not B-Fed crashing into parked cars, its Miss Lohan abducting people and forcing them to take a ride on the coke-whore express…allegedly. Hmmm, still waiting to see which one of the Hollywood debutants OD’s first. Even though Lindsay is coming on strong, I’m thinking Paris MUST be pissed that she has to share her headlines with such amateurs to the Hollywood slut/dopehead-in-denial/elitist immensely undeserving class.
Music vs. Mus-shit
Rumor has it, your boy Fiddy ‘Mush-Mouth’ Cent has issued some sort of guarantee that if Kanye West sells more records in the first week of their concurrent album releases, then he will retire from the rap game. Well, I was going to purchase the Mr. West offering regardless, but now I am urging all of you to do a wonderful deed for humanity (as well as the level/quality of music today), and do the same. Since many of us (myself NOT included) don’t participate in the voting process, volunteer in any sort of community activity, or even concern yourselves with much other than our own well-being, this is your opportunity to perform some sort of civic responsibility…if not duty. I am a true fan of quality of music, and I approve this message.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Mix-Master JD
Mixed Batch of Randomness
Ok, so now that Barroids has FINALLY hit the big home run, can we shift our focus to College and NFL football? Not to pick on the human pin-cushion, because I certainly don’t think he was the only MLB player that was guilty of juicing by any stretch of the imagination, its just that I don’t know how much more of Bud Selig’s evil mug (Excellent work by the production crew, by removing his horns) I could have stomached. Speaking of which, is there a bigger hypocrite involved with professional sports today?
Speaking of David Stern and his cheating refs, how long before we find out there were more officials and a lot more games that were affected by this corruption? Since we are a nation of individuals that convicts and sentences people based on half-truths, rumors, lies, and speculation every day, I’m going to go ahead and assume the NBA at the very least had ‘some’ knowledge of scandals prior to the story hitting the AP a few weeks ago.
What’s the deal with the multitude of crap Hollywood is cramming down our throats these days? Rather than spending time, effort, and the exorbitant amount of (wasted) money on actually developing the stories and characters, it seems that producers and directors are content with flinging 150 million dollars worth of CGI and bullshit at the wall with the hopes of making some sort of ‘puurrty’ pattern. Only problem is that most of us have become such gullible mouth-breathers that we mindlessly slobber our ways through 90 minutes of horseshit, $7 buckets of corn and grease, not to mention the 64 ounce vats of ’Dawktah Peppah’. Not to be overly nostalgic, but I remember when the summertime movie rush used to be something to look forward to…not something I’m forced to roll my eyes over. Just take a look at some of the movie releases from a decade ago (1997)- Fifth Element, Men in Black, The Game, L.A. Confidential, U-Turn, Gattaca, The Devil’s Advocate, Boogie Nights, Good Will Hunting, Amistad, Jackie Brown, and even Titanic (yes, it pained me to include that one). These days we either get some kind of retread-remake, 3rd or 4th installment of a long-dead story, or the aforementioned CGI production. Hell, Rush Hour 3 (yes, Chris Tucker is still alive) wasn’t even accepted for release in China…yeah Jackie Chan is still a main character, so what does that tell you? No thanks for me, I’ll leave the $10.50 tickets to all of you party people…I’d rather watch some preseason football. R.I.P. Bill Walsh (1931-2007).
Ok, so now that Barroids has FINALLY hit the big home run, can we shift our focus to College and NFL football? Not to pick on the human pin-cushion, because I certainly don’t think he was the only MLB player that was guilty of juicing by any stretch of the imagination, its just that I don’t know how much more of Bud Selig’s evil mug (Excellent work by the production crew, by removing his horns) I could have stomached. Speaking of which, is there a bigger hypocrite involved with professional sports today?
Speaking of David Stern and his cheating refs, how long before we find out there were more officials and a lot more games that were affected by this corruption? Since we are a nation of individuals that convicts and sentences people based on half-truths, rumors, lies, and speculation every day, I’m going to go ahead and assume the NBA at the very least had ‘some’ knowledge of scandals prior to the story hitting the AP a few weeks ago.
