It looks like you don’t want to invite the Bash Brothers (Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco) to any party you may be planning (personally, I wouldn’t want to be in the same room with either of them, apart or together.)
McGwire and Canseco were the most feared 1-2 home run hitting combos of the late 1980s and early ’90s, but Big Mac doesn’t want to have anything to do with his former Oakland A teammate. McGwire told ESPNLosAngeles.com that he’s unwilling to mend the relationship between him and Canseco.
The point was brought to a head as a result of the fact that the team honored the 1989 World Series Championship team. Canseco was one of many former A’s players on hand at the O.co Coliseum to celebrate the occasion. McGwire wasn’t in attendance but had taped a video tribute that played in the stadium.
McGwire said of Canseco “It’s too late. I don’t care to ever speak to him again. What he did was wrong.” What did Canseco do? Canseco wrote the book “Juiced” that exposed the culture of performance enhancing drug use in Major League Baseball. Canseco exposed McGwire as a drug user, which led to his reputation harming Congressional testimony leading to his eventual admission that he used PEDs. This admission has definitely hurt, perhaps forever, his chance of being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, which would leave McGwire, Barry Bonds, Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez, and Alex Rodriguez as the only men over 500 home runs either ineligible or potentially ineligible when they retire to be voted into the Hall of Fame.
Jose Canseco is a self-absorbed, egocentric man who will do anything for money and fame. He took PEDs to become a great home run hitter; he tried boxing and wrestling, I think, but with the money running out and the sounds of the crowd fading into memory, Canseco wrote his book. He says that he is sorry for having written it, but I say that it was one of the few honorable things Canseco has done in baseball. McGwire shows the same delusions and misguided blame as many of the steroid players have exhibited. Mark McGwire is mad because he got “outed” by Canseco. You notice that he doesn’t seem to take responsibility for what happened to him as a result of his drug use.
Narcissists always blame someone else for their own failings, and in these later years of his life, Mark McGwire may be alone with the only person who can stand to be in his presence.

Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was given a two-game suspension for a domestic violence incident in the offseason. Rice allegedly knocked his then-fiancée unconscious in an elevator in an Atlantic City casino last February.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is once again on the hot seat, since players who violate the league’s drug policy automatically get a four-game suspension. So, smoking a doobie is a greater offense than a huge man punching a woman?
Being NFL Commissioner is not an easy job: you are basically in charge of two groups of people who are suspicious of each other and who, often act like spoiled brats. Of course, you are very famous, and you do receive a two million dollar plus salary in return for all of your hard work. However, Goodell has not earned his money this year so far at all. He has stuck his head in the sand on the change the Washington Redskin nickname issue, and the league’s record with women is particularly horrible.
There were the allegations that many teams’ cheerleaders did not even earn minimum wage for their work as eye-candy dancing on the sidelines, and now, there is the precedent that if you smack a woman around, you will get the NFL equivalent of a slap on the wrist.
On of the most famous sports quotes in history comes from Babe Ruth. Asked what he thought about making more money than the President of the United States, Ruth replied “I had a better year.” By that measure, nearly everyone who works should make more money than Roger Goodell this year.

The media is making a big thing out of the murder rate in Chicago, but yet again, oversimplify the problem. First, it should be noted that the murder rate in Chicago is half what it was in the early 1990s, and murder per capita is near where it was during the Johnson administration. However, the murder rate in the poorest communities which also tend to have the highest percentage of minorities, especially African-Americans is akin to talking a casual stroll in the Gaza strip today.
We see the same familiar pattern, a young innocent bystander dies, out come the media, the police and politicians make speeches, more police are on the streets. Meanwhile, flowers and stuffed animals mark the place where the child died; neighborhood residents and ministers march and call for peace, and as soon as the sun goes down, the shots ring out.
The latest tragedy involved the fatal shooting of 11-year-old Shamiya Adams, who was struck by a stray bullet Friday night during a sleepover inside a West Side apartment. The young girl was making s’mores when a bullet hit her in the head. I used to feel guilty for leaving Englewood, where I grew up. There is a need for positive role models, or at least someone who goes to work each day, sometimes in a suit and tie. But with the demolition of the high rise projects, these people moved into the neighborhoods amplifying the gang presence and competition for drug turf and money.
