Among thousand and thousand of very good MCs,
A poet will flow like the breeze...
The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood 
Copyright © 2009 by The Atlantic Monthly Group. All rights reserved.
Ever wonder what it's like to be a Nielsen family? They're uninstalling the equipment in my apartment right now, so I wrote a little something about it.
I've always had a mild conspiracy theory that Comcast keeps tabs somehow
There's no question they know what's going out with some programming--the on demand and pay per view stuff requires it, I would imagine--and I'd be surprised if they didn't have some way of tracking other shows if only to be able to set rates for local advertising dollars.
Apparently HBO decided to just do 2 nights of In Treatment in blocks instead of 1 episode 5 nights a week because they found that more people were watching it On Demand. Was that through surveying or through raw data...
I did the paper diary earlier this month for a week. I'd rather have had the box; I was soo lazy.
You should watch Generation Kill, it's awesome. Especially if, unlike me, you have a good memory for faces and won't spend the first two episodes (at least) trying to tell people apart.
I agree on Generation Kill, which in the general aversion to all things Iraq in entertainment culture (we are still there America and may well be for the 2012 elections), got overlooked. Great ensemble cast, an attempt at honest reportage via drama with a very good ensemble, typical of Simon's work throughout his career (go back to Homocide--what a cast).
Well, I was going to point out the absolute awesomeness of LeBron in the fourth quarter last night, but was informed in the previous thread that all sports are idiotic, so I guess I won't be able to do that.
I'll just head out to the window ledge and tell David Stern it might - might - be safe to head on back in now....
It was ridiculous. Man against snails. Responsible for what, 42 45 48 consecutive points. The only parallel I can think of is Wilt and his 100 points dominance days. Being a contrarian and an SU grad, I'd love Orlando - Denver. But you had to appreciate it.
"...but was informed in the previous thread that all sports are idiotic..."
Are you willfuly or mistakenly misreading what I said?
Don't worry, Other Dan, I'll point it out for you. LeBron was incredible last night, but what him so was the fact that Booby Gibson and Mo Williams decided to show up in a big way. I tell you, once young Mr. James gets a more credible supporting cast, we would be looking at a dynasty. I think the Magic will win Game 6, though.
What's the prediction for tonight? I have no clear reasoning for this (well, other than the fact that George Karl teams are known to make big gaffes when the pressure's on), but I have a hunch the Lakers are going to win.
Good call on the Lakers' and their bench the other night, Col. Mike. I agree that the Lakers could just finish them off tonight, but I doubt it. I haven't seen the Lakers play with any urgency in games that aren't must wins. That might change tonight, but I'm not betting on it. I do think that the Nuggets should play that smaller lineup a bit more, and not just in crunch time. Obviously, Nene needs to stay out of foul trouble for them to have a chance. The Birdman is an amazing weak side shot blocker, but he can't guard anyone straight up. He's actually pretty terrible when guarding someone one on one.
LeBron is disgusting, and that 4th quarter last night was amazing. But the Cavs can't feel TOO good about the win. You can't ask LeBron to do that again in Orlando, and you probably can't hold the Magic to under 40% shooting from deep.
Thanks, Stacy. I don't see the Lakers with playing the necessary urgency tonight, but I see them staying in the game, at least, and I think they'll be ready when/if Denver messes up, much like Game 3. Billups needs to be huge, and that doesn't mean putting up 30, though that would be nice. He needs to calm these guys down and stop turning the ball over himself.
I think the Magic are going to come out aggressively in Game 6, or at least I would hope they would. If they can get a decent lead and dictate the tempo, they would force the little LeBrons to start chucking shots to recapture their heat from last night. LeBron will be back to playing one on five.
Col. Mike - I like the Lakers tonight too for the exact reason you state: I watched Denver make mistake after mistake the other night coming down the stretch. Turnovers, bad shots, missed opportunities...I'll leave it to those of you with a higher basketball IQ than I to say how much of that lands on George Karl.
I'm not sure how much of it should fall on Karl. He's certainly made some mistakes, but how many of the Nuggets players have a high basketball IQ? Billups? Of course. Nene? Maybe. His passing and vision has been pretty tremendous. J.R. Smith? No. Kleiza? No. Martin? No. They are simply going to make more mistakes coming down the stretch I think, but I still like them tonight. They'll play extremely hard, and probably dominate the boards like they did in game 4.
Mike Brown might've struck gold with that 1-4 offensive set that put Lebron in the high post. The Magic had real difficulty defending James in the 4th quarter.
Brown's been a little late on his adjustments, but that one might have saved their season ... and Stern's and Nike's and Vitamin Water's butts. But it depends on whether more than just one of the wing guys can knock down threes. Two out of the Williams, West and Gibson triad have to be stroking it to work.
