A Great Moment In Sports

This one is for all former/current/future basketball team managers out there, myself included. And the kid is autistic, to boot.

Why de punny talk?

I'm no history buff when it comes to my Filipino heritage, so I had no idea why "F" sound in Tagalog is pronounced with a "P" sound. Slate clears it up.

TVGal/Frontline: Iraq War -- No Easy Solutions

Melanie McFarland has a good introductory piece on tonight's episode of Frontline. Frontline is usually hard-hitting, objective, and honestly disturbing. I doubt it will stray from that in tonight's documentary. Most Americans, no matter their view on the Iraq conflict, are insulated from the gravity of the situation on the ground over there. We hear about casualties (a daily occurrence; our troops, civilians, journalists), but we don't really see all the really graphic, nasty stuff that will cause even the most hawkish war supporters to take a breath.

For me, and to others like me, there will be conflicting conclusions after watching it. Melanie mentions that it's clear that it will be inhumane for US/coalition forces to pull out, because there would be all out civil war in Iraq. We're pretty close to that now -- elections or not. I suppose she's right in a way. We're largely responsible for the mess, and now we're the ones keeping it from dissolving completely. Regardless of whose fault it is why we're there (i.e. Bush and Co.), we're obligated to see it through. And to repeat, we're not there because Saddam was responsible for 911 (he wasn't), or because Iraq had WMD (they didn't), or because al Qaeda had connections with Iraq (they do now), or because deposing Saddam and promoting democracy in Iraq would stabilize the Middle East (doubtful). That last one I'm willing to concede a little on (it's the bullshit of the first three rationales that got us into the mess in the first place that infuriate me the most). We're there for the humanitarian reason (and again, why doesn't the U.N have a bigger say in this?) to keep peace to give the fledgling government a chance to gain traction so they could eventually fend for themselves and unite the country (which again is doubtful because the Sunni-Shiite rift over there runs as deep as our own North-South divide right before our own Civil War). Of course, what will come of the new Iraqi government? Because we have fomented hate for the US there, will this government be like Hamas? Or will we continue to influence the political process in Iraq to put in more "acceptable" parties? The antithesis of democracy.

And this is the evil genius of the neoconservative foreign policy. Get us into the war using traditional conservative xenophobia, and mimic liberal/progressive non-isolationism/promotion of laudable American values to keep us there.

On a lighter note, I think this is a great piece for Melanie. She's the friend of a friend, and in conversations and her other TV-review articles, she doesn't come across as all that serious on the surface. But here she shows knowledge of the material, and handles it articulately and with seriousness. She proves she's got the chops to move to more serious journalism.

The Agony

Certainly no ecstasy. For the first time in a really long time, I felt like a fan watching an NFL game. As I've mentioned before, I'm no longer a fan of professional sports (the big 3, anyway), but it was kind of cool to put that aside and rant and rave at the TV, next to a bunch of "real" Seahawk fans. There won't be too many people who agree with my outlook on the state of pro sports, and when I feel really angry about it, I point the finger at the fans, as if they're enablers or the beaten wife. But watching -- the only way they can be involved -- is their passion. And I forgot all the money stuff (not counting the times I thought how underwhelming the commercials were, considering how much it cost to air them; and how much did it cost to drag the Rolling Stones away from their oxygen tanks to put them on stage? They suuuuuucked) and got caught up in it. I looked around the living room, sitting close to a big screen TV and I saw all these people (guys, wives, even their toddlers) wearing Seahawks gear. And then I thought of my other friends and other Seattle fans in the two weeks prior to the game. All the nostalgia about the former Seahawk greats -- Largent, Warner, Kennedy, Easley, Krieg, etc -- got me thinking bullshit. They had their chances in their day. They're all sitting on their rich, retired asses. This one's for the FANS. All the stuff they put up with over the years -- the mediocre play, spoiled, overpaid players, asshole owners with their stadium costs and politics, the threat of the team leaving town -- the fans deserved this game. Until yesterday, I was pretty ambivalent about the game, great if they win, eh, oh well if they lose. But there I was yesterday, exorcising the demons of Seattle Seahawk fanhood -- fuck you, Ken Behring! -- slapping fives with every great play, screaming at blown calls. After the game, after the tension of the whole thing melted away, I felt sadness. Not because the players lost -- who cares, a lot of them won't be back, and they're paid to play -- I was sad for the fans. Grown men and women, emotionally spent, resigned to loss (the game was all over after the last blown call for holding that nullified a Jerramy Stevens reception inside the five yard line), on the verge of tears. Too bad they weren't rewarded for their devotion.

Before I turn my sport-apathetic face back on, I'll say this. This Super Bowl isn't the last one the Seahawks will play in. Like the 1978 Sonics, they'll be back to win it all next year.

"Safe, Legal, and Rare"

Slate has a pretty good dialogue between William Saletan and Katha Pollitt. Both Pro-Choice. Differing opinions.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

A lot of the disagreement is on whether the abortion issue is a "moral" issue. And that depends on what someone's idea of morality is.

GOP FAQ

Funny stuff from Bumbershoot 2005.

Clark 2008?

Wes Clark gave an incredible speech yesterday. Maybe he should have given the Democrat response to Bush's State Of The Union instead of Kaine's. Too bad Clark wasn't this sharp in 2004...