Friday, March 25, 2016

The South is Rising Again, To New Levels of Bigotry

And we are about to see how two sports leagues in this country are different in regards to how they view LGBTs:

First, Georgia, their "religious liberty" law, and the NFL *cough* looking into it.

The NFL, according to Deadspin, has "warned" the Atlanta Falcons that, should Georgia pass a "religious liberty" law, they won't host a Super Bowl.  The law would prohibit governmental penalty for denial of services on the basis of legitimate religious belief.

Put shortly, it's an anti-LGBT bill, and the No F_____s League is smoke-and-blustering it, stating it is inclusive (when it is not!!!) and pressuring the Falcons to tell the governor not to sign it.  (The bill flew through Georgia's legislature.)

Now, yesterday, the NBA enters the fray, in North Carolina.

Their governor just signed House Bill 2, prohibiting local cities in the state from passing laws protecting LGBTs from discrimination.

Charlotte, the home of the Bobcats, passed such a law, but the state bill trumps it.

Charlotte, as of right now, is scheduled to host the next NBA All-Star Game.

But, in the face of:
  • The Donald Sterling situation and Adam Silver's handling of it.
  • The NBA's work with "It Gets Better".
  • The NBA's acceptance of gay players (up to and including even salutes by visiting fans -- which see the ovation Jason Collins received...  in Los Angeles!!)
  • The PSA the NBA did a number of years back, condemning the use of homophobic slurs as insults...
I think the NBA will do the right thing and pressure the situation properly.  Either NC reverses, or the festivities get moved.

Another sacrifice to the National Religion...

Kevin Turner.  ALS.

One of the lead plaintiffs in the concussion lawsuit.  Major brain-study subject on a possible link between CTE (now admitted to have large-scale ties to football) and ALS.

Gone.  46.  ALS battle for six years.

Another "success story" for the NFL.

Thursday, March 24, 2016

When You Just Have It Batshit Backwards, Double Down Until You Have To Fire Yourself!!

Next year, when professional tennis returns to the West Coast for the BNP Paribas Open, the site, Indian Wells, will have a new CEO and new tournament director.

Why?  Because the old one had to fire himself because he has no fucking clue of anything but the War On Women (and it's sports battlefields).


(Courtesy Ben Rothenberg, tennis freelance writer for the New York Times.  (Among other places.))

Yep, the idiot basically said that Serena and Venus and the women should bow down to the only two people who make tennis relevant.

You...  stupid... moron.

One of the main reasons tennis has had little visibility in this country has nothing to do with the women's game -- it's that the women's game (and the Williams sisters) are the only relevant American players and the like at all.

Name me ONE relevant American men's player, Mr. Moore.

ONE.

Shut the fuck up.

Monday, March 21, 2016

Sexual Harassment In Sports, Part...: The LA Lakers now have an investigation...

Jordan Clarkson and Nick Young are now under investigation for sexually harassing two women.


Worse yet, one of them is an activist trying to get athletes to stop invoking Man Code to do precisely that.


ESPN reports today that Young and Clarkson have been alleged of making lewd, rude, and crude gestures toward Alexis Jones of "I AM THAT GIRL", an awareness group trying to force male athletes to stop sexual harassment of women, and her 68 year-old mother, in Hollywood last (Sunday) night.


Anyone else think the pair were targeted specifically because the NBA is working with Jones toward implementing one of her programs?

Message Not Sent: Hogan Only Gets Another $25 Million

Figured after the speed of the verdict and the overwhelming nature of the evidence against Gawker, Hulk Hogan was looking at a significant nine-figure punitive damage situation which would put the future of Gawker Media on a very short clock.


Either the jury feels Gawker is finished anyway, the whole thing probably is reversible, or Hulk's a slimeball (or some combination), but the punitive damage portion of the verdict was a paltry $25,000,000, announced today.


And the nuclear option has not, as yet, been invoked -- now starts 10 days of behind-the-scenes decision-making, though.  So we'll see what Gawker decides to do.

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Mr. Silver... The Bus. The Bus... Mr. Silver.

Adam Silver, what the fuck were you thinking?????

ONE GAME suspension for Matt Barnes for that altercation in Milwaukee???

Especially with the guy's track record?