What’s the deal with the multitude of crap Hollywood is cramming down our throats these days? Rather than spending time, effort, and the exorbitant amount of (wasted) money on actually developing the stories and characters, it seems that producers and directors are content with flinging 150 million dollars worth of CGI and bullshit at the wall with the hopes of making some sort of ‘puurrty’ pattern. Only problem is that most of us have become such gullible mouth-breathers that we mindlessly slobber our ways through 90 minutes of horseshit, $7 buckets of corn and grease, not to mention the 64 ounce vats of ’Dawktah Peppah’. Not to be overly nostalgic, but I remember when the summertime movie rush used to be something to look forward to…not something I’m forced to roll my eyes over. Just take a look at some of the movie releases from a decade ago (1997)- Fifth Element, Men in Black, The Game, L.A. Confidential, U-Turn, Gattaca, The Devil’s Advocate, Boogie Nights, Good Will Hunting, Amistad, Jackie Brown, and even Titanic (yes, it pained me to include that one). These days we either get some kind of retread-remake, 3rd or 4th installment of a long-dead story, or the aforementioned CGI production. Hell, Rush Hour 3 (yes, Chris Tucker is still alive) wasn’t even accepted for release in China…yeah Jackie Chan is still a main character, so what does that tell you? No thanks for me, I’ll leave the $10.50 tickets to all of you party people…I’d rather watch some preseason football. R.I.P. Bill Walsh (1931-2007).
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Robo-ho’s, Nappy-Headed Ho’s, and Press Ho’s
I’m not sure what disgusts me more: Journalists and others within the media backtracking and slithering their way out of the bullshit and turmoil they create, or media/camera whores like Al Sharpton swooping in and taking advantage of a crisis and/or drama in order to take yet another opportunity to self-promote and plaster themselves on the boob-tube. In case you didn’t hear the story, Harvey Levin (TMZ.com) recently referred to Beyonce as a ‘Robo-Ho’ in response to the ‘robot’ outfit she sported in her recent performance at the BET Music Awards. Of course, like in the Don Imus (“Nappy-Headed Ho’s”) incident, Ole’ Rev Daddy Sharpton took the opportunity to slick the hair back and flash the pearly whites. As expected, Harvey Levin played the free speech card, but what was most disappointing was his backtracking under the pressure and implying that he wasn’t necessarily calling Beyonce a ‘Ho’, rather just her outfit. Come on Harvey, either stick to your guns and deal with the repercussions if that’s how you truly felt, or simply shut the hell up. For the record, I did not feel that Don Imus should have been fired for his comments, nor do I think Harvey Levin should be taken to task for his stupid comments. Were their comments out of line? Sure. Coarse and callous? Of course. Irresponsible and unnecessary? Absolutely. But how is it any different from the everyday vernacular that we are all guilty of using? We live in a society that glorifies violence, foul and distasteful humor, all while bumping music that encourages pimpin bitches and making it rain on them hoes. And you know something? I fucking love it. I’m all for free speech and having the ability to say what you feel, with a certain amount of decency and respect for others of course.
The hypocrisy and double-standard of our society is mind-blowing. Secretly gay Senators are the biggest public homophobes, the people we elect to defend and ensure our rights are the biggest criminals and crooks on the face of the Earth, men of the cloth rape little boys, and the gawd-damn Terminator is the California Governor. Listen party people, maybe I’m just not as sensitive or in-tune with things because I’m not a parent, but regardless of that fact I still think people should be able to say whatever they want and whenever they want to say it….as long as they man-up about it and sleep in their bed they’ve made. Just as I think people should have the right to free speech, I also firmly believe in and enjoy the greatest opponent of such freedom: discretion. When I realized Imus was a bitter, old, crotchety douchebag (LONG before the Nappy..), I decided at that time to simply turn him off, and choose to tune into something else. Just as all of you have the right to do if you don’t like what I have to say. There’s this magical little ‘x’ in the upper right-hand corner for all of those that choose to use it. But of course you won’t do that, you might just miss out on the next big thing…or at least the next time I find a comical way to call Paris a slut.
I’m not sure what disgusts me more: Journalists and others within the media backtracking and slithering their way out of the bullshit and turmoil they create, or media/camera whores like Al Sharpton swooping in and taking advantage of a crisis and/or drama in order to take yet another opportunity to self-promote and plaster themselves on the boob-tube. In case you didn’t hear the story, Harvey Levin (TMZ.com) recently referred to Beyonce as a ‘Robo-Ho’ in response to the ‘robot’ outfit she sported in her recent performance at the BET Music Awards. Of course, like in the Don Imus (“Nappy-Headed Ho’s”) incident, Ole’ Rev Daddy Sharpton took the opportunity to slick the hair back and flash the pearly whites. As expected, Harvey Levin played the free speech card, but what was most disappointing was his backtracking under the pressure and implying that he wasn’t necessarily calling Beyonce a ‘Ho’, rather just her outfit. Come on Harvey, either stick to your guns and deal with the repercussions if that’s how you truly felt, or simply shut the hell up. For the record, I did not feel that Don Imus should have been fired for his comments, nor do I think Harvey Levin should be taken to task for his stupid comments. Were their comments out of line? Sure. Coarse and callous? Of course. Irresponsible and unnecessary? Absolutely. But how is it any different from the everyday vernacular that we are all guilty of using? We live in a society that glorifies violence, foul and distasteful humor, all while bumping music that encourages pimpin bitches and making it rain on them hoes. And you know something? I fucking love it. I’m all for free speech and having the ability to say what you feel, with a certain amount of decency and respect for others of course.
