Last weekend was the New Year on the Chinese calendar; and in their zodiacal system, this will be the Year of the Rat. Somehow, I think that many of the folks I talk about here will fit nicely into something called the Year of the Rat. Moreover, if lots of those folks exhibit behaviors controlled by the forces of the Chinese zodiacal system, I will have more than plenty of material to write about…
Before anyone asks, I have no idea why the Phoenix Suns traded anyone or anything to acquire Shaquille O’Neal. His game – when he is healthy, in shape and three years younger than he is now – is not a game based on speed and stamina and agility. Unless I’ve seen the wrong Phoenix NBA team on TV, that is exactly the kind of game they play. Therefore, I have no idea how Shaq is supposed to fit into their game plan(s). I will say that the folks who run the Phoenix franchise are successful and shrewd basketball people and so I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt for the moment about the value they received in this exchange. But it is certainly anything but obvious to me…
How would you like to be Shawn Marion at the moment? Last week, he was part of a Phoenix team virtually certain to be in the NBA playoffs and on a team that might have contended for the Conference Championship. This week, he is in Miami on a team that will make the playoffs only with Divine intervention – and even with supernatural guidance, that team would be “one-and-done” in a playoff situation.
Spurs’ coach Greg Popovich was sufficiently unhappy about the trade that sent Pau Gasol to the Lakers for something less than a “Happy Meal with a super-sized drink” that he suggested that the league have a committee to review trades that make no sense. Obviously, “Pop” has an axe to grind here and we need to put that on the table for all to see. However, even giving due consideration to that axe, this is a bad suggestion because his idea is an attempt to prevent a team from doing something stupid. That never works. Here are five guiding principles with regard to stupidity:
1. There is no cure for stupid.
2. You cannot save someone from himself.
3. If ignorance is bliss, why are there so many unhappy people?
4. It is a shame that stupidity is not painful.
5. There is plenty of ”youth” in the world; someone needs to find the Fountain of Smart.
Focusing on baseball and the upcoming Congressional hearings on steroids and who may have used them and who may not have used them, please note that Spring Training is just about to begin and you are not hearing lots of stories about teams vying for the opportunities to sign Barry Bonds and/or Roger Clemens. Looking at all of this from the perspective of those two players there is good news and bad news associated with the lack of contract offers so far:
Good News: The clock starts ticking down to the time when they will be eligible to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Bad News: Steroid investigations may keep them out of the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Just as I have no idea why the Phoenix Suns traded for Shaq, I have no idea how or why the Washington Redskins signed Jim Zorn as their new head coach. At least Danny Boy Snyder and Vinnie “Boombatz” Cerrato didn’t try to spin this hiring to lead one to believe this was the guy they had in mind all along. Zorn clearly was not that guy. Jim Zorn may be a great NFL head football coach; it’s just that there is nothing in his background that would indicate that he is or will be one because he’s never even been an offensive coordinator anywhere. So, the jury is out…
What the Redskins’ “hiring process” did achieve was to keep Danny Boy Snyder in the news for all of the time between early January when Joe Gibbs cashed in his chips and last weekend when Zorn signed on. Face facts, there is exactly no other way he could have done that without getting caught doing something illegal to or with a household pet at one of his Six Flags Amusement Parks. So, in that sense, he is absolutely correct when he says that “the process worked”; it made him a person who commanded the public’s attention for about a month…
Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa) – sometimes lovingly known as “Snarlin’ Arlen” – says that he wants the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold hearings to find out why the NFL Commissioner destroyed the tapes that were related to Spygate. Ladies and gentlemen, this is not something that relates even remotely to the Senate Judiciary Committee responsibilities; Roger Goodell is not a Federal judge nor is he about to be nominated to the Federal bench nor would he take a job on the Federal bench in lieu of his current job with the NFL. And to put some perspective on the entirety of “Spygate”, this is not anything at all of comparable importance to the 17-minute gap in the Watergate tapes that occurred “accidentally”…
Finally, here is a commentary from Brad Rock in the Deseret Morning News:
“Rumors circulated last week that New Orleans Saints running back Reggie Bush was engaged to TV tabloid staple Kim Kardashian.
“The daughter of former O.J. Simpson attorney Robert Kardashian told OK! magazine that 2007 taught her much. ‘One thing I did learn from ’07 was to try to keep it as private as possible,’ she said.
“Good point. Who knew making a sex video, posing for Playboy and showing up on a reality show could make things so … public?”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports…