The Rich Liebig Blog

The Basics of Film Noir

2011-12-03T23:49:00.002-05:00

This was a project I had to do for my senior film seminar class. It's "The Basics of Film Noir." If you've never heard of it or maybe was told to watch some Film Noir, but never liked the black-and-white-ness of the movies, I encourage you to give these films another shot. Major ones I'd recommend: The Maltese Falcon (1941), Double Indemnity (1944), Out of the Past (1947), and any other ones I mention in this guide. I hope you find the guide useful and entertaining!Film Noir

Sweethearts of the Kitchen -- Diane & Tom's Cafe

2011-05-01T10:00:00.031-04:00

Twenty years ago, Diane and Tom Barnette started their own catering business from the back of a lunch truck on Chelten Avenue. Today, they own Diane and Tom’s Café and Professional Catering Services at Maplewood Mall. In those twenty years, learning the ins and outs of the restaurant business has been “intense” for the couple.

“The food industry is very intense,” says Diane Barnette, “It’s all about being ‘up’ – get up, set up, stock up, cook up, serve up, and clean up. You can’t just like it, you got to love it.”

Recalling their history, it seems that Diane and Tom have moved on “up” since their humble beginnings when they first met.

Diane and Tom met at Pennsylvania Hospital at 9^th and Spruce Streets. Diane was a dietary aide. Tom worked there in the morning part-time, in addition to being head chef at the now-closed Top of Centre Square restaurant on Market Street. Tom’s shift at the restaurant would usually last until 3 o’clock in the morning.

When Diane learned how late Tom would stay at the Top of Centre Square, she willingly helped Tom so that he could go home early. Diane would help do the restaurant’s inventory, payroll, and stock ordering. Inadvertently, helping Tom during his late nights would prepare Diane for the restaurant business.

“Tom taught me a lot,” Diane recalled about working with Tom at the Top of Centre Square, “I was a free employee; Tom would get me a sandwich. People thought I actually worked there… I was just there to help him get out early so that he wouldn’t be there at 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning. It helped out a lot because when I had to really do it [for the Café], I understood what I needed to do.”

Diane’s sister, who lives in Germantown, suggested that she open up a food cart near her. Diane took the advice to heart – she quit her job at the hospital and bought a cart to sell food at little league baseball games throughout Germantown. But she did not just offer hot dogs; Tom gave her recipes so that she could serve Cajun shrimp, Swedish meatballs, and hot roast beef sandwiches.

When she earned enough money from the food cart, Diane opened up a lunch truck on Chelten Avenue and Tom joined her. In 1991, they officially formed Diane and Tom’s Café and Professional Catering Services as their business.

During the three years they had at the lunch truck, Diane and Tom realized that they wanted to go into the food business together at a stable restaurant and began looking for a permanent location. They first opened a restaurant at 26 Maplewood Mall. They leased that location for six and a half years before 2000, when they moved to and bought 40 Maplewood Mall, the current building where Diane and Tom’s Café is.

Diane and Tom’s Café also caters charter schools in the area, offering lunches to over 1400 students. They have served at The Mathematics, Civics, and Sciences Charter School (MCSCS) for 12 years, the youth-service organization VisionQuest for 9 years, and at Khepera Charter School for 3 years.

“They’re getting good food from a good place, where people care about what they’re doing, and I know it’s better than pre-packaged foods. We cook with a lot of love. We enjoy what we’re doing and I know our food comes out better,” says Diane.

In addition to the school children, Diane and Tom have catered to Philadelphian boxer Bernard Hopkins, former Pennsylvanian Governor Ed Rendell, and 105.3 FM Radio WDAS Disc Jockeys Patti Jackson and Gary Sheppard. The Café was also featured on WTXF FOX 29 by Janet Zapolo and on WCAU NBC 10 by Steve Levy.

Yael Johnson, who is Diane’s goddaughter, has worked with the café periodically since 1996. She is currently the cashier and assistant to Diane.

“Many people think it’s tough to work with family, but this café is one big happy family,” says Yael with a smile, “I’ve worked at places where there are barriers to meeting the owner; here, the buck doesn’t stop with me, it goes to [Diane and Tom].”

Together, the “family” of Diane and Tom’s Café prepares delicious food and is looking to keep the restaurant strong by working in the business they enjoy. Diane and Tom love each other and the café they started together.

“Tom is a softie,” says Diane, “but he holds down the kitchen, and I don’t step on his toes. He does his area, I do mine, and we get along. He’s my best friend.”

Diane and Tom’s Café is located at 40 Maplewood Mall in Germantown. They are open 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM Tuesday and Wednesday and 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM Thursday through Saturday. They are closed Sundays and Mondays, and are closed for a summer break from the third week of July to the third week of August.

Germantown Doesn't Want More Dollar Stores

2011-04-07T10:00:00.028-04:00

At the Germantown Community Connection meeting Thursday night, Pat Burns apologized for not consulting with the community before closing down the Fresh Grocer and planning a Sav-A-Lot store on the corner of Chelten and Pulaski Avenues.

“I should have known, but I did not know the strong community and outreach of Germantown,” said Burns, “If I had known that back 4 or 6 months ago, I would have started this process way back when... I’m sorry I did not reach out to you sooner.”

Burns’ statement comes a day after State Representative Rosita Youngblood sent a letter to local, state, and federal officials asking them to shut down work at the corner of Chelten and Pulaski Avenues. Youngblood believes that the proposed Sav-A-Lot and Dollar Tree stores are a surprise to the Germantown community, considering Burns was awarded development grants, which total $3 million in state funds. Youngblood also cites an asbestos environmental hazard as well, but Burns has stated that he is compliance with state and federal regulations.

The initial tension between Burns and concerned Germantown residents began when Pulaski Partners announced in a press release on February 24^th that the Fresh Grocer at the corner of Chelten and Pulaski Avenues would shut down and that a new development called the “Chelten Plaza” would provide a Dollar Tree and a Save-A-Lot food store to open in its place.

The plan has since been heavily criticized for removing a local source of fresh foods in the area, adding just another dollar-store in Germantown, and how suddenly the plan has taken effect.

"Ownership has [had] this plan solidly in place… [they] have not been very forthcoming." says Sloane Folks of the Central Germantown Council, "the community doesn't want it; it is not very beneficial for Germantown."

Although Pulaski Partners is developing the Chelten Plaza, the corner will be maintained by Burns as a single-propriety owner. Folks and other residents of Germantown felt that Burns did not seriously take the community into consideration about these plans.

In a previous meeting with the Germantown Community Connection on March 2^nd, Burns recalled his history with the site. According to the minutes of that meeting, Burns began the process to purchase the site during 2004-2005, which at the time was just an old Shop-Rite, for the purpose of building a 50,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art Fresh Grocer. After the purchase was completed, Burns later acquired the two adjoining lots, which used to be a beverage company and a gas station.

Burns’ team determined that the Fresh Grocer would not work financially at the location, especially with the Fresh Grocer that opened at the Shoppes at La Salle in 2009.

“The conclusion was that Germantown could not support two new Fresh Grocers,” as quoted from the minutes. The Fresh Grocer at La Salle won out, which would lead Burns and Pulaski Partners to the development of a new plan – The Chelten Plaza.

Concerned citizens of Germantown have organized several complaints against the proposed development. There was a zoning code violation found by Germantown lawyer Irv Acklesberg to use against Chelten Plaza.

Under the Philadelphia City Code, Section 14-1634, Article 3.E states that: “Within the area subject to Lower and Central Germantown Special District Controls, the following uses shall be prohibited… Retail sales of variety general store merchandise.”

“They can’t do it,” said Acklesberg, “the city code agrees with us, and it prohibits the Dollar Tree.”

Burns responded by hiring Carl Primavera, a noted “heavyweight lawyer” of zoning laws in Philadelphia, according to Acklesberg.

Acklesberg and an ad-hoc committee formed by the Germantown Community Connection has been meeting with Pulaski Partners to discuss what compromises the two sides can come together on for the corner of Chelten and Pulaski avenues.

Burns said on Thursday night that a Philadelphia natural food store, Weavers Way, is interested in one of the side stores, which drew heavy applause from the audience in First Presbyterian Church. This does not relieve the pressure on Burns, but has appeased some of the Germantown residents.

According to their first press release, Pulaski Partners set the original goal for Chelten Plaza’s completion by autumn of this year.

The Updated Blog Plans Are Complete!

2010-08-19T11:28:00.007-04:00

To all those who still happen to have my blog under your blogroll or RSS feeds or whatever, congratulations, you are the first to see the revamp of The Rich Liebig Blog!

I know, quite an honor.

Sorry about the absence of news blogging, there's no excuse to really cover it. Turning 21 gives you a different set of priorities to worry about. You know, like is that asshole bartender going to make your drink so strong that you have to leave the bar after one drink because you've been annoying all night by singing "Oh My My" by Ringo Starr since you walked into the place.

A run-on sentence. Great way to come back into blogging. Also, that's not based on any sort of real life experience; it was just a hypothetical situation.

Now, you might be asking where is some actual news opinion here in this post? Well, just in time for the new look for the website, my good buddy and "Hangers" tag team partner Steve Jiwanmall happened to use some of my thoughts to make a delightful Campus Philly article on how college students are expecting the Eagles to do this season with new starting quarterback Kevin Kolb. Click here to see it. I'm the first opinion, you know, no big deal.

