There Were Giants In Those Days

Gee Dunkie, what a big mouth you have


The top o' the food chain, the Darth Vader of fish at 33 feet long with armour, able to snap puny sharks in half, achieved with 8,000 psi biting power. Yep, that'll do the trick.


DUNKIE

Oregon To The Las Vegas Bowl

Oregon was rewarded with its loss in the Civil War today with an invitation to the fifteenth Las Vegas Bowl on December the 21st; the winning Oregon State team was punished with a trip to El Paso/Juarez for the Sun Bowl on the 29th. What a tragedy indeed. Most Duck fans I know aren't torn up by having to "settle" for Vegas over El Paso.

The opponent for Oregon is Brigham Young University (BYU), which should be a great match-up between the two high powered offensive teams. It is also a rematch of one the greatest games in Oregon history, from September 29th 1990 when the fourth ranked Cougars, behind the Heisman trophy candidate Ty Detmer, fell to the Ducks 32-16. Detmer got his passing yards in the game (442), but the Ducks held their running game in check, and limited them to -47 yards total.


The Vegas Bowl, at Sam Boyd Stadium, has been host to the Ducks before; in 1997 a 6-5 team took on a higher ranked Air Force Academy, many of whose fans felt more than a little bit miffed that they weren't playing a team with a better record. Two offensive plays for the Ducks in, barely 3 minutes into the game, and Oregon was leading 14-0, the first touchdown a 69 yard pass down the left sideline to Pat Johnson from Akili Smith, the second was a 76 yard gallop up the middle by Saladin McCulloch, who was mostly untouched as the Air Force defenders were basically left dead in their tracks on both plays. A complete recount of the game is HERE

I attended the game on a package tour from Azumano Travel and stayed in the same hotel as the team did, the MGM Grand. Caesar's Palace was the team hotel for Air Force. I had a wonderful three days and two nights doing what people do in Vegas, of which I can dutifully report that I remember nothing of ;)



LAS VEGAS BOWL

Bikini Billboard Ruins Business Meeting

............or something like that in Auckland, New Zealand this week, if you wanna read the story HERE, you may be a better man than I ; Ms. Hayek was not depicted on the billboard though. If you don't wanna read, you can continue to be distracted by Salma. What?

When Cellphones Are Outlawed.......

Outlaws may not the only ones owning them, but the Zimbabwe military is concerned that cellphone operators using systems not controlled by the state are a grave concern to national security. Of course it's for the best for all of us, one can never be too sure in things like this. So said the frog in the pan on the top of the stove.




ZIMBABWE

Ghost Of Yogi Can Rest

Country music singer (I really hesitate to use the word "star") Troy Gentry has pleaded guilty to tagging a bear he shot as wild when actually it was a captive one that he had raised. An avid sportsman, as part of the agreement with the U.S. District Court is that he can not hunt, fish or trap in the state of Minnesota for five years, which has to be an eternity for him. He also apologized for not respecting the law enough. Good going Troy, that's nice to see.







GUILTY

Anti-War In Iraq Sign? Of Satan? It's A Freakin' Wreath

Because everything in this world is a symbol for something else, some Colorado members of a homeowners association are up in arms over what exactly a Christmas wreath in the shape of the peace sign signifies. Umm, how about not much? Is that too difficult of a concept to handle?




WREATH

A Fish Day-Spa For Your Skin

Doctors have used maggots in years past to eat away the diseased flesh of their patients, now here's a fish that'll exfoliate the dead skin that you may have on your feet and hands; somehow, I can just imagine someone is trying to figure out a way to be able to stick one's face in the water for the same luxurious treatment. Bon appetit, little fishies!!!




GET YER GRUB ON!!

Untouchable Indian Woman Burned Alive

For refusing to drop rape charges against her alleged upper-casted attacker. Unfortunately it's a true, sickening story............and yet another incident that makes me embarrassed to have a penis.



STORY

Listen To Less Music,(But Buy My Box Set First)

Some fuzzy warbling done by XTC's main man Andy Partridge upon the release of "The Fuzzy Warbles Collectors Album", a nine-disc set of assorted demos and outtakes. As usual, the man with a clever turn for using words (demonstrated in tracks such as Complicated Game, No Language In Our Lungs, or Snowman) has likened listening to music the same as eating chocolate cake: less is more in his idea. Whatever Andy, it's all good for me, still a damn shame about not having toured in well over 20 years, your set opening up for the Police in 1980, in support of the Black Sea album, was utterly brilliant.