Are you TRYING to get people riled up for the playoffs, sir?

Friday, March 18, 2016

The Finger Is Poised Over The Big Red Button

If I were Hollywood, I'd be sweating right now.

If I were Roger Goodell, I'd be sweating right now.

If I were just about anyone within the purview of any of Gawker's sites (which could include MRA's, the politicians, the video game industry, etc. and so forth and so on), I'd be sweating right now.

Why?

Let's put it this way:  I've sourced enough material from Deadspin to know that a large part of the draw of Deadspin (and probably several of the other sites as well) is based in IDGAF.

Hulk Hogan is going to own Deadspin and Gawker Media by the end of Monday.  He's going to have the entire company to the tune of several hundred million dollars, the extent of which to be known Monday and probably only, at this point, limited by the statement the jury wishes to make.

If Hulk Hogan and his lawyers are smart, they will shut down Gawker Media through a court order the instant the damages are known (or, at barest of minimums, freeze all further material from the site).

Hell, he should've done this the moment he got the $115,000,000 in compensatories this afternoon.

Why?

The Nuclear Option.

I would have to think, especially as salacious as Gawker's websites have been, this is going to be a very interesting 72 hours to watch their sites.  If they have a nuclear bomb story (say, something which might take down a Bernie or Hillary or especially Trump or Goodell, etc.), they might just put it out there, devils be damned.

And there are two schools of thought on all of this.

The first one thought of (and I hat-tip my anonymous friend) is, in the concept of limiting the punitive damages, hold off until such time the punitives are announced, sit down with their lawyers, figure out what to do, and, if there's no chance of getting it reduced to a manageable amount, then...

But there are two caveats with this:  One, it's clear the evidence was OVERWHELMING against Gawker -- it took the jury less than a day to nail Gawker to the wall for nine figures.  Two, the jury might send a message with this, and put the figure so high, it's ridiculous.

(A third added on edit:  The heads of Gawker said they probably would be out of business even putting up the $50,000,000 needed for the bond!)

Again, if Hogan is smart, he should've already taken this action, but had better, come Monday:  He and his lawyers should basically order a complete cease and desist on the website.  That means ZERO content further -- that the entire existence of Gawker Media is damaging and invasive in the same way it was to Hogan himself.

And that's the other side:  If such a Nuclear Option exists, Hogan has every legal right (and probably, now, an OBLIGATION) to see it never make print.  And if Hogan knows Gawker's style like I think he does, this could be a very interesting weekend to keep an eye on all the Gawker sites.

And Warren Buffett, if he ever offered it, can close his checkbook now.

I'd heard tell before the tournament that Warren Buffett was offering $1,000,000 a year for life to any person who could pick the entire correct Sweet 16.

I don't know if that actually consummated or not, but he can rest easy.

At least in the ESPN competition, over 3,000,000 brackets, it didn't last 24 games of the first round.

All brackets have at least one loss now, with 2 12's yesterday, and a 13, 14, and 15 today.

Two Updates: One Definite Death in Sports, One Probable One

(And, no, I do not wish the juxtaposition of the two to denigrate or diminish the first.)
  • Tray Walker is dead from the motorcycle crash. (Deadspin)
RIP.  The sports world has dodged a lot of bullets in this regard (and, thankfully, the reports on the possible witnessing/involvement of a Patriots player have not apparently come to pass), but they could not dodge this one.
  • And that might be one of the last Deadspin pieces I link to, or the clock has seriously started thereto.  Deadspin's parent Gawker Media has to pay Hulk Hogan $115,000,000 for the damage to his career, etc. from the sex tape.  (Cageside Seats)  That, and the manner in which Gawker and Deadspin do business, is probably going to represent the end of Deadspin and of Gawker Media.
This could have a serious chilling effect on all alternative media -- including TMZ.

Hell, including this blog!!!

I'm of two very serious minds on this.

First, I get why Hogan sued.  This certainly is the kind of salacious journalism that certainly, at the very least, treads on the line.

The problem is coming where that salacious journalism is the only thing which can pierce the mainstream curtain and show the men (or women) behind it that we are not supposed to mind, in the name of The Great and Powerful Oz.

It was TMZ, after all, that basically blew the whistle on Ray Rice.