The hypocrisy and double-standard of our society is mind-blowing. Secretly gay Senators are the biggest public homophobes, the people we elect to defend and ensure our rights are the biggest criminals and crooks on the face of the Earth, men of the cloth rape little boys, and the gawd-damn Terminator is the California Governor. Listen party people, maybe I’m just not as sensitive or in-tune with things because I’m not a parent, but regardless of that fact I still think people should be able to say whatever they want and whenever they want to say it….as long as they man-up about it and sleep in their bed they’ve made. Just as I think people should have the right to free speech, I also firmly believe in and enjoy the greatest opponent of such freedom: discretion. When I realized Imus was a bitter, old, crotchety douchebag (LONG before the Nappy..), I decided at that time to simply turn him off, and choose to tune into something else. Just as all of you have the right to do if you don’t like what I have to say. There’s this magical little ‘x’ in the upper right-hand corner for all of those that choose to use it. But of course you won’t do that, you might just miss out on the next big thing…or at least the next time I find a comical way to call Paris a slut.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Dirty Deeds All-around
The Life of a Dirty Little Debutant
Just in case you missed it, some woman named Paris or something like that was released from jail yesterday. Ok, was I the only one disgusted by that little ‘strut’ she did, as though she was walking down the ‘Red Carpet’ as she neared her family vehicle? I hope none of you out there were fooled by that dog-n-pony show she put on while in pseudo-incarceration. I would bet she is back to her normal (alleged) whoring and slutting all across the Hollywood scene within a few months. Can someone get me the over/under on how long that might take? Oh yeah, I nearly forgot, she’s found the Lord now that she served 23 whole days in solitude. I thought it was verrry telling when Larry King asked her what her favorite bible verse was and she totally blanked. Honestly, I was amazed that she didn’t just revert to her ridiculous coined line, “That’s hot.” Here’s a little reminder of some of her greatest ‘hits’…
No, you over-privileged, undeserving, worthless little slut (allegedly)…that’s really NOT.
Please Stop the Blame Game
So Chris Benoit reportedly had some sort of Incredible Hulk-like batch of roid-rage when he brutally murdered his wife and innocent little 7-year-old child, according to some of the talking-heads out there. Party people, can we please stop searching for and ‘having’ to have some type of rational answer for the completely ridiculous and irrational in the world? Lets just call this what it truly was: A cat that simply flipped his wig and lost all sense of reason and committed some of the most indecent and inhumane acts imaginable. What happened to ‘just plain crazy’ being a good enough reason? Why must we always search for a ‘reason’ or ‘excuse’ for the befuddling actions of some of our sickest brothers and sisters? Its not the music, the violence in movies, the drugs/alcohol, or anything else in life that causes scumbags to be scumbags. Some people are just destined to end things with a ‘bang’. Its just too bad for the truly innocent people out there just minding their own business and trying to enjoy life that douche bags like the VT shooter, Benoit, the Columbine shooters, etc… don’t do the right thing from the very start. Now, of course, I would never advocate or call for someone to kill themselves, but if you’re going to eventually do the deed anyhow, why not save the rest of the world all of the heartache and agony of lost love-ones?
Just in case you missed it, some woman named Paris or something like that was released from jail yesterday. Ok, was I the only one disgusted by that little ‘strut’ she did, as though she was walking down the ‘Red Carpet’ as she neared her family vehicle? I hope none of you out there were fooled by that dog-n-pony show she put on while in pseudo-incarceration. I would bet she is back to her normal (alleged) whoring and slutting all across the Hollywood scene within a few months. Can someone get me the over/under on how long that might take? Oh yeah, I nearly forgot, she’s found the Lord now that she served 23 whole days in solitude. I thought it was verrry telling when Larry King asked her what her favorite bible verse was and she totally blanked. Honestly, I was amazed that she didn’t just revert to her ridiculous coined line, “That’s hot.” Here’s a little reminder of some of her greatest ‘hits’…
No, you over-privileged, undeserving, worthless little slut (allegedly)…that’s really NOT.