So there you have it folks. The updated blog plans are now complete. This station is now fully operational once again. Now to actually write about the news....

Is that Brett Favre coming back...AGAIN?! THIS IS WHAT I CAME BACK TO BLOG FOR?!

Back Into The Swing of Things...

2009-08-03T23:55:00.003-04:00

First off, I am sorry for my absence from news-blogging. Summer is the perfect time for extreme procrastination.

Anyway, to get back to the news, there seems to be the small little thing called the "Birther" movement, where loonies (even Ann Coulter has labeled them as crazies) claim President Obama was not born in Hawaii since he has not released an official birth certificate. Some are willing to go so far as to claim Obama was born in Kenya, which would mean he is ineligible to act as the President of the United States and is guilty of a federal conspiracy.

I've watched a couple of videos of these "birthers" defending their positions. I am now dumber for watching them. I award them no points, and may God have mercy on their soul.

In a shocking surprise to me, it was Mr. Do It Live himself that puts everything in perspective. Bill O'Reilly summed the situation up: the Republicans, not Obama supporters, are hurting themselves for even letting this "Birther" movement get this far out of hand.

As O'Reilly states, the GOP actually has somewhat of a decent hand to play with right now at the political poker table. Consider the facts in the 6 months of the Obama Presidency:

Obama's approval rating has declined since his inauguration
Obama's stimulus bill getting passed, but the economy has not yet recovered significantly
Obama's not getting the healthcare reform passed, despite a Congress that is controlled by the Democrats
Obama's racial problems with the Henry Louis Gates case

Of course, the Republicans aren't invincible or anything, but their political position should be strengthened by these mishaps by President Obama. And yet what's making the headlines?

"A Certificate of Live Birth isn't the same as a Birth Certificate" and similar blah blah blah from the far right. These nutjobs can't get over the fact that Barack Hussein Obama won the 2008 Presidential Election. It's over. He's the President of the United States, deal with it. (Besides even if somehow Obama could be impeached for this, would "Birthers" really want Joe Biden as the President? McCain and Palin wouldn't be declared the new winners if this Birther-conspiracy was true anyway.)

Conservatives need to do just what liberals did when George W. Bush was President -- accept it and move on. You want to bring down the big government plans of Obama and the Democrats? Do what Bill O'Reilly says: "DO IT LIVE"--er not that, sorry--"Come up with better ideas than the Democrats." Simple as that. Until the GOP dump these "Birther" loonies and follows O'Reilly's advice, they won't be contending for political power seriously anytime soon.

In the words of Mr. O'Reilly himself: the Republican Party right now? "FUCKIN' THING SUCKS!"

Shimkus Uses God To Ignore Global Warming

2009-05-01T20:44:00.004-04:00

In the last post, I wrote about President Obama’s missteps in regards to religious issues. I concluded that people should not be criticizing the President or the government based on religious differences alone. There were some mixed reactions regarding this stance, and I can understand it. Politics alone is a touchy issue, let alone mixing religion in there, too. Nevertheless, I still stand behind my opinion. Coincidentally, this issue of religion in politics came up again during the topic of global warming and what the U.S. can do about it.

Former Vice President Al Gore and Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich sparred off at Capitol Hill last Friday over a bill that would endorse sweeping climate change reform by Congress. Gore, the Noble Prize winner behind “An Inconvenient Truth” which highlighted the severity of the global warming crisis, urged Congress to find the “moral courage” to pass what he claims as “one of the most important pieces of legislation ever introduced in the Congress.”

On the other hand, Gingrich responded by calling this bill a future energy tax to be paid by Americans and major power move for the Energy Department. “Make no mistake about it: This bill amounts to a $1 [trillion] to $2 trillion energy tax levied on a struggling economy, which is destructive and wrong,” Gingrich said. However, Gingrich does believe that global warming is a factor in current weather trends. In addition, he also has outlined his own alternate climate change plan that is not as bold as the current bill, but would take some action against global warming.

Personally, I am in favor of changing the laws to protect the planet from global warming. However, I respect Gingrich’s position that whatever budget allotted for this program must be spent meticulously – similarly to the banking bailout, if the funds are not watched carefully for this program, the costs can easily skyrocket. Both arguments made by Gore and Gingrich were interesting, well-researched, and relevant to the issue at hand.

Unfortunately, I could not say the same thing for another point of view from U.S. Representative John Shimkus, who sits on the Subcommittee on Energy and Environment. He spoke a couple of weeks ago when this climate change bill was first being drawn up. He essentially argued that since God will destroy the Earth, global warming cannot be a threat to the planet.

In his discourse, Shimkus (above) cited Genesis 8: 21-22 about the Biblical flood and stated for the record that: “…the earth will end only when God declares it’s time to be over. Man will not destroy this earth. This earth will not be destroyed by a flood.... I appreciate having panelists here who are men of faith, and we can get into the theological discourse of that position, but I do believe God’s word is infallible, unchanging, perfect.”

And here I find myself in the same position as I was last time – discouraging those who use religion solely as the basis of augmenting a political position. The only reason Shimkus does not believe in global warming is, in a childish sense, because ‘God said so.’ Is this the type of reasoning we want making the laws of this nation – just because ‘my religion told me so?’ At what point can intellectual reasoning be the foundation of the laws we seek to establish instead of just someone’s private religious beliefs?

In a recent news report by the Discovery Channel, researchers published their results of an expedition to the Himalaya Mountains in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. They found that the Himalaya mountain glaciers are currently melting faster than what was predicted. Some of the experts even claim the glaciers could disappear in as fast as 15 years. Hundreds of millions of people depend on these glaciers as their water supply. Former Democratic National Committee Chairperson Howard Dean responded to this alarming report: “We can’t avert this crisis … it’s not our grandchildren, it’s us.”

It is clear that global warming is becoming an issue which the U.S. government needs to make a decisive move on soon. Whether it is the sweeping reform presented in the current bill in Congress being backed by Gore or the limited, economically-friendly outline by Gingrich, the U.S. needs to start taking the proper precautions to combat climate change. But as long as the debate on this important problem facing the planet does not focus on shallow religious-based arguments, I will not be complaining about it.

This article was published in The Collegian, La Salle University's student newspaper.

Obama Cannot Answer Religious Fanatics

2009-04-24T22:21:00.006-04:00

Some may consider President Barack Obama to be the “Savior” the U.S. needs in this tough time, but has he gone so far as to replace Christianity in America? Many Christians believe this to be true, after President Obama delivered a speech at Georgetown University, where the White House staff requested that all religious images of Jesus were to be hidden while the President was to be onstage.

It seems that since the 2008 election, religion continually comes back to haunt President Obama. First it was whether or not he was Christian or Muslim during the campaign. Obama also had problems with his former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Then during the first eleven weeks as President, FOX News reported that Obama had not gone to a single church service since his inauguration.

President Obama took the religion issue further into question, when earlier this month during in a press conference in Turkey, President Obama stated: “One of the great strengths of the United States is [although] we have a very large Christian population -- we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation. We consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values.”

Now, with this controversy at Georgetown, Obama adds another thorn in the sides of many Christians and their view of the President’s beliefs about religion. After 8 years of President George W. Bush’s conservative Christian policies, Obama has wrecked havoc on the religious front. There is so much disdain for Obama, not just on his religious blunders but also on his stances of pro-abortion and approval of same-sex rights, that many right-wing fanatics believe he is out to destroy the country and some even go far as to call him the Antichrist.

There is only one problem with this line of thinking. Is there not supposed to be a separation between church and state? The beginning of the First Amendment guarantees that: “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion; prohibiting the free exercise thereof …” It should not matter whether or not Obama is Christian or not. If America is truly a free nation, then why would it matter if the President was Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or even a non-believer of any religion? American citizens should criticize on what Obama does with the government from an objective viewpoint, not whether Obama handles his own personal beliefs in the correct Christian manner.

However, the second part of that Amendment also guarantees no law that is: “abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Therefore, people should have the right to say whether or not the President should be Christian or not. It is this Amendment where the duality of protecting our beliefs and our opponents’ views lies. Go ahead and critique what our government is doing – it is your right to do so.

I would encourage readers to keep an eye on President Obama is doing; after all, he may not be the complete “Savior” his voters expected him to be. But if you are going to criticize Obama or the government solely based on religious differences; do not expect me to be standing beside you.

According to a Pew Research Poll, one in ten Americans still believe that President Obama is a Muslim, which is undoubtedly false. The troublesome fact – this survey was not asked during the election; this was done in March 2009, two months into Obama’s presidency. An even more startling fact – one in five Caucasian Evangelical Christians thought Obama was Muslim. Americans still do not know who their President is exactly, and it appears to be that some are not even willing to find out the truth about Obama. Perhaps for these Americans, ignorance is bliss. Nevertheless, it is further proof that religion is a major problem that President Obama cannot seem to answer to the American public.

This article was published in The Collegian, La Salle University's student newspaper.

