Apple: White Models’ being a bitch

Apparently there is some controversy at Apple with a bunch of white models being bitches.  It seems that someone thought it was being a bitch while ordering their latte.  Then someone thought it was a good idea to use the words “too skinny” to describe the model.  After that happened there was just a tapestry of obscenities flying every which way.  “You asked me to lose all this weight…I never have any viruses or anything…I’m slim, slender, and the coolest thing on the market right now, bitch!” were just some of the words used.  Apple plans on using a more latin model for christmas this year.  Be on the look out for the iPhone cuatro Manzana.  Say goodbye to that white model until spring.

Okay, so all of that is just play on words and bullshit.  But come on, lets have fun with a story like this.  I heard it and the look on the newswoman’s face was something like “Why don’t they just hire the black models”.  So I had fun with this and I hope you laughed a little too.

Movie Reviews 10/26

Here are some movie reviews of some films I have seen in the last couple of weeks. 

Jackass 3D – 2010 – Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Steve-O, Ryan Dunn, etc.

This in my instance was the most anticipated movie of the fall movie season.  Usually there is nothing but shit in the fall season and its movies like this that warm my soul in the beginnings of the cold season.  Anyways, this movie impresses time after time with all of the explosions, stunts, poop, and gross things that the guys do to their bodies.  This movie ends well and does so in the most admirable fashion, for as admirable as a movie about physical abuse can be.  The 3D isn’t that bad, but I do feel a bit dizzy after I watched the movie.  I did notice that there were about 10 more previews than needed in this movie.  However, don’t let that discourage you into not seeing this movie.  If you have ever enjoyed a Jackass movie or even something on the TV show, this is the movie for you.  Knoxville does that Old Guy thing again, they do the snake things again, Everyone gets a shot at a stunt using the camera that shoots in 3D and has a speed of 1000+ frames a second to see the ripple and points of impact on everyone.  Gotta hand it Dickhouse productions for this one and let’s hope that in Jackass 3.5 (which is just leftovers from this movie that couldn’t be shown in theatres) that there is more exciting stuff for the viewers.

Back to the Future – 1985 – Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover

Well, it’s been 25 years since Doc Brown and Marty McFly went back in time with a Delorean.  I thought I would review one of my favorite movies of all time being it the anniversary.  After seeing this movie again and finding things that I never really thought about, I would like to share some of those things and find some common themes.  The theme about ‘If (someone doing something) never happened then you would never have been born’ makes a good argument.  I mean the whole movie is about going through time and doing what you want to make your fortunes better than everyone else’s.  However, there are several things that if didn’t happen could jeopardize anything.  Like when Grandpa hits George Marty McFly with the car and Lorraine falls in love with him.  Or how the Save the Clock Tower lady is a major player in time travel.  Without her, Doc and Marty are stuck in 1955 forever.  Just goes to show that without activism we could be stuck in a nightmare that we don’t belong in.  Also, when Doc Brown is calling Marty on the telephone, where is he calling from?  He calls in the morning to his own residence and he calls again at midnight at Marty’s house.  Why did he call those two times and how did he know Marty would be at those places?  If I’m not mistaken, the Delorean is also frosty and smoking when it comes out of the trailer for the first time.  Did he time travel in his trailer or did he just have a smoky trailer?  Am I just overthinking this?  Probably.  Ironically, November 5, 1955 is the date that Racial Segregation was outlawed on Interstate Commerce like buses and trains.  I googled it and it was under Wikipedia, so it could be anyone’s guess.  Anyways, what a classic.  I love this movie and the people that made it.

Coming up in later writings, I continue my Financial Analysis of the 4 Major Sports and then move onto some Google Image Fun and maybe some Top 5’s and a music video I like. 

NBA 2K10-11…..IT’S BACCKKKK!!!!!

It’s that time again.  Basketball season is here and the Celtics are looking to make it back to the finals.  Oodalalee!  They tip off the season with the Miami Heat, which is an awesome way to fire off the season, by showing Lebron who the real contenders in the league are.  Think about this for a minute, at tip off tomorrow night, Shaq, KG, Pierce, Ray-Ray, and Rondo are going share the court with D-Wade, Lebron, Bosh, and two other nameless Heat members.  Probably Chalmers and Ilgauskas.  Fucking Lurch. 

Anyway, have there even been more points per game been on a court at the same time?  Maybe an All-Star game?  I added career points of all the players that would be on the court and its just shy of 150,000 points.  That’s insane.  8 players really make that up.  7 elite players, but Rondo isn’t Elite yet, he’s just bad ass. 

It took me a while to figure out who was on what team this year.  Apparently everyone was so wrapped up in the Lebron to the Heat story that they forgot to mention that everyone was moving around in the NBA.  Everyone except for the two teams that made the Finals last year.  Granted the Lakers and Celts kept their core players, but they did get some additions (Shaq, Jermaine O’Neal, Delonte for Boston; Matt Barnes for the Lakers).  This season should play out pretty well barring any major injuries to players.  So, without further or do, here are my predictions:

East:

Atlantic	W	L
Boston Celtics	53	29
New York Knicks	47	35
Philadelphia 76ers	35	47
New Jersey Nets	24	58
Toronto Raptors	21	61
Central	W	L
Chicago Bulls	46	36
Milwaukee Bucks	44	38
Indiana Pacers	34	48
Detroit Pistons	30	52
Cleveland Cavaliers	19	63
Southeast	W	L
Miami Heat	57	25
Orlando Magic	49	33
Washington Wizards	42	40
Atlanta Hawks	41	41
Charlotte Bobcats	25	57

Quick Note: I’m planning on NYK getting someone to add to Amare.  Probably Melo or CP3.