The question now, frankly, if you believe that, is why stop at $115,000,000?  Word from one source is that they won't.  It was, according to one reporter:  $55,000,000 for pure economic and $60,000,000 for emotional.  According to Yardbarker, the punitives come Monday.  I could easily see that enough to slam the door on Gawker Media Monday.  (I'm thinking a couple hundred million at least.)

But for Gawker Media to even appeal and survive this, they have to come up with over  FIFTY MILLION DOLLARS -- effectively NOW.  (Florida (in which this was contested) requires the losing party to post a bond of how much the damages are -- capped at the aforementioned $50,000,000.)

Gawker's done.  Deadspin is done.  No way around it.

You can't go end-around on a lot of the sports machine in this country with that kind of noose around your neck.  Even if Gawker can come up with the funds to survive this, I can't see Gawker staying afloat that much longer.

One commenter to the Cageside Seats article noted that Gawker only made $45,000,000 in 2014, according to Business Insider UK.

Three Updates of Previous Stories: Two Good, One Bad

  • If there's any good to come of this Tray Walker thing (and word is he might not survive his injuries), it now appears they have located the other driver, the driver is cooperating, and there's no indication the other driver is a member of the New England Patriots.
  • If you are anti-Manny Pacquiao and/or a member of the LGBT community, and you come to the Los Angeles area, you may want to visit upscale shopping center The Grove.  You may not be able to buy anything there, but you can thank them for banning his homophobic ass -- twice now!  He's been rebanned for those abhorrent comments previously discussed.
  • Now the bad one:  It appears Matt Barnes did get to the Bucks locker room looking for John Henson, and a rumble was believed to be imminent.  No word yet on any action from the NBA.

Thursday, March 17, 2016

And another indication the wheels are coming off for the last time...

(Article, and full video, on Deadspin.)

We aren't clear at this time if there was a locker-room confrontation between the two players, but Memphis' Matt Barnes and Milwaukee's John Henson are going to have some questions to answer for their conduct late in the game, almost certainly a suspension for Barnes.

Why?

Started with one of those late-game scraps that tends to escalate.  Henson rejects Barnes, both get T'd up for the response, Henson has the look on his face to indicate he'd like to kill Barnes.

Of course, the Milwaukee announcer with "Take that!  And I'll meet you in the locker room after the game!!"

He might want to take that back.  After Henson was tossed from the game, it took about 45 seconds for Barnes to get the same, and he ran right up the aisle to go after Henson -- security in tow.

And, according to at least one host, tensions ran high for some time after the game.

The players stuck around, expecting a rumble, and it sounds like only about 10:20 PM CDT, it finally began to calm down.

I hope the Hell this isn't what it could be...

The story from Deadspin was disturbing enough:

Tray Walker of the Baltimore Ravens was seriously injured in a motorcycle crash near Miami.

Not to diminish, but these things do happen.

It's an update tweet from a Miami news reporter (Liane Morejon of WPLG in Miami) that has me really wondering (as well as other people)...


And, apparently, according to Morejon...


Tuesday, March 15, 2016

Another Day In American Sports Paradise...

  • Former basketball star Mateen Cleaves charged with sexual assault of a 24 year-old.  (Deadspin)
  • A reporter covering the California Golden Bears basketball program accused an assistant coach for the team, Yann Hufnagel, of trading sex for access.  The school investigated.  The school found...  Hufnagel was trying to trade sex for access, and when the reporter refused, she was discredited, fed bad information, etc.  (Deadspin)
So what does this all mean?

It's a Tuesday in the American sports culture.

Monday, March 14, 2016

Huge Day For Reality, Someone's Getting Fired, and This Lead Will Be Promptly Buried

The US House of Representatives held a "roundtable" on concussions today, according to Deadspin.

Normally, this would get relgated to C-SPAN material, and thank you very much if it gets that far.

But today, we finally have the first NFL (or, really, any football) official to admit that football itself is linked to CTE.

Jeff Miller is about to get fired from the NFL for doing his job.

"His job" is the Health and Safety Policy Vice President of the NFL -- and he, today, ADMITTED that there was a link, not unakin to smoking (at least according to the article) between football and CTE and it's related problems.

