I didn’t say anything about it because I didn’t want to jinx them, but I really wanted the Cardinals to win the Super Bowl. I liked Kurt Warner and I liked the Cinderella story of a team that nobody (including me) gave a chance to going all the way. Then, they fought back to take the lead only for their defense to lose it all in the last minute, giving up huge chunks of yardage at a time. This game was a classic illustration of why you will never hear a sportscaster say: “And there’s yet another victory sewn up by the prevent defense.”
The Cards will not have this kind of chance again for the forseeable future, the team is already being torn apart, with both the players and the coaching staff being peeled off. I hear Warner is in serious talks with the Forty-Niners, but maybe he’s doing that to jack up his asking price with the Cards.
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Michael Phelps discovered that cell phone cameras are a menace to the famous. I’m of a mixed mind on this, I don’t think it’s a major sin that he was taking bong hits (it’s not the first time he’s had substance abuse issues, there was a DUI after the Olympics before the last one), but at the same time it’s not anything I’d ever endorse for my kids.
Then again, it’s not like Phelps makes his living with his brain. Anyone who saw him on SNL would realize that would be a path to heartbreak. But he did make an important point: drug use and world-class athletic talent are compatible.
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My Lovely Wife signed up RJH for karate, and he’s really taken to it. She paid for him to participate in a tournament at the school, even though he had only had a week or two of class. I thought he’d have a good time, but he then won the grappling championship. He was putting the other kids in choke holds and making them tap out with arm bars. I suppose letting him watch the UFC fights with us was some sort of training for a kid that’s always been able to do something if he sees you do it once.
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I thought all of the hype over Obama was overrated, that he was being treated like a messiah before he’d had a chance to actually do anything. But he’s already performed the first miracle of his administration: he hath transformed a tax cheat into the guy in charge of the IRS. AMEN!
Seriously, how hard is it to find a Democrat who’s not currently cheating on his taxes? Maybe that’s why they don’t have a problem with raising taxes — they don’t intend to pay them.
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24 assumes that the show’s pace is so fast that you won’t stop to think about anything. Like the fact that planes navigated and landed, chemical plants operated, and electric grids worked way before anything was connected to the internet. Or that it’s pretty much impossible to get anywhere in DC in a hurry.
It’s also hard to believe that Hot Fake Redhead Federal Agent (HFRFA) Walker got all worked up by pretending to threaten a baby. Despite all the sanctimony and dramatic proclamations, they’re still sending the message that torture works. So far, torture and brutality have worked every time they’ve been tried. If they wanted to say something about torture, the HFRFA should have failed in her torture efforts due to lack of experience and ended up either getting squat or killing the guy.
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On Valentine’s day, we drove to Norman to see the OU Sooners play Texas Tech at the Lloyd Noble Center. They only had one loss at the time, and Tech was 12-12.
The Sooners didn’t disappoint, hammering the Red Raiders in the second half and putting on a great show in the process. They would have scored 100 points if they hadn’t pulled all the starters for the last 5 minutes of the game. They’ve gone on to lose three more games. Hopefully they’ll get that out of their system by the time of the tournament.
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Oh the irony, the guy who starts a TV channel designed to improve the image of Muslims ends up beheading his wife when she wanted to split up. I wonder how many TV shows it will take to convince everyone else that Muslims aren’t unstable, violent, backwards, irrational female abusers?
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Georges St. Pierre sent a message to B.J. Penn in UFC 94: stay the hell out of my weight class. Penn (who I’m sure didn’t cut any weight) looked pudgy and slow and still gave up more than 20 pounds to GSP, who proceeded to knock him down and beat the living hell out of Penn for four rounds. They could have this fight ten more times, and it would only result in ten more beatings for Penn. Weight classes exist for a reason.
While I’m on the subject of UFC 94, I’m tired of Clay Guida’s act. For the second fight in a row, his fighting “technique” essentially consisted of grabbing and holding his opponent and not much more. I don’t necessarily think frustrating your opponent should be considered winning the fight. Plus, it’s boring. MMA judges need to stop rewarding the mere act of a takedown, particularly when the guy doing the takedown can’t do any real damage to his opponent. Contrast Guida with GSP — both did takedowns, but only one beat the shit out of his opponent.
Overall, UFC 94 wasn’t as much fun as I would have liked to have seen for my $55 (including an extra $10 for HD, nice innovation there). Most fights went the distance and crowded out the often exciting undercard fights. UFC 95, aired for free on Spike, was a much better advertisement for the sport. Most fights were exciting and decided in the first round with submissions or knockouts. As a fan of Josh Koschek, I was disappointed in the stoppage that ended his fight. Although he took a heck of a shot, I thought he was clearly defending himself with his legs when the ref stepped in. I’ve definitely seen fights ended less quickly. Demian Maia threw a heck of a submission and looks like a legitimate threat.
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How interesting that the lady who had no job and already had six kids before getting stunt-impregnated with eight more is not going to be able to cash in on her actions, at least not outside of welfare. Stupidity on that level usually does a lot better with the public, at least at first. But she came off like a wacko on TV and people really disliked her complete lack of responsibility. This had to surprise everyone involved, including her publicist, who had to quit due to death threats. Now everyone’s calling her the “Octomom,” a name suitable for a Spider-Man villain.
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In addition to watching MMA on TV, we went to a local fight card. I’m not sure a hotel meeting room was the best venue.
The event was supposed to start at 8pm, but they didn’t even let people in until just before 9pm. The promoters were not quite on top of things, with no marked seating and an apparently oversold premium seating area by the ring. They were carrying chairs around, trying to get everyone settled for another half hour. Then, they had no round cards, the ring girls had to walk around holding their fingers up to show which round it was.
Once the fights started, they were pretty good. One of RJH’s karate teachers was in the first fight of the night, and he won with an arm bar. We had picked seats right next to his father, who seemed mostly supportive and was glad his kid wasn’t having to drive to Houston or Shreveport to fight. Most fights did not go the distance, with the majority ending in submissions. It was interesting to see it in person, and I was surprised MMA was popular enough to fill the room in our suburban hotel venue.
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And to end the month, Paul Harvey died in Phoenix at the age of 90. A darn good run, really. I’ve heard his distinctive voice all of my life, and he’s probably responsible for my affection for the medium of radio.
Did he die of a broken heart due to the Steelers taking away the Cardinals Super Bowl win? Most certainly.