Stewart Creams Cramer

2009-03-28T18:04:00.003-04:00

During the week La Salle had its Spring Break, the television pundits had no vacation from playing the blame game on the poor state of the economy. The big feud that the media has mainly covered, and to some degree has promoted, was between the host of CNBC’s “Mad Money,” Jim Cramer, and Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” host, Jon Stewart.

The tension started when Jon Stewart did a commentary on CNBC financial editor Rick Santelli’s rant about not bailing out failing mortgage holders. Stewart not only criticized Santelli, but also delved into a six minute presentation on the mistakes that all CNBC shows had made regarding the stock market and the American economy in the recent months. Cramer took offense to this, and yelled that Stewart was just: “a comedian…who runs a variety show!” After verbal assaults on one another, Stewart invited Cramer to his show and devoted the majority of last Thursday’s episode on their debate.

In this showdown, which “The Daily Show” dubbed “Brawl Street,” Stewart turned from being just “a comedian” to a serious analyst on the economic reporting during this recession. This undoubtedly threw Cramer off; at certain points, Stewart looked more like the financial expert rather than Cramer.

Although Cramer did the best he could to defend his network, Stewart ultimately called out CNBC’s miscues on covering the economic problems in the last months. Stewart stated that the job of watching the state of the economy should lie within the financial news reporting and further said that “the financial news industry is not just guilty of a sin of omission but of commission.”

Cramer turned into a bumbling mess after this point in the interview, as he claimed that CEOs had lied to him on his show and that any information provided by them on “Mad Money” was not his fault. Stewart rebuffed that this is where Cramer should have done his share of research to dig deeper behind the quotes and that the information CEOs said to promote their corporations was actually correct – “I’m under the assumption that you don’t just take their words at face value,” Stewart said.

Trying to deflect this point by Stewart, Cramer noted that there are limits to what he can do as an economic commentator. However, Stewart countered with: “As Carly Simon would say, this song ain’t about you.” Stewart was not just answering Cramer’s argument with this statement; he was criticizing the media and their role in this financial collapse. The fact that the media is starting to take the government at its word and not question it is the main issue behind Stewart’s critique, which have seemingly been overlooked in this battle between Stewart and Cramer. Stewart has highlighted the problems behind CNBC and the financial news networks and their failure in not warning the people about the troubles that were going to doom the economy. From now on, these news agencies need to elevate the quality of their reporting, or else they can expect to be the next joke on “The Daily Show.”

This article was published in The Collegian, La Salle University's student newspaper.

GOP Divided At CPAC

2009-03-06T17:02:00.001-05:00

Following President Barack Obama’s de facto State of the Union speech to a joint-session of Congress, conservative activists such as Senator Ron Paul, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and writer Ann Coulter, attended the 36th annual Conservative Political Action Committee, CPAC, over the weekend.

After the Democrats’ victory in the November elections, the GOP seems to be in exile, as President Obama has expanded the government, especially with the signing of his stimulus package into law. Since Obama’s inauguration, the Republicans have been put in an awkward situation – either they work with the big government ideologies of the Democrats, or they stick to their conservative principals and continue to fight against President Obama and what his supporters.

In response, the Republicans, conservatives, and others that are against President Obama’s policies seem to have been fragmented into three different groups that seem to have been highlighted at the CPAC.

The first group consists of people who are going to continue to be outright against President Obama and the Democrats. This faction within the GOP is looking to Rush Limbaugh as their leader, who received the Defender of the Constitution Award at the CPAC. Limbaugh has publicly stated that he hopes that President Obama and his agenda will “fail” and has also asserted that the Republican Party in general has been reluctant to challenge Obama since he has become President.

The second group mainly comprises of moderate Republicans and those that believe that the Republicans can still work together with the Democratic majority in Congress. However, this faction was relatively unheard at the CPAC. Support has dwindled for this crowd since the passage of the stimulus package, in which Democrats only needed three Republicans to go along with the stimulus bill and they made sure got those three crucial GOP votes. To many Republicans, this was a sign that Obama’s message of bipartisan politics in Congress were untrue and that resolutions between the two parties were unrealistic.

The third group is usually labeled as the Libertarians or Constitutionalists, as their main goal is to see a small federal government. Therefore, they are against President Obama’s widening of the executive powers; yet, at the same time they cannot find support from the Republicans, who want to see civil regulations (i.e., gay marriage, abortion, etc.) and a strong national defense. This section of the conservatives were notably represented at the CPAC by Senator Ron Paul, who spoke about how both parties are not acting according to the Constitution and have thus devalued the reputation of the U.S. in foreign relations, civil liberties, and the economy.

So, where does this leave conservatives? The future is definitely not easy for them; as it appears that President Obama and his new administration looks to continue its liberal policies. The Republicans cannot even realistically challenge in 2010, since more Republican senators’ seats are up for grabs instead of Democrats. Instead, the conservatives must wait until 2012 until they can try to regain control of Washington D.C. again with both congressional and presidential elections. Even then, however, the prospect of a revival in conservative ideals and values looks bleak in America.

This article was published in The Collegian, La Salle University's student newspaper.

NFL Thanksgiving Coverage

2008-11-24T21:59:00.003-05:00

First off, before I do some NFL analyzing which I was going to do in this post originally -- have you noticed that when you order out food, the portions have become noticeably smaller? Is it because of the downward economy? Is it because people know you can screw around with take-out orders since they probably won't complain about it? Is it because of the rap music? President-Elect Barack Obama, please get on this.

Anyway, we'll be coming down the home stretch soon of the NFL 2008-09 season, and this is my favorite time of the NFL season because now we pretty much know where everybody stands, we can pick who's making the playoffs, and who's got the best shot at winning the Super Bowl.

So, without further ado, here's some points I got to mention:

An All New York Super Bowl IS a Possibility -- The Giants right now are the most complete team in the NFC. They can roll into any place, any time right now and win the game. They're leading the NFC at 10-1, and are undefeated in the NFC. Although they've got a somewhat tough schedule, I think there's no doubt they should be able to clinch homefield advantage. I have the Giants finishing at 12-4 or 13-3. They are the complete package right now. On the other hand, the New York Jets are blossoming right now after winning two big games -- one after the former great division rival Patriots and one with the former-undefeated Titans. The Jets are making some noise, as they are scoring the most points in the AFC and aren't sorry for it. And the rest of the Jets schedule this season isn't that bad: Broncos, 49ers, Bills, Seahawks, and Dolphins. All of these games are winnable. If the Jets keep this momentum and high-powered offense going, they could end up 12-4 or 13-3 as well. Giants VS Jets for the Super Bowl? Sounds exciting, as far as I'm concerned. But it would be a bummer that an all New York City Super Bowl would have to be played in Tampa Bay.
Donovan McNabb Is Done -- In this season where quarterbacks are achieving passing records in accuracy (i.e., Brett Favre has a record 70-75% completion rate in the last three games), Donovan McNabb is really disappointing. He's thrown one interception for every quarter he's been in for the last couple of games, and he's definitely not working with the Eagles' offense right now. Also, McNabb is 32 years old and is carrying a $10 million contract under the Eagles' salary cap. Whether you like it or not folks, McNabb's on his way out of Philly. The meltdown with the Baltimore Ravens was the cataylist needed to start McNabb's trip out of the Eagles' organization.
Is My Dream of an 0-16 NFL Season True?! -- This could be it, folks! The Detroit Lions could legitmately go 0-16 this season, much to my heart's delight! The Lions are right now 0-11, and here's the last 5 games of their season: Titans, Vikings, Colts, Saints, and the Packers. All of these teams are at least at .500, and all of them look to pick up wins over the Lions as the playoff hunt gets tighter and tighter. Only the Vikings look a little shady to me, but other than that, I think we could see the Lions go 0-16! HOORAY AT PERFECT IMPERFECTION! The Dolphins teased me last season when they went 1-15, but I think the Lions this year could go all the way...down in a hole in the ground to the center of the earth! 0-16, here we come!
WTF Fair Catch Kick Thing?! -- Honestly, did YOU know what was going on? I sure as hell didn't. Not to rehash my previous points, but can you imagine Donovan McNabb or the Lions (or better yet, Donovan McNabb with the Lions) trying to understand this?

We'll see how the rest of the NFL season turns out. I might have some time this Thanksgiving weekend to do some more NFL Coverage, but we'll see if the turkey does me in again...

Barack Obama Is The Next President -- Get Over It.

2008-11-09T12:13:00.004-05:00

Well, look-ee here! It's the upcoming 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama. While I will give props to McCain to running a valiant campaign, I must get this off of my chest:

All republicans, conservatives, and Nobama-ers, CHILL THE F*CK OUT! Barack Obama is going to be a different president than the ones we have seen before. There will be change. GET OVER IT.

Stop being dramatic, you tight-asses: Barack Obama is not going to destroy this country.

Now, I'm not saying that as a Gobama fanatic. I do not belong to either party and I consider myself a moderate. Obama will be handling the issues facing this country in a very different manner than before, but that doesn't mean it's the end of America. If anything, it might provide the solutions we need. Now, I know what the latest criticisms are. Here's the ones I actually do agree with (just to establish I can criticize "the Messiah"):

Being "The Messiah" -- Yeah, some people are viewing Obama's victory as to end to all of our problems. Well, it won't be. The real work begins January 20th at noon, when Obama finally takes the Oath of Office and starts dealing with the issues facing the U.S.
Forcing kids to do community service -- If Obama tries to do this, there will be a backlash against helping others in society. I'll give you Nobama-ers this one.
Meeting Under "No Pre-conditions" -- Obama shouldn't have mentioned this. I am a big fan of Theodore Roosevelt, and of course, one of his major beliefs was to 'Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick.' So, I will also give this is the Nobama-ers.

