From a slew of you
What's your thought about the NBA moving the all-star game from Charlotte because of the LGBT stuff?
Gang -
Well, most of you know we are way on the other side of the overly political correctness that has mobilized the UPWARD basketball supporters that make up the internet morality mob.
And looking at the NBA's decision on a multiple of levels, it's hard to support this decision.
First, the place hurt most by this is the city of Charlotte, which actually passed an LGBT-supportive law, only to be overturned by a state law.
Next, and this is about the whole issue, man have we spent a lot of time, energy, effort and money on an issue that three years ago was just understood that folks knew which potty to use. Nevermind that this affects about 700,000 Americans or roughly 0.3 percent of the population. (By comparison, almost 8.5 percent of the country is color-blind and you hear nothing about that. Oh the humanity.)
Finally, as has been pointed out by several folks, including Clay Travis on his website Outkickthecoverage.com, the NBA taking a stand on this issue, which costs them nothing and allows them to bask in the warm glow of PC warm and fuzzies, is at the height of hypocrisy.
The NBA is pulling the All-Star game from a city that actually tried to support the LGBT community because the state of North Carolina decided to do what its citizens voted for it to do.
But, the NBA is going to play two exhibition games in China, which has a far more egregious and offensive history in regards to all human rights violations by comparison. The NBA going to China is all about the money, so the league collectively shrugs its shoulders as the atrocities committed in years past by the Chinese government.
But the decisions in the Tarheel State has the NBA is outraged to the point of action?
Please.
(Paging Stewwie to the White Anti-Adam Silver Courtesy Phone. Paging Mr. Stewwie to the White Anti-Adam Silver Courtesy Phone.)
University of Texas assistant golf coach Jean-Paul Hebert watches play on the 5th hole. The third day of the 69th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship was held at the Honors Course in Ooltewah, Tennessee, Wednesday July 20, 2016. From Jomo
JG- Also would like your thoughts on this. The BIG 12, is somewhat different than the other Power 5 conferences with Texas having their own network. There is the possibility that the BIG 12 can expand WITHOUT dilution. In otherwords the BIG 12 can take new members, from Non-Power 5 conferences who would "sell their soul" to be in a Power 5. they could take some schools ( like Northern Illinois, UCF, Memphis or Cincinnati ) all with large markets and not necessarily give them a "full-share" of TV money, etc. Therefore not decreasing the split of the pie for existing members. The whole reason for expansion is to increase revenue for the existing members, the reason SEC is not interested anymore is they don't need to split their "pie" anymore. So what "could" happen is the BIG 12 could take 6 new members to get to 16 and not split up existing revenue with the precedent of Texas not splitting their network money, under this scenario, the existing BIG 12 schools could actually take in more money than any of the schools in any Power 5 and don't scoff at Northern Illinois that would give BIG 12 the 3rd largest media market in the country (Chicago).
Jomo -
Fair point, and yes, the Big 12 is in a different spot for a lot of the reasons you mentioned. It's also worth noting that the Big 12 is also vulnerable to schools leaving because of the bigger money offered by the SEC and the Big 10.
Also, ESPN polled the Big 12 coaches about which schools they would like to add and the coaches were for adding Houston and BYU, which is now interested in joining and would have a more national presence than most people realize with its religious connections.
If they add six - with Houston and BYU as the top choices - then Cincinnati and Memphis are likely next, and the theory behind Memphis buying their way in makes total sense (And total cents.)
We're not selling Northern Illinois short either, and making in roads in Illinois (especially around Chicago) is of great value. In fact, every mid-major should be looking for way in if possible. This is not like going Sun Belt. This is going to the bank.
In this April 10, 2016, file photo, Garry Marshall arrives at the 2016 TV Land Icon Awards at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif. Writer-director Marshall, whose TV hits included "Happy Days" "Laverne & Shirley" and box-office successes included "Pretty Woman" and "Runaway Bride," has died at age 81. Publicist Michelle Bega says Marshall died Tuesday, July 19, 2016, in at a hospital in Burbank, Calif., of complications from pneumonia after having a stroke. From Lawrence
Saw your bit about Garry Marshall and it got me wondering about a couple of things. Who was on your Rushmore of Marshalls and who do you think makes the Rushmore of the founding fathers of TV? Hopefully this makes the mailbag this week and thanks for making my mornings at work better.
Lawrence -
Thanks for the kind words, and you bet. Not sure how long you have been reading, but by our calculations, this is the 1,500th consecutive Monday-through-Friday that we have done a 5-at-10. Every non-weekend day - regardless of vacation, sickness, snow, you name it - since late October 2010. Man, that's a lot of words spilled in that time.
