Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Aren't they going a bit far?

You may recall back in November a story broke about a coach molesting boys in the shower at Penn State University many years ago. Since that time, this thing has snowballed into insane proportions.


Everytime you turn on the television, and it doesn’t have to necessarily be ESPN or something sports related, you hear about this. For those that live up in that part of the country, I can only imagine that it is 100x worse, especially if you’re around Happy Valley.

This thing has cost many people their jobs and, in my opinion, the life of one legendary coach, Joe Paterno. I say that because, at nearly 90 yrs old, he was still as spry and wiry as ever, not to mention the fact that the man can coach. To my knowledge, the only health problems he had were when he broke his hip. The guy is an octogenarian, what do you expect?

Upon his abrupt departure from the school and football amidst this scandal, he was the winningest coach in college football.

Penn St. decided to fund their own private investigation into the matter of this child sex scandal, and what they found out was even more hard-hitting than what we knew already.

That thing is 700 pages, so obviously I won’t go into it, but the main thing that was discovered is that Coach Paterno covered up the fact that he knew about what going on. Somehow, this has people all up in arms.

The guy lied. It is as simple as that, yet people are making it out to be as if what he did was rape those boys. That was not Joe; it was that douche bag, Jerry Sandusky.

I’m not going to sit here and say that lying and covering this up was right, because it wasn’t, but I will say that it isn’t half as bad as what actually happened to those boys.

Moving on…outside of Beaver Stadium, there was a statue of Joe Paterno leading the team out of the tunnel. As soon as this information was made public, though, people started calling for it to be torn down. On top of that, anything that has Paterno’s name on it, such as the school library and a street, is being renamed.

Making matters worse, the NCAA handed down punishment for this crime to the school. The most notable is that the winningest coach in all of college football has to expunge all wins from 1997-2011!

Let’s talk about that statue first, shall we. I don’t understand why people are so hell bent on having it removed. Like I said, it isn’t like Joe did the raping. On top of that, whatever they may think about him, Penn St. football would not and will not be the same without him. So, for them to remove the statue because of what he didn’t do seems a bit much to me.

I don’t know. I guess I’m just on the other side of the fence with this one, but I really see no reason to have such outrage against a statue.

Now, onto the wins. If you’re a fan of college football, then you are we aware that whenever the powers that be feel the desire to punish a school, usually for something like a player taking benefits from an agent, illegal practices, etc. When wins are taken away, it is because there was something or someone on the field who basically shouldn’t have been, causing those games to be forfeit.

So, with that in mind, how does a coach (and his teams) lose all of their wins for the past 14 seasons because of one little cover-up? I mean, those wins are linked to more than just the coach. There are all the players who actually went out there and beat themselves (and the other teams) up, the assistant coaches, and the school (whose legacy is mostly football, whether they want to admit it or not).

Again, I may be alone on this, but I just don’t think these wins should be taken away from him. There is no reason to so do. No matter what we may think of him now, Coach Paterno was a really good coach. You don’t win that many games (and at the same school for some 60 or so years) by accident
If you want to punish the school for this, then do it, but do it so that the whole school isn’t made to suffer for one man’s crime.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone!

Who's ready to rock it out this week? Please enjoy "Roundabout" by Yes.


Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.   PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Quote of the week

The United States is probably the only country in the world where people need energy drinks to sit in front of a computer all day

Friday, July 20, 2012

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone! This week, how about checking out a little bit of Madonna. Please enjoy "Express Yourself". Yes, I know this isn't the radio version that everyone knows


Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.   PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Quote of the Week

Did you ever stop to think why cops are always famous for being dumb? Simple. Because they don't have to be anything else. - Orson Welles

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Shouldn't you be a star?

Helen Mirren, Ron Howard, Javier Bardem, Usher, the late Luther Vandross, Jennifer Hudson, and a few others have all been selected as part of the 2013 Hollywood Walk of Fame class.

Wait..Jennifer Hudson? What has she done? Sure you can say she was on American Idol, but so have what 11 other seasons full of people, and she didn't even win. I believe she came in 5th or something.

How about that Oscar she won for Dreamgirls! Well, don't those kind of accolades lead to bigger and better things? Last movies that I know she was in was an overhyped small part in Sex & the City and then she was just in  that horrid Three Stooges movie.

Basically, when push comes to shove, all she's been able to do is schill Weight Watchers and shove it in everyone's face how much weight she's lost at every turn. All that lost weight hasn't helped her career, though.

What is it that she's done to warrant getting a star, especially one in the music category, when she hasn't even had a hit?!?

I'm sorry if it seems like I'm a "hater", but it seems to be that one should be an actual star before one gets a star. Hell, the other musicians getting a star, Luther Vandross, Janis Joplin, Jane's Addiction, Usher, Thalia (she's a big Mexican singer, apparently)...even New Kids on the Block and the Backstreet Boys all have many hits under their belt.

Jennifer, on the other hand, has moderate success on the R & B charts, and has been all but invisible in the other charts, but I guess when you marry a WWE wrestler (a Harvard Law grad who searched for love with famed reality whore, New York), have your family brutally murdered, and shove your weight loss and mediocre career down our throats at every turn, you're deserving of a star.

