Read This Shit!

December 31st, Monday... I went online and read about all of the coach firings in the NFL (National Football League). I guess I was not surprised that so many coaches got canned (7) but one particular story got my attention. I read an article about Andy Reid (former head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles) and the article stated that Reid coached 14 years for that team. He has had success in 13 of those 14 years (the list is too long to write!). He did this and that and the other... This season he went 4 for 12. But, the article never talked about how bad of a coach he is. (Probably because he is NOT a bad coach!) So, what's my point?
I'm glad you asked! I'm thinking that if Andy Reid was fired, why would you not talk about how lousy he was as a coach? Why not talk about what a sorry job he's done? The article talked about how great his legacy is (w/ that team) and how he won this and that! Screw that! Why not talk abot what a sorry coach he's been and how the players shut down because of his bad coaching! It (the article) never mentioned anything about how bas his players were this season. I'm thinking that maybe the players should have been fired! (Sadly, you cannot fire the players! SHIT!)
I don't get pro sports! Those boys do the most assinine stuff most of the time. Imagine firing a coach because he has been successful? (I wonder what Philly would have done to Reid if He really screwed up? Wait a minute... I just had a vision: I see the Rocky statue... Next to it is Reid, swinging in the breeze w/ a noose around his neck!) Ahh... The city of Brotherly Love!

Stupid Shit

October 30th, Tuesday... I am not a football fan. I do not care who plays whom from week to week in the NFL and I do not get all jacked up about the Super Bowl when that time rolls around./ I live in Redskin country but it means nothing to me when the Redskins play the Cowboys. That being said, I did raise an eyebrow when the 'Skins drafted Robert Griffin III with the overall second pick in the draft.
As far as I am concerned, he is as good as advertised. He is fast, mobile, accurate and fun to watch. His offensive line is doing their damnest to protect him and his stat line(s) are real cool... Which leads me to his sadistic coaching staff. What the hell were they thinking about when they implimented a trick play and sent RGIII on a route, which set him up to get the shit knocked out of him by the Steelers free safety? I mean, they made a big deal about RGIII taking off, out of the pocket and into a concussion! Yet you send him on a pass route!
I am not feeling the Shanahans. The head coach and his son seem better suited to coach a football team that has already established a winning culture. Those two putting a team together...Please. They cannot even spell DISIPLINE! (Ask DeAngelo Hall!)They would be better off in a "perfect world!" And speaking of Mr. Hall, how does the (cover?) corner allow himself to be baited into losing his mind on the field when he has been in the league for a few years and knows how the Steelers play? Sure, blame the refs! They did not throw the flag on the play he wanted, but they sure did throw (several) flags when he loosened his chinstrap and and released the (verbal) hounds! However, the Redskins can be fun to watch win or lose. Unfortunately they will lose more than they win for awhile.

A Warped POV by A. Dacosta Brathway

March 21st, Wednesday... One step forward, two steps back! The New Orleans Saints have become the "'Aints" (again). The NFL (National Football League) has come down on the New Orleans franchise with suspensions, fines, and draft pick for their findings in "Bounty Gate!" Gregg Williams, former defensive coordinator for the Saints, devised a "bounty" system for his defensive charge to "motivate" them to win football games, which, by the way, is against NFL rules. Look at the irony in this: The most violent (legal) professional sport in America needs a scheme to "motivate" the players to play harder to win games! Comparatively speaking, the money was not much... A couple of thousand dollars compared to the hundreds of thousands of dollars in contract money, which, comparatively speaking to the big pro sports (baseball and basketball), is chicken feed so why not implement a bounty? IRONY.
So, here's the deal: The team is fined $500,000.00 in fines, two second round draft picks,an eight game suspension for the general manager, an indefinite suspension for the former defensive coordinator (Gregg Williams) and a season suspension (without pay) for the head coach Sean Payton for the season! Damn!
Also, remember Hurricane Katrina and how the Saints were credited with revitalizing the city after devastating losses. (Which, if you think about it is bullshit because there are parts of the city that have never recovered. Do I have to remind you that it's mostly the Black parts of the city that still have not benefited from the Saints, whatever they did? Needless to say that this is a mess and a bad joke! And...and, how will the Saints winning their Super Bowl Championship a few years ago be treated? How will it be perceived now? How should it be perceived now? Should we care? I don't give a rat's ass about it simply because professional sports people function as an elitist group and would not give a shit about me and/or my condition. Besides, I do not live in New Orleans and I cannot afford a ticket to a Saints game. Plus, I cannot see myself eating alligator and fries with a side order snake rings and sipping a Coke while the Saints go head hunting and decapitate somebody while I'm eating!

