Mixed Bag

This past week we were treated to the previously unthinkable. Hillary Clinton gave a gracious and powerful concession speech and the NBA referees ref'ed a competent game 1 of the NBA finals. Nothing in the previous several weeks led us to think either were possible.

I must admit I am a little concerned about Paul Pierce's injury. It seems as if both the team and the player are ignoring any long term ramifications for the short term gain. I hope I am wrong.

Big Papi's wrist injury makes one wonder. This type of injury was previously unheard of pre steroid era.

At game 1 they announced best wishes to Senator Kennedy. It received one of the longest applause of the night (outside of Pierce's return from the locker room). I was somewhat surprised that in this era off political cynacism that there was not a single boo. Be well Senator.

While Hillary has made her supportive comments of Obama, the next watch begins on how long it will take Bill. My guess is that Bill is the less enthusiastic of the two and above anything else, that he hurts Hillary's chance at being VP.

While I would love to do a full post on the mistakes of the Clinton campaign, there are already more post mortems than John Edwards votes. So instead i will point out two way under reported angles. First, In 2006 when Clinton ran for reelection, she raised 70 mil but spent 60. It was not only a sign of the mismanaging of money that would foreshadow her Presidential campaign but she also missed the opportunity to transfer any unused funds into her General Election fund. How much could she have used the extra money? The other thing that was underreported was that Hillary basically got a pass on all of her past scandals because Barack didn't want to run that type of campaign. For all the complaints about the media coverage, they did really take it east on her. If she got the nomination she would have seen how good they treated her in the primary.

McCain's speech Tuesday was poor on many fronts but two things that will ultimately doom him are his complete lack of a grasp on anything other than Iran and Iraq and his dangerous views on Iran and Iraq. The fact that he is running a campaign based on scaring the American public als George Bush will get exploited down the road. I don't believe for a second that the American public will fall for it again (gulp).

Speaking of McCain, his stance that Obama is ill informed since he hasn't been to Iraq is laughable. McCain and others have gone to Iraq and been isolated from reality and only get to speak with those that have positions that mesh with the administration's line of bull. A trip may make for a nice photo op but has little practical purpose.

At game one of the NBA finals the Boston fans were creative (and may be a tad bit inappropiate) in chanting No means No when Kobe shot free throws. I think tonight I'll start a Shaq was better chant.

This past week Tom Delay said that Obama was a Marxist until someone proved otherwise. Folks, I believe Tom Delay killed Chandra Levy unless he proves otherwise.

Mixed Bag

Geraldine Ferraro was back in the news today hoping to remind people that she wasn't voting for some guy named Hussein. Thanks Geraldine, we stopped caring about your thoughts when you proved yourself to be a bigot.

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The crowd that saw Obama speak in Oregon numbered over 80,000. Think about it. Who else could draw 80,000 people in Oregon? Could a free concert from U2 draw that many people? Springsteen? How about the Pope? I'm hard pressed to think of many more that could draw so many people. Truly astonishing.

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The few remaining holdouts on staying Republican just about all make the tax argument. Democrats will raise your taxes. It's true I'm paying less money in taxes, but I'm paying more in gas, groceries, my housing value is going down, my stocks portfolio isn't going up as much. The moral of the story is that sometimes you get what you pay for.

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Today is Kevin Garnett's 32nd birthday. 8 more wins and you can have the summer off.

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I've seen every episode of Lost and I must admit, I'm so confused that I do not have one theory of where this is going. This really is either the most brilliantly written TV show of all time or the worst. I have no idea. Ask me in two years when the series ends.

ABC should piss every one off and cancel the series the year before it concludes.

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Quick name three Bush administration accomplishments........

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I have now attended 7 of the 8 Celtic Playoff games 5 of which with my children. While the games have been great, it amazes me how much some fans can be idiots. I was in the Men's room, standing behind a guy that could barely stand but proclaimed that hew would drive home that night. It reminded me of an article I read this year that said basically Kevin Garnett didn't want to play here because it is the only place where he was ever called the dreaded 'n' word and it happened several times.

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Jon Lester pitched a no-hitter for the Red Sox tonight. A great accomplishment especially considering his comeback from cancer. Congrats Jon!

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Jim Webb has a new book out today, I can't wait to read it. In addition to being the current Senator of Virgina, lead candidate for VP, a former Reagan administration Secretary of the Navy, he is also a best selling novelist. I am glad to see that a lot of people are putting him on the VP shortlist, I hope Obama makes the call. This guy is a GREAT Senator and would be an outstanding VP.

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After tomorrow's primaries, Hillary is going to be making a claim that she is winning the popular vote (including Michigan which Obama didn't get a single vote). This is like watching a player past his prime not realizing that the clock has struck midnight. Think Larry Homes fighting Butterbean in 1995). Poor Hillary, everyone else has moved on and she has no idea it is over.

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Bob Barr is going to be a major thorn in McCain's side. He is going to put at least two states in play for Obama (Georgia and Alaska). Look for lots of Democrats to make donations to his campaign to make him viable.

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Lastly, congratulations to George Takei (of Star Trek and Heroes fame) on his engagement to long time partner Brad Altman now that California has lifted the ban on gay marriage. George is a part time announcer for the Howard Stern Show and called the show today to announce his engagement. Good for George and Brad. they have been together for 21 years and who is to say they have a less meaningful relationship than anyone else.