But even he admits also that the real question is what we do with that information.

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Two MAJOR NCAA Tourament snafus, and thoughts on a snub and two problems...

Couple of quickies as the tournament starts up...
  • Yale and Syracuse both in -- meaning conduct does not matter...
  • ... unless you are a mid-major, just ask Monmouth -- whose bench antics might well have made them the #1 snub.  The Committee head said things about 3 sub-200 RPI losses and all such, but you play who's put in front of you.  I can't think, though, that the antics of Monmouth's bench didn't weigh on the Committee.
And then two major snafus.
  • The first, noted from Brian Tuohy:
Nice disingenuousness, NCAA...
  • Of course, that might not compare with the biggest snafu in years:
CBS Sports, for as long as I can remember (this was the case even when I used to run the high school pool for our basketball coach (no one made any money, all entry fees ($1 a pop) went to the winner, winner take all) in the mid 1980s), exclusively releases the first look at the NCAA brackets (which is how they can go to different bubble schools and get reactions from the teams when they find out in or out.

This year, CBS' show, as usual, was at 5:30 Eastern, 2:30 Pacific.

Well, someone blew the whole thing up:

Note the time.  3:18 Pacific.

The way people are acting, it sounds as if (I did not see the show.) that the entire bracket had not been released as of that point and time.

Boy, that would leave CBS with some egg on face.

Thursday, March 10, 2016

Two memos to the NCAA Tournament Committee...

One involves a team that is, as of right now, projected to be playing in Dayton next Tuesday or Wednesday.

The other involves a team which, for the first time in many years, has won the Ivy League.

I'm not sure either team should be playing.
  • Why is Jim Boeheim still at Syracuse?  And isn't it time for the committee to finally make a statement against a "name program" and "name coach" that conduct actually -- oh, I don't know -- matters?  As of right now, projections have Syracuse in the tournament, but in the play-in round.
  • And then there's the burgeoning story out of Yale.  Yale has won the Ivy League, and it's automatic berth -- the one conference which does not have a championship tournament to determine said berth.  Jack Montague, however, will not be among them.
Montague has been expelled from Yale, reportedly for sexual assault.  The school has cited privacy issues in not reporting this, but his father has said

The team wore shirts supporting Montague during it's clinching win over Columbia.

I think there are at least two reasons that Yale should be removed from the Tournament:

1) It is clear that, unless the assault and the expulsion happened literally almost simultaneously (and, take it from me in far lesser cases than this, it is usually not -- double that for athletes!!!), Montague almost certainly played after the assault, which would make him an ineligible player.  He withdrew from Yale February 10 and was removed permanently in the first week of March.  (Jezebel)

2) Again, as in the Syracuse case:  If we are left to believe that any credibility is to remain with this tournament (and Obama doesn't count -- and get your fucking ass to Nancy Reagan's funeral, Mr. President!!!), it is long past time for various parties to make conduct matter.  It is now clear that the team supports Montague, and, in so doing, indirectly (at the very least) sanctions his conduct.  At this point, that should be enough for somebody to step in (be it from Yale, the Ivy League, or the Tournament Committee itself) to remove Yale from the championship of the league and install it's runner-up as the automatic berth in the tournament.

Yes, there's a lot we don't know -- but there are two known and stipulated facts:

Montague was expelled from Yale, and the team still supports him.  Unless these rumors of sexual assault/rape have no merit (and a firestorm of criticism has fallen on the team since Montague's removal), that should be enough (because the school found sufficient misconduct to expel him) to forfeit the tournament spot.

Wednesday, March 9, 2016

And a baseball betting situation is going down...

... in Japan.

Deadspin reports this morning that a FOURTH Yomiuri Giants pitcher has admitted to betting on baseball.

The entire administration of the Yomiuri Giants is stepping down (the main advisor, the chairman, and the owner are all going to be replaced) -- and I find it hard-pressed to believe that the Japanese team will survive this.

This isn't just the Black Sox scandal here -- it's Black Sox plus the concept that honor means something in Japan, and at least this fourth guy has admitted lying to the investigators.

