Today's Musical Selection: "School's Out" by Alice Cooper
That's right, I'm following through on my vague promise from Friday to take some time off. I'll probably be gone for about two weeks. Try not to miss me too much. If you're dying to talk to me about something, leave me a comment (I'll be reading them periodically) or e-mail me at mediocrefred1979 -at- yahoo -dot- com.
I wanted to take a moment to direct everyone to the comments on Friday's post, where loyal readers PG and Tripp have both posted some interesting thoughts that are definitely worth reading. I encourage all of you to continue the conversation in my absence. And if anyone wants to try their hand at guest blogging for a couple weeks, let me know and I'll arrange it.
I also wanted to take a moment to point out that, despite it being a New Year and despite the turmoil and suffering going on around the world, there are still some people who are focusing on what really matters in life:
Seattle's Shaun Alexander, upset after finishing 1 yard behind Curtis Martin for the NFL rushing title, questioned why coach Mike Holmgren called a quarterback sneak in a big win over Atlanta."We were going to win anyway," Alexander said after Sunday's game. "We were on the freakin' goal line, and I got stabbed in the back."...
The Seahawks went ahead 28-20 with 4:28 remaining when quarterback Matt Hasselbeck scored on a 1-yard sneak on second-and-goal.
Alexander, who will be an unrestricted free agent after this season, blamed that call for costing him a share of the rushing title. He finished with 80 yards on 19 attempts against Atlanta.
Now, I'm not really going to chide Alexander for being absorbed by his own stats at a time when Asia and Africa are struggling to rebuild from a devastating tsunami. Athletes as a group have never, to be honest, been noted for their broad worldviews. But even within the narrow view of professional sports, Alexander is a dick. Let me get this straight: The Seahawks were struggling to win a division-clinching game on the last week of the season, and they were supposed to be focusing on making sure Alexander get his rushing title? Right now, the Seahawks have plenty of things they could be thinking about, like the fact that barely won a crucial game against a Falcons team that was mailing it in so bad they should have been wearing Postal Service uniforms, or the fact that their first-round playoff game is against that has beaten them twice already this season, or the fact that Matt Hasselbeck is the 12th-rated quarterback in the league, or the fact that Mike Holmgren seems to be making his strategic decisions with a Magic 8-Ball. Instead, they're focusing on why this jackass didn't get his yards. Way to bring the team together at a crucial time! If you have money to wager, put it on the Rams against the Seahawks next week.
Oh, and by the way, fans of good government will be happy to know that the Republicans have, somewhat inexplicably, come to their senses:
House Republicans suddenly reversed course Monday, deciding to retain a tough standard for lawmaker discipline and reinstate a rule that would force Majority Leader Tom DeLay to step aside if indicted by a Texas grand jury.The surprise dual decisions were made by Speaker Dennis Hastert and by DeLay — who asked GOP colleagues to undo the extreme act of loyalty they handed him in November. Then, Republicans changed a party rule so DeLay could retain his leadership post if indicted by the grand jury in Austin that charged three of the Texas Republican's associates.
When Republicans began their closed-door meeting Monday night, leaders were considering a rules change that would have made it tougher to rebuke a House member for misconduct. The proposal would have required a more specific finding of ethical violations.
So it appears that the Republicans are capable of feeling embarrassment (or at least voter outrage) after all. It still appears, however, that Joel Hefley is being ditched as Ethics Committee chair. So this situation does bear obversation.
Anyway, time to start hiatusing. See you in a couple weeks!
Well, yeah Shaun Alexander is a bit of selfish dick. But the problems between he and Holmgren are a lot deeper than just what happened Sunday. Holms (he's just Holms to his friends) seems to hate the fact that his best player is a tailback, and that his team seems incapable of playing the West Coast Offense. Mike Holmgren NEVER misses an opportunity to let it leak that he thinks Mo Morris (Alexander's backup and about 1/3 the player he is) could be just as successful as a starter. It's a moot issue at this point, as neither Holmgren or Alexander are expected back next year.
As for Sunday, the bigger problem was that Alexander only got 19 rushes. He should be getting 25-30 every game. It just might keep the 'Hawks awful D off the field.
Posted by: frinklin at January 4, 2005 01:07 AMHey, I'm sure Shaun was just worried about feeding his children.
Heh heh. That may not be satire, but it sure is sarcasm.
Posted by: Tripp at January 4, 2005 03:26 PM