It’s Bigger Than NPR’s Katherine Maher
1 week ago
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
The Cantrell bombing
One of the more remarkable things in the hours after the "Cantrell bombing" was the openness of the McCamy law firm. The willingness of the firm's partners and employees to talk openly about what happened, even as the office still smoldered, was unusual. I suspect that if the lawyers has asked their lawyers, their lawyers would have told the lawyers to clam up. Got that?
Fortunately they didn't ask.
By talking about the terrible event openly and honestly,the firm nipped in the bud a lot of potential rumors. It certainly made our job easier, but much more importantly reassured the community about what had happened.
Fortunately they didn't ask.
By talking about the terrible event openly and honestly,the firm nipped in the bud a lot of potential rumors. It certainly made our job easier, but much more importantly reassured the community about what had happened.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
You Sunday Free Tune
For cousin Jason Espy, as well as the University of Georgia defense. They are going to need it this week.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Shuuuuush
I am sneaking in some blogging while pretending to watch the Sex and the City movie with the wife. Eleven minutes in and the pain is indescribable.
There are two big time football games on and I am listening to "Carrie" go on about how small her closet is.
I've also got 80 percent of the Iron Man movie watched but instead of seeing Ol' Buckethead smack around Jeff Bridges I'm listening to Mario Cantone's gay schtick. One would think he really was gay.
This should score me at least 100 Husband Points, which I plan on trading in soon for a night of poker with the boys.
There are two big time football games on and I am listening to "Carrie" go on about how small her closet is.
I've also got 80 percent of the Iron Man movie watched but instead of seeing Ol' Buckethead smack around Jeff Bridges I'm listening to Mario Cantone's gay schtick. One would think he really was gay.
This should score me at least 100 Husband Points, which I plan on trading in soon for a night of poker with the boys.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
The Flicks
Harold and Kumar Go to Guantanamo Bay has some laughs. The Neal Patrick Harris stuff is funny and so is the big scene with President Bush.
Strange, the boys only spend about five (fairly funny) minutes at Git-mo, but hey this isn't a movie you watch if plot is that important to you.
These pictures are definitely for stoners and would be teen hipsters, but there's laughs for us Animal House-loving oldsters, too.
(I saw the unrated version, which is particularly gross and dopier, if you know what I mean.)
Strange, the boys only spend about five (fairly funny) minutes at Git-mo, but hey this isn't a movie you watch if plot is that important to you.
These pictures are definitely for stoners and would be teen hipsters, but there's laughs for us Animal House-loving oldsters, too.
(I saw the unrated version, which is particularly gross and dopier, if you know what I mean.)
Monday, October 20, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
My Sunday column
A day to remember
I don’t know if I could work with me, but I am lucky to have a group of people at The Daily Citizen who somehow can.
That fact was made abundantly clear on Friday, as the newsroom of The Daily Citizen moved into high gear to cover the bombing of the McCamy, Phillips, Tuggle and Fordham Law Firm.
The horrific event occurred less than two blocks from out office — chilling in a way but from a practical standpoint a great break.
I was at home when the explosion happened. I was at work less than 45 minutes later and didn’t leave for the next 12 hours.
It was a grueling day.
Covering the news for a living is a strange job at times, Events which startle, frighten and sometimes sicken a journalist, often become the stories by which we measure our worth.
Old newspapermen sitting around sipping bourbon don’t brag about city council meetings or art festivals they covered. They swap tales about the colossal foulups, disasters and tragedies they worked.
I’ve had those experiences.
Friday was another.
Two of my reporters — Mark Millican and Kim Sloan — were on the scene within minutes of the explosion. We chased down both of our photographers — Matt Hamilton and Misty Watson, who came in on her off day — and sent them as well.
As more staffers arrived, we met quickly — the equivalent of a backyard quarterback scratching out some football plays on a napkin. More detailed planning came later, but early on we just wanted to gather as much information as possible.
It paid off.
Reporters quickly began relaying information back to the office — praise the cell phone — and that opened up new areas to look into.
Newsroom clerk Lara Hayes monitored the police radio, kept an eye on the TV and made and answered phone calls.
Reporter Jamie Jones joined Millican and Sloan on Crawford Street and reporter Charles Oliver took off to dig up background on the bombing suspect.
Fortunately for me, news editor Victor Miller arrived in time to help organize the whole carnival.
My boss William Bronson immediately OK’d the idea of a separate six-page section to be devoted solely to the day’s dreadful events.
A stand-alone section made perfect sense, except I was the only person in the office trained to do page layout. Two of our regular news editors were unavailable and the sports staff was up to its ears in covering Friday night football.
So I started knocking out pages for the regular edition as quickly as possible, as the Sword of Damocles — the special section — dangled overhead.
Then, an epiphany.
A quick phone call and 30 minutes later Chris Stephens, a former staffer who still helps us with dalton magazine, walked in the door, ready to get to work.
Chris sat down and started pounding out pages for the special section.
During this process we pressed hard to provide information to the public as quickly as possible through our Web site, daltondailycitizen.com.
The site logged thousands of hits as word spread about the terrible events. Our regular Internet audience checked it out for information throughout the day, but we also saw thousand of “unique hits” — first-timers from all over the country looking in.
Another Chris, our tech man Chris McConkey, was also instrumental. Not only did he take some pictures at the scene, but he put a lot of photos up on the Web site.
Several statewide and national news organizations called and those interviews put us on the radar for lots of new people interested in the story.
At the end of the day, we got our regular paper done on time and the special section — thanks to Stephens and the rest of the staff — wrapped up earlier than expected.
It’s a good piece and I’m proud of it. I am even prouder of the hard work and tireless dedication this newspaper staff showed in putting it together.
No complaining.
No excuse making.
Everyone took on a task and went after it hard.
That’s the way it should be.