Now, to all the people that say this:

"Socialist Redistribution of Wealth" -- Don't you think it's unfair that the top 1% of this country owns 50% of all the money/goods in America? Screw those wealthy assholes. They can afford to give a little more back to society. Trickle-down ecomonics used to work when the rich would give money back to the U.S. Economy; but, now they keep the money. It's time to end this.
Obama's Not Experienced -- No. You try running a presidential campaign facing the relentless press every single day for 2 years, having to defeat the biggest leaders in your own political party (especially knocking off Hillary Clinton), then finally winning over the American public against the other party's candidate. Oh, and you got to do all of this being a minority and promoting a liberal agenda. He's got experience as far as I'm concerned.
He's Weak on Foreign Issues -- He might be. That's why he's got Biden as his Vice President. (By the way, what the hell was Palin picked for...to help change McCain's diapers?) Obama is trying to use diplomacy and peace first, instead of fighting. You know, THINKING instead of acting recklessly.
"He doesn't really love America." -- How f*cking stupid are you?

I know, some of you are still going to hate Obama for the next four years and will refuse to get over it. For you, I would just like to mention this quote from Obama when he gave his victory speech on Election Night.

...And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too.

Whether you like him or not, Barack Obama is your president. And he loves America just as much as you or I do. That's how I know he's not going to destroy this nation. If he sticks to the agenda that he ran on, there's no reason why he shouldn't be a good president.

Phillies FTW!

2008-10-30T23:29:00.004-04:00

I never thought I would say that. But this graphic (done by Mr. PacDude Games himself, Cory Anotado) confirms that this isn't a dream...

So, Phinally, Phantastic, and any other adjective that you can change the front letters into a Ph and have it still sound correctly. PHILADELPHIA, THE WAIT IS OVER!

Philadelphia Phillies are your 2008 World Series Champions!

Powell Power!

2008-10-20T11:01:00.003-04:00

I told you I would write another blog during this mid-semester break, so here we go:

On Sunday's "Meet The Press", Colin Powell, former Secretary of State under George W. Bush from 2001-2005, officially announced he would vote for Barack Obama in this upcoming presidential election. Although Powell served under three Republican administrations, he is supporting Democratic candidate Obama because of the disturbing turn that the Republican party and their candidate John McCain have taken during this campaign. You can see Powell's endorsement for Obama here.

My Points:

Sure, this doesn't guarantee a victory for Obama or anything. In fact, McCain gained a point or two over the weekend in the national polls. However, this is more a blow to McCain rather than a boost to Obama. This shows how some Republicans are jumping off the Straight Talk Express or whatever the hell that stupid thing was called. Some Republicans are actually thinking about the future of society and are realizing this guy is not the President we need in the White House right now (and it sure as hell isn't "Bimbo" Sarah Palin). Four more years of conservative politics will lead America into more turmoil than it will have ever faced before. The United States simply cannot afford it.
Powell didn't really mention it, but sort of touched on this (and I agree with him on this) -- The far right scares me more than the far left. You can make the argument with this: who would be a better President -- Sarah Palin (far-right bimbo who actually tried to get books out of public libraries about evolution/darwinism in Alaska) or Barack Obama ("the most liberal Senator in the last two years"). Keep in mind that McCain is 72 years old, so Palin could actually become President, which scares the sh*t out of me. What's the worse Obama has done -- done pot and cocaine in high school? Middle name is Hussein? Obama is not that bad of a politician. Sure, he will raise taxes...FOR THE WEALTHY! Not for the 90% of Americans that don't make over $250,000 a year! Obama is easily the better choice over Palin. Sling that Palin bullsh*t somewhere else.
Powell also brought up the fear that Obama might be Muslim (which has been proven over and over again, Barack Obama is a Christian). But, it shouldn't fricking matter. We live in a government where there is a separation between church and state! If Obama was an atheist, I would still vote for him. Religion should not play that big of a role in deciding who should be the next President of the United States. When it comes to politics and deciding what's best for the nation, we shouldn't be Jewish or Christian or Muslim, we should be Americans first and foremost.

In conclusion, Barack Obama has the Powell Power! (bad joke there...) One more thing: since Powell came up in the news headlines, you should check out this George Carlin joke. Anyways, we'll see how the next two weeks goes down in this history books!

I was in the 7th layer of hell and that's why I haven't updated this blog...

2008-10-16T16:05:00.003-04:00

...uh, nope.

Sorry about the absence, things are picking up and I haven't had some time to delve into the headlines as much as I wanted to with this blog. My bad.

Until I get some free time (actually this weekend, since we have a mid-semester break), I'll get back to some of my regular news briefs.

Oh, by the way, here's why Obama's defeating McCain:

"McCain = Bush" Dangerous?

2008-08-15T10:50:00.005-04:00

Finally, I'm taking a break from sports. You know there's a presidential election going on? Yeah, I kind of forgot about it, too, with all the hoopla from the Favre trade and the Olympics.

Before I start my post off, please recognize that I am for Barack Obama in this election. Do not complain to me that this article isn't neutral because, chances are to most McCain-iacs, this article will seem like it has a negative disposition towards McCain. It probably does. That's your warning.

Now, then, to the story. Republican presidential nominee John McCain loves to hold his "open" town-hall meetings, where he can address individual questions on the spot. On July 7th, 2008, McCain held another one of these "open" town-hall meetings in Denver, Colorado. You understand the word "open"? Free for the public to come and ask their questions in a non-dangerous manner, free from possible censorship?

A 61-year-old librarian was walking into the "open" town-hall meeting that day, only armed with a sign that simply read: "McCain = Bush." That's all. She didn't have any Obama stickers, Democratic Party pamphlets, cool T-Shirts, laptops, internets, kids, or, you know, anything else that could be conceived as anti-McCain. All she had was her sign.

Well, McCain's security decided that this 61-year-old librarian was a threat to his well-being at the town-hall meeting and promptly asked her to leave or be charged with trespassing (on an "Open" town-hall meeting? Doesn't sound very open to me...). She refused, and was actually issued a ticket by Denver cops, who had just shown up to the scene, citing Trespassing as the crime and with a court hearing. The police then ordered her off the premises immediately or be arrested. By then, the 61-year-old librarian decided enough was enough and headed out of the town-hall meeting.

Here's my points on this:

This lady is 61 years old. Shouldn't McCain be respecting the people that are most likely going to make up his voter base?
What was the worse this 61-year-old librarian could do, hurt McCain by asking him to critically think on today's issues? Reminding McCain that he is, in fact, history?
Her sign read "McCain = Bush." Now, that is a popular tactic to make McCain unappealing to voters. However, think about it like this. Bush was the last two-term Republican President since Ronald Reagan. Bush was hailed by Republicans as being the right leader during 9/11 and the War on Terror. Bush was deemed as one of the few world leaders to be religiously faithful. Shouldn't McCain have some honor for Bush, especially considering he's running as the Republican nominee? If Bush is so low on respect, then why were Republicans loving him back in his first term, and why should we support McCain now? It isn't a good sign when a political party is shying away from its last elected president.

Folks, I know I am for Obama in this election, but the moves that McCain has been making don't seem to make that much sense to me. McCain is running for the office of President of the United States, one of the most important jobs in the world, and it seems to me he is just in this election to make sure the status quo remains in Washington, D.C. We'll see how he does come November.

Go Favre Yourself, New York!

2008-08-08T13:53:00.006-04:00

Well, folks, it finally happened. Late Wednesday night, the iconic legend of the Green Bay Packers was traded from the team he had spent the last 15 seasons with to the New York Jets. It was very sad to see the beloved number four leave Green Bay, but now that we know where Favre's going to play his 276th consecutive start as quarterback, we know that now the drama is resolved and the soap opera is over.

Are you kidding me? You would have to be absolute moron to believe that. This story is just going to get juicer.

Brett Favre, now at 38 (soon to be 39 in October), is leaving the small city life at Green Bay where he was adored as a football god, to the biggest media frenzy that the world has to offer, New York City. Favre's going to be in exile now from the heaven that was Green Bay -- if Favre can't improve the Jets by at least making them a postseason team, New York fans are going to criticize him every week of the 2008-09 season. You thought this whole retirement thing was madness this summer, wait next off-season if Favre doesn't do well with the Jets -- New Yorkers are going to demand Favre's retirement. And I know, for a fact, there are two groups of fans you should never disobey -- Philadelphia fans and New York fans. They are just that crazy about their sports. Favre won't be playing the "Will-I-Retire-Or-Not?" game anymore, not with New York's attention on him. For Favre, it's either playoffs with the Jets or retirement.

