TIMING IS EVERYTHING

NBA legend Oscar Robertson said the following about players, both white and black, speaking up about social inequalities and other social issues.

"I mean, what do you want players to do? Shut up and dribble? I think it's time for them to say what they want to say about life and about politics and things about the street and whatnot. And about education.

They're a lot of players donating money back into different colleges. But it seems that what we have today is a system where you don't want players to say anything at all." 

(Source: http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/23909645/oscar-robertson-happy-see-athletes-take-stance-calls-white-athletes-do-same)

Your favorite player is going to be in the limelight at some time utilizing their sport as a platform for the issue they are passionate about in life. There is not going to be any way around knowing the stance of your player on many things, but especially one or two things.

And oh, how there are a plethora of issues or causes to get behind or support! The genres or causes range from political issues to environmental to social to racial to religious, and female issues. Everyone of these and more have the cry of respect and equality in the world and in sport. But should we place a muzzle on the athlete - at least while they are playing their sport?

There is the idea that - yes, as a supporter of the team through my money (tickets, clothing, etc), NBA players are for entertainment purposes only. I did not come to a game or follow a player to hear about the world's woes once again. Sports, like movies should be an escape from the negativity of the world, even if it is for a moment.

Unfortunately, inequalities and social issues are found everywhere, even in sports. It is here that athletes should have the privilege and right to voice their displeasure and offer possible solutions to the community. A proper outlet is needed so we are entertained, they get their needs met and their causes are known.

Perhaps if they are asked directly in their post game interview or on site at their cause's main event - then it would be appropriate to voice their passion on an issue. I believe in Ecclesiastes 3:1 - "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:". There is a time for this and a time for that; a time for speaking up about anything and Timing Is Everything.

NICKEL AND DIMING (State of Video Gaming Developers)

For quite some time now, the title of this post says it all when speaking about the worth of a video game today. I have noticed this to be on several of my friends minds and they have started voicing their displeasure over this issue which encouraged me to write this.

Once upon a time, in this land we call home, video game developers used to create an entire story with all that you would ever need in the game-play and sell it to you for a set price. We desperately need to return to those days. 

Now-a-days, developers are breaking the game into pieces of Story, side missions, extra gear, extra weapons, multiple DLCs (downloadable content) and the ability to have an online presence in the mix like a pvp mode (player vs. player). And after they break the game into these pieces they re-assemble them into "Bundles" they deem appropriate to sell to us at whatever price seems fair. 

Hey developers, WHY NOT GIVE US THE WHOLE PACKAGE AND LET US DECIDE WHAT WE DON'T WANT TO USE AT THE TIME? I believe I can safely deduce that the majority of those purchasing the games to begin with are Adults who will be making adult decisions about what to do with their money. Take my word and many others like me, if you cannot find a way to "Bundle Everything" together and give me a final price then I will find somebody who can and/or just stop investing in your product. And if enough of us feel the same way Mr. Developer - you will be hurting.

I acknowledge there are developers out there that build their games around having these "extras" plugged into the program or series as the game progresses. It is a way to continually morph/grow the game while keep and gain additional followers. BUT for those who are not geared from the get-go for this strategy, the effort is more akin to making some vital parts of a game and other additional parts only accessible by purchasing through special bundles or separately - otherwise known as Nickel And Diming.

UNC.......UNIVERSITY OF NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

After Carolina loss to Duke in the ACC Tournament, I felt Duke was peaking and UNC was declining. Evidently the arrows were pointed the opposite directions for both basketball teams.

I knew going into the ACC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament that the officiating was going to be bad, but each year it keeps getting worse and this year was no different. By the time Carolina had their blowouts, challenging games and buzzer beater - everyone knew that if the Tarheels made it past Oregon to the Championship game, it was going to be either a doozy of a game or a dud. 

Gonzaga met Carolina for the 2017 NCAA National Championship in Arizona - and it was ugly. But every team has to win those kind of games too. Both teams seem to cancel each other out talent wise, so it would be the X Factor that came into play. 

Early on, and for most of the game, it was Carolina shooting themselves in the foot and out of the game with Pinson making stupid decisions with the basketball. Isaiah Hicks was not even present in the first half. Thankfully, UNC's defense kept the Zags offense cold.

The second half - more of the same with missed Free Throws to make it more dramatic. The X Factors (plural).....Carolina had been there before, was being fueled by Redemption, has a Hall of Fame coach, and is excellent under game-winning pressure. All that combined to grant the University of North Carolina Tarheels the 2017 NCAA National Championship!
I had my doubts, but they pulled it off - Congrats Heels! You are truly the University of National Champions.