Now, if I could only find a glass of good bourbon.
Jimmy Espy is executive editor of The Daily Citizen. He blogs at Espysoutpost.blogspot.com. Stop by and sit a spell.
I don’t know if I could work with me, but I am lucky to have a group of people at The Daily Citizen who somehow can.
That fact was made abundantly clear on Friday, as the newsroom of The Daily Citizen moved into high gear to cover the bombing of the McCamy, Phillips, Tuggle and Fordham Law Firm.
The horrific event occurred less than two blocks from out office — chilling in a way but from a practical standpoint a great break.
I was at home when the explosion happened. I was at work less than 45 minutes later and didn’t leave for the next 12 hours.
It was a grueling day.
Covering the news for a living is a strange job at times, Events which startle, frighten and sometimes sicken a journalist, often become the stories by which we measure our worth.
Old newspapermen sitting around sipping bourbon don’t brag about city council meetings or art festivals they covered. They swap tales about the colossal foulups, disasters and tragedies they worked.
I’ve had those experiences.
Friday was another.
Two of my reporters — Mark Millican and Kim Sloan — were on the scene within minutes of the explosion. We chased down both of our photographers — Matt Hamilton and Misty Watson, who came in on her off day — and sent them as well.
As more staffers arrived, we met quickly — the equivalent of a backyard quarterback scratching out some football plays on a napkin. More detailed planning came later, but early on we just wanted to gather as much information as possible.
It paid off.
Reporters quickly began relaying information back to the office — praise the cell phone — and that opened up new areas to look into.
Newsroom clerk Lara Hayes monitored the police radio, kept an eye on the TV and made and answered phone calls.
Reporter Jamie Jones joined Millican and Sloan on Crawford Street and reporter Charles Oliver took off to dig up background on the bombing suspect.
Fortunately for me, news editor Victor Miller arrived in time to help organize the whole carnival.
My boss William Bronson immediately OK’d the idea of a separate six-page section to be devoted solely to the day’s dreadful events.
A stand-alone section made perfect sense, except I was the only person in the office trained to do page layout. Two of our regular news editors were unavailable and the sports staff was up to its ears in covering Friday night football.
So I started knocking out pages for the regular edition as quickly as possible, as the Sword of Damocles — the special section — dangled overhead.
Then, an epiphany.
A quick phone call and 30 minutes later Chris Stephens, a former staffer who still helps us with dalton magazine, walked in the door, ready to get to work.
Chris sat down and started pounding out pages for the special section.
During this process we pressed hard to provide information to the public as quickly as possible through our Web site, daltondailycitizen.com.
The site logged thousands of hits as word spread about the terrible events. Our regular Internet audience checked it out for information throughout the day, but we also saw thousand of “unique hits” — first-timers from all over the country looking in.
Another Chris, our tech man Chris McConkey, was also instrumental. Not only did he take some pictures at the scene, but he put a lot of photos up on the Web site.
Several statewide and national news organizations called and those interviews put us on the radar for lots of new people interested in the story.
At the end of the day, we got our regular paper done on time and the special section — thanks to Stephens and the rest of the staff — wrapped up earlier than expected.
It’s a good piece and I’m proud of it. I am even prouder of the hard work and tireless dedication this newspaper staff showed in putting it together.
No complaining.
No excuse making.
Everyone took on a task and went after it hard.
That’s the way it should be.
Now, if I could only find a glass of good bourbon.
Jimmy Espy is executive editor of The Daily Citizen. He blogs at Espysoutpost.blogspot.com. Stop by and sit a spell.
Your free Sunday tune
If I was any a band we'd close every show with a nastified version of this one. A great pop song.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Oh Canada!
Mark Steyn (and freedom) won his trial. Here's a lovely assessment.
And there's more from Kathy Shaidle.
And there's more from Kathy Shaidle.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Funny, yes. Informed, not so much.
There are few things rarer than a genuinely funny female comedian. Sarah Silverman fits into that underpopulated category. Plus, she's a major hotty. Unfortunately sweet Sarah is is now injecting herself into politics. That wouldn't be so bad if I had any reason to believe she knew anything about the subject.
On Letterman Monday, Silverman discussed her friend Al Franken's run for the governorship of Minnesota.
Of course, he isn't running from governor.
With Dave's help, Sarah later guessed correctly that he was after a Senate seat.
Celebrities have every right to voice their political views. It's just strange that they get to do so on a national stage.
On Letterman Monday, Silverman discussed her friend Al Franken's run for the governorship of Minnesota.
Of course, he isn't running from governor.
With Dave's help, Sarah later guessed correctly that he was after a Senate seat.
Celebrities have every right to voice their political views. It's just strange that they get to do so on a national stage.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
My Sunday column
We have been told by our national “leadership” that the only way we can get out of this gigantic government-caused, government-exacerbated financial mess is to dig out our wallets and do exactly what government tells us. This time, we have been assured, THEY are going to get it right.
THEY, make no mistake, are both Democrats and Republicans.
While the two knuckle-headed presidential candidates excreted by the major parties this time take turns blaming the other guys, any reasonable American citizen knows full well that the elected officials of both parties have created this mess.
For years the political pundits and other assorted popinjays have told us about the great wonder that our federal government could accomplish if the two great parties set aside their differences and worked together. Well folks, they did and this is what we’ve got — a plummeting stock market, a looming recession and a worldwide financial panic.
I miss gridlock.
Newsweek Magazine big cheese John Meachem, a major Obama supporter, authored a recent cover story about Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and how her lack of “knowledge” was a major impediment to her serving as VP. Meachem is convinced that what America really needs right now is more of the inside-the-Beltway “knowledge” that has benefited us so handsomely up to this point. Say what you want about Palin — and I’m no fan — but while the smarty pants in Washington and on Wall Street were constructing a financial house of cards, she was off hunting caribou, or doing something equally harmless.