West:

Northwest	W	L
Denver Nuggets	52	30
Oklahoma City Thunder	51	31
Utah Jazz	49	33
Portland Trailblazers	31	51
Minnesota Timberwolves	16	66
Pacific	W	L
LA Lakers	57	25
Golden State Warriors	46	38
Phoenix Suns	45	37
LA Clippers	35	47
Sacramento Kings	32	50
Southwest	W	L
Dallas Mavericks	54	28
San Antonio Spurs	48	34
Memphis Grizzlies	30	52
Houston Rockets	28	54
New Orleans Hornets	25	57

Finals: Celtics Defeat Lakers in 7. 

MVP: Kevin Durant (OKC)

ROY:  John Wall (WSH)

Finals MVP: Paul Pierce (BOS)

Other Notes:

Either Carmello Anthony or Chris Paul will be moved during the seasons sometime.  Jeff Green will become the new Scottie Pippen.  Rajon Rondo will average a triple double for most of the season with 12 PPG, 10 RPG, 12 APG.  Lebron James will blame someone other than himself for not winning a championship…AGAIN.  Jason Kidd will be called Jason Dadd, turning 35 or something like that.  Larry Bird will draft another white player.  Michael Jordan will face Larry Bird in a game of H-O-R-S-E for rights to Stephen Jackson.  Yao Ming will single handedly bring down the value of the Yuan.  Mark Cuban will be fined for something stupid involving Twitter and a Referee and Shaquille O’Neal will be on Scare Tactics with Nate Robinson and Delonte West. 

The Problem with all 4 Major Sports and The Dollar, Part 1: MLB

I was recently talking with my Dad, among other people, about the problems that MLB, the NBA, the NHL, and the NFL.  It seems to me that they are all having money trouble and seem they don’t know why.  Being a commissioner of a billion dollar organization might seem great on paper, but there seems to be the underlying theme that if you can’t handle money, then this is the job for you!  I haven’t seen people with so much power be so careless with this many millions of dollars scramble to save their asses while still trying to be greedy.  From the No Benjamin’s League, to the No Fun League, the Major League Boondoggle, and the kNuckle Head League (see what I did there), all of the leagues are in jeopardy of falling into a deep dark pit that is unsustainable and highly unfavorable to fans, like myself.

To kick things off, let’s start with the league that isn’t playing right now, or in my opinion, shouldn’t be playing right now:

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL (BOONDOGGLE)

Most of their trouble began with the steroid era and the $100+ million dollar contracts that were handed out to players who you’d think “WHY IS WORTH THIS MUCH?”  Bud Selig, God Bless Take Him, has been the worst commissioner I have ever seen.  I mean how hard is it to order how an All-Star game will end?  Alas, I’m not here to talk about that stupid incident or the dozen of other things that have crossed his desk and left a skidmark on the game of baseball, I’m here to talk about the financials of the MLB. 

Let’s start a list:

1. Unsustainable contracts and ludicrous team revenues – The Yankees are a Billion dollar team right now.  They are the only team in the MLB that does not have to pay for food vendors.  That’s right, they can make their own food and sell it their fans at a profit.  However, the Yankees just got beat by a team that only spend $55 Million this season on team revenue compared to their $215 Million.  This, however, does not stop the Yankees from going out in the off season and purchasing every player that they want off the shelf for money that no one else can shell out.  Sorry, to all those teams that seem to compete very well with sub $100M budgets but the Yankees will be purchasing your star players within the next year or two.  That means that Cliff Lee, Carl Crawford, Albert Pujols, Adam Dunn, Adrian Gonzalez, Prince Fielder, and Ryan Howard are just among the elites that could end being in pinstripes or leaving their respective teams for $150M+ contracts.  Now, they can’t all end up there, but they will be in contention with each other just to get the opportunity to play in the shoebox known as Yankee Stadium.  It does kind of bother me, as well as other baseball fans, that the Yankees can NOT win a World Series and then decide to clean up a Free Agent Market at their own will and have no one to regulate it at all.  It is the downside to a free market system.  Spend all you want and screw the teams that can’t afford it.  They used to have a system in place which allowed teams to franchise their star players and keep them on salary.  But alas, in a Supreme Court case, Flood v. Kuhn, baseball soon began its Free Agent market after realizing that Baseball was Interstate Commerce and thus violated its Anti-Trust exemption.  This event did cascade the Scott Boras’ of the World, the Super Agents, the Holdouts, the large contracts, and George Steinbrenners of the world.   Which leads me to the other part of the problem.

2. Teams Not Paying Players – Many of the signs of this point to teams like the Florida Marlins, San Deigo Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Oakland Athletics and many other teams that can afford to pay for players, but have been hoarding the league-sharing profits from teams like the Yankees just to build giant stadiums instead of elite squads.  That report for Deadspin about the financial records of the baseball teams who have millions in storage only to build stadiums and rob cities of their tax money is only the tip of the iceberg.  It reminds me of when I was younger and people in Boston were making bumper stickers saying “Save Fenway Park”.  At the time, I knew little about the financials about baseball and how tax money went into stadiums.  Now that I think about it, saving Fenway was probably the best thing for Boston.  Sure we may be only to sit about 35,000 people, but we still manage to win and compete.  But the fact remains, if teams are going to compete they have to be able to pay players.  It won’t work with a league wide profit sharing agreement, but it will work with a salary cap and salary floor.  Meaning, that teams have to meet a certain payroll, much like what the NHL has.  There was a point in the MLB where the Red Sox could’ve traded Manny Ramirez for the entire Florida Marlins and it would’ve been financially okay.  That’s when you know there is a problem in baseball.  George Steinbrenner may be praised for paying his players handsomely for talent, but at what cost to the fans?

