Question #5: Are the officials against the USA?

Answer: We’ve had 2 goals taken away, and countless other suspect calls. It’s no secret that the rest of the world envies us, and for good reason; we are awesome. But I think this is more bad luck than biased officiating. There will come a time in this tournament, either against Ghana or another opponent if we are able to advance, that we are the beneficiaries of a close call. This will lead to outrage along the lines of “USA gets all the calls so that ESPN can get good ratings”.

Question #4: Do Shakira’s hips really not lie?

Answer: False; they do lie. It’s a money making scheme, through and through. Make no mistake, I’d absolutely destroy this women in the bedroom, but the way she dances is just to sell albums. How is this relevant to World Cup – she sings the official song called Waka Waka. Any excuse to put up pictures of pretty women is a good one.

Question #3 – How fucked are Italy and France?

Answer: It’s a good thing they are not North Koreans. The two squads who made it to the finals last World Cup have been eliminated. Thankfully for the players, their country’s respective figure heads are not fascist dictators. They will live. However, the coaches of the two squads will likely be fired. Arrivederci and Au Revoir.

Question #2 – Waka Waka? (Is this time really for Africa?)

Answer: People generally believe that above the sporting event hangs the political history and future of South Africa. In one hand you have the well documented segregationist history of the nation. In the other, the promise of a better future where the country is seen as a modern 1st world nation. However, as hard as they try, it will take more than 1 event to change the worlds view.

Question #1 – Does the USA actually have a chance to win this thing?

Long-winded Answer: The pessimistic and typical American sports fan is likely to dismiss such a seemingly preposterous notion. Generations of negative perception towards the sport in this country leads many to believe that we simply cannot compete with traditional soccer super-powers like Brazil or Germany. The reality however, is that the US has an incredible draw the rest of the way. If we defeat Ghana today, we would likely play Uruguay, a difficult team but one we certainly could beat. That would setup a semi-final match against Brazil. We had a 2-0 lead on that same team in the Confederations Cup last summer, but fell 3-2. Perhaps this time will be different. And if it is, that lands us in the Finals where anything could happen.

Short Answer: Yes

You fuckin' up.

Story from AP by Raphael Satter and Holbrook Mohr (Courtesy of Yahoo! News):

Hayward took Saturday off to see his 52-foot yacht “Bob” compete in a race around the Isle of Wight off southern England. It was a good day for sailing — breezy and about 68 degrees — but anger simmered on the steamy Gulf Coast, where crude oil is still gushing from a blown-out well.

“Man, that ain’t right. None of us can even go out fishing, and he’s at the yacht races,” said Bobby Pitre, 33, who runs a tattoo shop in Larose, La. “I wish we could get a day off from the oil, too.”

(skip)

Hayward had already angered many in the U.S. when he was quoted in the Times of London as suggesting that Americans were particularly likely to file bogus claims for compensation from the spill. He later shocked Louisiana residents by telling them that no one wanted to resolve the crisis as badly as he did because “I’d like my life back.”

It’s understandable that people need some time with their families, or pursuing their hobbies, but the timing of this is absolutely the height of stupidity.  Between the reports of shoddy engineering practices, to the explanation from Hayward that “The Gulf of Mexico is a big ocean,” which is almost as masochistic strategically as “I can see Russia!”, to the recent firing, and now this.  You think a company with this kind of previous savvy for marketing would be slightly more punctilious regarding the public appearances of its spokespeople.

In other news, Korn, the Backstreet Boys and Lady Gaga are among a few of the artists deciding to boycott BP on their tour buses until more action is taken.  When Korn and the Backstreet Boys are cooperating against you, you’ve made some enemies on the other side of the pond, friend.

So I’ve convinced you to tune into ABC at 8:30 on Thursday night. Great! Now, what are some things you should watch for?

How well will Rasheed Wallace play?

In Game 6 regular Boston center Kendrick Perkins sprained his knee and will not be able to play in Game 7. His likely sub will be Rasheed Wallace, a former star on a champion Detroit Pistons team. Throughout the regular season Rasheed underperformed and failed to wow the Boston faithful. He’s had his moments in the playoffs but a strong performance and Boston win would make the fans forget all about that. If he fails to have an impact, it could be a long night for Boston.

Will the Lakers Bench continue to play well at home?