To even add more drama to this Brett Favre saga:

The New York Jets will play "Football's Best Team" (though, how can they be if they choked in the Super Bowl?), the New England Patriots, twice. How will Favre stack up against Tom Brady? Can Favre still play as good as today's best?
The New York Giants (shouldn't they be the best team since they, you know, won the Super Bowl?), even though they won the Super Bowl last season, have been kept out of the press lately due to this whole Favre going to the Jets deal. You know that when the NFL Season starts, the New York media is going to compare how Favre's Jets are doing compared to the other New York team, the Giants. Who really is going to be "New York's Team" when the 2008 season is over?
How will Aaron Rodgers fare? The man who the Green Bay Packers (and Michael Silver) have so much confidence in has some big shoes to fill. Rodgers has to lead the Packers to win the division or at the very least a wildcard playoff spot or else the Packers are really going to have egg (or cheese in this case?) on their face (oh and a conditional draft pick next year? What, that's all the Packers could get for Favre? That's getting hosed.). Rodgers is another person Favre's going to be compared to throughout this season.

As for me, personally, I am very disappointed that the Green Bay Packers couldn't just welcome Favre back into their organization, but they had to do what they had to do, and like Favre said about this trade: "It's business." Favre should be back with the Pack, but alas, instead we, the loyal Favre fans, will be cheering "J-E-T-S! JETS! JETS! JETS!" this season. Yep, we're trading the cheeseheads for ... an airplane-head-type-of-hat? Well, at least the color is still green, just got to get wash away the yellow to make it white, so at least we caught a break there.

Oh, by the way, isn't there some sort of athletic spectacle that takes place once every four years happening? Someone's going to have to remind me if that's still taking place. Or maybe I'm just hallucinating from all the Brett Favre coverage I've been doing.

Michael Silver, You're Officially On My Sh*t List.

2008-08-05T23:14:00.004-04:00

Well, folks, I'm back from the shore, and the sports world is still talking about the gossip of the Brett Favre saga. Now, I have stated my opinions on this before, and some honorable writers have disagreed with me, which is fine, as per their American right to do so. However, to insult the intelligence of fans of Favre (like me) is taking this drama to another level, which is exactly what Yahoo Sports writer Michael Silver has done is his latest journalistic piece of crap.

Did you click all the hyperlinks there? Good.

Now, for those that have lost track on the Favre story, the quarterback was recently granted permission from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to return back to active duty with the Green Bay Packers. Instead of the "open arms" that was promised to Favre (which only the fans were able to give him), Favre was met with criticism from the Packers' front office, head coach Mike McCarthy, and general manager Ted Thompson. In a sudden development, McCarthy said that after "brutally honest" conversations with Favre, he believes that Favre just isn't in the right mind-set to lead the Packers. Much speculation is now focused on a Favre trade, most likely to Tampa Bay Buccaneers if the Packers decide to follow that heinous route.

After this, Michael Silver decides to write an article to announce his man-love and boy-crush-affection on the successor of the Packers' quarterback job, Aaron Rodgers. Silver opens his column with a martyr-like story of how a fan said that Rodgers "wasn't Brett" and that he "sucks." Well, Mr. Silver, that's because Aaron Rodgers is indeed not Brett Favre and he does, in fact, suck in comparison to the great number four. Maybe you should get that through your greased up head before you start elevating Rodgers to Favre's iconic status. Mr. Silver then makes the unnecessarily rude remark that:

"...if you believe that [Favre] will soon be leaving Green Bay because those merciless meanies [Green Bay Packers' Organization] just didn’t want poor ol’ Brett around, you’ve got more than cheese clouding your head."

Mr. Silver, good job at insulting thousands of die-hard Packers fans who want Favre back to their team. I'm sure that they would love to meet with you to discuss the differences you have with about their idol. I just think that you're too much of a scared rat to do so. You're not even worthy of even smelling a 25-year-old used Green Bay Packers' cheesehead hat for that quote.

Silver then comes back to his man-crush with Rodgers saying that he "did what Favre can’t seem to do these days: He kept his cool." No, Favre has kept his cool throughout this whole ordeal. He has never lashed out against the Packers and has always kept the option open that he would like to come back to the team that made him a legend in the first place. And Rodgers hasn't been "cool," either -- he's just kept his mouth shut; you know, something a backup quarterback should do. If anything, I would say Rodgers has been chilly this whole time; and just as the late George Carlin says: "Chilly has never been cool."

Then, Silver goes over four things Favre "should" have done during this whole Brett Favre/Green Bay Packers disaster. I will go through them and prove them wrong with my usual flawless logic (ego there...):

Not attend the Green Bay Packers' scrimmage game -- Mr. Silver, you want Favre to lie down? Play dead for the Packers organization, perhaps? Screw you, Mr. Silver. Real heroes never stay down for the count.
Apologize to McCarthy and Thompson for having called them dishonest, and assure his bosses he had overcome his ill feelings and was embracing a return to the organization under any terms -- Again, screw you, Mr. Silver for wanting Favre to lie down and to act like the pussycat you are.
Show up for practice on Tuesday, wave to the adoring fans, meet with reporters afterward and tell them, 'I just want a chance to compete for my job and help this team' -- Brett Favre is a 9-time Pro Bowler, 3-time NFL Most Valuable Player, and holds the most victories as a starting quarterback in NFL history (and that's only some of his accolades). There is no way a player of Favre's caliber should even have to fight with Rodgers for the starting quarterback job. Favre is going to be an instant Hall-of-Famer when he's eligible, and the Packers are just tossing him aside in this mess. Now, with that in mind, what makes you think Favre would "help this team" if he didn't even have a starting job with the Packers? It's simply not logical, Mr. Silver.
Quietly push for a trade or his outright release and wait for the Packers...to blink first -- First of all, nothing is done quietly these days, so that part of this action is not part realistic. Second, Favre has been asking that if the Packers don't have any plans for him, that they should trade or release him. It's just that the Packers haven't done so. So, what, you want Favre to just wait in limbo while the Packers decide what to do, Mr. Silver? No, Favre can't afford to do that, especially with the 2008 NFL Season starting in a month.

Silver then finishes his toilet-paper worthy article with the following about Aaron Rodgers' "maturity" (even though Rodgers has only been in 7 games in the last 3 seasons):

"Hopefully, that maturity will start to rub off on Favre – and the fans who can’t find the grace to cope with the fact that their hero willfully abandoned them."

Favre has matured. He knows how to play the game. And that's the bottom line when you're deciding who should be the leader of your team. Who can play the game better than Favre? The answer is simply no one. So, why have the Packers backed themselves into a corner with this whole Favre ordeal? There really hasn't been any logic in the Packers' moves lately. The fault of this, lies sorely on the Green Bay Packers Organization and their Front Office, not Brett Favre. And if Michael Silver doesn't realize it, then I question the value of Yahoo Sports for letting an atrociously bloated article like this be published as the top headline on their site.

Well, now you guys know why Michael Silver is on my proverbial sh*t list. And if Yahoo Sports keeps this kind of reporting up, they might be the next entry on it.

The A-11 Offense

2008-07-31T12:04:00.005-04:00

I got sent this interesting tidbit of information a couple of days ago, and I thought I should share this with you guys before I go down the shore this weekend (to quote Nelson from The Simpsons: "HA HA!"). Now, I know baseball is hitting its home stretch of the season, but I can't help but love football all throughout the year, so when I read about this, I knew I had to talk (blog) about it.

In some high schools, coaches are preparing to use the highly unusual formation known as the A-11 Offense. At first, this formation seems to be just plain retarded, but actually if you think about this formation as how the defense has to block against it, it's quite unique (in a good way). Here's how it breaks down:

One Center -- obviously, to hike the football
Two Tight Ends -- one positioned to the left of center, one positioned to the right of center
Six Wide Receivers -- three positioned to the left and three positioned to the right
Two Quarterbacks -- both positioned in the shotgun, with one to the left and one to the right

Now, when I first read this, I thought just like you guys did -- whoever actually uses this in a football game isn't going to have a coaching job anytime soon. But, think about this strategy in terms of how the defense has to control this unusual formation:

The defense must cover all 6 wide receivers, or else risk giving up big yardage.
Sure, only the center and the tight ends are protecting the quarterbacks, but with 6 guys covering the receivers (and for the conservative defensive coordinator, possibly adding one safety for zone support), the maximum number of guys the defense can send is four or five blitzers, at the most.
Remember, there are two quarterbacks in this, so not only can either one of them throw the ball, they can throw the ball to each other if they get stuck in a tight situation. Also, when they start the play, they are in the shotgun, so they have a good look at the field in case they feel a blitz is coming.
The biggest advantage to this formation: Every man on the offense is an eligible receiver. The quarterbacks, the wide receivers, the tight ends, and the center all can catch the ball if a play breaks down and they need to make a play with the football. No other formation in football lets an offense get away with this.

Now, obviously, this formation is only for the pass-heavy offenses. No running backs need apply in this A-11 Offense. With that in mind, consider that in the NFL:

Most of the time, running backs are only as spectacular as their offensive line is, and most NFL teams usually don't have the complete 1-2 package of both offensive line and running back.
The career span of a running back has shortened considerably. By the time a running back is 28 or 29 years old, they're nothing but old, injury-prone broken engines (see Shaun Alexander if you think that's not true).
Most elusive running backs often catch the ball now in addition to running the ball (see Brian Westbrook).