Rushmore of Marshalls - We'll go Marshal Dillon, The Marshall siblings (Penny and Garry are true comedic geniuses), Thurgood Marshall and "We Are Marshall" with all apologies to Marshall Mathers (aka Eminem), Marshall Faulk and former Ole Miss basketball star Marshall Henderson, who ushered in the phrase, "White Girl Wednesdays."
As for the founding fathers of TV, we'll go Ed Sullivan, Walter Cronkite, Roone Arledge and Eugene Polley. Sullivan was the first big-name star. Cronkite is the guy who brought the national news to a TV audience.
Roone Arledge is the father of TV sports and the inventor of Monday Night Football.
And Polley invented the TV remote control.
Yes, it was tough to leave off Carson and Lucy and a slew of others, though.
South Carolina football coach Will Muschamp speaks Thursday on the final day of SEC media days in Hoover, Ala. Muschamp was the defensive coordinator at Auburn last season after spending the previous four years as head coach at Florida.From MocTastic
JG MAILBAG QUESTION: Once again I ask, with 24 hour cable sports tv coverage and the internet, why do we still have events like SEC Media Days? It made sense, maybe, years ago, but IMO no longer does. I sometimes think it just is an excuse for news media to get a mini-vacation in during the summer when they can all get together and spend the nights in the hotel bar. Now it just seems to be a dinosaur from the past.
What have we learned from Hoover that we didn't know or couldn't be found out via video tele-conferencing?
PS, not just being SEC-centric here, same goes for all conferences
MT -
You answered your question with the appositive phrase "with 24-hour cable sports tv coverage and the internet" believe it or not.
That's why we have these things.
There is very little news that comes from these things in general.
Now, there are several events that happen at various programs - think the Cam Robinson thing with Alabama or the Ole Miss stuff at the draft - that coaches will speak about, and it may be the first time they are in front of the media folks about such issues.
For a lot of us, the challenges were coming up with different things/issues to write about. That's why we wrote on the sexual violence issues and Missouri on two of our four columns from there last week.
The other benefit is that every voice is in one place. There was a lot of stuff that was asked that will be used in preview stuff throughout the next six weeks before the season. Case in point, TFP SEC ace David Paschall's excellent series around the SEC that is currently running in the pages of the TFP.
In a lot of ways, your assessment of it feeling like a dinosaur is not untrue, but for conferences like the SEC, this is more about them making one stop rather than dealing with interview requests from hundreds if not thousands of media folks. So for them - and the SEC Network, which loves the live programming rather than replaying the 2008 UT-Georgia game (AGAIN) - the value is still there.
And a lot of conferences are doing away with these and replacing them with conference calls for those who are interested. (Side note: If this comes across as a mini-vacation, well, it's not. Our schedule between the paper and Press Row at Hoover was get up early, write, line-up interviews, listen to interviews in the main room, tape interviews for Press Row, write some more, do Press Row, finish writing, eat dinner, which is the first time we'd leave the hotel on most occasions. And the days of media companies picking up bar tabs are the real dinosaurs in this equation.)
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, center, watch balloons fall alongside son Barron, from left, wife Melania, Republican vice presidential candidate Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana and Pence's wife Karen after Trump's address to delegates during the final day session of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Thursday, July 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) From Casey
Who's the fear monger here, Trump or Van Jones?
Casey -
Fair question, but in truth, does it have to be an either/or?
Hatred is not stereotypical condition from one group or the other. And in truth, a big reason we have spiraled into this societal abyss is because a lot of the rationalizations made about this or that is, "Well, it's not as bad as this other or that other."
It's the political and social version of the NCAA rule-breaking rationalizations made by college sports fans.
"Yeah, we may have paid our recruiting class $1 million, but everyone's doing it and State U. is doing it much worse." (Although in that case, the phrase "much worse" can be replaced with "much better" because State U. is a) getting away with it and b) getting better players.)
And it a lot of ways, it makes sense for the Trumps to the Hillarys or the Van Joneses to pitch the platform of fear because what's the strongest motivating emotion out there? Fear, right? And they are power playing it to all angles and all ears as often as they can. This allows a lot of the media to consume it and redistribute that fear as hatred, which is their trump card. (No pun intended.)
With that, it's important to state here that I'm part of the media, so sadly I am part of the problem. Because for every 20 of us trying to do good things and fair things and proper things based on facts in the matters of reporting or beliefs and fairness in matters of opinion writing (which is what I do), it only takes one knucklehead to derail the process with some ill-informed diatribe to make the "media blame" game all too easy for everyone, be it the politicians or the public.
Trump's speech last night was the funnest thing to follow on social media in a long, Long, LONG time. It was great. Here are some of our favorite Tweets from the # (good and bad):
- #TrumpSpeech I give it 4 out of 5 swastikas. #RNCinCLE
- @realDonaldTrump #TrumpSpeech - I have never been so excited about a presidential candidate. We're actually going to fix this country.