The bench for LA outperformed the Boston reserves in the last game. Most experts agree the Celtics bench is stronger; and they will have to play better than LA’s in order to give Boston a chance. But throughout the playoffs, the Lakers bench has turned in some great performances. If they are able to keep it up, Boston is going to have trouble either chipping away at a lead, or extending it when Kobe is on the bench.

Legacy’s on the line

A win would give Kobe Bryant his 5th NBA Championship and propel him into the upper pantheon of all time greats. If he loses, that would be his second finals defeat at the hands of Boston. And with KG’s injury derailing the Celtics title hopes when Kobe won it all last year, we may view his lack of success against Boston as the only thing keeping him from achieving that level of greatness.

For the Celtics Big 3, but Paul Pierce especially, a win will cement their legacy as great Celtics. Winning in 2008 gave them the ultimate team achievement they all so desperately craved. Adding a 2nd ring to the collection, and Bostons 18th championship would keep them in the converstaion of Russell, Cousy, and Bird.

From FoxNews.com

In a 2005 interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes,” Howard said he has been controlling his tics by using sheer willpower since he was a child.

The fact Howard just suppresses a neurological disorder by using what has to be described as Jedi mind tricks is incredible. Think about the last time you passed up doing something you really wanted to do; buy ice cream even though you’re on a diet for example. The level of self control you exibited is child’s play to Howard who believes it is costing him a tremendous mental strain.

“A lot of people will try to suppress their tics in public and as soon as they get home – they will have a big flurry of tics that could go on for a long period of time,” he said. “But it would take a tremendous effort, as Tim describes, to use willpower to suppress your tics. There’s a mental cost to it.”

This may be common knowledge to the soccer aficionado, but for someone who has just gotten into the World Cup thanks to the outstanding coverage ESPN has done with the event, it’s just another great reason to love this USA squad.

Story from AP by Colleen Slevin (Courtesy of Yahoo! News):

DENVER – Colorado is changing the rules for how teachers earn and keep the sweeping job protections known as tenure, linking student performance to job security despite outcry from teacher unions that have steadfastly defended the system for decades.

(…)

It requires teachers to be evaluated annually, with at least half of their rating based on whether their students progressed during the school year. Beginning teachers will have to show they’ve boosted student achievement for three straight years to earn tenure.

Teachers could lose tenure if their students don’t show progress for two consecutive years. Under the old system, teachers simply had to work for three years to gain tenure, the typical wait around the country.

Walsh thinks Colorado is now at the head of the pack in the second round of the Obama administration’s Race to the Top competition, a $4.35 billion pot of stimulus money designed to prod just such changes.

For those unfamiliar with the Race to the Top program, it is similar in style to some of the proposed healthcare changes.  Most notably, it allows states to compete for federal grants, and doles out those grants based on a judgment of which states are enacting the most effective reforms regarding education.  It provides very heavy incentive for states to adopt a pay system based more on student performance, as both President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan openly support the measure.   Colorado’s recent developments have probably ensured them a larger portion of “Phase 2″ of the grants.  (Link here for official Race to the Top site)

Every state but Wisconsin has some form of tenure. The protections were intended to protect teachers from being fired because of their politics, religion or other arbitrary reasons. But Patrick McGuinn, a political science professor at Drew University who has studied tenure, said they have evolved into virtual employment guarantees.

On average, school districts across the country dismiss 2.1 percent of teachers annually, generally for bad conduct rather than performance.

Translation:  Schools are more likely to fire a pedophile than they are a poor-performer.  How many companies do you know that run like this, other than the Catholic Church?  This CANNOT be the most effective methodology for attracting talent.

Oh, and for disclosure, Wisconsin’s state educational ranking is 8th nationally, as of 2006-2007.

Past efforts to change tenure have caused problems for both parties.

In Georgia, Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes lost the support of the teachers’ union — and later his office — after pushing to get rid of tenure for new hires in 2000.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger tangled with teachers and lost after calling a special election to change tenure rules in 2005. The teachers’ union raised dues and amassed $50 million to fight the proposal.

In the political climate of late we’ve been extremely quick to lambast lobbyists and special interest groups, to the point that we seem eager to cleanse Washington of any incumbents with apparent ties to them.  What does this look like?  50 million dollars!  That’s lobbying.  Hardcore, get-ready-you-motherfuckers lobbying.

Look at GM of late.  Unions may not have been the sole scapegoat, but its difficult to imagine them as the heroes in the recent auto industry crisis either.  Good pay should mean good performance.  Better performers should get better pay.  At some point, unions need to get back to their core functionality: protecting workers from gross injustice, not negotiating inflated compensation, or even worse, the inability to further compensate those who are inflated performers.

