Well, brace yourselves. Today, during this sports-heavy edition of the blog, I'm gonna take aim at another black icon. And what do you know, his name is Jackson too!
If nothing else, I'm consistent.
WAKE UP THE MASSES! This is Something Clever. And it could get ugly...
For His Sake, Let's Hope He's Just Old and Senile
Most of you know by now that LeBron James has left Cleveland to play for the Miami Heat. Caviliers' owner Dan Gilbert had some harsh words for LeBron, claiming that he was a "coward" and he had "betrayed his team". Harsh words. But Gilbert was mad, and he was losing his meal ticket. Let's just hate on Gilbert for handling this whole thing like a 4th grader, and move on.
WAIT! We can't move on! That would be too logical! We gotta let JESSE talk!
Yes, Jesse Jackson. On Monday morning, news flooded in that Jesse had swooped into the media mainframe as if he was summoned by some sort of racism 'Bat-Signal' streaking across the skies of Miami! And of course, when Jesse shows up, everyone who's not black is a racist. In regards to Gilbert, Jackson says, "He speaks as an owner of LeBron and not the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers. His feelings of betrayal personify a slave master mentality. He sees LeBron as a runaway slave."
Ugh. Good lord. Now, I don't know Dan Gilbert, so I don't know how he feels about race. But as a black male, I can tell you that this is not an issue about race. Do you know how I know? Because until Jesse Jackson opened up mouth, NO ONE was talking about racism. The only reason we're talking about it now is because Jesse told us it was. If he would have kept his big dumb mouth shut, this would've been over three days ago. Gilbert feels betrayed beause LeBron never called him to tell him he was coming back. He's mad because arguably the biggest star in the league is leaving his team. Did he handle the situation well? Not at all. Does that make him a racist? Absolutely not!
I know Jesse Jackson was a force during the Civil Rights Movement, and for that, I thank him. But don't get it twisted. Over the last 10 to 15 years, Jesse Jackson is an opportunist. He pokes his head out when there's "racial" controversy that he can latch himself onto. And when the attention fades, so does his support. Remember the Duke Lacrosse case? A bunch of young white guys were accused of raping a black stripper. Immedaitely, Jesse sprang into action! The school and the justice system were protecting these white boys and it was clearly racism contributing to the fact that the poor, defenseless black girl was not receiving swift justice. Then, after there was NO evidence of rape or abuse, she finally came out and admitted that she made the whole thing up. Hey Jesse! Where'd you go? Jesse disappeared faster than the last peice of chicken at my family reunion. That's his M.O.
Also, did you notice that Jesse didn't contact LeBron, or his people. He didn't confront Dan Gilbert. He went straight to the media. Jesse isn't concerned about LeBron's civil rights. This is about attention. So, I beg you, wake up the masses! Read between the lines. Don't fall for the media bull crap. Jesse wants attention. Gilbert wants ticket sales. The only color that anyone in this situation is concerned about is GREEN.
Look At The Bright Side...You'll Always Have Hockey
There was an article in the AP yesterday that tackled an important issue that many have pondered for decades:
Why are black people better at sports?
A study published on Monday, which included years worth of data from researchers from Howard and Duke Universities found that people of African-American descent have a genetic advantage at running, which would include sports like, Football, Basketball and Track. Why? Because we have higher belly buttons.
That was not a typo.
The study claims that the belly button is the center of gravity on the human body. The legs on an average black person are 3 to 5 centimeters longer than those of a white person. Because of that, their belly buttons, and thus, their center of gravity are an inch or two higher. This, supposedly, gives black people a distinct advantage in sports.
SIGH.....OK, let me handle this my way:
Dear Science,
It took THIS long to figure out that we're better in sports than white people? Have you NEVER seen an NFL or NBA game? And why was it so important to find a reason that black people were better? You couldn't just accept it, huh? There had to be some cause that made this happen, and you had to find it, huh? Man, you guys have issues.
Did you ever think that the reason we're bigger, taller, and have better centers of gravity is because a good number of our ancestors were slaves, forced to work cruel amounts of time in the unforgiving heat and eat food with little to no nutritional value? Is there a chance that the harsh work conditions that black people were subjected to back then forced them to become stronger, faster and physically better, in order to survive? Do you think that those physiological advancements, brought on by survival instincts, could possibly have been passed along to their offspring? I'm just saying, that's a thought.
But my biggest issue is with the study itself. Is there nothing else to study? Why was this subject, which took a collaboration between 2 colleges, so importing to decipher? I would have loved to hear that conversation:
Professor: OK, we have another government grant. What should we use the taxpayer's money to research?
Student#1: How about a cure for cancer?
Professor: That's stupid, everything gives you cancer. You're dumb. I hope you get dumb cancer.
Professor: Anyone else? Remember, this is taxpayer's money!
Student#2: Can we cure AIDS?
Professor: Nice, but Magic Johnson pretty much did that already.
Student#3: Alternative fuels!
Student#4: Stem cell research!
Student#5: That thing that Michael J. Fox has!
Student#6: Why black people are better at sports than us!
Professor: Who said that? Black athlete superiority? BRILLIANT! You heard the man! GET TO IT!
Now, I wasn't there, but I imagine I'm in the ballpark on that one.
So, science: My advice to you is to devote your time to a more worthwhile activity. Some questions really don't need answering. Move on. Get a hobby. Get some fresh air.
Hey...how bout a friendly game of 'hoops?
Sincerely,
Watts
One of the Last of a Dying Breed
George Steinbrenner, long time owner of the New York Yankees, passed away yesterday at the age of 80. First things first, my sincerest condolences go to the Steinbrenner family, and the Yankee nation in general.
I am not a Yankees fan at all. However, Steinbrenner, aka 'The Boss', transends the team, and even the sport. There are plenty of people who have no interest in baseball that know exactly who he is. He bought the team for about $8.8 million. Now, the Yankes are worth about $1.2 billion. Their net worth ranks 3rd among all sports franchises in the WORLD. (Second is Manchester United, first is (BOO) the Dallas Cowboys.)
It's funny to me that people are having such a hard time talking about him. And I think it's because no matter how great and successful he was, one thing is agreed upon: he was arguably the most hated man in baseball for years. He hired and fired 20 managers on 23 seasons. (Billy Martin was hired and fired 5 times) He invaded the clubhouse to try to force players to adhere to his military-like grooming policies. He made illegal contributions to the Nixon campagin. He was banned from the league for 2 years because he paid someone to dig up dirt on a player he didn't like -- Dave Winfield.
That stuff should bother me, and maybe if I personally knew the guy, I'd hate him. But it doesn't bother me at all. Why? Because through it all, this guy wanted to win. It's all he cared about. And if you're a sports fan, you want to know that the managers of your team want to win more than anything. George Steinbrenner was willing to sign any check, bring in any player, do anything to win. Can't knock the hustle. That man wanted championships, and was willing to up the money to get them. During his 37 year ownership, the Yankees won 7 pennants and 11 World Series titles. Can't argue with results, people.
ONE LAST THING!
And last but certainly not least, I'm going to cover something I've been meaning to cover for 3 weeks. I want to give a HUGE congrats to the University of South Carolina. They won the 2010 College World Series, and they also happen to be the alma mater of yours truly. Congrats to the player, and all of Gamecock nation!
I will say, however, that if you wear a shirt that says 'GO COCKS!' anywhere but the state of South Carolina, you will get some...unwanted attention. Not saying it's fair, just saying it's true.
OK, I'm through. Hope you enjoyed. And as always, leave a comment, hit me up on Facebook or follow me on Twitter @GuiltyWatts.
OK, Watts. You've got another shot at this. You need a catchy sign-off phrase. Come on! Say something interesting. Say something concise. For Christ's sake, say something clever! OK. I can do this. Here we go...
See you Friday. BOOM SHAKA-LAKA!
Oh dang...that was...SO much worse than before...
Watts
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