Now, I'm not saying that there will be no running offense in the future. Far from it, I still believe establishing the run is one of the most important factors to success in football. But its importance has deteriorated somewhat in the NFL (see Andy Reid, who's willing to pass the ball 80% of the time during a game if he feels like it). With this crack in the foundation of the running game, maybe we will see new formations with more wide receivers than before. I'm not saying the A-11 Offense is the offense of the future; it hasn't even been tried out on the collegiate level yet. But, nevertheless, this A-11 Offense is a sign that football is evolving, and that this era might be the crucial intermediary period where we could be on the verge of a different football unlike anything fans have ever seen before. Keep your eyes open.

Around The Horn Again...

2008-07-24T10:15:00.005-04:00

Another week of headlines has gone by and some of them have been huge, so I got to go over them. It's time to go around the horn with the news!

All Star Game = World Series What? -- Last week, Major League Baseball had their annual All-Star Game. Now, in the MLB, the team that wins the All-Star Game gets home-field advantage for their league's team that makes it to the World Series. This has been in effect for a couple of seasons now, with the American League being undefeated since this rule was in force, and last week's All-Star Game was no different. It was a very competitive game, going into 15 innings, but in the end, the American League still won and kept home-field advantage to themselves for the World Series. Nevertheless, this rule is a stupid way to determine who gets home-field advantage in the World Series, because it relies on the outcome of a supposedly "exhibition" All-Star Game. But try telling that to FOX, who uses this rule to promote the All-Star Game as one of the biggest games of the year, especially with the slogan: "This Time, It Counts." And, like The Simpsons, we can't believe how low FOX will sink to produce ratings.

E3 Results -- Also last week was the major video games extravaganza meeting known as E3. Here, each brand of video games tried to sell their product with news about upcoming features, games, etc. Here is my power rankings of the consoles right now. The Gold easily goes to Microsoft and its XBox 360. With the shocking news that the next Final Fantasy game was not going to be PlayStation-Exclusive anymore, a complete XBox 360 Dashboard Update, and the XBox's new Avatar for gamers feature, Microsoft picked up the win at E3. The Silver goes to Sony and its PlayStation 3 (PS3). Massive Action Game looks amazing (you can have up to 150 players in battle!) and the 40 gig model PS3 got upgraded to 80 gig, but other than that, they left no word on the release of PlayStation Home (which is supposed to be one of the major features of PlayStation online), and didn't premiere anything monumental for the PS3. Last, but definietly least, the crappy bronze goes to Nintendo and the Wii. Nintendo pretty much had no exciting news and the games they tried to show off were very disappointing. They even revealed that they are actually trying to promote a Nintendo-stand-alone version of "Rock Band," which looked ridicious. How exactly has Nintendo sold more Wiis than PS3s or XBox 360s, again?

The Dark Knight -- See it. Now. No joke. This movie is truly "The Godfather, Part II" of superhero movies. It is one of the few movies that not only lived up to the hype (which there was a lot of, considering Heath Ledger's death, the aggressive viral marketing campaign, and not to mention a fricking 18-wheeler being flipped up into the air and onto its back, which was NOT fake or computer generated but was a real stunt) but surpassed it. I would agree that Ledger should get a posthumous Oscar nod, but what really surprised me was Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent (Two-Face) and Gary Oldman as Comissioner Gordon. They both acted just as well as Ledger and Christian Bale, and together the whole movie just seems like one fast-paced adventure ride like no other. Trust me -- it will be the fastest two and a half hours of your life.

I Like...Uh...Nas? -- Folks, I know I'm pretty gangsta (WTF?), but I never really got into hardcore rap. It's just me, I only really liked Eminem, Dr. Dre, and Snoop Dogg. But, in the headlines, rapper Nas is number one on the charts with his untitled album _____. The reason I am bringing this up is that in this untitled album _____, Nas goes after Fox News Channel and Bill O'Reilly, who have been very critical of Nas and gangsta rap. I'm just glad that someone other than me realizes the stupidity of Fox News Channel. Nas goes so far as to call Fox News racist, though I can see why. So, Nas, I probably won't buy your album, but I support your fight. Go Nas!

Watch Out For Europe -- We started with sports, so let's end with sports, this time basketball. In a Yahoo News story, NBA Players feel more open to possibility of leaving the league to head to Europe. Basketball is starting to get big over in Europe, and various European teams have been contacting the NBA's free agents. Why would an NBA Player head over to Europe? Two reasons. First, basketball in Europe tends to rely more on the three S's: Size, Strength, and Smarts. There really isn't a need for explosive players, so there's a more of a chance for aging NBA Players to play in Europe (recent rumors indicate 35-year-old Jason Kidd is interested). Secondly, and probably the most important reason, taxes paid on a European player's contract are significant less than those on an American contract. Dwayne Wade joked: "If they [Europe] offer me $40 million a year and no taxes, I might have to go over there." He might have been kidding around for now, but maybe in a couple of seasons, who knows? Some of today's NBA headliners could be tomorrow's European superstars.

Why did I fall for The Leader of The Pack?

2008-07-15T12:07:00.004-04:00

Alright, I was gone for another week due to unforeseen babysitting time with my two nephews and my one niece. But, now, I think I'm free this week, so I'm back hunting for the latest news and in the week I have been gone, there is big drama coming from my favorite NFL player of all-time, Brett Favre.

For those that don't follow Brett Favre, he was the star (legend?) of the Packers as their starting quarterback since 1992. On March 4th, 2008, Favre, who is 38 years old, announced he was retiring from the NFL. This retirement news actually was sort of shocking, considering that after last season Favre and the Green Bay Packers made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game, where they lost to the eventual Super Bowl Champions, the New York Giants. Nevertheless, though, NFL fans said good-bye to him, and thought that he had sailed off into the sunset and we would later hear from him when he would get inducted into the NFL Hall-of-Fame in a couple of years....

Boy, were we wrong about that.

Favre, just 4 months after his retirement announcement, has announced that he would like another shot in football. Unfortunately, though, the Packers have already started getting Aaron Rodgers (the former back-up to Favre) ready to go this season. The Packers then offered Favre an "undefined position" with the team. Favre denied this, saying that if he decides to come back in the NFL, he wants to be starting quarterback again and not anything else.

When Favre realized he would not be starting for the Packers now, he asked the Green Bay Packers to let him go on an unconditional release, which would let Favre shop around to different NFL teams. The Packers have denied Favre's request, probably because if they are going to actually lose Favre to a different team, they might as well make a trade out of it and get something out of this whole dramatic soap opera. As of now, Favre and the Green Bay Packers currently are in a standstill, waiting for the next event to in this story to happen.

Now, here's my points on this, because (yes...I'm still supporting Favre; I love Brett Favre just as much as John Madden does) I think the Green Bay Packers organization are at fault here.

Forced Into Retirement -- With the free agency period starting and the NFL Draft approaching back in March, Favre was forced to make a decision to either go 100% with the Packers or retire. Now, after spending 15 years in football, giving your best every week during an NFL Season, and just losing in the NFC Championship Game, the possibility of retiring from football is going to seem better than returning to the game. It's just the mentality of getting done a NFL season; it strains you, both physically and mentally. Favre even admitted to an AP Reporter that he was guilty of "retiring too early." The Packers forced him to make a decision immediately and he chose what he thought was going to be the right thing to do for him and his family.
No Aggressive Moves By The Pack -- This primarily stems from two years ago, when star wide receiver Randy Moss was available on the trading block. Favre, who knew that his team had some possibilities, pleaded with the Packers to go after him. Favre even said he would give up some of his own salary to pay for Moss to sign with the team. What did the Packers do? Offered a crappy deal, and let Moss go off to the New England Patriots. Favre has a right to be pissed off at the Green Bay Packers: they don't go after star players, and instead rely on their rookie talents and NFL Draft picks to become better (which actually worked last season, until their inexperience was shown in the playoffs). Well, Favre doesn't have the years left on his career for it, so I think he knew he would have to get out of Green Bay eventually.
Favre Is Still Not Certain -- Favre stated that although he "has the itch" to come back into the NFL, he realizes that "the bottom line is that I might not play anywhere." So, maybe all of this hoopla is for nothing, but nevertheless, he wants to keep his options open but the Packers are closing them by not releasing (or trading) him. Favre wants to see if it would be worth it for him to return to the NFL, which is something the Packers don't want Favre to view at all.

I certainly hope that all of this nonsense gets taken care of soon before the minicamps and the preseason start. As for me, I think it would be cool to see Favre play for one more season, whether it be with the Packers (though that's 99% not going to happen) or with another team. Regardless of how this drama unfolds, I still believe Favre is the best NFL player of the current era, and as far as I'm concerned, he is still The Leader of The Pack.

Uh, do you really want this title belt?

2008-07-08T17:34:00.003-04:00

Well folks, I am back from my holiday break and it was the most ridiculous holiday weekend ever. My friends know what I am talking about, so to everyone else, just ignore this paragraph and get straight to the story:

Now, I am a fan of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), but this move seriously questions my faith in one of WWE's three brands, SmackDown. If you don't know WWE, each brand of WWE (Raw, SmackDown, and ECW) have their own unique titles that are exclusive on each show. Unfortunately for female wrestlers, the Women's Championship is exclusive to Raw, so it sucks if you're a woman on SmackDown or ECW because you couldn't compete for anything.