It was the Bidens, Obamas and McCains — the knowledgeable crowd — who went along to get along.
And why not?
The way things were going every moron in America was going to own at least two houses. The construction industry was booming and the big time financiers were stumbling over their Friday paychecks.
What could possibly go wrong?
Call me a cynic. I have little confidence in the federal government doing just about anything.
I lived in Florida in the 1990s. While I was there, the federal government unveiled its plan to restore the Everglades. Let me repeat, the federal government was going to RESTORE THE EVERGLADES.
Hahahahaha.
A decade and billions of dollars later that project is stuck in the mud. In the end, we’ll be lucky if a single squirrel survives.
The government is a muck up.
At the federal level, the government should do three things:
n Provide for the national defense
n Provide a system of courts for legal matters not better resolved at the state level
n Provide a basic framework for dealing with other nations.
No NASA. No Department of Education. No Commerce Department. No NPR.
Chuck it all.
Send power back to the states and that way if California passes a lot of stupid economic laws, the people who suffer from it will primarily be Californians, who can then either pick up and move to a better-run state or vote out the idiots that bungled things up to begin with.
Also, boot the big corporations (and the little ones too) off the federal teat. Do away with the Washington-based power center that draws corruption and criminality like rotten fruit lures flies.
Will there be corruption and stupidity and arrogance at the local and state level? Sure. But it will do a lot less damage.
Don’t believe me?
Go ahead and elect McCainobamabidenpalin and see it anything fundamental changes for the better. If you think it will, you’re exactly the kind of sap they’re counting on.
Sorry if this column is a downer, but I just got my 401(k) statement and I had to vent.
Live long. Be prosperous.
Jimmy Espy is executive editor of The Daily Citizen. He offers more opinions, not all so angry, at his blog, Espysoutpost.blogspot.com. Stop by and sit a spell.
THEY, make no mistake, are both Democrats and Republicans.
While the two knuckle-headed presidential candidates excreted by the major parties this time take turns blaming the other guys, any reasonable American citizen knows full well that the elected officials of both parties have created this mess.
For years the political pundits and other assorted popinjays have told us about the great wonder that our federal government could accomplish if the two great parties set aside their differences and worked together. Well folks, they did and this is what we’ve got — a plummeting stock market, a looming recession and a worldwide financial panic.
I miss gridlock.
Newsweek Magazine big cheese John Meachem, a major Obama supporter, authored a recent cover story about Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and how her lack of “knowledge” was a major impediment to her serving as VP. Meachem is convinced that what America really needs right now is more of the inside-the-Beltway “knowledge” that has benefited us so handsomely up to this point. Say what you want about Palin — and I’m no fan — but while the smarty pants in Washington and on Wall Street were constructing a financial house of cards, she was off hunting caribou, or doing something equally harmless.
It was the Bidens, Obamas and McCains — the knowledgeable crowd — who went along to get along.
And why not?
The way things were going every moron in America was going to own at least two houses. The construction industry was booming and the big time financiers were stumbling over their Friday paychecks.
What could possibly go wrong?
Call me a cynic. I have little confidence in the federal government doing just about anything.
I lived in Florida in the 1990s. While I was there, the federal government unveiled its plan to restore the Everglades. Let me repeat, the federal government was going to RESTORE THE EVERGLADES.
Hahahahaha.
A decade and billions of dollars later that project is stuck in the mud. In the end, we’ll be lucky if a single squirrel survives.
The government is a muck up.
At the federal level, the government should do three things:
n Provide for the national defense
n Provide a system of courts for legal matters not better resolved at the state level
n Provide a basic framework for dealing with other nations.
No NASA. No Department of Education. No Commerce Department. No NPR.
Chuck it all.
Send power back to the states and that way if California passes a lot of stupid economic laws, the people who suffer from it will primarily be Californians, who can then either pick up and move to a better-run state or vote out the idiots that bungled things up to begin with.
Also, boot the big corporations (and the little ones too) off the federal teat. Do away with the Washington-based power center that draws corruption and criminality like rotten fruit lures flies.
Will there be corruption and stupidity and arrogance at the local and state level? Sure. But it will do a lot less damage.
Don’t believe me?
Go ahead and elect McCainobamabidenpalin and see it anything fundamental changes for the better. If you think it will, you’re exactly the kind of sap they’re counting on.
Sorry if this column is a downer, but I just got my 401(k) statement and I had to vent.
Live long. Be prosperous.
Jimmy Espy is executive editor of The Daily Citizen. He offers more opinions, not all so angry, at his blog, Espysoutpost.blogspot.com. Stop by and sit a spell.
NFL
It was a pleasure to watch Kurt Warner at QB against the Cowboys. Despite all the poundings he has taken over the years, he stood up to a constant, brutal pass rush and kept delivering accurate throws.
I was shocked at how shoddy and over matched Levi Brown looked at right tackle. He almost got Warner killed time and time again and the Cards didn't do much to get him any help. It looked like a Mike Martz-designed scheme.
Steve Breaston and Larry Fitzgerald had some nice catches, but Warner made touch throws that took me back to the Golden Age.
I was shocked at how shoddy and over matched Levi Brown looked at right tackle. He almost got Warner killed time and time again and the Cards didn't do much to get him any help. It looked like a Mike Martz-designed scheme.
Steve Breaston and Larry Fitzgerald had some nice catches, but Warner made touch throws that took me back to the Golden Age.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Comrade Kenny will live!
There is resistance to the commie crackdown on South Park. Could a new Russian Revolution trace its origins to Cartman and Co.
The economy
The reliable Robert J. Samuelson talks about the Great Depression and what we can expect in coming months.
The ESPN Idiot Files
Still wondering why Brett Favre decided to play again? Apparently some words of wisdom from Stuart Scott made the difference. Idiot Stu, who ran into Favre at the ESPYs, suggested to him that he "make the decision that works best for your family."