3. How Much for those That? – Looking at this link, I see that Fenway Park is a pain in the ass to visit if you like to do see baseball games live.  The Red Sox lead the league in Fan Cost Index, which is how much it is for a family of 4 to buy tickets, park, get 4 hot dogs, 2 beers, 2 programs, 4 sodas, and 2 adjustable caps, at the awesome price of nearly $350.  Add in the fact that the parents will drink more than 2 beers, or the children will want more than a hot dog over the course of 9 innings, which could be about 4 hours now, depending on whether the Sox are playing another AL East team.  As far as this statistic is concerned, buying an HDTV and splurging on the season pass on your favorite team is really what you should be doing instead of putting up with the crap of dragging someone to the ball game and paying through the ass. 

4. The Super Stadium/Ball Park/Museum/Shopping Center/Hotel – I can’t exactly remember which book it was that I read it in, but one economist (Bradbury?), was talking about how when the Rogers Centre in Toronto opened, is right around the time that baseball stadium attendance blew up and ticket prices were growing like crazy.  It was also around the same time that Ronald Reagan began cutting taxes for the rich like crazy.  The Rogers Centre is part Hotel, part ball park, and part mini-mall.  Now think about what each of those cost separately.  Include land, taxes, licenses.  Then think about adding about $100+ Million for players.  Maybe another $30 Million for administration costs.  Then add in the fact that your tax dollars paid for about 80% of that, over the course of X amount of years at a rate of interest maybe just below the discounted rate for being a hometown team.  Now think about how much a company might charge to make a profit for 50,000 people to fill that 81 times a year.  Add a retractable roof to your costs, as well as heating and air conditioning.  Then add grounds crew.  Sounds like a hell of a time doesn’t it?  And your city might’ve paid for about 80% of it. 

5. Health of Their Product – Let’s face it.  162 games plus 18 playoff games does not make sense.  Derek Jeter holds the record for most playoff hits among other postseason stats.  Well, I’m sure he wouldn’t be holding those records if the playoffs weren’t 7 game series a piece.  He’s played in 147 games.  Reggie Jackson played in 77 games.  Babe Ruth played in 41 games.  In 1980, Playoffs were a best of 5 series.  A reasonable amount of games added to the regular season of play.  No doubt that the Divisional series were either 3 or 5 games series.  That’s a max of 15 games additional.  Now we can’t have a playoffs unless there is a minimum of 15 games.  The most embarrassing about playoff stats is that Carlos Beltran has 60 less plate appearance than the Babe, 50 less than Gehrig, and the 90’s Yankees are all over the hitting statistics for the playoffs.   I’m sure if Babe Ruth played in 147 games in the post season, he would’ve shortened his career.  Want a real stat, Ruth hit 15 HR in 167 Playoff Plate Appearances.  It took David Justice 4 times as many at-bats to do that.  There’s a trend here.  More playoff game statistics means that players aren’t lasting as long as they could have.  The season starts in April and goes until November now.  It used to end in October.  END IN OCTOBER.  I don’t want to watch baseball all year long.  Wrestlers wrestle all year long and they end up dying at 50.  They don’t get an offseason.  Think your Jeter’s, A-Rod’s, Pujols, Halladay’s, Sabathia’s, and other All-Star caliber players are going to withstand a year round season with no time to get healthy and stay healthy?  I don’t think owners see it.

Prognosis: Looking at their record of waiting until the 11th hour to settle CBO’s and Players Association arguments, it doesn’t bode well for the MLB.  Their commissioner is a slouch, who I thought I remembered saying he would leave baseball in 2009, which I was happy about, seeing that I would be out of college and thinking “Man, the economy sucks, but at least Bud Selig isn’t running the MLB anymore”.  Nope.  I was wrong.  Bud just loves to screw up everything.  Between Players using drugs, Teams robbing Cities of their Revenue to build a ballpark, and having their sport still not reviewed on instant replay is the reason  why I think baseball will not recover as well from the this recent money crunch more than anything.  Baseball has lasted a lot of things, but a deadball era at this time would do a number on everyone, seeing that MLB is part of so many moving parts in the machine of the American economy.  I’m not going to say that Baseball will sink into entropic states and be put at a standstill, but something has to be done.  Something will be done.  I just don’t know what.

NFL: The No Fun League and This Illegal Hit Nonsense

I simply do not get what Roger Goodell is trying to do with his league that he has right now.  In case you missed it, a bunch of defensive backs made awesome hits on players were either catching the ball or about to catch the ball.  I heard from ESPN football analysts, 98.5 The Sports Hub, The Sports Guy, and I’ve had all I can stand right now.  This game that just about everyone watches on Sunday, that is worth about 250,000 jobs and easily a large portion of this working economy, is about to turn everyone into a sissy mary.  Here is why.

