A Few Things To Be Thankful For

The SEVEN
24 November 2011

I.  Smokin' Joe Frazier

Let me open by saying that I was (and am) one of the biggest Muhammad Ali fans out there, beginning back in an era when being the heavyweight champion of the world meant you were the most recognized and celebrated athlete - and in Ali's case, human being - on the planet.  Nowadays my young lady friends talk about the WWE's Randy Orton being "the man" and might not be able to produce the name of any heavyweight champion if their lives depended on it.  Or pronounce it either.

With that said, as an Ali fan, I'm thankful for the life and career of the late Smokin' Joe Frazier, who was laid to rest last week in Philadelphia in the presence of dignitaries from around the world, including Ali.  Joe was a great champion as well and his fight trilogy with Ali defined both of their careers and help to forever etch their names at the top of the list of heavyweight champions.  Just as Magic had an ultimate rival in Bird, Ali had Frazier, and their legacies are the greater for it.  And in light of Frazier's passing, I just hope that Joe was able to let go of some or all of the bitter feelings he held about Ali as a result of various things Ali said to and about him during their years in the ring.

I hope he ultimately came to the realization that Ali was the master promoter who used the resentment against him,  the folk-hero status afforded him within the African-American community, and the media to hype their fights to levels never-before seen.  And yes, he used Joe Frazier as his foil, his straight-man, the "company man" as opposed to the "anti-establishment" Ali. But I'm sure that what he was doing was solely done to make them both a whole lot of money.  I do hope he was able to see that.

The champ is gone; long live the champ.

II.  JoePA and company

I think many are glad that the curtain was pulled away at Penn State, exposing the horrific things allegedly occurring under the nose of coach Joe Paterno.  As per the sign on the desk of the President of the United States - Harry Truman - when Paterno began there: The Buck Stops Here.

Still trying to figure out why this assistant coach, seeing what he claimed to have seen, first called his father.  Unless his dad was Batman, dude's best move might have been to call the police.

III.  NBA sides talking again

Thank goodness for that!  Get it done this time.

IV.  NASCAR crowd

Thanks to the probably Tea Party-types at the recent NASCAR event that booed First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden.  You guys are really doing us such a favor...thanks so much.

V.  Occupy Wall Street

As we sit around the table giving thanks, we should include our thanks to Occupy Wall Street and the other occupations nationwide.  President Obama might want to do so as well...in that after almost three years of Republican efforts to protect the 1%, OWS has brought to the nation's attention some of the things that he has attempted to bring to light.  Now he can sit back and let them make some of his points and move the needle back towards reality.

VI.  MVP Trophies

No disrespect to Ryan Braun and Justin Verlander, but I think they ought be very thankful to the voting baseball media for giving them their MVP trophies.  They had fantastic seasons, no doubt, but had I had a vote, I would probably have gone with Matt Kemp in the National League and Curtis Granderson in the American League.  Again no disrespect to Verlander, who had an outstanding season, but the bottom line is that if Dwight Gooden did not get the MVP for 1985 (24-4, 1.53 ERA; 16 complete games; 268 strikeouts), no pitcher should ever get it.

VII.  Rex Ryan's curse

Finally, New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan ought really be thankful he makes enough money to afford his $75,000 fine.  That sure was an expensive F-bomb.

Occupy The NBA

I.   Have You Guys Been Reading Your Paper?

On Monday AM New York, a free newspaper in New York City, listed a game between the Sixers and the Bulls as scheduled to be shown on ESPN that night at 8:30.  If only that were true.

II.  Occupy The NBA

Spotted a while back at Occupy Wall Street:   A 3-4 foot high little basketball hoop.  What this says to me is that someone at OWS thinks the cause is important enough to stay there with their infant...and also that it's time for the big boys to play.  And while the two big boys factions from the 1% continue beefing, the league has placed a proposal on the table - with an approval deadline of Wednesday - and the players' association is supposedly revisiting the concept of decertification of the union.  President Obama said he was "heartbroken," and that alone almost seemed to move negotiations forward...but as it turned out, only temporarily...and they're still at an impasse.  So I came up with a couple of ideas of my own.  I don't know if they will move things forward any more than did Obama's comments, but here are my suggestions:

1)  Since the major stumbling block between the sides seems to be the share of BRI, or basketball-related income...and the players and owners each basically want 53%...instead of a 50-50 split, why not do a sliding 47-53% scale for the players? That way both sides can say it could wind up working in their favor, and therefore they won, so it's time to go back to work.

2)  Occupy Wall Street/Oakland/Philly/Atlanta/Denver, etc. should take their protests to visit the arenas on behalf of the 99% who sell the tickets, cook the hot dogs, pour the beer, screen the t-shirts, and everything else in and around an NBA arena and/or team that is affected by this lockout.  I wonder if that wouldn't bring folks back to the table.

III.  Occupy New Jersey

I also have a suggestion for the soon-to-be divorced Kim Kardashian, whose ears are still stinging and ringing from the almost universal trashing she's taken for her 72-day marriage to the New Jersey Nets' Kris Humphries.  Instead of (allegedly) seeking to pay Kris to keep her $2,000,000 ring, a nice p.r. move might be if she would donate some cash to the people employed by the New Jersey folks affected by the lockout.

IV.  You Da Man

When Cliff Lee chose to leave the Texas Rangers via free agency to rejoin the Philadelphia Phillies, many people - myself included - anointed the Phils the favorites and blew off the Rangers.  Therefore, it was to the surprise of many people when the Phils...winners of 102 games, no less...failed to make it out of the first round, while the Rangers returned to the World Series.  Guess Texas skipper Ron Washington deserves some American League manager of the year consideration.

V.  Next Exit

Who would have thought the legendary Joe Paterno would be walking out the door to keep from being kicked out?

VI.  Exiting Too Soon

Unreal to hear of the passing of rapper/actor Dwight "Heavy D" Myers.  Rest in peace, Heavy D, and you will be missed!

VII.  The Last Round

"The world has lost a great champion.  I will always remember Joe with respect and admiration." - Muhammad Ali.