Enlightened by this new way of looking at his quandary, Favre made his decision, much to the dismay of the Arizona secondary.
Another poor fool who actually wrote Stu at his ESPN The Pretentious Magazine site asked if his new "And ... here ... we ... go" catchphrase came from the Batman movie. You think? Stu admitted it did and said he had "mad respect" for Heath Ledger's performance, which he rates as one of the five best acting performances he's seen.
This may well be true because Stu probably thinks Othello is something you smear on a sandwich.
I'd love to hear the Idiot's other four favorite performances but I'm betting at least one of them is Brett Favre's terrific work in "Something About Mary," which the then Green Bay signal caller wavered about doing until Stu gave him the nudge.
Thanks Stu for all you do.
You big ESPN idiot.
Enlightened by this new way of looking at his quandary, Favre made his decision, much to the dismay of the Arizona secondary.
Another poor fool who actually wrote Stu at his ESPN The Pretentious Magazine site asked if his new "And ... here ... we ... go" catchphrase came from the Batman movie. You think? Stu admitted it did and said he had "mad respect" for Heath Ledger's performance, which he rates as one of the five best acting performances he's seen.
This may well be true because Stu probably thinks Othello is something you smear on a sandwich.
I'd love to hear the Idiot's other four favorite performances but I'm betting at least one of them is Brett Favre's terrific work in "Something About Mary," which the then Green Bay signal caller wavered about doing until Stu gave him the nudge.
Thanks Stu for all you do.
You big ESPN idiot.
The Wrestler
I'd always hoped to make the first great pro wrestling movie. Maybe these guys beat me to it. I hope so.
The Worker's Paradise
Tough times in Cuba. An interesting article but the author's naievete shows through with the absence of any mention of the black market. I guarantee a lot of connected Cubans are still getting their groceries.
Note this line:
Vendor Nadia Gomez, who received nothing that day, said police checkpoints leading into Havana now turn away trucks unauthorized to market produce in the capital or have been ordered send their goods to harder-hit areas.
So, the command economy at its most simplistic. Just turn that truck around and send it away from the market and it will get to the right places. Yup, it's that simple.
Problem solved by good old communist ingenuity.
Note this line:
Vendor Nadia Gomez, who received nothing that day, said police checkpoints leading into Havana now turn away trucks unauthorized to market produce in the capital or have been ordered send their goods to harder-hit areas.
So, the command economy at its most simplistic. Just turn that truck around and send it away from the market and it will get to the right places. Yup, it's that simple.
Problem solved by good old communist ingenuity.
Friday, October 10, 2008
NFL notebook
The Titans have thw week off which means some NFL team's offense will be saved a beating. Was it only three years ago this team appeared headed down the slop chute --buried by bad contracts and an aging roster.
Every move hasn't been ideal -- Derrick Mason has never been replaced -- but give the Titans organization credit for rebuilding quickly and judiciously.
Look at the defense, which is what makes this team competive.
By using every means open to them -- the draft, high dollar free agents and street free agents -- they have built a formidible group. Starters Michael Griffin, Cortland Finnegan (an absolute steal), Keith Bulluck, Tommy Tulloch and Albert Haynesworth came out of the draft and form a solid corps. Add productive but unheralded free agents like Chris Hope, Nick Harper and David Thornton, the LB they swiped from Indy, and you see more good decion making in action.
Kyle Vanden Bosch, a steal from the Cardinals, is the leader and old dog Jevon Kearse adds some fire as well.
By the way, keep an eye out for Jason Jones, a second rounder who can play DE or DT. If they get him in the right spot he could be a standout.
---
Watch out for Steve Breaston the Cardinals wide receiver stepping into Anquan Boldin's spot this weekend. Breaston can run and catch and he returns kicks. With Boldin wanting a new team next year, Breaston is getting a chance to show what he can do.
---
It's too soon to call former Vol DT Justin Harrell a bust, but so far he has shown next to nothing. The first round pick (2007) has been hurt this season and didn't do squat in his rookie year. He should come off IR soon and the Pack needs a third tackle to step up.
---
The Jags took DEs Quentin Groves of Auburn and and Derrick Harvey from Florida to provide instant pass rush, but it hasn't happened. Neither player seems to have developed enough technique to overcome the tremendous size and quickness of NFL tackles. Both players are promising, but there's work to be done and in the meantime the Jags can't get to the QB.
---
Jordan Gross missed last week's game for Carolina, the first time in his five-year career he didn't suit up. Carolina's best offseason move was resigning Gros.
---
I never believed the Mike Martz was going to make a superstar out of Vernon Davis hype. Martz went on and on about Davis's athletic ability but he prefers a smaller, slower receiver who runs his routes precisely to a sloppier star "athlete." That's why a Dane Looker or Mike Furrey succeeds with Martz. His best receiver of this type was Az Hakim, who could run his routes but also had good speed. Davis has 18 catches so far and hasn't been a factor.
---
Who's counting? Me, that's who. Vernon Gholston doesn't have a sack yet as the transition to OLB is going very slowly.
---
Get ready add the name Ryan Torrain to the Broncos mix at RB. The rookie, who looked good in the preseason is about to come off IR. And whatever happened to Mike Bell?
---
Two weeks in a row the Ravens defense brutalized their opponents for most of the game, only to see it slip away in the fourth quarter as they tired and their lousy offense failed to produce points. Ray Lewis may be getting older, but still spends a lot of the game in the other team's backfield making plays.
---
Can Roethlisberger survive this season? He's getting pounded.