Story from AP by Tom Withers (Courtesy of Yahoo! News)

Coming off a 14-strikeout debut, Strasburg (2-0) allowed just two hits, one a home run by Travis Hafner. He struck out eight and walked five before leaving to a chorus of boos in the sixth as Washington ended Cleveland’s four-game winning streak.

(skip)

Hundreds of fans, some wearing No. 37 replica jerseys and almost all of them toting cameras, lined the stands down the right-field line as Strasburg walked onto the field before the game.

“Good luck, Stephen,” one hollered.

He hardly needed it.

Strasburg played catch in the outfield before heading to the bullpen, where hundreds more fans peered over the wall at the 6-foot-4 San Diego native, who immediately began popping the catcher’s glove. Meanwhile in the Indians’ bullpen, Huff warmed up to an audience of 10.

Aww.  Poor guy.

It’s odd at first, that in the midst of the World Cup, the NBA Finals and the recent ending of the NHL Finals a pitcher can command this much attention in his 2nd Major League start.  But it’s exciting.  People love strikeouts the way they love home-runs, and its been a long time since a truly dominating, strike-out pitcher reigned, the last prominent examples probably being Randy Johnson and Roger Clemens.  Personally, I’m hoping the kid makes it big.  Now that he can legally buy a beer and all.

No. Based on the trailer it appears more of the stale, predictable themes, just repackaged in different story lines. Take a look at the video, and then see if you don’t agree.

Analysis

1) Vince having difficulties on a movie set. Haven’t we already seen this in Smoke Jumpers? It appears the director is more willing to work with Vince, but even then; we’ve seen the drama within the entourage before. E will freak out because the filming isn’t going according to plan. He will mess something up and Ari will have to get involved. Old, Old, Old. Let’s see Vince do something different than be a victim of misfortune on a movie set.

2) Drama’s career suffering. We get it – Johnny Drama is an old washed up actor who occasionally gets a part in a TV show or movie. Why make the fans suffer through another season of Lloyd miscast as an agent trying haphazardly to get Drama work.

3) Turtle wanting to branch out and make his own money. Turtle doesn’t need a job. Turtle is best when he’s looking out for his crew, and getting high. Watching him consistently fail to realize success in any of his business ventures is just depressing.

4) E acting like a Suit. Here’s an idea – E cracks under the pressure of being an agent, and realizes his most fun was on the set of Medellin. He takes on a persona of Billy Walsh and his life starts spiraling out of control. I’m rooting for him and Sloan to work out; but if it doesn’t who wouldn’t want to see E do a complete 180 and become the new Billy?

5) Ari. I actually have nothing to say. Ari is the one character who should never change. He is the sole reason I will continue to watch this show. Jeremy Piven honestly should just buy the name and likeness from HBO and tour the country as Ari doing comedic sketches and corporate speaking engagements after the show is over. If Ari Gold walked into my office on a Monday morning my productivity would shoot through the roof for the rest of the month!

What you need:

1) Beer
2) The streaming video – When it’s available it will be posted on this page (it will be available sometime around 8pm est) http://www.macrumors.com/2010/06/05/wwdc-2010-spoiler-free-keynote-stream/

Rules:

For purposes of this game, 1 drink is considered a regular 1-2 second swig of lager.

• Take 2 drinks whenever Steve Jobs mentions one of his projects as “Magical” or “Revolutionary” (Take 5 drinks if he calls it a “Magical revolutionary” device)
• Take 1 drink whenever the audience applauds (Bonus drink if the applause is preceded by an awkward pause where Jobs clearly was waiting for a reaction)
• Take 1 drink for every software developer they invite up on stage to show off an app
  

  Bertrand Serlet

• Take 5 drinks when Phil Schiller shows up on stage. Take 1 drink for every time you think “This guy sucks… get Steve back on stage”
• When Steve finally reveals the new iPhone and asks the crowd if they’d like to see a demo, you must respond with an emphatic YES. Then finish your drink.
• Finish your drink if Bertrand Serlet shows up on stage and presents
• Take 3 drinks when anyone presenting speaks highly of AT&T. They are a terrible service provider and have crippled my iPhone. I am not bitter. I am not bitter. I am not bitter. There, I feel better now.
• Consume all the beer, liquor and wine in your home as well as your neighbors if Steve is not wearing his trademark jeans and black mock turtleneck. This is one of the signs of the Apocalypse.
• Take 1 drink whenever you question your life choices that have led you to playing this stupid game in the first place. You’re sitting in front of your computer watching a company unveil a piece of plastic that can make phone calls.