ANDY WARBLES

'They disrespected our house.'

An horrific example of girl on girl crime. Reports and studies of why crime committed by girls is usually a shocking concept may not have drawn any one specific conclusion as to motives, but it is still even more shocking when one stabs and kills a 12-year old girl for reasons rooted in rivalry.







DISRESPECT

Roz Chast Interview

One of the many talented cartoonists that used to be published in the National Lampoon whilst I was reading it was Roz Chast. (Ron Barrett's Politenesman, the works of B.K. Taylor and M.K. Brown, the Trots And Bonnie strip from Shary Flenniken, amongst others, were favourites of mine as well). She has a new book composed of a collection of her strips out entitled Theories of Everything: Selected, Collected and Health-Inspected Cartoons, 1978-2006. She captures and exhibits a feeling, idea or moment in a way which I've always related to. Can't say that I've actually ever seen her work in the New Yorker, which is where most of her stuff is published, but this is certainly one book I'll be looking to buy.





ROZ INTERVIEW

How Honest Are You? Well?????

I got a 27.


Even Stephen - You judge what's right according to your internal moral compass, but your compass takes in more than the immediate situation. You'll often wait to see if others notice a problem before you offer up the truth, and if an immediate confession becomes a bother, you'll look for an easier alternative. You've got good intentions, but make sure you don't go down a slippery slope.




HONESTY QUIZ

Spawn Of Satan 30 Oregon 28

Heckuva effort by both teams in the 110th Civil War at Corvallis today. The slumping Ducks took on the surging Beavers in a steady cold drizzle (not much wind though) and the game went down to the final seconds, as the Beavers blocked the possible winning field goal with 16 seconds left to seal the victory. Turnovers played a big part in the game, especially in the first half when two Oregon to's led directly to 14 points, and the one OSU fumble led to the lone Oregon score, and the tally at half was 20-7 to the home team.

The Ducks battled hard and played with a bit more confidence than in their recent slide, but in addition to the turnovers, missed field goals and point afters were also factors that led to the actions of both head coaches down the stretch of the fourth quarter as the Ducks mounted their comeback.

More info and pics later................I'm just a little disappointed, but at least the Ducks didn't roll over when they got behind as they did in their last visit to Reser Stadium in 2004.

Among The Thugs

More ugly racism from ultra-right supporters of another club makes headlines. Supporters of French club Paris Saint Germain outnumbered a lone supporter of Israeli club Hapoel Tel Aviv, and were chasing him down when a plainclothes police officer intervened, tried to disperse the crowd, and then suddenly found himself under attack. He let loose with a couple of shots, and one PSG supporter was killed and another was wounded. Another sad example of the racist crap that is still prevalent among some of the supporters of the top European clubs.






DIRTY JEW?

Dirk Dirksen, R.I.P.

The big name of promoting punk rock shows in San Franciso at the "fab" Mabuhay Gardens, has passed away, on the 19th of November at his home. Thank you for your work Dirk in helping change the musical landscape of this country.




DIRK




VELVET ROPE THREAD ABOUT DIRK

Harrington Leads The Lions To Another Loss

Thankfully Joey Harrington doesn't have to play for the hapless Detroit Lions anymore, being involved in a trade that sent him to the Miami Dolphins. As the young high-profile draft pick, Joey was singled out by the fans and media as the total saviour of a franchise looking to break themselves out of a lengthy stretch of mediocrity, lasting four years from 2002 until 2005. As the Lions continue to flounder as one of the worst franchises in the National Football League, it's become painfully obvious to even the most vocal anti-Joey fans (not so sure about Lions cornerback Dre Bly or ex-Lions coach Steve Mariucci) that the problem with the Lions wasn't the total fault of Joey.

Okay, the Dolphins were only playing the Lions, but it was still enough for them to chalk up their fourth straight victory and put them right back into playoff contention. We shall see as the Dolphins schedule toughens down the stretch how Joey fares, but the big picture is that he's played very well on a team that knows how to block and catch passes (the Dolphins still need a bit of work on the running game part though). The defense stepped up as well, clamping down on Lions receiver Roy Williams who was their primary offensive weapon in the first half as the Lions stepped out to a 10-0 lead. As the Lions fell apart, Joey and the Dolphins went to work on nice ball control drives.