---
The Rams have Mark Bulger back at starter this week. Trent Green looked like a backup last week. He made some plays, but the arm looked mediocre at best. It's hard to judge any of the "skilled" players in the Rams offense, as the OL has been so weak. They need an OT and a C badly. The DL scenario is better. Leonard Little looked healthy last week and Chris Long is making some plays at RDE. Last year's top pick, DT Adam Carriker, played well last week as well.
---
Atlanta has beat two bad teams and a mediocre one. Can they beat a good team? One maybe. But this bunch still has a long way to go. Upgrading the DT posiiton would be a big help, though Grady Jackson has made some plays.
---
It took three years, but former LSU DT Kyle Williams is making a name for himself in Buffalo, starting alongside South Georgia's pride and joy, Marcus Stroud.
---
Is there a more underrated player in the NFL over the last five years than London Fletcher, who is now making 10 tackles a week for the Redskins?
Every move hasn't been ideal -- Derrick Mason has never been replaced -- but give the Titans organization credit for rebuilding quickly and judiciously.
Look at the defense, which is what makes this team competive.
By using every means open to them -- the draft, high dollar free agents and street free agents -- they have built a formidible group. Starters Michael Griffin, Cortland Finnegan (an absolute steal), Keith Bulluck, Tommy Tulloch and Albert Haynesworth came out of the draft and form a solid corps. Add productive but unheralded free agents like Chris Hope, Nick Harper and David Thornton, the LB they swiped from Indy, and you see more good decion making in action.
Kyle Vanden Bosch, a steal from the Cardinals, is the leader and old dog Jevon Kearse adds some fire as well.
By the way, keep an eye out for Jason Jones, a second rounder who can play DE or DT. If they get him in the right spot he could be a standout.
---
Watch out for Steve Breaston the Cardinals wide receiver stepping into Anquan Boldin's spot this weekend. Breaston can run and catch and he returns kicks. With Boldin wanting a new team next year, Breaston is getting a chance to show what he can do.
---
It's too soon to call former Vol DT Justin Harrell a bust, but so far he has shown next to nothing. The first round pick (2007) has been hurt this season and didn't do squat in his rookie year. He should come off IR soon and the Pack needs a third tackle to step up.
---
The Jags took DEs Quentin Groves of Auburn and and Derrick Harvey from Florida to provide instant pass rush, but it hasn't happened. Neither player seems to have developed enough technique to overcome the tremendous size and quickness of NFL tackles. Both players are promising, but there's work to be done and in the meantime the Jags can't get to the QB.
---
Jordan Gross missed last week's game for Carolina, the first time in his five-year career he didn't suit up. Carolina's best offseason move was resigning Gros.
---
I never believed the Mike Martz was going to make a superstar out of Vernon Davis hype. Martz went on and on about Davis's athletic ability but he prefers a smaller, slower receiver who runs his routes precisely to a sloppier star "athlete." That's why a Dane Looker or Mike Furrey succeeds with Martz. His best receiver of this type was Az Hakim, who could run his routes but also had good speed. Davis has 18 catches so far and hasn't been a factor.
---
Who's counting? Me, that's who. Vernon Gholston doesn't have a sack yet as the transition to OLB is going very slowly.
---
Get ready add the name Ryan Torrain to the Broncos mix at RB. The rookie, who looked good in the preseason is about to come off IR. And whatever happened to Mike Bell?
---
Two weeks in a row the Ravens defense brutalized their opponents for most of the game, only to see it slip away in the fourth quarter as they tired and their lousy offense failed to produce points. Ray Lewis may be getting older, but still spends a lot of the game in the other team's backfield making plays.
---
Can Roethlisberger survive this season? He's getting pounded.
---
The Rams have Mark Bulger back at starter this week. Trent Green looked like a backup last week. He made some plays, but the arm looked mediocre at best. It's hard to judge any of the "skilled" players in the Rams offense, as the OL has been so weak. They need an OT and a C badly. The DL scenario is better. Leonard Little looked healthy last week and Chris Long is making some plays at RDE. Last year's top pick, DT Adam Carriker, played well last week as well.
---
Atlanta has beat two bad teams and a mediocre one. Can they beat a good team? One maybe. But this bunch still has a long way to go. Upgrading the DT posiiton would be a big help, though Grady Jackson has made some plays.
---
It took three years, but former LSU DT Kyle Williams is making a name for himself in Buffalo, starting alongside South Georgia's pride and joy, Marcus Stroud.
---
Is there a more underrated player in the NFL over the last five years than London Fletcher, who is now making 10 tackles a week for the Redskins?
Thursday, October 9, 2008
The market
You won't be hearing as much drill, drill, drill because at these prices the oil companies aren't looking to spend on finding new fields.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Bloody good time
The third season of the Showtime series “Dexter” has started. Two episodes in and our favorite serial killer is already hard at work.
Looks like Dexter is going to be a dad, a development which could get in the way of his bloody hobby, the elimination of Miami’s most reprehensible criminals.
If you thought last season presented our “hero” with some tough situations, the start of season three could be even more convoluted and challenging as Dexter attempts to sort out the royal mess he creates in the season opening episode.
“Dexter” is a well written show with a great cast. It captures the feel of South Florida, in part because the show’s surroundings are so lovingly shown off.
Jimmy Smits is on board, though for how many episodes I don’t know. He’s got Bgreat part, a rising Miami assistant DA whose brother is killed under mysterious circumstances.
If you’ve been watching the show this year you’re probably already hooked. If you want to get on board, I am sure Showtime will package the first 3-4 episodes together soon for viewers who want to catch up.
Recommended.
Looks like Dexter is going to be a dad, a development which could get in the way of his bloody hobby, the elimination of Miami’s most reprehensible criminals.
If you thought last season presented our “hero” with some tough situations, the start of season three could be even more convoluted and challenging as Dexter attempts to sort out the royal mess he creates in the season opening episode.
“Dexter” is a well written show with a great cast. It captures the feel of South Florida, in part because the show’s surroundings are so lovingly shown off.