In 1998 McGuire and Sosa captured the nation with their assault on Roger Marris’ home run record. In the 12 years since, that record has been bastardized. After that magical summer “PED” and “Balco” became just as much of our national vernacular as “Y2K” and “Obama”. There were congressional hearings, staunch denials of steroid usage, and a controversial report known as The Mitchell Report. The consensus was that more players took steroids than didn’t.

But it appears the tides are finally turning. With the 2 perfect games in a month (the first time 2 perfect games have been thrown in 1 year since 1880!!) it seems pitchers are regaining their advantage that the game should naturally afford. Throw in a no-hitter this year as well, and you have some of the most dominant pitching in recent memory.

But is it luck or skill? There is no way of knowning for sure at this point, but here are some fun facts courtesy of CSNPhilly.com

In an effort to put a perfect game into perspective, the standard comparison is that more people have orbited the moon (24) than have pitched a perfect game.

From a baseball perspective, more players have recorded 3,000 hits (27), 500 home runs (25), and 300 wins (24) than thrown a perfect game.  From a broader perspective, you have a better chance of being elected President of the United States than throwing a perfect game in the major leagues.

In general, winning the lottery is often used as the foundation for long odds.  Well, 109 people have won at least $10 million in Mega Millions since 2005.  That’s 89 more people than have pitched a perfect game since 1876.

Long odds for sure… but this baseball purist hopes that the balance between pitchers and hitters is on it’s way to being restored.

The problem here isn’t the oil, it could keep spewing into August like BP has recently said, and the planet would be no worse off. Current estimates show the oceans of the world comprising of 320 million cubic miles, which is 3 Sexillion (or 10^21) gallons of seawater. I had to look this number up because it was so big. Using the worst case scenario at this point of 40 million (or 10^6) gallons leaked, you can see the disparity, it is about 1 trillionth of a percent.  Am I trying to brush off the disaster? No, but hopefully this puts into context the vastness of the oceans, and how just one affected area isn’t doom and gloom for the entire Earth.

Yet this is the rallying cry – stop the oil! My rallying cry – “Remember what the government is supposed to do”. It boils down to 2 distinct points. One is that this is not the governments responsibility to fix. BP and all the other oil companies are the experts in their field. If anyone can figure out how to stop the oil from spewing up out of the well it’s this industry. What can Obama and his administration possibly do that would help? Let the experts figure it out. If the construction of the new Freedom Towers in NYC hits a snag in construction, are we going to call the government to fix, or will we let the engineers and project managers handle it?

Looks like someone made a mess

It is however the governments responsibility to assess damages and either exercise it’s right under law or enact legislation to ensure if a similar event happens in the future, there is a distinct protocol and expectations laid out ahead of time.  Right now more people are bickering about the best way to stop the oil than they are the best way to “make good” the situation. It’s clear fishing in the gulf will take a while to return. What kind of subsidies should BP pay to the local fishermen? As a result of this, should we look to make it more affordable for imports on shrimp and other seafood that will likely see a price hike as a result? These are the questions that should be being asked, not if golf balls and mud can really stop a leak.

"And over here is where I'm hiding my porn collection... "

It all boils down to the simple fact that this leak is more of a political problem than an environmental one. Our government is too big to be able to handle this. Every house subcommittee who has even the slightest inkling of a potential connection wants to get involved. Not because they care about the Gulf, or BP, or the poor fishermen of the region. They care about making a name for themselves and proving they are the big fish in the pond of Washington DC (my attempt at a clever pun). Even worse, the government is so big and so vast that most ordinary Americans have no idea who, aside from Barack Hussein Obama, should be handling things.

It makes no difference to the politicians what ultimately happens. But everyone knows there are newspapers to sell and sites just like this one writing about the spill. People will feign altruism and every talking head in Washington is going to make sure they have a hat in the ring. Hopefully BP is able to stop the leak soon, and our government responds with some intelligent decisions. I just hope people begin to recognize that we lack the flexibility and the cooperative nature necessary to launch an effective response. Simply put, the government is too big to do much of anything. This one is up to the citizens and private industry. Stop waiting around for the government to fix it.