Well, not anymore! Announced a while ago, SmackDown's General Manager, Vickie Guerrero, announced she would created a special "WWE Divas' Championship" for SmackDown that would counter Raw's Women's Championship. Now, I am all for everybody having an equal chance at titles that they deserve, but then I got a sneek peek at the design of the WWE Divas' Championship, and I revoked my support of this title. Here, take a look:

Seriously, would you like to wear this title belt? I know I wouldn't. Maybe a five-year-old girl would want this, but not a professional female wrestler. SmackDown Divas should be offended by this piece of sh*t championship belt. Or maybe it's just me.

Seattle SuperFAIL

2008-07-03T14:03:00.007-04:00

Of course, I took my holiday vacation too early. Late last night, Clay Bennett, the current owner of the Seattle SuperSonics announced that his franchise will pay $75 million to leave Seattle and move to Oklahoma City. Bennett has stated that the franchise will have to start anew in Oklahoma City, as Seattle was allowed to keep the "SuperSonics" logo and colors, in case someone decided to revive a future Seattle basketball team.

Now, if you haven't been following NBA lately, here are the reasons for this move:

It's Business: The KeyArena, where the SuperSonics had their home games, has becoming the smallest venue of a professional NBA team (according to wikipedia, it's can only hold 17,000 fans) and is currently 46 years old (was built in 1962). Bennett claims there was so much "miscommunication" with the city of Seattle about building a new arena that it just wasn't worth the effort. So, with this move, the franchise can get a better stadium in Oklahoma City.
It's Personal: Oklahoma City is Bennett's hometown. So, why not relocate your crappy team closer to home? In addition, Oklahoma City's The Ford Center (which was the home of the New Orleans Hornets during Hurricane Katrina) received a $121.6 million bond in March of 2008 to expand its arena. The Ford Center is building up its potential, and there's no better way to do that than with a professional sports team coming to town.

In conclusion, if you're a Seattle sports fan, you should probably go cry in the rain -- the Mariners have the worst record in the American League, the Seahawks might be able to win the crappy division they're in but lose the first playoff game, and now they have no NBA team. To Seattle, you just experienced what the internets like to call EPIC FAIL.

My Stimulus Package & My Holiday Break

2008-07-01T15:23:00.004-04:00

Alright, folks. No big news headlines to report, so I guess I'm going to coast on through this post. Assuming no other big news stories happen this week, I'm going to take a break from this blog but I will be back after the Independence Day holiday weekend. So don't fret, my fellow reader, I will be back soon. In the meantime, check out the Stimulus Package Music Video. You won't believe what these guys can do with their Stimulus checks. So, until we meet again, I'm your reporter in the field, Rich Liebig, and I'm wishing you a great holiday weekend! See you guys next week!

No North Pole + No Sony = Bad Christmas

2008-06-27T11:32:00.007-04:00

I'm going to cover two news headlines today. Let's get to the first one. According to livescience.com, the Arctic sea ice could break apart completely at the North Pole this year. This potential thaw of the North Pole would be the first time ever in human history that the North Pole would be ice-free. Now, if this does not confirm the fact that Global Warming is happening, then I have to seriously question your judgment. Naysayers, just stop the bull right now. You can't hide it anymore. Literally, you can't hide it -- THE DAMN NORTH POLE IS MELTING INTO OBLIVION! But, of course, the Bush Administration continues to do nothing about it, so I guess, in the words of George Carlin, "WE'RE SO F***ING DANDY!" about the issue. So much for saving the planet. Click on the title of this post to go to the livescience.com article.

And here's the second thing I wanted to cover -- Late last night, Sony released their 2008 annual budget report, which detailed how they LOST 3.3 BILLION DOLLARS on the PlayStation 3!!! Yes -- that's not a misspelling; it really is billions. Can you believe this? How did Sony fall this far from grace? They owned the 6th generation of video games with their PlayStation 2, but now, they find themselves stumbling just to present a sound fiscal report for the PS3. How could you let this happen? Oh, I know...YOU START CHARGING $399 to $599 for one of your consoles! For God's sake, it's cheaper to get a computer than it is to get a PS3! Sony...shame on you. I have no sympathy for Sony. They dug their own grave as far as I'm concerned. (Though, I would still like to get a PS3...would love to see a Blu-Ray DVD...)

Who's Gonna Get The "Ticket to Ride?"

2008-06-25T12:31:00.004-04:00

A very interesting Beatles battle is raging on. The "Guitar Hero" versus the "Rock Band" rivalry just got cranked up a little bit, as both big music video games are trying to snag some Beatles hits for their upcoming games at the end of the year. The question is, will either side get the rights to make Beatles songs on their platform? The current Beatles' representative of their songs is Apple Corps (not the same Apple company that makes iPods, iPhones, etc.). This company is known for not letting anything Beatles-oriented get anything farther than a CD case. Hopefully, this year, it will be on a PS2, PS3, Wii, or XBox 360 disc.

I'll admit the Beatles are great, and having their songs being playable to gamers would be cool, but I think there are two possible ways this could backfire on "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band:"

For "Guitar Hero," if they score the Beatles songs exclusively, they HAVE to make a full edition just by itself. They wouldn't be able to put a song on Guitar Hero 4, and then another one on Guitar Hero 5. They HAVE to make a full edition of Guitar Hero: The Beatles because they did it for Aerosmith (who, sorry Aero-fans, is not even on the same plane of existence as The Beatles...or for that manner, The Rolling Stones, either...) and they're going to do it for Metallica (who is a cool heavy metal band, but still, isn't as monumental as the Beatles). So, if "Guitar Hero" gets the Beatles, don't expect the songs soon.
If both video games get the songs, which games is going to get which songs? If "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band" do get the rights to do the Beatles, this scenario is likely. Personally, I would like "Helter Skelter" (could be an excellent encore song), "Day Tripper," "Get Back," and "Yellow Submarine." I don't think the more emotional songs are going to work for these games, except maybe "Hey Jude" (talk about a finale song...). Whichever songs each video games gets would be crucial to success.

Nevertheless, this jump to grab the Beatles songs into the "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band" games shows the monumental affect these music video games has had on our culture -- it has introduced music fans of all ages to different kinds of music, whether it be as old as The Beatles or as recent as OK Go. (Though, if you like rap, you're not really in this. Oh well, current rap sucks right now...that's why its 'C-rap'...) So, good luck "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band" games in getting these Beatles songs...though I would recommend some of my Rolling Stones...but hey, it's all jolly good fun, right, ol' chap?

The Last Laugh

2008-06-23T10:01:00.006-04:00

I was very sad waking up to find that in the news, George Carlin, one of my favorite comedians ever (definitely the in the top 5 stand-up comedians ever), passed away...er...DIED...Sunday night (he hated that euphemism). He died of heart failure after being admitted to St. John's Health Center earlier that day, complaining of chest pains. He was 71.

I tried to look at Carlin through my unusual viewpoints, but it was hard considering he was such an inspiration for me. So, instead, I'll just mention these key points and then go watch some of his stand-up clips on the youtubes:

I can't believe he's dead. I mean, I just saw George Carlin yesterday. Damn, it didn't help.
I'm going to keep George Carlin in my thoughts. The only problem is I don't know where my thoughts are...
Heart failure? I lost my grandfather the same way. I guess I need to still look for him.
You might say he's smiling down at us now, but I say he's far too busy with other celestial activities to be "smiling down at us." I just hope that he's not smiling UP at us.
George Carlin better be sitting on a cloud, taking a harp lesson. He worked so hard on Earth, that he definitely earned a break.

I guess, though, in the end, George Carlin has the last laugh on death. Because anything that people will say or do in the following grief-period, Carlin has already commented on. I suppose the only thing we can do about George Carlin's death is to look back on his hilarious comedy, remember what he stood for, and to continue to critically think about our past, present, and future societies.