Jimmy Smits is on board, though for how many episodes I don’t know. He’s got Bgreat part, a rising Miami assistant DA whose brother is killed under mysterious circumstances.
If you’ve been watching the show this year you’re probably already hooked. If you want to get on board, I am sure Showtime will package the first 3-4 episodes together soon for viewers who want to catch up.
Recommended.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
NFL
I'm going to try and bring back my weekly NFL column for you football fans. It will run on Saturday. Check it out this week.
Grappling
Charles Oliver has this great Ric Flair interview on his site. Natch talks about Wahoo (for us old timers) and Cena (for you whippersnappers). Good stuff.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Baseball
Darn I really hate to see the Cubs get beat. I was pulling those for those spunky fellows ... Hahahahahahahahha!
I hate the Cubs.
I actully went to Wrigley a few years ago for the last game of the season. It's a great ballpark and jump at the chance if you can ever take your kids on a trip up there ... the baseball and the city are fantastic.The fans were very friendly and welcoming though depressed because the home team had been eliminated from the playoffs two days before.
Truly a great town.
But I got a big bad taste of Cubs fans a few years ago in Atlanta when their last playoff contender knocked off the Braves. I can take a loss in the playoffs -- you can't be a Braves fan and not be able to survive a post-season debacle -- but the obnoxious behavior of the Cub rooters in Atlanta was burned into my soul.
What a bunch of bush leaguers!
Maybe it's just the Cubs fans who live in other cities who are so loathsome. Maybe it's just the media droning on about how wonderful Cubbiness is that turns my stomach.
Whatever the root cause, this evil needs to be eradicated from baseball.
Forever.
Glad to see the Dodgers did their part ... and I don't like them either.
I hate the Cubs.
I actully went to Wrigley a few years ago for the last game of the season. It's a great ballpark and jump at the chance if you can ever take your kids on a trip up there ... the baseball and the city are fantastic.The fans were very friendly and welcoming though depressed because the home team had been eliminated from the playoffs two days before.
Truly a great town.
But I got a big bad taste of Cubs fans a few years ago in Atlanta when their last playoff contender knocked off the Braves. I can take a loss in the playoffs -- you can't be a Braves fan and not be able to survive a post-season debacle -- but the obnoxious behavior of the Cub rooters in Atlanta was burned into my soul.
What a bunch of bush leaguers!
Maybe it's just the Cubs fans who live in other cities who are so loathsome. Maybe it's just the media droning on about how wonderful Cubbiness is that turns my stomach.
Whatever the root cause, this evil needs to be eradicated from baseball.
Forever.
Glad to see the Dodgers did their part ... and I don't like them either.
The Flicks
Keep an eye out for a low-budget zombie-comedy (zombedy?) called "Dance of the Dead." Described as George Romero meets John Hughes, the movie was filned almost completely in Rome, Ga., using a lot of local sites and residents as extras. The director praised the help he got from the city and its citizens. Hopefully other cities in Northwest Georgia (Dalton???) will be used for future filming.
In Chattooga's lovely valleys ...
My alma mater, Chattooga High, got beat Friday night.
The loss was unexpected, but not shocking. What made the game unusual was that it was the debut of a new head coach for the Indians, who was not only coaching his first game at CHS, but was coaching his first game anywhere.
Last Saturday, longtime CHS coach John Starr was fired. His firing came after an upset loss to Armurchee. The loss, which dropped Chattooga to 3-1, figured in Starr's abrupt termination but it wasn't the cause.
While the coach has been successful at Chattooga, a program that was an absolute shambles when he took it over, Starr's teams were often sloppy and rarely as successful as they might have been. Last season. for instance, after as solid regular season they lost in the first round of the playoffs to an inferior team.
No one at Chattooga wants to admit it publicly, but the common complaint about Starr, an African American, was that he did not maintain discipline with his black players. No one in Summerville wants to say that because they don't want to set off a racial powder keg.
Enter Jimmy Lenderman, the long ago CHS football star and distinguished military careerist. Despite a resume lacking in experience, Lenderman was hired as athletic director before this season and you can bet his first priority was to get the football program "under control."I don't know if the decision was made then to "get Starr" or not. I suspect it was.
I went to the Chattooga-Cedartown game three weeks and something was definitely in the air. Despite an impressive win over the Buldogs and a big home crowd, almost everyone I talked to had a sense of forboding. I was told that had Chattooga lost that game or had there been any incidents on the field, Starr was going to get fired then. The call had already been made. Apparently the impressive win angered some folks who were ready to see the coach axed.
Starr lasted one more week when the the upset loss to Armuchee and a cloudy post-game "incident" involving a few players served as the pretext to do the deed.
Starr was let go less than 24 hours later. The principal said the program needed to "go in another direction" which is what bureaucrats say when they don't want to tell you the truth. The school board "don't know nuttin about nutting" which of course isn't true at all. They long ago knew Starr was headed out and left it up to the principal and AD to do the deed and keep the blood spatter off them.
The administration's lack of thought here popped up immediately when Lenderman couldn't get anyone to accept the interim coaching job. Starr has some people who were very loyal to him personally.
So now you have a very talented football team -- just ask Northwest Whitfield -- with a first time head coach running the show. Nice planning fellows.
Lenderman's career mark fell to 0-1 as the Indians got beat by Sonoraville on Friday. It was another game they should have won, but one they can't blame on Starr.
Hopefully the team will salvage what had been a very promising season.
That the kids on this team are now suffering because the elected officials and the school's administration didn't have the guts to deal with their perceived problems in a forthright manner BEFORE the season is unforgivable.
Starr had his problems and a good AD had ever right to deal with the coach and see that those problems were addressed, but I don't know anyone who thinks that's what happened at Chattooga. Starr was a marked man from Day One of the new administration.
They got him.
Now they have a mess.
The loss was unexpected, but not shocking. What made the game unusual was that it was the debut of a new head coach for the Indians, who was not only coaching his first game at CHS, but was coaching his first game anywhere.
Last Saturday, longtime CHS coach John Starr was fired. His firing came after an upset loss to Armurchee. The loss, which dropped Chattooga to 3-1, figured in Starr's abrupt termination but it wasn't the cause.
While the coach has been successful at Chattooga, a program that was an absolute shambles when he took it over, Starr's teams were often sloppy and rarely as successful as they might have been. Last season. for instance, after as solid regular season they lost in the first round of the playoffs to an inferior team.
No one at Chattooga wants to admit it publicly, but the common complaint about Starr, an African American, was that he did not maintain discipline with his black players. No one in Summerville wants to say that because they don't want to set off a racial powder keg.
Enter Jimmy Lenderman, the long ago CHS football star and distinguished military careerist. Despite a resume lacking in experience, Lenderman was hired as athletic director before this season and you can bet his first priority was to get the football program "under control."I don't know if the decision was made then to "get Starr" or not. I suspect it was.
I went to the Chattooga-Cedartown game three weeks and something was definitely in the air. Despite an impressive win over the Buldogs and a big home crowd, almost everyone I talked to had a sense of forboding. I was told that had Chattooga lost that game or had there been any incidents on the field, Starr was going to get fired then. The call had already been made. Apparently the impressive win angered some folks who were ready to see the coach axed.
Starr lasted one more week when the the upset loss to Armuchee and a cloudy post-game "incident" involving a few players served as the pretext to do the deed.
Starr was let go less than 24 hours later. The principal said the program needed to "go in another direction" which is what bureaucrats say when they don't want to tell you the truth. The school board "don't know nuttin about nutting" which of course isn't true at all. They long ago knew Starr was headed out and left it up to the principal and AD to do the deed and keep the blood spatter off them.
The administration's lack of thought here popped up immediately when Lenderman couldn't get anyone to accept the interim coaching job. Starr has some people who were very loyal to him personally.
So now you have a very talented football team -- just ask Northwest Whitfield -- with a first time head coach running the show. Nice planning fellows.
Lenderman's career mark fell to 0-1 as the Indians got beat by Sonoraville on Friday. It was another game they should have won, but one they can't blame on Starr.
Hopefully the team will salvage what had been a very promising season.
That the kids on this team are now suffering because the elected officials and the school's administration didn't have the guts to deal with their perceived problems in a forthright manner BEFORE the season is unforgivable.
Starr had his problems and a good AD had ever right to deal with the coach and see that those problems were addressed, but I don't know anyone who thinks that's what happened at Chattooga. Starr was a marked man from Day One of the new administration.
They got him.
Now they have a mess.
My Sunday column
When asked in what colors his Model Ts would be available, Henry Ford is rumored to have responded “Any color you want as long as it is black.”
A similar answer was given to the masses of Dalton this week. City residents could have any school superintendent they wanted to replace retiring superintendent Orval Porter, as long as that superintendent was Jim Hawkins of Killeen, Texas.
Hawkins will be taking over the position, which taxpayers fund at a handsome rate, in January. He was selected after school board chairman Steve Williams found a bottle bobbing against the side of his swimming pool. Inside the bottle was a slip of paper with the words, “Hire Jim Hawkins of Killeen, Texas, to replace Porter” on it. Intrigued, Williams looked into the matter, liked what he found and quickly got his fellow board members — does anyone even know their names — to sign on. Presto, chango, Dalton has its next school superintendent.
At least, that’s one version of the story floating around.
(Another theory involves the Freemasons, the Trilateral Commission, the Mossad and the assassination of President McKinley, but I find that one a little far fetched.)
What is clear is that the city school board has no interest in the public’s opinion on this matter, nor does it feel any obligation to open the search up in any meaningful way. The drovers know what’s best for the cattle and no amount of bawling by the dumb beasts makes any difference.
Arrogance personified.
•••
On Tuesday, in a bureaucratic Twilight Zone not so far away, our county school board hosted 100 or so folks with a laundry list of questions or complaints about the new high school planned for the northeastern part of the county. The crowd was angry, but school board chairman Tim Trew put them at ease with some funny jokes and then, with the help of his four peers answered each and every question forthrightly and with such apparent honesty and precision that the crowd changed its mind and ended the evening with a series of loud “Huzzahs!” for the school board members.
Just kidding.
Trew dummied up faster than John Gotti in an FBI raid and he and the rest of the board dove behind the skirts of their out-of-town lawyer and sat silently as one local citizen after another wasted their time at the public microphone. They might as well have been talking to those stone monuments on Easter Island.
Whatever you think about the location of the school, whatever you think about how this public relations fiasco has evolved, surely there should be at least one person on that board with the integrity and courage to speak to the public. And don’t give me that “the lawyer said don’t talk garbage.”
You don’t work for the lawyer. He works for you.
You work for all of us taxpaying jerks who live in the county, you know the ones you cuddled up to when running for office.
Arrogance personified.
Jimmy Espy is executive editor of The Daily Citizen
A similar answer was given to the masses of Dalton this week. City residents could have any school superintendent they wanted to replace retiring superintendent Orval Porter, as long as that superintendent was Jim Hawkins of Killeen, Texas.
Hawkins will be taking over the position, which taxpayers fund at a handsome rate, in January. He was selected after school board chairman Steve Williams found a bottle bobbing against the side of his swimming pool. Inside the bottle was a slip of paper with the words, “Hire Jim Hawkins of Killeen, Texas, to replace Porter” on it. Intrigued, Williams looked into the matter, liked what he found and quickly got his fellow board members — does anyone even know their names — to sign on. Presto, chango, Dalton has its next school superintendent.