For a bit of perspective:  Six years ago, sumo wrestling was nearly felled by a similar scandal.  Betting -- and betting on baseball -- was so prevalent among the upper ranks of sumo that one major tournament was cancelled (something which had not happened in sixty-five years previous in one of Japan's largest sports).  The scandal also involved fixing sumo bouts as well.


Tuesday, March 8, 2016

The FA need to come down on Sunderland HARD here...

Adam Johnson was, until about a month or so ago, a player on the Sunderland football club in England.

He's been convicted of sex (at least through manual penetration) with a 15 year-old girl, underage in England.

He's now looking at 4-10 years in prison, and almost certainly the declaration of being a pedophile.

Now, the team's CEO is out the door too, resigning in wake of the conviction.

Stands to reason, as reports indicate the team knew of the relationship and the fact that Johnson knew she was underage and wanted to fuck her anyway.

Where's the FA on this?  And why is Sunderland still allowed to play in the EPL after this, if it becomes clear the team knew of the relationship and did nothing until he was actually convicted?

Well, Goodell and the NFL Blood Feast almost got what they've wanted...

Ricardo Lockette had to be carted off the field after a hit the Seattle wide-receiver took against Dallas this year.

Lockette's career is over after that hit.

The hit caused disc damage and ligament damage in his neck, plus a concussion.

Now, Lockette says if he had tried to stand up, he'd have died on the field.  Even if his arm had been lightly tugged, he might've suffered fatal damage.

One of my incorrect predictions from this season was that someone would die on the field -- and it's clearly only luck that someone has not.

Ricardo Lockette basically said he almost was The One.

Maybe this is also why Calvin Johnson is hanging it up too?

A drug story almost too huge to believe...

Maria Sharapova's tennis career is over.

I think we can be pretty clear on this now.

Whether it should be or not is another discussion entirely, but it is now clear that, even should she be allowed to continue to compete, it is clear her career (rightly or otherwise) will be declared tainted by some of her peers and by some in the tennis community.

Maria Sharapova called a press conference earlier this week, and announced she had failed a drug test at the Australian Open, facing a possible two to four year suspension from the sport -- and, at 28, that and the stigma it would entail probably ends Sharapova's career.

She has already lost most of her lucrative sponsorship deals with Tag Heuer, Nike, etc.

The drug in question is Meldonium.  Sharapova had been taking the drug since 2006, but WADA added it to the banned drugs list this year, and Sharapova apparently could not get sufficient clearance not to have her test declared failed because of it. 

Sharapova states that an irregular heartbeat and a family of diabetes have had her taking the drug for the last decade.

However, WADA has stated in response to the Sharapova announcement that athletes have been known to use Meldonium to enhance their performance.  The Latvian company which makes it actually states the drug is only prescribed for four to six weeks at a time.

So the real question is left as to whether Sharapova is right, or her entire career has been a drug-ladened fraud -- and with the still-suspended Russian track situation, it doesn't appear as if at least the corporate opinion is that favorable to Sharapova.

I think we have finally found a woman too insane for the NFL...

When I first read this story, I was thinking this was another case of an inconvenient woman to the NFL.

This...  is not one of those cases.

The Dolphins, according to Yahoo! reports, are about to cut their best cornerback, Brent Grimes.

And his wife Miko is probably to blame.

It's her propensity to blast everyone within a several-square-mile radius on Twitter that's about to do the trick.

If you go to Miko's Twitter page, her opening salvo below her name gives you an idea of how crazy she is...

"sorry if I'm less friendly.  i got niggas tryna end me."  (sic)

Sick is more like it.

And I apologize for any African-Americans who are reading this post.  This is simply as part of the report of Miko's Twitter insanity...

Just read her Twitter page, as long as she, her husband, whatever team MIGHT hire him next, and Twitter allow it to be up.

You'll wonder why she's let out of the house unsupervised.

Brent, a good divorce attorney might be in order good and damn quick.

Friday, March 4, 2016

And, Speaking of Homophobia and Football...

The Atlanta Falcons are being patted on the back investigated by the No F_____s League for asking first-round prospect Eli White, with the first question he was asked, if he was gay.

Why not? The league will gladly blackball a decent-tier talented player if they find out he is.

What, Falcons? Too cool of hair? Too clean cut??

Falcons Apologize For Asking Combine Prospect If He Likes Men

(Article, and photo, from Deadspin.)