- The #TrumpSpeech gave me hope for America for the first time in a long time.
- Being rich doesn't make you smart. Being blunt doesn't make you honest. And being loud doesn't make you right.
- #TrumpSpeech word count: "Freedom": 1 "Liberty": 0 "Constitution": 1 "Unborn": 0 "Values": 1 "Marriage": 0 "Morals": 0 "I": 83 Priorities.
- Elizabeth Warren on Trump's speech: "He sounded like some two-bit dictator of some country you couldn't find on the map." #TrumpSpeech
- If I had taken a drink of gin during #TrumpSpeech every time Donald shouted something idiotic I'd no longer have a liver. #BelieveMe
- Is someone running this through @Turnitin and comparing it against Mein Kampf? #trumpspeech
- @realDonaldTrump #TrumpSpeech He sparked the patriotism that has been dormant #maga #TrumpPence2016
From Sportsfan
Hey. Sportsfan clan is on the gulf coast in a place that rhymes with earwater this week celebrating the summer of lil Ms Sportsfan postponed due to a broken wrist 24 months ago. Mrs Sportsfan and I have noticed a plethora of tattoos on the beach. Many are extensive missives located on the back of the tattoo owner about one thing or another or tributes to past friends or old loves. We're not quite sure. We know this is a FOIB, but we're unsure if these tattoos are for a partner in the throes of passion, or for the general public. If for the public, is it appropriate to ask the tattoo owner to stop for a moment in order to read their back? Just wondering. We debated sending this query to Dear Abby, but we need an answer fast, so we knew you'd be up to the task and keep us out of real trouble. Thanks.
Sportsfan -
Great question, and one that may make Dear Abby faint. You came to the right/write place.
Here is a quick checklist of the 5-at-10 approved tattoo etiquette:
First, and know the importance of this - the Mrs. Sportsfan has far more leeway with the questioning. If you ask a mid-20-something lady in a two-piece what the next few words were on her back tat that ventured into the covered regions after "Sex, Love,." then you run a serious risk of being THAT guy on the beach. And that reputation will follow you from your beach chair to Capt. Anderson's and all points in between. This also applies for dudes, too, because, well then you become THAT OTHER guy, not that there's anything wrong with that.
OK, now to the list.
If there's a picture - you know the images or full-blown portraits - feel free. Those tats are all-day commitments and are so pricey, it's like asking those people who spend way, Way, WAY too much on their car about the rims on their ride. Just be prepared for a lengthy response.
Second, positioning is important. Shoulder tats are free game. Mid-back is OK too. Absolutely not on people with face tattoos. You run the risk of serious tail-whipping there because people who get face tattoos have a pain-tolerance level multiplied by a crazy factor far above the rest of us. are The real questionable areas are the tattoos that run into the covered parts of the body. We lean to 'no' on most of these.
Third, we believe words are the easiest to ask about, especially if it feels like a life motive or inspiration. Be guarded against messages that include any of the following:
a) A person's name. Last thing you want to ask about is "Wow, you must really love Andy?" and get the response, "I really did until he emptied my bank account and slept with my sister. Please hit 4 on the elevator, thanks."
b) A cuss word. Simply trust us on this one.
c) A body part. Again, simply trust us on this one as well.
d) Full bracketed dates. Those are the 'In Memory' tats, and well, who wants to talk about a dead pet or family member on the beach, you know?
Here's a quick tip to remember: If it feels like a motto, you have won the lotto. Ask away. (Side note, part I: We have had some fun playing the "Tattoo Wheel of Fortune" where you try to finish the phrase in some of these cases. Careful, though, that can lead to some issues.)
Speaking of issues, there are a couple of don'ts that are every bit as important as the do's. Do not point. Do not giggle. Do not make that face like you just had two-week-old cole slaw, even if the tattoo image was done on a person say more than a decade and more than about 40 pounds ago causing distortion that renders it unrecognizable. Do remember sunglasses, the cover buys extra time.
Finally, remember tone and kindness are important. So is timing, if you are trying to read a message on a woman's lower back and get busted, try "I really like that font. Did you use helvetica for your body message?" See what we did there? We called it a body message rather than a tramp stamp or some other anti-tattoo assault. You can also go with, "I was trying to read your body art (again, remember the lingo), because my sister was looking at getting one soon." (Side note: It's important not to go wife here, because in the Murphy's law of things, what happens if the person you are asking happens to be or date a body artist and offer their services that very day. Then you are in a pickle, and you may be able to understand the pain threshold of the face tattooed people soon enough.)
Hope this helps, and remember your manners. Yes, that sounds a little Dear Abby-ish, but that's solid advice all the way around.