At least, that’s one version of the story floating around.
(Another theory involves the Freemasons, the Trilateral Commission, the Mossad and the assassination of President McKinley, but I find that one a little far fetched.)
What is clear is that the city school board has no interest in the public’s opinion on this matter, nor does it feel any obligation to open the search up in any meaningful way. The drovers know what’s best for the cattle and no amount of bawling by the dumb beasts makes any difference.
Arrogance personified.
•••
On Tuesday, in a bureaucratic Twilight Zone not so far away, our county school board hosted 100 or so folks with a laundry list of questions or complaints about the new high school planned for the northeastern part of the county. The crowd was angry, but school board chairman Tim Trew put them at ease with some funny jokes and then, with the help of his four peers answered each and every question forthrightly and with such apparent honesty and precision that the crowd changed its mind and ended the evening with a series of loud “Huzzahs!” for the school board members.
Just kidding.
Trew dummied up faster than John Gotti in an FBI raid and he and the rest of the board dove behind the skirts of their out-of-town lawyer and sat silently as one local citizen after another wasted their time at the public microphone. They might as well have been talking to those stone monuments on Easter Island.
Whatever you think about the location of the school, whatever you think about how this public relations fiasco has evolved, surely there should be at least one person on that board with the integrity and courage to speak to the public. And don’t give me that “the lawyer said don’t talk garbage.”
You don’t work for the lawyer. He works for you.
You work for all of us taxpaying jerks who live in the county, you know the ones you cuddled up to when running for office.
Arrogance personified.
Jimmy Espy is executive editor of The Daily Citizen
Your Sunday Free tune
When Prine was still young, Goodman was with us and and it all seemed like it would last forever.
Souvenirs. I rediscovered this song last year and love it more than ever.
Souvenirs. I rediscovered this song last year and love it more than ever.
Friday, October 3, 2008
O'Reilly freaks
Rational and mannered it isn't, but but "No Spin" O'Reilly sums up how a lot of Americans feel.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Flicks
I am a fan of Italian horror movie director Dario Argento. He can't write worth a darn, but his visuals are often out of this world. In the 1980s he really pushed the genre into some interesting and outlandish realms.
His newest film, "Queen of Tears" is out now in DVD. It is the long-awaited third part of his Three Witches Trilogy, which includes the great "Suspiria" and the entertaining "Inferno."
I wish I could say this is his masterpiece or even a triumphant third act in the trilogy, but mostly 'Queen of Tears" is disappointing.
Of course there are some gruesome visuals and at times the blood flows freely, but while Argento's tricks often worked brilliantly in the 1980s, in today's gore and violence saturated market, they look a bit cheap and oafish.
The story follows a young woman played by Asia Argento -- looking very tired -- as she gets tangled up in the events leading to the resurrection of the Third Witch, and of course the customary end of mankind.
If the charcters in this movie, including its "heroes," are a good representation of mankind, then we probably deserve universal obliteration.
The plot has its usual holes and abusurdities. After all Argento did write it.
There's little suspense.
Argento fails to live up to his legacy.
Not a good movie.
But I did like the monkey.
---
Recommended for Argento and genre fans only.
His newest film, "Queen of Tears" is out now in DVD. It is the long-awaited third part of his Three Witches Trilogy, which includes the great "Suspiria" and the entertaining "Inferno."
I wish I could say this is his masterpiece or even a triumphant third act in the trilogy, but mostly 'Queen of Tears" is disappointing.
Of course there are some gruesome visuals and at times the blood flows freely, but while Argento's tricks often worked brilliantly in the 1980s, in today's gore and violence saturated market, they look a bit cheap and oafish.
The story follows a young woman played by Asia Argento -- looking very tired -- as she gets tangled up in the events leading to the resurrection of the Third Witch, and of course the customary end of mankind.
If the charcters in this movie, including its "heroes," are a good representation of mankind, then we probably deserve universal obliteration.
The plot has its usual holes and abusurdities. After all Argento did write it.
There's little suspense.
Argento fails to live up to his legacy.
Not a good movie.
But I did like the monkey.
---
Recommended for Argento and genre fans only.
My fantasy life
Baseball season is over and ... what's that you say. It's NOT over? They're still playing.
Let me be more specific, Fantasy Baseball Season is over, which means there is a considerable void in my life. No rotations to set for a key series. No lineup changes to contemplate. No stupid trades to shoot down.
I don't have to lie in bed late at night pondering the decision to cut reliever Matt Capps and pick up versatile infielder Ty Wiggington for added bench strength.
It was a very good season. I had two teams this year and both finished first at the end of the regular season (take that Jamie Jones.) I tied for first one one leage and won the other by 10 games.
If you're thinking I must be one smart cookie, I'm thinking you're right.
Anyhow, I guess I'll give my big ol' brain a rest for a few days.
Then, it'll be time to pick that NBA Fantasy League squad.
Oh yeah ... I've got five (5!) faux NFL teams going right now.
And yes, maybe that does make me a loser ... but I'm a loser with a winning record.
Let me be more specific, Fantasy Baseball Season is over, which means there is a considerable void in my life. No rotations to set for a key series. No lineup changes to contemplate. No stupid trades to shoot down.
I don't have to lie in bed late at night pondering the decision to cut reliever Matt Capps and pick up versatile infielder Ty Wiggington for added bench strength.
It was a very good season. I had two teams this year and both finished first at the end of the regular season (take that Jamie Jones.) I tied for first one one leage and won the other by 10 games.
If you're thinking I must be one smart cookie, I'm thinking you're right.
Anyhow, I guess I'll give my big ol' brain a rest for a few days.
Then, it'll be time to pick that NBA Fantasy League squad.
Oh yeah ... I've got five (5!) faux NFL teams going right now.
And yes, maybe that does make me a loser ... but I'm a loser with a winning record.
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