I was raised with iron bars on our front and back doors. While no one shot at me and my friends, I know people who didn’t grow up that I went to school with. The Indignant Wife has no knowledge of that kind of life, and the Indignant Children are so naïve and sheltered, I would fear for their safety every second (not that I don’t ordinarily, but to a higher degree). Before we moved to the suburbs, I didn’t realize the constant stress I was under: worrying about my parents and their house because of the neighborhood and the constant vigilance for trouble to my person. Again, I live in a metropolitan area, but the likelihood of being hurt or killed is many orders of magnitude lower.
When a little girl, nearly my girls’ ages dies, one does get angry. Where do these “monsters” come from? Shouldn’t they find a way to just kill each other and leave the innocent bystanders safe? Can’t we have some kind of “Escape From New York” walls built around an area where they can just kill each other with impunity? And why don’t people turn in the gangbangers?
All good questions, but none have easy answers. With no jobs, bad schools, and little hope, what do these kids learn about life? The shooters are doing what they know, and the innocent bystanders, rightly, don’t trust the police and often the gangbangers are their children, brothers, and friends. And retribution is a way of life, so people keep silent and try to make the best lives they can.
Moreover, the election of an African-American president has brought open racial animus out in the open not seen in this country since the 1960s. To be frank, to many people, the poor should disappear – they cause problems, they are “taking advantage” of the system, getting money to sit and watch Oprah all day. Never mind that that perception is inaccurate in the extreme. No one gives a shit about young black men, let them kill each other is the attitude of too many.
Raising the minimum wage, legalizing drugs, taxing it, putting that money into training for the gargantuan work needed on this country’s infrastructure, would be meaningful first steps. Taking these people and training them to repair the millions of vacant buildings would also be a good thing. There are enough vacant buildings and apartments to almost get rid of homelessness in this country. Spending money on mental health care would also put a big dent into some of society’s problems. MEANINGFUL gun control – waiting periods, background checks, making semi-automatic weapons and large magazines illegal would also help.
But the world is changing, and people are scared of the changes. As a result, these are the times of not giving a good damn about anyone who is not your family or who you can identify with. “Stop The World, I Want To Get Off” was a popular play back in the 1970s, and too many people (and yes, I mean the Fox News and GOP and Tea Party crowd; but I also mean many “progressives” too who under the surface just want to rule) who don’t give a shit about anybody or anything but their bank accounts. And we are all to blame – corporations do bad things for people and the environment for the “shareholders.” Through our pension funds, insurance policies, and mutual funds, we are the investors. Greed is all we care about and corporations are the vehicle to do bad things without us having to do it, or even think about it or be responsible. There are some common sense ideas that could seriously help. I’m not thinking that I have all the answers, or even some of them, but someone has to care. Honest discussions, and a realization that the world is not a “zero sum” game – if someone is doing well, or even poor people doing better, it does not make your standard of life worse. You don’t lose when someone else “wins” (unless we are talking about CEOS and the 1% super rich).
What happened to caring about other people (And let’s not forget the Middle East in this also)? Can we do anything about it? Does anyone have the will to do what needs to be done? I’m tired of it – it makes me sick.

Former NFL Head Coach and current NBC NFL analyst Tony Dungy opened up the can of worms earlier this week in an interview with Ira Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune. Discussing St. Louis Rams’ draft choice Michael Sam, who just happens to be the first openly gay player in the NFL, Dungy said “I wouldn’t have taken him. Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.’’
Yes coach, things are going to happen, and since he was the SEC defensive player of the year last season but still wasn’t drafted until the seventh round, there are a lot of NFL people who feel the same way Dungy does. (It should be noted that Sam is undersized which also had to do with his draft status, but he did perform very well in one of the toughest conferences in the country.)
However, Dungy is a very religious person: he has written books on the subject and he speaks publicly on these subjects, and Dungy is making a value judgment of Sam.