TAKE ON...THE 81st MASTERS

I was happy for Sergio Garcia winning The Masters golf tournament this year. He was due, maybe even overdue. However, he is not in my grouping of favorite golfers I follow. I was hoping that Jordan Spieth or Rickie Fowler would show up and keep the youth drive going there at Augusta. But Rickie imploded and Jordan was inconsistent.

When looking at Garcia's scorecard over the tournament compared to Spieth's, two things jump out at me. First, Sergio had a Bogey Free round the first day of the tournament. If memory serves me right, he was the only one to do that in the field this year. Second, when bogies were made, Sergio made less of them. Jordan executed another quadruple bogie score, but it was on Hole #15 this year, although he still had trouble with #12. Jordan also logged one double bogey and five regular bogies in the final round. All this mixed in with his pars and few-and-far-between birdies gave Spieth no chance to catch the leaders.

Your scorecard cannot look like a musical score that has notes all over the place. Ideally you want those notes to keep going lower and lower and lower - my kind of notes (Bass) - on the staff, but they didn't for Jordan. Maybe next year.

BIGFOOT AND THE LIKE

Bigfoot (America), Yeti (Himalayan) or Almasty (Russian) - take your pick of tall, totally hairy, bipedal, mysterious creatures, but the lure is real. I have been fascinated for quite some time with the culture of Bigfoot, known also as Sasquatch - from Halkomelem (Salishan), a native language of the Pacific Northwest, sæsq'ec.

Because of the lack of evidence like a body, hair (for dna testing) or undeniable video proof - scientists will deny Bigfoot's existence and attribute a sighting to folklore, misidentification or a ruse. There have been many documentaries, reality programs and books produced that present the real possibility of Bigfoot's existence but end either on the negative or unclear side of the mystery.

Are we dealing with a Mass Psychological Manipulation? Some people have taken advantage of the Bigfoot Lore and developed footprints and even suits to persuade the population. But what if we have both a real entity and hoaxers manipulating the people. This scenario makes it more difficult to sift through all the minutia to get to the truth. One big remedy from here forward is to only submit reliable evidence for consideration and substantiation of the existence of Bigfoot.

Because the native people of Northwest America already had a Sasquatch or Bigfoot culture before others inhabited that region, I think there is something to this mystery. Also, there are other adaptations of the same creature in other parts of the world. Cave paintings, oral traditions, and now-a-days credible sources attesting to the existence of this creature make me pause and at least consider the historic, realistic, and scientific evidence for Bigfoot And The Like.  

TIMEOUTS

In sports, in particular, football and basketball, two versions of timeouts need to be eliminated: TV timeouts and "Icing" timeouts.

For a long time now I have been of the opinion that "Icing" a free throw player from the foul line in basketball or a field goal kicker in football by calling a timeout from the sideline should be deemed an Unsportsmanlike Foul. True, coaches call-in plays to have their own players do what they want on the field, but to have their influence on the other team via a technical aspect instead of a strategic aspect is just uncalled for in my book.

The other timeout elimination involves TV Timeouts. Listen, players start with little league basketball, football and other sports and go through High School and some College without any TV coverage, therefore no TV Timeouts. So, why not do away with those timeouts all together and do what I have seen NASCAR and Formula 1 racing do - they provide a split screen with the live action running in one square so you don't miss any of the action and the commercial, with audio, running in the adjacent square so the advertisers can make their money. It would make games a lot quicker also.

So, no Icing, allow the game to play-out the way it was meant to play-out - without any technical influence from the bench. And let's keep the action moving on television with the Split Screen - half commercials when the time comes and half continued game action - and no TIMEOUTS.

REVISITING: THE LESSER OF TWO EVILS

In my humble opinion, the Presidential election does not have anybody worth voting for. I don't even think the phrase - The lesser of two evils - applies here because they both are so terrible.

It is a matter of picking your brand of deception and corruption. On the one hand there is Trump with no morals and his inexperience in dealing with government related programs. His mode of operation is to buy his way everywhere he goes and say the first thing on the tip of his tongue, which is dangerous and stupid, a bad combination.

Then there is H.Clinton. This woman has been exposed to governmental programs and people, but every time I see her or hear about her she is trying to put out a fire personally or nationally. Exposure does not always equal experience. To me it boils down to how you handle an exposed issue while exposed yourself and she strikes out every time. She and her family have a history of lying. Not a good trait to have going into a Presidential Election.

So, take your pick or in this consideration, Don't Pick - a stupid, rich kid that doesn't know anything about the position he is running for - OR - the first possible female president whose track record makes the Wicked Witch of the West look appealing.