Special Super Segment of Sports

2008-06-19T11:51:00.003-04:00

...or what I like to call "SSSS." I'm going to do an all-around sports news overview today, since there we no other big headlines in the news, except for the flooding in the Midwest, but I'm not an expert in natural disasters. There was also the funeral for Tim Russert, may he rest in peace; but other than that, no major news. Anyway, let's go around the horn of sports:

NBA: The Celtics are looking good as the new NBA Champions, but where does this leave the Los Angeles Lakers? LA Times Sportswriter Bill Plaschke commented that the League MVP Kobe Bryant, who Lakers fans were resting their Championship hopes on, was "AWFUL" and is definitely "not Michael Jordan." Bryant might be the MVP, but this 2008 postseason proved that scoring looks good on the highlight reels, but teamwork still wins championships. How are the Lakers going to rebound next season, especially in one of the toughest conferences ever in the history of the NBA? Obviously it can't rely solely on Kobe. That's why the future of the Lakers will depend on Andrew Bynum, the young 7 foot center who was injured and couldn't play for the Lakers when they needed him the most -- in the playoffs. If Bynum can perform, then the Lakers can put Pau Gasol as a power forward, Kobe should get more second chances at missed shots, and then the trio should be able to do well next season. But it really will depend if Bynum, the "A-Train," is ready to go full steam ahead. And by the way Lamar Odom fans, don't expect to see him in a Lakers' jersey next year.
NFL: There's just some minicamps and NFL players going to parties and being robbed and getting knocked unconscious. Nothing big here. But, I'll give you two big predictions I'm making about the 2008 season:

BUY -- San Diego Chargers: Remember last year? They made it all the way to the AFC Championship game until they lost to the Patriots. And for the 2008-09 season, they got the 2nd easiest schedule (in terms of strength of schedule). They're also in a relatively weak division (what competition, The Broncos? The Chiefs?) in the AFC West. As long as Philip Rivers is playing smart football, there's no reason the Chargers shouldn't be back in the Super Bowl hunt.
SELL -- Indianapolis Colts: The Colts are stuck in a tough division (the Jaguars really could storm back in 2008; Titans and Texans are also somewhat decent) and have the second hardest schedule. Also, I'm sorry, but I just don't believe in Peyton Manning. Sure, he'll give you all the numbers you want in the season, but when he hits the playoffs, he buckles. I know he's a cool guy (with the charity he does and his SNL skits), but I really believe he's one of the overrated players in the league. Don't believe me? Check this out: Excluding the 2006 Super Bowl run, Peyton is just 3-7 career-wise in the postseason. And even in that 2006 Super Bowl run, Peyton was the only quarterback to have thrown more interceptions that touchdowns and win the Super Bowl. He won't be getting away with that now in the tough AFC Conference.

MLB: I know I really don't follow baseball as well as I do with the NFL (I like football better), but when the hell did the Tampa Bay (no-longer-Devil) Rays become a good team? As of this posting, the Rays are 42-29, and, if the season ended today, would earn the AL Wildcard spot for the postseason. Can anybody tell me where the hell the Yankees are in this picture? At least the Red Sox are still leading the AL East Division.
NHL: The NHL has decided to tweak some rules...again. The biggest change I think, is the one to Rule 76.2, which now places the "first faceoff of a power play in the defending zone of the team that committed the foul." I guess it's another attempt by the NHL to pump up the scoring in games. Because as we all know, fans don't care about defense, checking, and fighting, right?
Golf: During his victory at the U.S. Open, Tiger Woods tore a ligament in his left knee and will need season-ending surgery to correct it. The PGA is concerned because nobody will care about golf now.

That's all you need to know in the world of sports for today. I'm Rich Liebig and this has been SSSS.

Boston's Big Blowout Bash

2008-06-18T11:00:00.005-04:00

Congratulations, Boston Celtics, you are the 2008 NBA Champions! Last night, they scored an impressive 42 points in the 4th quarter to win Game 6 (and the series) over the Los Angeles Lakers by a score of 131-92. Major props to the Celtics, as this is their 17th NBA title in Franchise history and their first NBA Title in 22 years.

Alright, now that I have wrote the introductory information, I have to apologize for a couple of my errors...oh boy...

Boston Celtics -- I agreed that their 66-16 record was inflated because of how weak the Eastern Conference is. But with this impressive NBA Title win, I guess they really were that great. I also doubted them after they were struggling to knock off the 8th seed Atlanta Hawks. They did force a Game 7 against the number one-seed Celtics, and I thought my previous analysis of Boston was coming to fruition. My bad on that.
Eastern Conference -- I ragged on the Eastern Conference this whole NBA season of how they were so mismatched against the Western Conference and I pretty much used that as an excuse to believe that the NBA title would surely be given to the West, no matter what team made it to the NBA Finals. Wrong on that one.

Thank God that's over. I hate admitting when I'm wrong, but all great men must. But now that's over, here's a couple of other points I want to mention about the Celtics winning the 2008 NBA Championship:

Boston-Mania? -- Seriously. What is in the water up there in Boston, super-human talent drinking water loaded with untraceable performance enhancers? This 2000s decade was Boston-Mania! The last year alone proves that: First the Boston Red Sox win the 2007 World Series, then the New England Patriots go 16-0 (though they played horrible in the Super Bowl and lost), and now the Boston Celtics win the NBA Championship! If the Boston Bruins had done anything worthwhile in the NHL, the U.S. Government would have to be forced into testing the New England area for something abnormal.
How did the Celtics score 130 points?! -- How did the Lakers allow 130 points to be scored on them? Where was Kobe Bryant, the League MVP? Well, Kobe was there, but he was one guy who had to compete against Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett. That's why in this last game, the Celtics were able to light up the scoreboard: Garnett and Allen EACH had 26 points, and Pierce followed up with 17 points of his own. All Kobe could do was do his best, a mere 22 points, while everyone else on his team just gave up and jumped ship (the next highest LA scorer was Lamar Odom, with only 14 points).
Being MVP Does Not Give You A Championship -- Speaking of Kobe Bryant, he earned the 2008 MVP of the League yet is walking away without a NBA Title. Welcome to the club, Kobe! I looked this up on the "internetz" so it's accurate: the last League MVP to also win the NBA Championship that year was Tim Duncan in 2003 with the San Antonio Spurs. Before that, was Shaquille O'Neal in 2000 with the Lakers. (Ironically, this was the first NBA Finals since 1998 to not feature either Shaq or Duncan) The bottom line here is that having a League MVP might help you win some games, but it definitely does not automatically get you an NBA Title.

Ponder over all that information, take another swig of coffee (or whatever beverage you might have when you reading this), and give a shout-out to Boston-iacs out there; the Boston Celtics are the 2008 NBA Champions!

Better Red Then Dead?

2008-06-17T11:53:00.005-04:00

Click the link above to access the Yahoo News story on this.

According to a recent study, if you play a video game where the multiplayer splits players up into a "Red" faction and a "Blue" faction, the "Red" faction has a slightly higher chance of winning. About 55% of the time, the "Red" faction will win the game. Hey, it might not seem like that great of an advantage, but I believe Hillary Clinton kept winning states by the same 55% margin and it allowed her to stay in the primary race, right? So, for you Halo gamers, try to be red.

Another interesting fact is how the Cyber-psychology & Behavior Journal decided to do this study -- they tracked 1500 matches of Unreal Tournament 2004. Can you believe all the time these researchers have? All they did was let other gamers play Unreal Tournament 2004 and then just check off "Red" or "Blue"...FOR 1500 TIMES!!! Isn't there something better researchers should be doing, like I don't know, SOMETHING WORTHWHILE?! SOMETHING THAT WILL IMPROVE OUR SOCIETY?! Nah, it's cool -- we're just going to watch people play some video games...we'll improve society later. Boy, if my radio/television/on-air-personality career doesn't work out for me, I'll have to become a researcher so I can do mindless work!

But anyway, my two points here:

If you're a gamer, remember, it's better to be red then dead.
Researchers, go study something useful.

Example Of What My Posts Will Be Like

2008-06-16T14:35:00.003-04:00

So, here's an example of what I want to do with this blog. I'm thinking of sticking with this kind of style when I write an entry. Feel free to comment if you think I'm right with this method or if you think I'm doing it completely wrong. I wrote this piece back last Thursday, but it's worth mentioning on the spots of the blog (bad play on the word blogspot, in case you didn't get it). Anyways, here it is:

I needed to respond after I saw this clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cit-XeYs9dw&feature=bz301

I knew right-winged Fox News was against Obama, but I never thought it could get this bad...

For those that don't want to view this video, I'll explain it. After Barack Obama won the Democratic Nomination, he hugged his wife and then they did a "fist-bump" celebration. Although to the majority of rational and sane people this was just a common physical expression and nothing more than that, some viewed it differently...VASTLY DIFFERENTLY -- as Fox News actually declared this "Fist-Pump" between Barack and Michelle Obama quote: "A Terrorist Fist-Jab!"

OH NOES!!!! BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES OF AMERICA!!! GO TO DEFCON 1! OH MAH GAWD!!! GRAB YOUR BIBLES AND PRAY TO JESUS!!! THE TERRORIST FIST-JAB!!! IT'S A DEVASTATING KNOCKOUT MOVE!!! SAVE ME JEBUS!!!

Seriously, folks. Some people think McCain is being harshly criticized in his campaign. At least he's getting criticized for the issues. Obama's being called a terrorist at every damn turn by the right just because he's liberal and his middle name just happens to be Hussein. Hey, McCain-iacs out there -- if McCain's middle name was Hitler, would you still vote for him in 2008? Throw that middle name bullshit out the window. That's is not a valid point in selecting our U.S. President, and neither is this "Terrorist Fist-Jab" incident. It sounds like a bad name for a finishing move for Muhammad Hassan when he wrestled in the WWE.

Finally Got Around to Starting An Official Blog

2008-06-16T12:42:00.000-04:00

Hey, you fine folks! Welcome to the Official Rich Liebig Blog. I am "The One And Only" Rich Liebig and I am going to use this blog to write my opinions and commentaries on the current news. I plan to cover Politics, Sports, Movies, Music, and other things that I find fascinating. Then, I plan to use the material I have typed on this blog to use for ideas/discussions for my radio show at WEXP, La Salle University Radio, "The Rich & Dubie Show" (shout out to Cory Anotado -- YAY WEXP Promotions!).

But for right now, I'll be tinkering around on what I can do to customize the blog. Don't worry though, I will get around to doing my first news story soon.