A Warped POV by A. Dacosta Brathway

March 6th, Tuesday... I listen to sports talk radio every morning and there are certain times during a season when the news becomes monotonous, boring, and overstated! This latest thing is odd to me because it is news that is out of season but the discovery reared it (ugly) head now so... (Is there a "snitch" in the mist?) Somehow it has been revealed that "bounties" have been placed on certain players on certain NFL teams! "SHOCKER!" Greg Williams, a defensive coordinator, by trade, initiated this "bounty" thing as a motivation for his minions to play harder so that, probably, there would be a desired effect on the game!
How bored can you be to need extra incentive to knock the shit out of someone on a field? To be fair, I don't blame the players! I'm looking at the diabolical "mad scientist" defensive coordinator who sits in the film "lab" and concocts a plan to alter the fabric of the game, rubbing his hands and laughs hysterically while rearing back in his chair!
The game is violent enough without a "bounty" having to be in place. Should there be a punishment? Probably, as if pro football is not punishment enough. Think about it... Here is a game where men can go to work and beat the shit out of other men! It's built in therapy on the job! (Now if they can only find a solution for drunk driving and club shootings?)

A Warped POV by A. Dacosta Brathway

January 9th, Saturday/ Okay, maybe someone can explain the Rooney Rule to me... The NFL has a rule that when a team wants to hire a head coach, they have to interview a "qualified" black coach first. Case in point is the "targeting" of coach Pete Carroll for the job with the Seattle Seahawks. He was "targeted" by the team to be their next head coach but they, (Seahawks)first, have to interview a "qualified" black coach, turn him down, then they can hire Carroll.
Maybe it's me but how stupid and discriminating is this rule? A "qualified" black coach cannot get the job! Why? He's "qualified!" Sounds to me like this is just some more plantation BS! No disrespect to Carroll. He may be as qualified as they come but why even have the rule in place if a coach can be "targeted" for employment and the rule has a built in bypass? It must be nice to be able to circumvent the rule(s) and get away with it and it is all legal and by the book huh? The real sad part about this is what if Carroll turns out to be a dud? Do the same rule(s) apply? Of course it does and the same damn idiotic process takes place all over again!

A Warped POV by A. Dacosta Brathway

August 14th, Friday/ Okay, does Michael Vick deserve a second chance? Maybe, maybe not... Who should be the one to make that determination? First of all, America cannot make that determination. America is a country. You cannot personify America! There are dog lovers who want to crucify Vick! But are they justified in their opinion of him? Who is to say?Logically speaking, the mothers and fathers of the victimized dogs should have some say in the matter... But, that's not gonna happen.So, who should say?

I thought Michael should the one to give himself a second chance. And, I think, to some degree, he will be the one depending on his behavior. But now I am not so sure about that. I watched his press conference, and Vick said that he was mortified and "humbled" by his actions. But, wait a minute... That's in retrospect. He is "humbled" after he got caught and did some time in the timeout cell. He was not "humbled" while in the moment! How can you kill a dog and not be affected by the act itself? Maybe he has proven to have a conscious, after he got caught and heard the cries from the public and had a long talk with Goodell (NFL Commish) and Tony Dungee, the resident reform minister. But where was his compassion for the dogs he electrocuted and drowned and whatever else he did?

I was bitten by a dog once. I wanted to kill it for biting me. (No, I did not provoke the dog! He was mean!) I wanted to but I couldn't. It was a boxer and I was young and my fear was that not only could the dog bite me, it could also out box me! (These are the jokes people!)

I feel bad for Vick. He lost a crap load of money for his venture and a boat load of creditibility! He will never recoop what he has lost! He is a fallen man. Which only goes to show you that it is a dog's life! (Especially in a bad economy!)