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Quick List

Today's list is my top ten list of best sports personalities (not to be confused with best players):

10 Mike Tyson
9 Dennis Eckersley
8 Oil Can Boyd
7 Micky Rivers
6 Bill Parcells
5 Charles Barkley
4 Ricky Henderson
3 Larry Bird
2 Red Auerbach
1 Muhammad Ali

I'm sure there are some hockey players that should be on this list but who cares.

Reebok Nation

If you haven't seen this Reebok ad it is the best use of athletes in an ad since Bird and MJ played horse for a Big Mac (which if you would like to stroll down memory lane can be found at the end of the post). Without further ado, here is the ad and Globe write up on the ad. Enjoy








Menino pitches for Hub in new Reebok ad

By Andrea Estes, Globe Staff | October 30, 2007

Mayor Thomas M. Menino of Boston made his pitching debut on the mound at Fenway Park over the weekend, in a commercial television spot.

Menino was the only nonathlete - with the exception of the narrator, Dorchester native Donnie Wahlberg - appearing in a 30-second advertisement for local footwear maker Reebok.

The company lined up star power endorsers including David Ortiz, Bruin great Bobby Orr, former Boston College and Patriots quarterback Doug Flutie, and Patriots running back Laurence Maroney.

The ad, hastily produced by Reebok staff last week without benefit of an advertising agency, flashed photos of the city and its athletes, as Wahlberg asked: "What do they all have in common? They all play right here, and they all wear . . ." He doesn't finish the sentence; the word Reebok appears across the screen.

Flutie says, "This is Reebok Nation."

Amid the images of sports stars, Menino, dressed in a business suit, appears on the pitcher's mound at Fenway Park with outstretched arms, and says: "Welcome to the greatest sports city in the nation."

Menino recently joined the ranks of the fitness-minded by demonstrating his cycling prowess around his Hyde Park neighborhood. But he said it was his talent trumpeting the city that earned him an invitation to appear in the ad from his longtime friend, Reebok vice president Paul Foster. He was not paid for his appearance.

"I saw the script and said, 'Why not?' " said Menino. "If you were mayor and someone said we're going to run a commercial to promote your city, wouldn't you do it? It doesn't make any difference. Anyone who asks me to sell the city, why wouldn't I do it?"

Menino called the final product "clear and precise."

"Some of those commercials, you don't know what they're about," he said. "I thought they did a magnificent job."

The company "chose people who really represent Boston," Foster said. "You see them and you know this person equals Boston. The mayor was another iconic personality that represents Boston."

The others, he said, are endorsers of Reebok or members of teams that are outfitted by Reebok.

Menino said he didn't contact the State Ethics Commission to make sure that appearing in the ad did not violate the state's conflict-of-interest laws, which prohibit public officials from using their position to gain an unfair advantage for themselves or others. He said he did not believe there was anything wrong with appearing in the ad because he was promoting the city and not a product.

The only time the commission has publicly reviewed such a case, in 1984, the commission ruled against a district court judge who asked if his name could be used in a TV ad endorsing a product, even if the judge was unpaid. "The use of your name clearly would be benefiting a private interest," the commission wrote.

Menino's advertising premiere was viewed with amusement and goodwill by several observers.

"This is kind of the golden age of Boston sports," said Councilor John Tobin. "Success of this kind has never been seen around here as it is now and probably won't be seen again for another 100 years, which will coincide with the end of the mayor's 24th term. He looked good, but I don't think he'll be getting a Screen Actors Guild card anytime soon




What is up with Jordan's outfit?? I thought this guy was fashionable.

Fever Subsiding

I am just starting to emerge from my Post- World Series Sleep Deprivation Induced Funk to make my first post in almost a week. It was a great World Series for the Red Sox but probably a lousy Series for baseball fans.

There wasn't anything particularly memorable about the series. I think the Sox only hit 3 home runs the whole series. Mike Lowell was the MVP with a solid, yet unremarkable series.

All of this makes the Red Sox performance more impressive and maybe even sustainable. No one player carried this team. Manny and Papi hit a combined "0" home runs. Everyone contributed. Ellsbury, Pedroia, and Youkillis are not household names, but these guys are going to be solid players on this team for years to come.

The pitching staff should only et better (although I do not discount the potential loss of a horse like Schilling). Dice is going to be better year 2, Beckett is only 27, Lester, Bucholtz and Papelbon give them youth and playoff experience that could make them a great team for years to come.

Lastly, there is the guy that gets no credit. Most people give the Sox management credit for being so good, but not nearly enough credit goes to Francona. Tito has done a fantastic job in winning two World Series with completely different teams. Think about how good of a job he did managing the series. Every pitcher came out at the right time, Ortiz at first worked better than expected, starting Ellsbury, etc. Every one of his moves were the right ones, plus he does a great job in keeping the "personalities" in check during a long season. On many teams "Manny being Manny" would be a distraction and a source of infighting, it is a credit to Tito that it has never been with the Sox.

With all that in mind, "I can't wait til next year".

On a Roll

Hard to get fired up about politics or anything else when the Red Sox are on such a roll. Their last three wins are 7-1, 12-2, 11-1 and they are now winning game 1 of the World Series 13-1. At this rate Eric Gagne may get in this series.
Some impressive numbers through 5 innings.

8 of the 9 starters have an RBI tonight. Lowell the exception
8 of 9 have at least 1 hit. Ellsbury the exception.
7 of 9 hitters have at least one walk. Ortiz and Drew the exception.

Then theres Beckett 8 strikeouts through 6.

I'm a Sox fan, so I fully understand one game doesn't make a series, but these guys are looking on fire right now.

Go Sox!!!