Personally, I think there are far more deserving artists who should be getting this star, and not her. By giving Jennifer a star, all Hollywood is doing is opening up the door for the likes of the untalented media whores such as the Kardashians, Paris Hilton, the cast of Jersey Shore or any of those Desperate Housewives of ____ to get one.

Last I checked you had to actually be a bonafide star to get a star, and Jennifer Hudson is not, especially in the music world!

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Legends die...but will there be new ones to take their place?

Last week we lost a true legend in Andy Griffith. When The Andy Griffith Show originally aired wasn't even a glint in my parents' eyes. As a matter of fact, I think they may have still been kids at that time. Either way, the point is that this is one the most iconic shows ever. I've moved around a visited many places, but I don't think I've ever been anywhere that doesn't air this at some point in time. Not to mention it is in regular rotation on TV Land.

He also starred in a few movies, (No Time for Sergeants is my favorite), as well as another show, Matlock, which I'm not too familiar with, but from what I hear, it could have very well been more of Andy playing himself.

What I'm getting at with this pseudo-eulogy is that we lost a great TV icon last week. Then, on Sunday, we lost another great star from this era, Ernest Borgnine, who is best known for his time on McHale's Navy, I believe.

This got me to thinking, with all the icons and actors who were in shows from the Golden Age of television dying off (ironically, Larry Hagman seems to have taken that foot out of the grave and returned to the screen in the new version of Dallas), will future generations say the same thing about today's "stars".

Think about it for a minute. Icons of yesteryear, Andy Griffith, Don Knotts, Dick van Dyke, Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett, Barbara Eden, Elizabeth Montgomery, Art Carney, Jackie Gleason, etc.

Then we have those that became icons in the 80s and 90s, Bill Cosby, Jerry Seinfeld, the cast of Friends, David Hasslehoff, etc.

However, when it comes to today we have the Kardashians and the cast of Jersey Shore leading the pack!

Seriously, are we really going to consider them icons in the next 20-30 yrs? Will there be the same amount of love and respect shown upon their deaths as seen with Andy Griffith's? Or will they continue to be nothing but a media circus, even from beyond the grave?

Speaking of grave, Andy was buried within hours of his passing. I wonder if that was done to keep the media leeches from turning his death and funeral into a circus. Other than a marathon of The Andy Griffith Show, there hasn't been much else said about it past this weekend. Maybe more celebrity families should take note and bury their loved ones ASAP, since that seems to be the only way to get any respect from paparazzi.

With social media and internet ruling the world nowadays, TV in nearly a thing of the past, so the fact that there aren't as many icons is no surprise, but seriously, there has to be someone who isn't a polarizing figure, right?

The thing about those actors from the 50s and 60s, and this may just be because they weren't shoved down people's throats 24-7, is the fact we didn't know everything about them. That bit of mystery, coupled with actual talent made them what they are today.

Can you imagine if they were around today? I can see some website having a field day because Andy Griffith crossed the Mason Dixon line, Jackie Gleason ate a salad, or Lucille Ball's roots were showing.

Man, society sure has devolved, hasn't it?

While there may not be any icons to take the place of a true good guy like Andy Griffith, we can rest assured that he will live on forever in reruns.

R.I.P. Sheriff Taylor

Pleasant..but it won't last

With band camp inching ever so close to being here, I've decided it is time to get out of the A/C and out in the heat, so that I'm used to it and not complaining as much as the kids. The problem with that, though, is that this morning I walked out to a windy and rainy day. What was more remarkable, though, is the fact that the temperature was downright pleasant! When was the last time you could say pleasant and July in the same sentence?

This is south Louisiana in the dead of summer. By all accounts I should nearly pass out from heat exhaustion as soon as I walk out the door. For all the heat wave accounts that I've been hearing the past couple of weeks, it really hasn't been that much different than normal down here *knock on wood*

Back to the pleasantness, though...am I wrong in wishing this is a sign that we'll actually have seasons again, rather than the week of winter we had? I believe altogether, we had maybe 6 days of winter type weather, a couple of those occurred in the spring, on top of that!

I guess I should just enjoy it while its around. Thank goodness for that cold front that came through, because I'm sure that by this time next week, things will be back to sweltering.

Thanks for reading!

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone! Let's get funky!!! First, please enjoy a small hit by the Jacksons (during their reunion tour), "Torture" Next, who's funkier than the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, right? Please fest your ears upon "Get Up Off That Thang"
Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.   PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Quote of the week

The United States is probably the only country in the world where people need energy drinks to sit in front of a computer all day

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Musical Monday

Happy Musical Monday, everyone!

This week, I have a couple of 80s hits that are sure to get your blood puming! First up, enjoy the Pointer Sisters' "I'm So Excited"

Next up, get in touch with your inner rocker with Pat Benatar and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot"
Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.   PS: Because of spamming purposes, the linky will be closed on Thursday of each week at midnight, Malaysian Time. Thank you!