Will Someone Just Put The Entire Damned Sport of Football On Trial Already?

Conestoga High School, Pennsylvania.

Hazing with sodomy AND homophobia on top of it.

Three 17 year-olds are charged with sodomizing a 14 year-old with a broom handle...  on "No Gay Thursday".  All four are members of the football team.

This isn't just one school.

This isn't just five or ten.

This is going on ALL OVER THE GODDAMNED COUNTRY -- and it is being done under the cover of the only reason these schools and these communities exist:  high-school football.

Coaches had no knowledge -- but, wait a minute, it's a long-standing tradition with the team.

(Deadspin)

Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Here's one I don't think you're going to want to file away just yet...

Only tangential to sports, but this one reeks of any number of possibilities, including the old Ken Lay Effect:

On March 1, the part-owner of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Aubrey McClendon, was indicted on fraud charges surrounding his tenure as CEO of Chesepeake Energy.  He is alleged to have rigged bids between two companies and violating the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

This morning, McClendon is (reportedly!) dead in a single-car crash which would openly make one believe that McClendon committed suicide. The car was driven wrong-way into a bridge and engulfed in flames...

That's if you believe McClendon isn't on some plane to Belize and pulling a Ken Lay.


Four Stories That Aren't Related, But Really Are...

I think we really need to go over this Man Code shit again, because it's clear we're back at it big-time:
  • Arlondis Chapman, the fastest pitcher in baseball, has been suspended for the first month of the regular season (correctly, the scheduled length of 30 games) for violations of the MLB Domestic Violence Policy.  
And yet...  The New York Yankees picked up the son of a bitch.

Really...

This is MLB's response to Chapman's being accused of choking and hitting his girlfriend and firing a gun eight times.

No charges will be filed, as it appears the story the woman gave began to change.

MLB does not require a criminal conviction.

30 games?  Really??

Especially given if you have enough evidence to ban this guy a month, sans criminal conviction...

Rob Manfred has no spine.

And baseball author Molly Knight knows exactly why...


(Deadspin)

In other sexual harassment news...
  • Florida International.  Women's basketball coach Marlin Chinn is being accused of sexual harassment by his (former) captain, who alleges that she was suspended from the team for refusing to have sex with Chinn.
In 2016.

Really.

Destini Feagan was banned from the Florida International team, and she claims it's because she refused to have sex with coach Chinn.

She reported Chinn's conduct to the school and NCAA, and was then banned from the team.

In 2016.

Really.

Chinn has been suspended by the school pending investigation.

(Deadspin, through the Miami Herald.)

In OTHER sexual harassment/etc. news regarding college basketball:
  • Three members of the Minnesota Gopher basketball team have been banned for the rest of the season after one of them, freshman Kevin Dorsey, tweeted a sex tape of him and another man having sex with a woman.
IN 2016!!!

REALLY!!

I guess it really doesn't matter to you anymore when you're a freshman on an 8-21 team in the Big Ten, does it?

Son, be real fortunate if you aren't in jail by the time next season rolls around.

And in even MORE sexual harassment news, I'm going to list a bunch of comments I've seen about a particular court case that has finally cropped up...
The first three are comments made to JT The Brick of FOX Sports Radio, who correctly excoriates each and every one of these male fans. The fourth is one of numerous comments made in support of Erin Andrews' stalker and other Men's Rights Advocates to basically rape her for the crime of being beautiful and hot.

And now we find out that a representative of the ownership of Marriott has been accused of playing the video for his friends!

You fuckers make me look sane, and that counts when I got arrested, bitch!

Why don't we just admit that the only place for a woman in sports is in a leotard and leggings and spreading herself with the cheerleaders, damn all her other talents and the actual use she has in the world, right??

Yeah, that's the fucking ticket.

At some point -- I don't know if it's going to be one of these cases above, an NFL abuser, etc. and so forth... But it is far past time to put the entire Man Code of Sports on trial -- for sexual harassment, sexual assault, abuse of numerous forms, and innumerable other crimes.

And trust me, MRA boys, I know of what I speak... Or is it OK as long as you either have a fat contract or give the other MRAs what they want???  Is it simply not OK if you have no other use in society?