As I have written many times here and on Facebook, the biggest problem with religion (and the athiests movement too) is their overzealous attempt to convert other people to their views, especially when it comes to ostracizing groups of people. As I wrote here a few days ago, Christianity is no longer persecuted; it is the most popular religion on Earth, so there is no need to try to convert others. Religion, like people, should mind their own goddamn business.
From my perspective, the lessons of Jesus about forgiveness, taking care of the poor and ill are good guidelines for life, even though I am not very religious at all. But all of Dungy’s comments come from a judgmental place.
This shows that Tony Dungy doesn’t remember his own history. When Dungy was a top defensive coordinator with the Steelers, it was long believed that he was a top head coaching prospect, but no one gave him a chance. “Black coaches aren’t ready for the NFL or the NFL for them,” it was said. Dungy languished for years until the country and the league were ready for a black head coach. And I’m sure that it wasn’t ”totally smooth … things will happen,” which is what Dungy said about Sam’s situation. But the league survived; Dungy won a Super Bowl, the first African-American coach to do so. How is his situation any different from Michael Sam’s?
If religion helps you get through your day, that’s fine. If it gives you a moral compass (as long as your compass doesn’t encapsulate the worst violence, injustice and hatred in that particular religion), that is your choice. But these are no longer the 1800s, or 1500s, or 200s; we cannot and should not try to go back to an earlier day in history, mostly because those days were probably not all that super to begin with, and haven’t enough people suffered and died in the name of God and religion?
Just like when Dungy was hired, the league will survive Michael Sam. Eventually, it will no longer be news when gay people play sports. Until then, Dungy and his self-righteous, bigoted, brethren should mind their own damn business.
Wasn’t someone in the Bible quoted as saying “judge and ye shall be judged?”

I have never been a Denver Broncos fan: I hated the Orange Crush back in the 1970s and I have never liked John Elway as a player or as a member of the front office. However, I always admired Bronco owner Pat Bowlen, and am saddened by the announcement that Bowlen, 70, has transferred control of the NFL franchise to the Pat Bowlen Trust as he deals with Alzheimer’s disease. The team will not be put up for sale but rather controlled by team president Joe Ellis until one of Bowlen’s children is prepared for the role.
To me, the duty of a sports franchise owner is to put the best team he/she can on the field/ice/court, and Bowlen has certainly done that. In his 30 years of stewardship, the team won six AFC championships, including one this past season, and two Super Bowls along with numerous division titles.
I know that to many fans, the ultra-rich owners are objects of scorn and derision, and often owners deserve the fans’ ire (see the Donald Sterling situation now playing out in Los Angeles). However, Bowlen has never fallen into that category: he did his best to field a winning football team. It is sad that he can no longer helm the team, and is yet another reason why most sports fans should be hoping for swift inroads in Alzheimer’s research and treatment.

It has been obvious for several months that the NCAA is imploding. The continued scandals, health and concussion issues, the Ed O’Bannon lawsuit, the NLRB ruling that Northwestern athletes are school employees are all part of the gathering momentum that the college sports business model is coming apart. Another factor has been the big universities’ impatience with the small schools numerical majority that allows them to block the big schools from paying stipends and other rules that they would like implemented.
As noted here over several months, the changes could happen quickly, and one of those issues will be voted upon on August 7. The vote would grant the Power Five Conferences (Big Ten, Big 12, Atlantic Coast, Pac-12, Southeastern) the ability to vote and pass certain legislation without asking permission from smaller schools.
For example, legislation granting a $2,000 stipend for athletes would be more likely to pass with autonomy for the Power Five conferences. The proposal was previously rejected by a majority of the 347 Division I members mostly because unlike the big conference schools, they either do not have the financial strength to pay the athletes, simply do not believe in paying athletes, or fear (rightly) that the dominance the big schools already have on high school talent would only grow if the players could be paid openly.
It’s a no win situation for the NCAA; if the referendum fails, the leagues have discussed breaking away from Division I. If that happened it would disintegrate the NCAA. How would the basketball and other tournaments be handled? How would deserving teams from non-Power Five conferences be able to participate in football bowl games and the coming college football championship? What about the issues of the smaller schools?