Bly, who had said last year that Harrington was the problem for the Lions, was curiously unavailable for comment after the game, and I didn't hear Mariucci, working the Tampa Bay at Dallas game, comment at all on what the Dolphins did. It was nice to see Joey get the Gatorade shower (when was the last time a non-coach got that?) as well as the blackberry cobbler and All Iron award from CBS as the player of the game.

Some lovely pics of a game that I thoroughly enjoyed (this coming from a person who has very little time to watch the NFL on tv).



ESPN STORY

Thanksgiving

As an American, it could always be better, and it could always be worse than it is now. I am thankful for everything I've got, and am always humbled by the fortune that has been sent my way. Thank you God...........and for everybody else who's helped me out along the way, I hoped I've repaid you in kind at some point. How apropos that on the Macy's Day parade on NBC right now, the ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE OF LIFE song from the Monty Python play Spamalot is currently being aired. Quite a different setting from its debut in Life Of Brian

"I Wanna Drive The Zamboni, Yes I Do"

Heh heh heh................no one will notice if we take it out for a quick stop for some food. Nope, no one at all.





ZAMBONI

Coachella Gets A Country Cousin

Besides adding a third day to the popular music festival, Coachella organizers have revealed plans for a country music festival at the Empire Polo Field in Indio about a week after the Coachella Festival itself has ended. How will it play down in the southland, where there are currently no country music radio stations? Will the "pop" airplay that people like Kenny Chesney get be enough to attract profitable audience numbers? Will country music fans travel from all over the U.S. (or world) as they do for the main event itself? We shall have our answers in about six months.


COUNTRY @ COACHELLA

Hail Hail The Bhoys Are Here (To The Knockout Stages)

Manchester United may have had the most talent on the pitch (as well as paper), but a scoreless match was broken with a driving free kick from Shunsuke Nakamura in the 81st minute, and was cemented in the 89th minute by Celtic goalie Artur Boruc on a penalty kick from Louis Saha, in a Champions League match at Celtic Park on Tuesday. Those two decisive plays sandwiched a monumental mental lapse from Saha, who, while still onside, believed that he was off the line and held up play on his own in the box, giving Boruc enough time to react to the ball once Saha realized that he was indeed onside.

Hope yer happy, the Sludden clan of Corby............sympathies to you Inta-Don, at least you still have Micheal Carrick.

Robert Altman R.I.P.

Legendary film maker Robert Altman has passed away at the age of 81. A sad loss for all of us who loved his work, though some of it perplexed us as well.




BETTER BIO

No More Mediocrity For Us!!!!!

We are the mediocre presidents
You won't find our faces on dollars or on cents
There's Taylor, there's Tyler, there's Fillmore and there's Hayes!
There's William Henry Harrison - "I died in thirty days!"
We are the adequate, forgettable, occasionally regrettable
Caretaker presidents of the U.S.A!






Song lyrics from an episode of The Simpsons, a salute to some of the presidential names that don't immediately spring to the front of the average person's mind. The U.S. Mint isn't actually setting out to rectify that situation because of the show, but it is a way to honor some of the men who've held the post of the highest official in this land of ours, in the same way that they honored all of the 50 states with their own quarter, which has proven to be a big success with the general public.



The director of the U.S. Mint, Edmund Moy, right, unveiling a series of one-dollar coins that is to portray every deceased president today in Washington, D.C.


MONEY,MONEY, MONEY, MONEY, MONEY

Is the car here? We still have to make our money, y'know

One of the side affects of natural disasters, a road that's washed out in the recent wind and rain storms in the Olympic National Park leads to unpaid car rental charges as the man responsible for the rental has no way to get it out of the park. Surely common sense between the sides will be on display here soon.






CAR STORY

Rosanne Cash Interview

Good interview with the daughter of Johnny Cash about dealing with the aftermath of the passing of three of her parents in two years, including one on her birthday, and the general religious differences that she had with her father. Still one of my favourite female country singers.




ROSANNE

Calling All GILFs

Good for them. Seriously. Ages of the performers on the backs of the uniforms is a nice touch as well.





SHAKE YER BOOTY AT THE CONTINENTAL ARENA. Nope, no "in-continent" jokes here.

Crossbow Fires Arrow Into Football Stadium During Play

Absolutely frightening scenario to ponder over in England. What if something like that were to happen here, from any stadium's parking lot?