Please Stop the Blame Game
So Chris Benoit reportedly had some sort of Incredible Hulk-like batch of roid-rage when he brutally murdered his wife and innocent little 7-year-old child, according to some of the talking-heads out there. Party people, can we please stop searching for and ‘having’ to have some type of rational answer for the completely ridiculous and irrational in the world? Lets just call this what it truly was: A cat that simply flipped his wig and lost all sense of reason and committed some of the most indecent and inhumane acts imaginable. What happened to ‘just plain crazy’ being a good enough reason? Why must we always search for a ‘reason’ or ‘excuse’ for the befuddling actions of some of our sickest brothers and sisters? Its not the music, the violence in movies, the drugs/alcohol, or anything else in life that causes scumbags to be scumbags. Some people are just destined to end things with a ‘bang’. Its just too bad for the truly innocent people out there just minding their own business and trying to enjoy life that douche bags like the VT shooter, Benoit, the Columbine shooters, etc… don’t do the right thing from the very start. Now, of course, I would never advocate or call for someone to kill themselves, but if you’re going to eventually do the deed anyhow, why not save the rest of the world all of the heartache and agony of lost love-ones?
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Jackson's Masterful Orchestration
Phil is the Sultan of Manipulation
Has anyone considered that Phil could be 'orchestrating' this from the sidelines? Consider this, Phil was (Chicago) and will always be a master manipulator. He placated and stroked Jordan's massive ego, pitting him against the organization and gm for years. If you don't think its true, go take a look at the archives of local and national Bulls stories from 92-97. This worked in Chicago because Jordan was strong-willed enough and the gm/owner (Krause/Reinsdorf) actually had a clue and were willing to take the necessary risks (Rodman and other signings/trades) to place a championship team on the court. But back to Phil, is it entirely out of the realm of possibility that Phil has been 'nurturing' Kobe in the same regard? Consider this thought, prior to the recent media blitz, have you EVER seen Kobe so blatantly out of control? So loose and reckless with his words? So hard-set on how much he has been offended, stabbed in the back, and deceived? I totally think part of Kobe truly believes and feels all of what he is saying, but it doesn't make much sense that he is so out of control without the 'spurning' of his 'mentor'. Phil has made it clear that either he does not believe in Bynum, or that he doesn't want to wait around for Bynum to develop. Is it possible that he is the one that told Kobe that Jim Buss or John Black was the 'mole'? His ambivalent statement that he just happened to coincidentally drop to the L.A. Times last night actually makes me consider this even more. Jackson strikes me as an individual that truly wants Kobe to continue railing the front office and force their hands, because he will ultimately benefit from the outcome. He knows Jerry buss isn't trading Kobe anytime soon and he also realizes that Buss cannot and will not sit back and accept public embarrassment. Buss' desire to maintain his legacy was never more evident than with his letter to season ticket holders that he submitted yesterday. He made sure to reference the number of titles and finals appearances that the organization has won/made during his tenure. While I, like all other Laker fans, have benefited from Dr. Buss’ success, I refuse to allow that to cloud my judgment in terms of the state of affairs with the team today. I’m not going to place the ‘Sterling’ label on him, but I will say that it sure seems like Buss has been (at the very least) content with having Kobe work his magic each and every night while selling out Staples Center and his over-priced parking/refreshments/merchandise.
Kobe is not innocent in this matter either. He signed a contract, regardless of whether under misconceptions or deceptions, this is an undeniable fact. He has been loved, coddled, and blindly accepted by his fans throughout his 11-year career through the good and bad. That type of loyalty is precisely what I think he needs to consider when making his future decisions. No one can deny that Kobe has and always will be one of the fiercest and finest competitors in league history, but I just hope that steely-eyed tenacity and determination do not cause him to make one of the potentially biggest mistakes
(personal/professional) of his career. Now that he has lowered the proverbial ‘boom’, give the organization this off-season and season to respond and do something about the situation that everyone has taken part in trashing. If the organization fails to follow through on their promise, then Kobe has every right to continue his trade demands next off-season.
P.S.
Where the hell is Magic in all of this? Isn’t it time to tell little Jimmy and Papa Buss to maybe take a step back, and assert himself within the organization? The man is 10% owner and probably the most well-known, loved, and respected Lakers of all time. I think right about now would be the time for a town-hall meeting with the Laker brass all in attendance with Earv at the head of the table.