Long time readers know that I have no love for the NCAA and the perfect storm of serious risks to the NCAA and its “student-athletic slavery” business model. Something has needed be done about the exploitation of athletes for decades, but the players didn’t have enough power to push and the powers-that-be in the NCAA and government were too wedded to the status quo to do anything unless pushed to the brink.
The brink has arrived. The Bastille is being overrun. Fortress NCAA is under siege, and it couldn’t have happened one moment too soon.

Long time readers know that I haven’t followed the NBA is a very long time due to the two-man nature of the offense, and the fact that one team will go on a run, then the other team will run off a streak of points, I always say that all I need to see is the last 2 minutes of any game, and I would do that more often if the last 2 minutes didn’t take an hour.
However, the team play exhibited by the San Antonio Spurs latest championship may, as in times past, lead to other teams trying to emulate the Spurs style of play. Add to that the feel good sports story of the year so far – LeBron James revitalizing a whole city by returning to his home town of Cleveland, Ohio to play for the Cavaliers, and the NBA seems more interesting than ever.
Which brings me to a theory I have and I am interested to see what the readers think. The NBA has had many fabulous players over the years, and all have been great at what they did; but I wonder if one of the factors that distinguish the very best players of all time in the NBA from the rest is that they are all “tweeners,” that is, men who due to size and talent were not defined by a “position” – guard, center or forward?
What do I mean? I put forth that the best basketball players of all time are Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, James, and Oscar Robertson and all of these players transcended the sport because they transcended positions, and people trying to guard them. Let’s start with ‘the Big O.” He played at 6’5” and 220 pounds; when he was in college in the late 1950s and then to the NBA and Olympics in the early 1960s, Robertson was so much bigger and stronger, he could post them up, but he was too adept at the dribble and quick to be guarded by a forward. Of course, Oscar is still the only player in NBA history to AVERAGE a triple double for an entire season (30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists per game), and a first ballot no brainer for the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Some could say that it’s a reach to include Jordan in this group since, at 6’6” he is the perfect size for a “2” (shooting) guard, but I’ll venture that with his extremely long arms and leaping ability, Jordan could be considered a small forward at times (he certainly guarded them on the defensive end frequently). What adds to this argument was his extraordinary leaping ability; he could cover much more ground and height due to his vertical leap. And, like Robertson, Jordan was a very good dribbler, he also did play point guard at certain times (especially late with the game on the line).
Like Jordan before him, LeBron James can play several different positions. At 6’8”, 250 pounds, he certainly has the size to be a forward, but he has the strength and leaping ability to play power forward, but he has a good outside shot and great slashing moves to the basket. Plus, he has the speed and agility to play and cover guards. His long reach makes it hard for smaller players to easily get around him.
Finally, the easiest one to illustrate is Earvin “Magic” Johnson. People forget that, in his prime, Johnson was only 2 inches shorter, but was 15 pounds heavier than the great center Bill Russell. Of course, Johnson was a 6’9” point guard, setting NBA assist records only eclipsed by John Stockton. While not a deadly outside shot, Johnson worked hard to make him a threat from the perimeter, but he was also was able to disect a defense, and his basketball intelligence and ability to anticipate a player moving without the ball, then get the ball to him in exactly the proper place to score a basket made the “Showtime” Lakers one of the most formidable teams in NBA history. And, of course, it is one of the great games in NBA lore – game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals against the Philadelphia 76ers, Kareem is out and Magic, at the end of his rookie season, starts at center, scores 42 point, adds 15 rebounds and 7 assists for his first NBA Championship.
Don’t misunderstand, this is not to downplay the talents of the league’s other all time greats: Abdul-Jabbar, Russell, Wilt, Dr. J, Bird (an argument could be made that Bird had the same “tweener” attributes as the others, but I didn’t include him at the very top due to his back injuries which limited his effectiveness and longevity), Jerry West, Karl Malone, Pete Maravich, or any of the others. I’m just posing a theory.
Let me know what you think?