A Warped POV by A. Dacosta Brathway

April 5th, Sunday/ What the hell is going on in the NFL? Mike is getting out of jail, Plax is going in...What has the Penal system become, Motel 6?Not only do we have a disgruntled QB demanding to be traded because... Well, he found out that he might be traded! What the...? We have dog killings and self-inflicted gunshot wounds... When was the last time a pro(football) player wanted to stop playing football in mid-season, left the team, went to a club and shot himself in the leg? I guess it was not exciting enough to collect a check big enough to buy a house in one felt swoop every two weeks? Man, what I could do with a 3 or 4 hundred thousand dollar check right about now(?).
Carrying a gun to a club or killing dogs cannot be the mindset of a clear-thinking individual, is it? I mean, I have heard a dog owner say, in a fit of rage to his dog,"I will kill you!" I even heard a friend say, after his kid spilled juice on his white carpet, "...If I had a gun, I'd... (thinking)... I'd... shoot myself!" (No specific place was mentioned and no child was harmed.) (This just in: Oklahoma's women's basketball team just lost in a semi-final game against Louisville! I want to see the camera pan to her father, in the stands, writing the check made out to the University of Oklahoma for $64,000.00 for repayment of her scholarship!)Hey, I don't make this stuff up!
Is the pressure of bigtime sports too much for fragile thinking athletes to the point where it makes them say and do weird things? There have been days when I thought, "I could just kill myself for doing something that stupid!" But I never pulled the trigger! NEVER!

A Warped POV by A. Dacosta Brathway

March 5th, Thursday/ DAMN! Terrell Owens was released by the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL... Oh boohoo already! What's next with this guy? Will it be a suicide attempt? (Wait a minute, didn't that already happen?) Will he stab another quarterback in the back? (Ahh, been there, done that!) Oh... I know... His full length narcissus mirror will break and he will be ugly for seven years! That's it, right?
And, what is it with the Dallas Cowboy's owner anyway? He actually makes Barnum AND Bailey look like rank amateurs!
Maybe it's just me but I think that all pro sports have gone from the ridiculous to the... well, even more ridiculous! "Step right up and see the greatest Bros on earth!" And, "...watch Manny and Alex and Barry and Charles and ("The Big Shaqiwakki") sell their integrity for several million dollars! Come one and all and spend a couple of hundred bucks for a couple of hours of fun and excitement. To hell with the concept of a challenge. Be amused by the death defying flop of the 300 pound man! Then watch as the 300 pound man and the former coach of the 300 pound man take (cannon) shots at each other and call each other names at their respective press conferences! And... Watch as the press instigates the whole exciting spectacle!"
Now that's entertainment!

CRAP/My Journal by Al Brathway

October 4th, Thursday/ Last night I went to bed very early, which ment I was going to wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to go back to sleep. So I turned on the radio and tuned on to a sports talk radio station. Hey, I'm into sports! Sometimes I listen to sports talk radio during the day to pass the time. Sometimes it's cool and other times the conversations get real stupid. Well last night the conversation went beyond stupid!/ I've noticed that the hosts of these types of shows seem to get real disturbed when their listening audience doen't agree with whatever they say. Most of the time, after a rant by the host, the listener gets hung up on! Last time I checked that is rude behavior. I guess no one can have a valid opinion, on the radio, but the host? Or, maybe they are supposed to be funny? I got annoyed! Then, the random bantering that goes on and on and on and on... Yeah, I can change the channel, which I eventually did, but... And the losers that call in...! What the hell is wrong w/ people? You know, I could never get past the weirdness of Andy Warhol but he was right about one thing: People DO want their 15 minutes of fame! The callers will hang on the line and wait and wait and wait to be heard on the radio! Last night, two guys fell asleep waiting. They broadcasted the two guys snoring while waiting! I guess that is compelling radio or something./ I know one thing... I will time my going to bed better from now on. I will also avoid listening to sports talk radio from now on. Hell, I might just stop watching sporting events altogether. If I cannot be entertained by sports, I might as well watch and listen to world news... That's where all the comedians seem to be these days!/ CRAP!