Has anyone considered that Phil could be 'orchestrating' this from the sidelines? Consider this, Phil was (Chicago) and will always be a master manipulator. He placated and stroked Jordan's massive ego, pitting him against the organization and gm for years. If you don't think its true, go take a look at the archives of local and national Bulls stories from 92-97. This worked in Chicago because Jordan was strong-willed enough and the gm/owner (Krause/Reinsdorf) actually had a clue and were willing to take the necessary risks (Rodman and other signings/trades) to place a championship team on the court. But back to Phil, is it entirely out of the realm of possibility that Phil has been 'nurturing' Kobe in the same regard? Consider this thought, prior to the recent media blitz, have you EVER seen Kobe so blatantly out of control? So loose and reckless with his words? So hard-set on how much he has been offended, stabbed in the back, and deceived? I totally think part of Kobe truly believes and feels all of what he is saying, but it doesn't make much sense that he is so out of control without the 'spurning' of his 'mentor'. Phil has made it clear that either he does not believe in Bynum, or that he doesn't want to wait around for Bynum to develop. Is it possible that he is the one that told Kobe that Jim Buss or John Black was the 'mole'? His ambivalent statement that he just happened to coincidentally drop to the L.A. Times last night actually makes me consider this even more. Jackson strikes me as an individual that truly wants Kobe to continue railing the front office and force their hands, because he will ultimately benefit from the outcome. He knows Jerry buss isn't trading Kobe anytime soon and he also realizes that Buss cannot and will not sit back and accept public embarrassment. Buss' desire to maintain his legacy was never more evident than with his letter to season ticket holders that he submitted yesterday. He made sure to reference the number of titles and finals appearances that the organization has won/made during his tenure. While I, like all other Laker fans, have benefited from Dr. Buss’ success, I refuse to allow that to cloud my judgment in terms of the state of affairs with the team today. I’m not going to place the ‘Sterling’ label on him, but I will say that it sure seems like Buss has been (at the very least) content with having Kobe work his magic each and every night while selling out Staples Center and his over-priced parking/refreshments/merchandise.
Kobe is not innocent in this matter either. He signed a contract, regardless of whether under misconceptions or deceptions, this is an undeniable fact. He has been loved, coddled, and blindly accepted by his fans throughout his 11-year career through the good and bad. That type of loyalty is precisely what I think he needs to consider when making his future decisions. No one can deny that Kobe has and always will be one of the fiercest and finest competitors in league history, but I just hope that steely-eyed tenacity and determination do not cause him to make one of the potentially biggest mistakes
(personal/professional) of his career. Now that he has lowered the proverbial ‘boom’, give the organization this off-season and season to respond and do something about the situation that everyone has taken part in trashing. If the organization fails to follow through on their promise, then Kobe has every right to continue his trade demands next off-season.
P.S.
Where the hell is Magic in all of this? Isn’t it time to tell little Jimmy and Papa Buss to maybe take a step back, and assert himself within the organization? The man is 10% owner and probably the most well-known, loved, and respected Lakers of all time. I think right about now would be the time for a town-hall meeting with the Laker brass all in attendance with Earv at the head of the table.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Stick a fork in Stern
Is the N.B.A. dying?
Now, before you say I’m being a hater, allow me to truly congratulate the San Antonio Spurs for enduring the tedious regular season and persevering through the Western Conference portion of the playoffs. With that being said, can we please put this ‘myth’ of Lebron to bed? I will acknowledge that Lebron is a SUPREME talent and may very well one day solidify his place alongside the basketball immortals of the last 25 years (Magic, Bird, and even Jordan), but right now lets be realistic. Since I can already hear the whining Cavs fans and Lebron apologists pointing out that his teammates were terrible, and how he fought to bring a undermanned team all the way to the finals. All of this is true, but I think it has more to do with the fact that the Leastern Conference is a total joke at this point.
Listen party people, I’m the biggest Laker and Kobe fan in the world, but Kobe (like a majority of today’s superstars) is suffering from the ‘Michael Jordan’ hang-over. The N.B.A. died the moment David Stern decided to place all of the focus on the ‘individual’ accomplishment rather than the ‘team’ achievement. The focus of an entire generation of kids was taken off the team effort and centered around the individual, which paved the way for SportsCenter to reign supreme. The popularity of the game multiplied 10 times over globally and David Stern couldn’t have been happier with the monetary results. Stern sacrificed the product inside the box for the bright and shiny bow that he wrapped outside the box., and we believed the hype.
For all of those that think I’ve committed blasphemy for daring to say that the ‘Jordan era’ ruined the game, take a moment to truly look at the product out there now. Players cannot dribble or shoot consistently, nor can they play consistent team defense. People call teams like the Spurs and Pistons boring and methodical (hell, I’m one of them), but the fact is they are a lot closer to playing true basketball than any of the other teams. Big Fundamentals is as close to a throw-back player as one can find at this time. Both teams play hard-nosed, team basketball without a plethora of superstar talent or prima donna attitudes…although Sheed may be somewhat certifiable. Is there any wonder why those two teams have won 4 of the last 5 titles?
As I yawned through that seemingly forced celebration I had to stop and truly ponder the issue that now 7-time champion Robert Horry brought up: Could these Spurs compete with the great teams of the 80’s? Not a chance in hell. Lets specifically look at a team he mentioned directly, as a team his Spurs would defeat. The 1985 Lakers would absolutely destroy this current Spurs team. The 85’ Lakers hold an advantage at nearly every position, the bench, and the coaching would probably be a tie. The biggest difference between today’s players and those of yesteryear, aside from the obvious discrepancy of all-around talent, would have to be the amount or level of ‘heart’ that the 80’s players possessed. Before players were anointed as the greatest of all time and ‘given’ tens of millions of undeserved dollars the players played with an intensity that simply cannot be matched or even understood in today’s day and age. Winning your 7th title is impressive, but get it together Big-Shot Bob. If you were actually able to stand across from those 85’ Lakers, (or any of the great 80’s teams) you probably would have ended your season the same way Lebron just did.
Now, before you say I’m being a hater, allow me to truly congratulate the San Antonio Spurs for enduring the tedious regular season and persevering through the Western Conference portion of the playoffs. With that being said, can we please put this ‘myth’ of Lebron to bed? I will acknowledge that Lebron is a SUPREME talent and may very well one day solidify his place alongside the basketball immortals of the last 25 years (Magic, Bird, and even Jordan), but right now lets be realistic. Since I can already hear the whining Cavs fans and Lebron apologists pointing out that his teammates were terrible, and how he fought to bring a undermanned team all the way to the finals. All of this is true, but I think it has more to do with the fact that the Leastern Conference is a total joke at this point.
Listen party people, I’m the biggest Laker and Kobe fan in the world, but Kobe (like a majority of today’s superstars) is suffering from the ‘Michael Jordan’ hang-over. The N.B.A. died the moment David Stern decided to place all of the focus on the ‘individual’ accomplishment rather than the ‘team’ achievement. The focus of an entire generation of kids was taken off the team effort and centered around the individual, which paved the way for SportsCenter to reign supreme. The popularity of the game multiplied 10 times over globally and David Stern couldn’t have been happier with the monetary results. Stern sacrificed the product inside the box for the bright and shiny bow that he wrapped outside the box., and we believed the hype.
For all of those that think I’ve committed blasphemy for daring to say that the ‘Jordan era’ ruined the game, take a moment to truly look at the product out there now. Players cannot dribble or shoot consistently, nor can they play consistent team defense. People call teams like the Spurs and Pistons boring and methodical (hell, I’m one of them), but the fact is they are a lot closer to playing true basketball than any of the other teams. Big Fundamentals is as close to a throw-back player as one can find at this time. Both teams play hard-nosed, team basketball without a plethora of superstar talent or prima donna attitudes…although Sheed may be somewhat certifiable. Is there any wonder why those two teams have won 4 of the last 5 titles?
As I yawned through that seemingly forced celebration I had to stop and truly ponder the issue that now 7-time champion Robert Horry brought up: Could these Spurs compete with the great teams of the 80’s? Not a chance in hell. Lets specifically look at a team he mentioned directly, as a team his Spurs would defeat. The 1985 Lakers would absolutely destroy this current Spurs team. The 85’ Lakers hold an advantage at nearly every position, the bench, and the coaching would probably be a tie. The biggest difference between today’s players and those of yesteryear, aside from the obvious discrepancy of all-around talent, would have to be the amount or level of ‘heart’ that the 80’s players possessed. Before players were anointed as the greatest of all time and ‘given’ tens of millions of undeserved dollars the players played with an intensity that simply cannot be matched or even understood in today’s day and age. Winning your 7th title is impressive, but get it together Big-Shot Bob. If you were actually able to stand across from those 85’ Lakers, (or any of the great 80’s teams) you probably would have ended your season the same way Lebron just did.
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