Sunday, March 18, 2012
Quote of the day: John 3:16
Friday, March 16, 2012
Peyton Manning and the decline of loyalty
Loyalty is a commodity that seems in short supply these days. As our society becomes more and more focused on materialism, we see constant examples of how people can be discarded so somebody else can make a little more money.
I do not want to sound naïve. In the marketplace, the whole point is to make money. The employers we work for will not have a company for long if they do not turn a profit. I understand that.
However, it is still difficult to watch when people have dedicated decades to an organization and then get shown the door simply because the winds of change are blowing.
Perhaps the most ruthless examples of this happen in professional sports. As much as people love the National Football League, we must understand that player contracts are not guaranteed in this brutal sport. Basically, players can be dumped regardless of how many years are left on a contract. A recent example of this was when the Indianapolis Colts released quarterback Peyton Manning, who had been part of the team for 14 years.
Manning missed all of last season because of a neck injury. However, doctors have proclaimed him healthy and in the last few months his rehabilitation has been going smoothly.
The sticking point with him remaining with the team was a $28 million bonus he was set to receive as of March 8. The Colts decided they did not want to abide by the contract that was negotiated in good faith with Manning so they let him go.
I know the question those reading this want to ask: Isn’t $28 million entirely too big a bonus to be paying a football player? I do not believe so. The Colts signed this contract with Manning, and I do not believe it was too much to ask that they abide by it.
Manning is one of the most marketable players in the league, and his value to the team in the last decade and a half allowed the Colts to make tons of money off him. Before Manning went to the Colts, they were a losing franchise that nobody paid attention to outside of
I do not believe it is a stretch to state that the Colts multi-billion dollar stadium would not have been built if not for Manning playing for the team. He was that valuable, but now he is gone.
We should not shed many tears for him because he is extremely wealthy and will land on his feet. However, we are all vulnerable to the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately attitude that the Colts showed him.
This is because no matter how much our employer says they need us or how important they say we are to their plans, they will abandon us if it helps their overall goal.
We have seen this repeatedly happen in the last few years as millions lost their jobs and unemployment skyrocketed above nine percent for a while. People with decades of service to employers were booted because their employer needed to restructure.
For better or worse, people derive a lot of their self-worth from the occupation they have or the company for which they work. This makes us especially vulnerable when the economy slows down and many of us are thrown into uncertainty.
More than anything, situations like these remind us that the most meaningful roots we put down probably should not be with who employs us. It should be with things that have lasting value and will stay with us when times are both good and bad.
God and family should be where our focus is. There are not many things more reliable than these.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
My picks for the Final Four
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Behold, the glorious screw bean
The role of The Monkees in pop music history
When pop star Davy Jones recently died, it caused me to pause and ponder the role The Monkees played in the development of modern pop music.
Jones was one-fourth of the pop quartet that had its greatest popularity in the 1960s. Though the group was the vessel through which some memorable music was produced, it was also the object of scorn and ridicule from many in the pop music establishment.
The circumstances of the group’s creation fed into this ridicule. ‘The Monkees’ was a television show that followed the ups and downs of a struggling musical group. The show was clearly developed as an extension of The Beatles’ film ‘A Hard Day’s Night.’
Unlike The Beatles, The Monkees were not a real group. They were four actor/musicians who were cast in roles for the show. They were hatched in a laboratory on a
When the show hit the air, demand for the music on it went through the roof, and according to one source, The Monkees eventually sold 65 million records during their career.
This instant success created resentment from some, and the group received the ultimate insult of that time. They were labeled as ‘plastic.’
At the time, it was quite a controversy, but with the benefit of 45 years of hindsight, it really should not have been that big a thing. If something like this happened today, it likely would not cause most people to raise an eyebrow.
The Monkees were a triumph of marketing, and today, marketing is often the king bee when presenting music to the public. The Monkees were attractive and charismatic young people who connected big time with their target audience. Isn’t that the normal approach these days? It certainly seems that way with most of the music coming out of
The Monkees music was harmless and lightweight. It was not in the same universe as other bands of that era. However, this does not mean it was bad.
The group used songs written by some of the best songwriters at that time. Songwriters such as Carole King and Neil Diamond contributed several songs to the group, some of which were big hits.
Diamond wrote ‘I’m a Believer’ which is probably the group’s biggest hit and most well-known song. King co-wrote ‘
The bottom line is that if The Monkees are taken in the proper context in which they were meant, we quickly see they were good entertainment. If The Beatles and Bob Dylan represent the meat of the 1960s music scene, then The Monkees were sugary sweet pastry like a doughnut.
While a steady diet of doughnuts is not always good for us, they do have their place. In the same sense, The Monkees have their own place. Their music was pleasant and satisfying.
While many view music as art that must be taken with the utmost seriousness, it does not have to be that way all the time. The band’s critics back in the 1960s lost sight of this fact.
This is understandable in some way. Pop music was fighting for its credibility back then to be taken seriously as an art form. Therefore, the pre-packaged approached
Still, we have to be sure not to take ourselves too seriously, and The Monkees music helps us not to do that.
As for Davy Jones, I am sorry for his family’s loss, but I am glad he played a role in leaving us a lot of good music.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Gas price anger will cause President Obama big problems
It is only the early days of March, but gas prices are already hovering around $3.60 a gallon. We often associate price spikes like this with the summer vacation season, but this is not the case this year.
There are many words I would like to use to describe this situation, but unfortunately, this is a family-based blog and profanity is not used.
And, believe me, I would really like to use those words. Every time I fill up my tank, I get dizzy as I watch the numbers spin on the gas pump. It is like watching some weird kind of slot machine that I know always stops with me being the loser.
For those expecting an analysis of the situation, prepare to be disappointed. I am not interested in digging at the root cause for these high prices. This column is only about expressing frustration.
We have heard all the excuses. Some say the high prices are because of tensions in the Middle East caused by
The fault probably lies in all those excuses. However, the bottom line is experts do not expect the prices to come down soon. Actually, the worst is yet to come as prices are expected to surge above four dollars a gallon. There are some who predict prices could reach as high as five dollars.
For a culture that depends so much on automobiles, the coming months could be grizzly for most of us. Transportation costs will continue to take a big wet bite out of our budgets, and money that could be better used elsewhere will continue to go into our cars.
For all the losers in a situation like this, the biggest loser could be President Barack Obama. At times like this, the public tends to take its frustration out on the person living in the White House.
Like George W. Bush before him, many have been looking toward Obama for direction on this issue, and so far, many have been disappointed. However, how much impact can a president have on gas prices?
Based on my knowledge, not a lot. Still, a president is like the quarterback of a football team. When the team wins, the quarterback gets too much of the credit. When the team loses, he gets too much of the blame. The same goes for a president.
Well, our team is currently losing on this issue so the president should expect criticism of him to continue. Unfortunately for him, this is a presidential election year. Because of this, the Republican nominee is guaranteed to have an issue in which to criticize him that will resonate with the public.
High gas prices impact everybody. It impacts citizens, but also companies see higher transportation costs. They will not just eat those costs; they will pass them along to you and me. Expect higher grocery prices because of this.
Also, people will not travel as far if they get to take a vacation this year. Even simple pleasures could take a pounding if gas prices continue to climb.
Basically, we have nobody but ourselves to blame for this situation. We have set our culture up to be heavily dependent on gas, and when others play hardball with a resource like this, all we can do is smile and pay.
Of course, it is a forced smile. By the end of the summer, we will all be masters when it comes to sarcastically smiling.
We will be smiling, but we will not mean it. It is nothing to be happy about.
Contraceptiongate hijacking important political debate
Saturday, February 25, 2012
The reality of fantasy baseball
If we are reaching the end of February, then it means that fantasy sports geeks around the world are gearing up for the upcoming baseball season. I use the term 'geek' in an endearing way because I am one of them.
For 10 years, I have been quite active in fantasy baseball. For those who love baseball, it is a way to get even closer to the game. Of all the sports, baseball seems to be the most statistically driven, and this is a crucial element when it comes to fantasy sports.
With baseball, there are literally dozens of statistical categories that can be used to set up a competitive fantasy league. Though I have played in some wacky leagues over the years, most of them have revolved around more traditional formats. Fantasy sports and baseball is a perfect match when marrying statistics and competition.
In the next few weeks, I will be taking part in drafts in the leagues in which I will be playing. For those who know little about fantasy baseball, participants draft real baseball players for their teams and earn points based on their performance.
I have been in many drafts over the years, and I see a lot of common mistakes. Defining a mistake can be quite subjective because most people have their own unique strategy when filling out their team. However, there are certain things I will not do.
For example, I will never select a starting pitcher in the first round. For experienced players this seems obvious, but I see this happen once or twice every year. It does not matter how good he is (the Phillies' Roy Halladay, for example), he will only play one or two times each week. A first round pick must be an every day player. No exceptions!
In fact, a person can wait until the fourth or fifth round to begin selecting pitchers. This includes both starters and relievers. Each year, acquiring cheap pitching can be done, and less experienced participants often get nervous about not having a big name hurler. Trust me, good pitching can be gotten late in the draft.
Also, do not fall too much in love with heavily-hyped rookies or sleeper picks that experts love to tout. Too much of that will likely put a person out of championship contention by Memorial Day.
Always look for experienced players with a proven track record. Do not be the one who prides himself on finding diamonds in the rough. A conservative approach is often a winning approach.
Additionally, a person should never allow a personal dislike of a team to cloud judgment when selecting players. I will use myself as an example. I strongly dislike the New York Yankees. I am not sure why, but I always have and probably always will.
However, there can be no disputing that the Yankees are one of the best teams every year. And because of that, they have a lot of the best players. Especially when it comes to hitters, the team has several players that can hit for power and average. Second baseman Robinson Cano is in his prime when it comes to hitting.
So, even though I never want the Yankees to win, I do not think twice about having one of their players on my team.
Conversely, do not fall in love with players on teams that are personal favorites. For example, I am an Atlanta Braves fan, but I usually avoid having players from that team. A person cannot be an objective manager when sentiment gets into the way about a player.
So, have fun everybody. Pick your players and have a great season.
Tennessee Titans have appealing home schedule in 2012
The National Football League schedule will not be released until April, but the Tennessee Titans already know what teams they will play next season. Quite frankly, the home schedule looks pretty exciting.
In addition to playing their three AFC South foes, the Titans will host the New England Patriots, New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers. I know some fans are bumming because their season ticket prices are going up, but at least they have an excellent slate of games to enjoy.
The Patriots are the defending AFC champion and have quarterback Tom Brady. The Jets have gas bag head coach Rex Ryan (and maybe Peyton Manning at quarterback?). The Bears will be good with a solid defense. The Lions are one of the most exciting young teams in the league and are coached by former Titans' defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. The Steelers and the Titans always mix it up good.
The road schedule is not nearly as appealing. In addition to the divisional foes, the Titans visit the Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins (and maybe Peyton Manning at quarterback?), Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings (and maybe Peyton Manning at quarterback?) and San Diego Chargers.
The games against the Packers and Chargers are interesting, but the rest appear dull, dull, dull (at least at this point).