The NFL Commissioner instituted a new rule issuing fines and suspensions on players who cause hits on players that might be considered dangerous or intentional to injury.  Let me get this straight, the National Football League, which is made for guys that hurt and were bread for making hits that are intentional.  But because some scientist opened up the head of a hockey player that died and donated his brain to science, every sports commissioner has now a monkey on his back saying “if you don’t control your concussion problem, then someone else, like the government will take over”.  This, to me, is absolute bullshit.

First there was the Peyton Manning rule, saying that players can be given a penalty for illegal contact after the Patriots defense was that good against Peyton Manning and his plethora of receivers.  That was okay because now players are only allowed contact up to 5 yards from the line of scrimmage, which is manageable and coachable.  Players can adjust to this. 

 

There was then the Tom Brady rule, which is pretty much, for any football fan, a pussy rule.  Tom Brady and the Kraft Family was pissed that he missed the 2008 season with a leg injury from game 1 because he was tackled from the defensive end from the knee down.  At first, it wasn’t a bad rule.  It made sense for players to not go for the quarterbacks legs.  But now, every time a quarterback is hit, its almost on cue that they look at the referee and give puppy dog eyes looking for a roughing the passer penalty.  Just look at these eyes and try to say No to that!  I mean, even I get upset at Tom Brady for flipping out on referees for not throwing flags and giving them 15 yards.  You went to Michigan right?  Backup?  I bet you even were a bit of a tough guy before all that lip gloss went to your god damn head.  Act like a football player.  Not a ballerina.

Those two previous rules have been landmark rules in the NFL.  The Latter has made the quarterback a bit of a flake and put more emphasis on the offensive line more than anything.  The other major rules in the NFL have had to do with Challenges, Crossing the Plane of an Endzone, and the Horse Collar rule, which we can all thank Roy Williams (DB) for.  Those rules have all made sense and are coachable rules that teams can teach their players to work around.  But this new rule, this new rule for football players to pretty much calm down on the hitting is utter nonsense.  Just ask any football player, even look at their twitter page and expect them to say “Thanks Commish for looking out for our health, but get back behind the desk and fix the financial situation, leave the hitting to us.”

Everyone from Michael Felger to Tedy Bruschi was in an uproar about all of the hits that just happened to coincide on this previous NFL weekend.  I really wanted to punch my radio when Felger was upset about Meriweather doing something like this.  James Harrison, who is a former Defensive Player of the Year, was fined $75,000 for delivering a hit on Mohamed Massaquoi, which he went in with his helmet, but he used his forearms to leverage a bigger blow on Massaquoi.  Dunta Robinson of the Houston Texans delivered a huge hit to DeSean Jackson for which both players were carted off of the field, Robinson was fined $50,000.  Brandon Meriweather delivered a huge hit to Todd Heap, which many think was the worst of the major three hits that were fined and occurred over the weekend, and was also fined $50,000.  I do not understand the science behind this kind of regulation.  Because with regulation like this, you have to make sure that you are not tainting your product.  Remember, there are 10-12 year veterans playing this game who have been used to this kind of hitting for a long time.  Just like how fighting is a part of Hockey, hitting hard is a part of football.  If you want to get rid of the hard hitting in football, then you have to redesign Pee-Wee camps so that lineman aren’t driving their bodies into metal poles covered in padding.  If you want to get rid of hitting in football then you have to get rid of the safety helmets and pads that football players are already wearing.  If you want to get rid of hitting in football, then get rid of football all together.  It wasn’t too long ago, that a man who was the dirtiest hitting safety in football, a man by the name of Rodney Harrison, was the king of the head first spear into players that either caught the ball or didn’t catch the ball. 

Judging by the video, Harrison wouldn’t have made it a day without being fined $100K per game for the hits he made.  This new rule changes everything there is to know about the modern game of Football.  This rule is uncoachable and it really brings players back to think about how they are going to approach hitting a player.  I don’t know how this will fix anything.  All this did was give some closure to players who were on the fast track to get concussed anyways.  They play football, and they get paid handsomely for doing so.  No one expects them to go out and solve math problems afterwards.  I know these players are human beings and they have children and families to care about and love and provide for.  But every player knows the risks out there.  They know the dirty hits and they know the hits that are good clean hits that just look bad.  If you want to know about hits that were banned in the NFL, look no further than Deacon Jones and the head slap.  It was a hit that the NFL had to ban because it would actually break a guys neck.  See for yourself.

This is all I can say about this right now.  So for Roger Goodell, the NFLPA, Rodney Harrison, and all the players out there who don’t give a damn about league fines and nasty hits because it makes people buy their jerseys and be a bad ass, saying Good night.

My Thoughts: Mad Men Season Finale….

So it’s the season 4 finale of Mad Men, my favorite show.  There is so much to discuss because of so many things that have happened this season.  Last season they went out with a bang and decided to have the four executive characters around Sterling Cooper offices: Don Draper, Roger Sterling, Burt Cooper, and Lane Pryce and decided to branch off of the British parent company and make their own company seeing that they did not want to split up something that they worked so hard for.  Also last season, Betty Draper divorced Don and started going out with a local politician who looks a lot older than Don, but is somehow worth her hand in remarriage. 

This season, Don lives alone in an apartment, where he seldom visits his kids on weekends and is still leading the league in batting average of nailing loose women.  Trouble has hit the office in several ways this season.  Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, which it is now known, has lost several accounts, Don lost a long time friend that no one but a few knows about, Don nailed a secretary who then confronted Peggy on how she manages to keep up with Don (as in they slept together for Peggy’s promotion), and recent executive assistant who happened to be really old and have a great comic relief died in the office while Pete “Weasel” Campbell tried to get an account while having no one notice that they were moving a dead body through the office.  The firm did win a Cleo, which an award given out yearly for the best advertisements seen in the public.  From what I remember from that episode Don got completely drunk during the ceremony and Roger Sterling, who is my favorite character, makes a fool of himself.  What else is new.

Don Draper, has also seen several different women including his brunette secretary with big teeth who thought she would be promoted or be taken away by Don just because she slept with him.  He has also fancied a new character, the blonde Dr. Miller, who has served a market research consultant who helps the firm out with finding who buys what and how to sell to them.  He also has met a secretary, Megan, who has slept with Don in the office and is also good with Don’s kids.

Thoughts on this Season:

1. Roger Sterling has become the premiere comedian of the firm, seeing that he has made me laugh more than any other character.  He reminds me of an Archie Bunker, but with a glass of scotch in his hand and a three piece suit on. 

2. The Draper women are bitches.  Betty Draper is a confused, childish, woman who doesn’t really like anyone better than herself.  Sally Draper is pretty much her mother, just a younger version.  The fact that his weird kid from Season 1 is back, just adds to the fact that Sally and Betty share the same childish brain.

3. Don Draper has the sex drive of something unearthly.  I do not know you can go from chick-to-chick-to-chick in the matter of one episode which is only about 2 days long usually.  If anyone in the 60’s was getting this much ass, he was also 007.  I mean Draper must have a list of people he’s nailed as long as Jack Bauer’s kill list.  Un-Earth-ly. 

4. I love the whole Joanie abortion part of the series.  It brings up current issues and really makes you know how prevalent abortion was in New York City.  I did love when (SPOILER ALERT) Joanie is calling up her hubbie, Dr. Greg in Vietnam, and mentions that she is getting bigger and that the baby will arrive when he comes home.  Awesome spin by creator Matthew Weiner, because in the abortion scene a couple of episodes ago, they make you believe that Joanie gets the abortion but she is keeping it.  Good for you Joanie.

Okay, now that I have seen the finale and are ready to write about it, I will just skip the spoiler alerts and figure that some people will get over it if they find out.  One last one: SPOILER ALERT!!!

Wow.  Just wow.  I can’t believe that Draper went this far into his new relationship.  Looking back on the season, I didn’t think the look he had at his assistant was anything serious.  I just figured it was about having sex with her in his office like a champ.  Did not think that he would take her with his kids to Disneyland and end up getting engaged to her.  Interestingly enough, when he calls up Dr. Miller to tell her about his recent engagement, Megan has to give him the phone to do it, and the look on her face is almost like she knows that he lays more pipe than a roto-rooter and they are engaged.  Amazing.  Also, when Sally spills her milkshake and she is fine with it all over her dress, its quite the surprise to the kids since all Betty Draper did was cry over spilled milk.  

That creepy kid that first walked in on Betty Draper taking a leak in Season 1 and now has a fancy for Sally Draper, is a little confusing, but I think I might be able to understand why he is there.  He is there to play to the connection that Sally and Betty Draper need to have to get to know each other better.  Glenn, which I just realized is his name, is really a character whose purpose is to bring out the better sides of two other characters.  Having realized that the Drapers are moving out of their house, in the last episode, makes me realize that Glenn’s days are numbered unless he shows back up somewhere in Sally’s future. 

The office is spinning apparently.  Joanie got promoted without being compensated, which brings up another Women’s issue.  Peggy has saved the company with a new account that is a pantyhose maker, which will put enough money in the company for the long haul.  Pete Campbell is still going to be Pete Campbell.  Everyone else at the firm seems to be okay.  There is still no Sal, which is weird, seeing that he seemed to be gay, and knowing that this show is very progressive, I figured they would’ve brought him back by now. 

The last scene might be the most questionable scene ever.  Last season, they left the audience knowing they they are taking off in a new direction and new company.  This season, Betty and Don have sold their house and moving in their own directions.  Don and Betty share a drink before entirely leaving each other behind.  As they pan out of that scene, they shoot to Draper laying in bed, next to his new fiance, Megan, looking out the window at the moon that is full.  I don’t know what to think about it.  It could mean he already misses his Bets, or he can’t wait to get on with his life, or something completely different.  I know Draper is a heartbreaker, but this could be a record for someone in 1965 who was just recently engaged and already wants out.  Season 5 could be awesome.  I hope they don’t skip a bunch of years and jump into 1968.  I hope they just go at the pace they have been going and keep doing what they are doing.  I already want to rewatch the whole series right now.

Weekly Top 5!…..Hip Hop Whores!

TOP 5!

I'm going to start blogging Top 5 things that I think should be a Top 5 of all-time, or at least until I think that they could change. I won't stick to broad topics like movies or sports figures, but I will be more specific in terms of a Top 5. Top 5 movies is too broad, but perhaps I would include Top 5 movies of a certain genre, character, ending, etc. I will want some ideas from my "readers", because there is only so much I can think of.
This week's top 5: Hip Hop Whores (rappers/hip-hop artists who are featured in more songs than needed)

5. Kanye West

We all know and kind of love the guy who can't show any love for people that do well other than himself, but we must show him some love right now. For he might walk the red carpet with a bottle of Hennessey and his voluptuous girlfriend to then only walk up during Taylor Swift's award ceremony and make a complete fool of himself, but we might still listen to your music someday. I don't want to say he peaked, but he definitely has to make up for lost charisma after that thing. Although, if it counts, I also think Beyonce was robbed. No one is watching Taylor Swift videos thinking, 'man that's a great video', they are thinking, 'man, that's a great song'. P.S. MTV needs to start showing videos again if it wants to keep that award ceremony, otherwise, I think Youtube should be able to take over that shit. Proof of Whoring: Swagga Like Us, Run This Town, Forever, American Boy, Make Her Say, Maybach Music 2 (I know no one really listens to Rick Ross much, but come on)

4. Eminem

I'm not gonna lie, but I think Eminem has been rapping about the same thing for the past decade. Having said that, I have noticed his recent change to being featured in songs rather than just put out rap albums. It's easier for him and he's probably the best freestyle rapper out there. I was a bit skeptical at this pick for #4, but then I rethought my list and there is plenty of
reason why he should be the #4 hip-hop whore of all time. He has roots to Dr. Dre and Snoop for one, and he brought in 50 Cent. I didn't go any further than that because Lloyd Bank was a piece of crap. Most people wouldn't consider the real slim shady, mainly because he's such an entity by himself, but this is one of those people that can tour with 4 other, mix it up on stage, and still do a solo portion of the tour. Kudos Slim! Proof of Whoring: Forgot About Dre, Drop The World, Forever, What's the Difference, Airplanes (i hate this song)

3. Timbaland

No one knows the beats more than Timbaland does. He started all the way back in the 90's with Magoo, brought up a very popular singer named Aaliyah (tragic), and still managed to return to the apex of hip hop being a perfect MC to mix it up with just about anyone.  Even Weezer made a song about how everyone being on the Top 10 charts mixes it up with Timbaland.  I think his resume speaks for itself and he could easily be #1, but I just think he gets enough credit for being a hip-hop whore since he is a beatmaster.  They don't call him Mr. Bose for nothing.  Proof of Whoring: Are you that Somebody, Apologize, The Way I Are, Elevator, Promiscuous, Carry Out

2. Pitbull

Pitbull is a currently the Hip-Hop Whore of the year for 2010.  He has been in more songs and featured than he has in his own albums.  He started a little while ago with the song Go Girl and Hotel Room Service, for which was one of the few songs that make me think of my Spring Break 09 Daytona trip.  He makes the club go nuts and usually has all of the hottest women in his videos.  I don’t think he’s really latino, but his accent in his songs are almost too close to tell.  His songs are definitely forever embedded in my workout mix.  I don’t really see him fading out either since he is pretty clean as far as crime goes and he also has got the club beat on lockdown.  Proof of Whoring:  Shake, Hey Baby, I Like It, DJ Got Us Falling in Love Again,

 

1. Lil Wayne

This ladies and gentlemen is the king of all hip-hop whoring.  Lil Wayne may be behind bars, but trust me he will hold this title for a long time.  He has been in more songs that he doesn’t belong in more than any other person in the hip hop world.  I don’t even know where to begin with him, and I don’t see any end in sight.  He still has more damn mixtapes than anyone, which baffles me because I thought the mixtape went out with the tapedeck.  Shows you how much I know.  Anyways, there isn’t much I can say about this guy that hasn’t been said already.  Without Lil Wayne, we would not make it rain, we would not drop the world on your fucking head, we would not be getting it in and then going off, and we would not be yelling YOUNG MONEY or A MILLI.  He will be making music for a long time and will probably be freestylin’ for a long time, whether people buy his crap or not.  Proof of Whoring: Forever, Swagga Like Us, Down, Let it Rock, I Cantranform Ya, Make It Rain

Honorable Mention: LMFAO, T.I. T-Pain

Movie Review 10/12

Milk - 2008 - Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, James Franco

I was first skeptical about this movie when I first heard about it. I knew it was about a gay politician, named Harvey Milk, and that was it. I kind of knew he was a social figure in the San Francisco area during the 1970's, but I only knew as much as that. I knew Sean Penn won an Academy Award for Best Actor of that year, for which I am a bit upset about. I still think Daniel Day-Lewis's Daniel Plainview from There Will Be Blood is the best character the silver screen has ever projected. That final speech is the best ending scene in cinema! I practice that ending scene so much that I try to perfect it. The movie itself is very good. Sean Penn plays Harvey Milk, who I didn't realize was only a city supervisor. Maybe I thought this country was a little more progressive but I guess electing an openly gay man to some city office was a little minor league in my eyes. I understand he was assassinated by another supervisor, but I guess I just thought it was a bit more national than just the gay rights issues in San Francisco. The movie was good. Didn't see much of a reason for James Franco to play one boyfriend while another unheard of guy played another boyfriend of Milk. I'd recommend the movie for its acting and digital enhancing to make Sean Penn look real on a 1970's television. The plot was good, but I just thought Harvey Milk was a governor or mayor or something other than a guy that controls what goes on in one city. I didn't know Supervisor elections were that serious in San Francisco. But then again they have their baseball closer grow a disgusting black beard that makes him look like Richard Reed. Like how I turned that one around didn't ya?

Monday Night Football Live Blogging: Schmenza Alert!

I'm gonna blog throughout the entire game. Hopefully I don't fall asleep or end up texting Brett Favre pictures of my schmenza. I am currently watching ESPN Monday Night Countdown. Tom Jackson, Keyshawn Johnson, Chris Berman, and the Ditka are on right now because there is a weather delay. Lightning. I should timestamp this so people know what I'm talking about.

8:43 - Stuart Scott, Cris Carter, Some other loser and Steve Young are standing under the bleachers like they are ready to pass the bottle before this thing actually starts. I should DVR the Event just so I can watch this commentary.

8:45 - Event is now DVRed.

8:46 - Cris Carter just coined the phrase "not only is the beginning of the game delay 40 minutes, but the end of the game is delayed 40 minutes". No wonder you work the four letter network.

8:49 - Just realized I could be watching Jon Gruden say "This Guy!" about 3342 times tonight. DVR time!

8:51 - I'm making coffee. I need to be up for this.

8:56 - I think some Jersey Shore is in order. I'm going to watch that until something happens. You know, like a kickoff.

9:08 - God damnit, I was just getting into Jersey Shore too. This game is going to start soon. I really don't think Sammie is upset about losing Angelina, I think it's a Producer decision, much like the "Note" was a producer decision. You know, because girls don't get drunk and tell someone the truth about talking shit about them behind their back. Never happens. Ever.

9:14 - Jwoww is hideous. She is just a dumpster of a human being. Sammie's manish impression of her is spot on.

9:15 - Kickoff. Touchback.

9:16 - I really hate Fireman Ed. Incredible first play by the Vikings. Moss to Favre. You heard me right. Moss threw to Favre from a handoff from Percy Harvin. Nice touch Childress.

9:18 - Second false start penalty on the Vikings and there has only been one play called.

9:22 - Designated Driver Braylon Edwards, welcome to the program. Let's hope that there is some sort of drive involving Santonio Holmes, my fantasy pick up of the week.

9:24 - Adam Schefter just reported that Deion Branch is now a Patriot again. Pats trade a 4th round pick, and I am officially wrong about the Randy Moss deal. I guess I didn't give Deion that much credit. Welcome back Deion Branch. Wonder if anyone picked him up in Fantasy this week. Maybe I should do that. I don't know who I would drop, but I could consider picking him up.

9:31 - Brother just sat down next to me with a bowl of grapes. No joke, kid loves eating a branch of grapes while MNF is going on. Wonder how the Event is going. Sarah Roemer is so hot. I'd love to see a lot more of her. I'd also like to see Santonio Holmes get a TD pass right now, but Sanchez is being a fucking goomback right now. THROW TO SANTO!

9:38 - The next Monday Night game is apparently in Jacksonville, my question is how are they going to show that game when it's obviously going to be blacked out. Jacksonville is a crap city and there is no point in having anything in that city. Sorry Garrard but you should be moving to any other damn city. You know when they have a Super Bowl and can't house both teams and the media.

9:42 - Cromartie-The-8-Kid-Party just deflected a pass to Moss. Mom claims Cromartie held onto his shirt, but no one cares.

9:48 - Nice work Holmes, next time you hold something make its a promise to your wife and not a Vikings jersey.

9:54 - Holmes! First down. Yay! I just need that more!

9:56 - I almost had a heart attack when that deep ball was for Holmes. That would've ended my fantasy woes and made my weekend. Hopefully this B.Smith character doesn't steal any of my thunder.

10:07 - CATCH THE DAMN BALL SANTONIO! I BET IF THAT FOOTBALL WAS WRAPPED IN ACAPULCO GOLD YOU'D CATCH IT! On a lighter note, Carl Weathers is still getting paid. Go Apollo Go! Anyone else know why runningbacks are running into the backs of their lead blockers? This is just a recurring trend. Last week it was Flozell Adams pretty much tackling Rashard Mendenhall and I don't think I've seen a game without a runningback not running into a fat lead blocker. Except the Pats, I haven't seen Alge Crumpler or Gronk or anyone get in the way of Law Firm or Taylor.

10:18 - Thank you Sanchez. I enjoy you throwing for good gains with Holmes. I'm waiting for Gruden to switch his "This Guy" comment to Sanchez. It's about to be 6-0 Jets making this game just slightly more exciting than the plot of Hawaii Five-0, the new series. Seriously what is the deal with New York Jets games being field goals and no deep balls to Holmes. Come on Rex, call a damn play to work that USC arm like a man. I haven't seen a Mexican be this lazy since Rick Sanchez was fired from CNN for anti-semetic comments. P.S. why was it so damning to say that a certain group of people own everything? Sounds more like a compliment in a way. Although the right move in firing his boring ass.

Halftime: I watched the replay of the Giants-Braves game. Sucks. Giants suck. I hate that team and Brian Wilson's black beard. Giants-Phillies NLCS. No ones watching that TBS. Go get Dane Cook to promote your "There's only one Actober!" deal. Jackasses.

I needed to charge my laptop, so I'm missing the first parts of the second half, so unless Holmes scored a TD pass to clinch my win, there isn't any coverage from me.

11:05 - This is depressing. Nick Folk is the Jets most impressive player right now scoring 4 times through the uprights. Rex Ryan should be disgraced. You get all this talent from around the league, and you whip out your schmenza and send a picture of it to some lodi dodi from Florida State, you do jack diddly in the more important games of the year.

11:26 - I return to the TV. Brad Childress is yelling about playcalling. Vikings have penalties and Favre just threw his 500th TD pass to Randolph Moss. Guess what Brett, you can throw 500 TD's but it only takes one dick pic sent to Jenn Sterger for you to be a complete turd on humanity. Brad Smith just returned a kickoff return for 86 yards to the 15ish yard line. Now Sanchez put it in Holmes' hands and make this night complete for the love of God.

11:38 - It's official, Jon Gruden called Adrian Peterson THIS GUY.

11:39 - Randy Moss commits an offensive pass interference penalty and then Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden decide that these pass interference calls can go anyway. There is no telling who commits what on the football field, according to Gruden. Well Gruden, who just THIS GUYed Percy Harvin/Brett Favre, there is this thing called a camera and there are about 100 of them pointing toward the football field at any one time. Maybe you should stay at ESPN and never come back to coaching football again.

11:45 - I'm reminded that the Jets have Vernon Gholston, the victim of Patriots spin-doctoring by Belichick. He misses an obvious tackle and I laugh.

11:51 - I am becoming so depressed about Santonio Holmes probably not getting another catch and not winning me my fantasy match-up.

Midnight: According to Life Alert, you can fall in the tub and still feel Safe, Independent, and even Younger. Let me repeat: With Life Alert, you feel Safe, Independent and Younger. Don't tell me that Don Draper Inc wasn't involved with the change in the promotion of that product. If you feel younger maybe you could not fall in the shower and need some stranger to help you when your butt-naked with shampoo in your hair. Give me a break!

12:10 - Deja Vu: Favre wanted the 2 point conversion on their last drive and missed it. If they score here, they are forced to make another 2 conversion just to stay in the game. In Economics of Games and Sports, we talked about how you should always go with the safer bet instead of risking your future into having to take a 2 point when the game is on the line. This game could be lost because Brett Favre was a gunslinger and wanted to take the lead rather be safe with only a tied game.

12:16 - HOLMES FIRST DOWN!!!! I'm so close! Get back on the field Holmes. No time to yuck it up, you need to win this for me you stupid son of a bitch!

12:25 - I just called a Brett Favre interception while chatting with Mark Manning on AIM. No one throws a game like Brett Favre. No one. He can may have 500 career TD's, he may have a Super Bowl ring, but no one ever throws a game like Brett Favre. Absolutely no one.

12:32 - Jon Gruden calls Favre a warrior. Warrior not the word. Benedict Arnold is the word. If I can think of a word that sums up "guy that takes immense risks and throws a game away because he wants to get his schmenza sucked by a someone not wearing a wedding band". Nice work Favre. Now I will end this blog by saying I hate Brett Favre and the Event rocks.

Why I'm not so sure about this Randy Moss dump...

Teamwork. It's the backbone for winning championships. Bill Belichik, Doc Rivers, and Terry Francona have proved that. Claude Julien has come close to proving it. I don't think there is a person who would disagree with me. However, there are somethings that coaches and GM's do that they might regret. The Randy Moss trade, er, dump, was one of those things according to me.

I know some, or mostly all of the Patriots fans will disagree with me. Randy was a clubhouse cancer, arguing over money while the Kraft's were dealing with Brady, doing something while the pledge of allegiance was going on, yada yada yada. Randy has a history of being a pest. Think for minute, about what Randy Moss is to any team. He is the guy working for his dollar. John Salley, on his podcast talks a lot about how organizations smearing players because they aren't loyal to the team. If anyone should be loyal to anything, it's to their family. I don't blame Johnny Damon for taking more money to go to the Yankees, I don't blame Lebron for not staying in Cleveland, I don't blame Phil Kessel for leaving the Bruins after a stellar season to play in Toronto for more money. If your a player, your allegiance is to your family. And that's all. If an organization loves you enough, you will get a second contract to stay with them. Most recently Tom Brady, Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara. All well liked and deservedly getting their contract.


I don't know if most Boston fans know this, but we vindicate so many players who come through here and don't stay forever. Sure the foods nice, weathers okay, and the chicks are hot, but those things aren't money. I don't know whether its something just with Boston fans, but we almost expect every player to stay with their Boston franchise forever, like Larry Bird, Bobby Orr and Ted Williams did. Granted those players are Boston legends, but if someone walked up to them and offered then more money to play in New York or California or some other franchise, we would have vindicated the hell out of them.


Another reason I'm not sold on this dump of Moss is the Patriots plans for when Wes Welker gets another man covered on him. Randy Moss would usually get the coverage of probably two men or one Darelle Revis. Now that we don't have Moss, we are now allowing another man freed up on the field to cover Wes Welker, therefore making our passing to Welker 20 times a game a wobbly strategy. Moss was good for Welker in this way. I'm the one bringing up the fact that maybe the luxury of Randy Moss deep took away another player and freed up Welker and made him a Dallas Clark like player instead of the receiver he was in Miami. I know the Patriots have a lot of options, but we have one less option, which is our deep threat in Moss. I'm not even going to talk about Brandon Tate being a threat. I don't even think he's going to be that great.

My last argument for Moss is that, I'm sure he would have stayed if he was offered 2 years at the same money. The Patriots knew that Moss and Brady had the same year ending contracts. They also knew that through the process of elimination that Tom Brady would stay in New England. Think about how much money big franchises have spent on their QB's in last years off season and then think about whether or not they can afford Tom Brady in this off season. He was making $6M and now he's going to be making $19M.

Now I question their move or rumor to go after Deion Branch. Why would you reject to offer a receiver like Branch one time and then expect him to come back? Does he show teamwork ethic now? Maybe he seems desperate? I don't think so. I don't see the Pats getting a replacement and I also see them missing Moss very soon. This is what I don't get about this teamwork first strategy. If you want players to come here, you have to pay them. Drafting only gets you so far. If we aren't going to use these draft picks that we acquire for receivers that are who Tom Brady needs to pass to then I suggest we think about players, who you need to make a team work.