Well the Denver is suspect; they had the Lakers on the ropes, having outplayed them at least 3 out of the last four games. The question before them was the 4th quarter. I phoned a friend at halftime when the score was tied and told him I thought the Lakers would win. I thought so because they were playing in pace. It seemed obvious to me that they'd be in better shape in the 4th quarter, and they were. Now, we'll see about the Lakers' toughness, do they have it two consecutive games. I am still not convinced. The one other thing one can't discount, although complaining about officiating seems a bit foolish since they seem to be equal opportunity poor, Nene should not have fouled out.
As far as LeBron is concerned--all Jordan needed was one Scottie Pippen, just one.
And for you TN, because it's Friday, poet flow from Bob Dylan:
"Gentlemen, he said,
I don't need your organization, I've shined your shoes,
I've moved your mountains and marked your cards
But Eden is burning, either brace yourself for elimination
Or else your hearts must have the courage for the changing of the guards."
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090528&sportCat=nba
I've grown quite tired of Simmons whining about the refs. Look, the growing inconsistency of the refs (And Stern's refusal to admit this) is most definitely the biggest problem with the sport. But do we really need yet another article without any reasonable solutions? Calling their own fouls? You really considered that for a while, Bill?
And as much as you treasure the days of Bird and Jordan, Bucher is right: much of the reason the refereeing is so bad is because players are better athletes. Look at today's young superstars: Lebron, Howard, DWade, Carmelo, Parker. They're athletic freaks of nature. Getting younger refs is a start, but what else. Something has to be done about Lebron and Wade getting bailed out on drives to the hoop at the end of games. Do refs already have scouts working for them? I bet that could help a bit.
The refs are in an impossible situation. If they called every foul, there'd be no one left playing by the end of the second quarter, and they know that, so they swallow their whistles in the interests of "letting them play." But when it winds up affecting a game or a series (like it unquestionably did in the Dallas-Denver series--2-2 is a world away from 3-1) then people complain, and rightfully so. Lots of people talk about not wanting the refs to decide a game, but isn't that their job in a sense? If a foul's committed, call it, and maybe players won't do it so much and won't require bailing out.
I've grown quite tired of Simmons period. I tried reading that "column" on the refs, but my eyes glazed over after realizing about three grafs in that he was just going to spend the next 10,000 or so words grasping for the past while pretending to be innovative and hip. (Although he did make a good point about the officiating sucking the drama out of Celtics-Bulls Game 7.)Let players call regulate themselves and their own fouls? Is he trying to be the Milton Friedman of basketball? He's joking, right?
I agree that this madness of driving into players to get fouls is tiresome and that refs need to adjust to the speed and athleticism of today's game. How about more double fouls when it's unclear whether there's a charge or a block, resulting in a jump ball. Younger, faster refs, yes. More accountability? Yes. But a foul is a foul, whether it's a good faith attempt at blocking a shot or stealing the ball. Refs can't just call the obvious ones.
"How about more double fouls when it's unclear whether there's a charge or a block, resulting in a jump ball."
That is an interesting proposition, although I think I'd be just as happy with more 'no calls.' I also think the league should also start reviewing game tapes, and handing out small fines for flopping. It hurts the game, and it's something that the casual fan absolutely hates. However, in order to come down on flopping, the refs also need to stop rewarding it. It's never made sense to me why a defensive player needs to fall down in order to get the charge? If he's there, he's there. He shouldn't have to act like he's hurt to get the call.
They're not only "athletic freaks of nature." That's true. But they're also much stronger, more supple, and better conditioned than players of the past. The court is smaller than it used to be.
Don't have a solution to the automatic-fouls-on-drive-to-the-hoop by certain players problem. But it's not just basketball -- umpires in baseball give balls-and-strikes calls to superstars that they don't give to rookies. Consistency would be great. I'm not one to think that it's a conspiracy. More likely refs and umps are just human. With their own biases toward the best.
If you don't think that LeBron and Wade should be bailed out, the simplest solution is to keep them out of the lane. The reason it seems they're bailed out so much is because they get to the hoop at will. I do think it's a slight problem, but I only saw about one play last night that I didn't think that Lebron was fouled and the call was made. For instance, if someone like Shannon Brown was suddenly able to get to the rim at will, you'd probably see him start to get a lot of calls. Then again, if he could get to the rim at will, he'd probably be a star.
"Get to the hoop at will" says it all. Nobody was keeping LeBron out of the lane last night. Except when he took the step-back jumper which makes my heart flutter. Just love it.
The complaint about equal opportunity fouls of course is not new. Folks said the same things about Michael. Funny that the best players, who do the best and toughest work, always get the calls.
Kate Harding at Salon on Stereotyping 101. Excellent takedown.
there is an interesting narrative developing around this confirmation in the media that is neither surprising or new. both the mischaracterization of la raza as a "latino kkk" and this NYT piece on her participation in the puerto rican legal defense fund bring to light the timeless debate (primarily among white people, but also to some degree within minority communities) about affinity groups and the feeling of exclusion/confusion/ discomfort they purportedly create for those who don't fit the group's title description
Wasn't Thurgood Marshall a member of the NAACP?