CROSSBOW

Blackburn 1, Spurs 1

Spurs managed to claim a point at Ewood Park on Sunday by gaining a 1-1 draw with the Rovers on a cold, blustery English afteroon. Turkish international Tugay belted a terrific volley from just over 25 yards out, on a poor clearance, which left goalie Paul Robinson no chance to react to give the home side the first goal in the 23rd minute. Spurs had several chances to equalize in the first half, notably from Jermain Defoe and Ahmed Mido, but, as has so often been the case on the road, both players failed to capitlize on the opportunities given them.

In the second half, Tugay wound up making the critical mistake that allowed Spurs to pull level in the 62nd minute by bringing down Hossam Ghaly, and drawing a straight red, in the penalty area, leading to the penalty kick that was successfully taken by Jermain Defoe, squeaking by Brad Friedel who had guessed correctly the intent of Defoe but still let it slip by.



"Tetchy" was a word used by the commentators to describe the action on the pitch, with Mido finding himself in discussions with the referee for his behaviour. The Blackburn fans were giving him a lot of verbal stick as well, cleary heard on the TV. Must be the FAILED NEGOTIATIONS with the Lancashire club that were the cause of such displeasure.


Afterward, the decision to award the red to Tugay irked Rovers manager Mark Hughes, and Tugay's teammate Micheal Gray NO END. Toward the end of the match, Ghaly himself was sent off for leading into a tackle with his elbow, setting off a couple of minutes of confrontation between the sides. Spurs manager Martin Jol himself was sent off the touchline for his confrontation with referee Phil Dowd just after Ghaly was off the pitch. The Blackburn fans were quite keen to voice their opinions on the refereeing after that.


Kudos also to Spurs goalie Robinson for making a quick instinctive save on a sharp kick by Benni McCarthy that might've put the home team up once again late in the second half.


All in all, a lively match on a Sunday morning here. Can't say that Blackburn didn't deserve all three points, but at full-time, the one point was certainly deserved by Spurs.




WHAT A DAY FOR TUGAY



BBC REPORT

The Slits. In-store. In PDX. (took my vacation a week too early)

Crap, crap, crap, crap. The high priestesses of punk. In Portland. For the first time ever. On the worst night of the week for me to attend (unless I call in sick, not a good idea with my Tuesday/Wednesday schedule).










IN-STORE

Not With A Bang, But A Whimper

Thanks to T.S. Eliot for the absolutely relevant quote, but so ends the home schedule of the 2006 University Of Oregon football team, blasted by the Arizona Wildcats 37-10 on a chilly Saturday afternoon. The Ducks committed six turnovers (3 INTs by Dennis Dixon, 1 INT by Ryan Leaf, and two fumbles that came from muffed punt returns), but make no mistake, the Wildcats ran roughshod over the Ducks from the get-go. It's not a good sign when a freshman cornerback (Walter Thurmond III) is the leading tackler with 14, an indication that the opponent is getting through big holes at the line of scrimmage. Chris Henry ran for 191 on 29 carries to lead the offense for Arizona, who lead 24-10 at the half. Despite the turnovers (four of them) in the first half, Oregon only trailed 24-10 and were still in the game, given that they'd put their defense in some pretty awkward situations, the first muffed punt by Patrick Chung giving Arizona possession inside the Oregon twenty yard line a perfect example. The Ducks had done fairly well moving the ball, especially behind Jeremiah Johnson, and the (very) short passing game was working, but any pass going deep was a breath-holding excercise.

In the second half, the Ducks offense really began to labor, failing to make any significant gains on their first few possessions, while the defense started to really struggle, though I suppose holding Arizona to field goals instead of touchdowns is a moral victory of some sorts. In addition, the offensive play calling seemed to be off-kilter, not even coming close to first down markers on a couple of third down plays.


Eliminating the turnovers does not equate to a Duck victory in this case, and the hurtful absence of top receiver Jaison Williams eliminated one of the Ducks top big playmakers. Arizona was simply too dominant, especially on the defensive side, to allow Oregon any chance of a comeback, especially in the critical third quarter when it was still only a two possession game. Bear Down Arizona........you played hard and smart and took it to the Ducks.




PATRICK CHUNG FUMBLES A PUNT IN THE FIRST HALF

Back To Africa

I still have a globe from the early 70's that my aunt gave me for Christmas, currently hanging in my garage as the base has long since fallen off. The map on it was before some of the drastic changes in the political landscape of several countries. Here's a tough (and timed, but don't worry about rushing too much) quiz to see if you can match the name of their country with its geographic location on the continent. The image above will give you an exact idea of how big Africa really is.









AFRICAN GEOGRAPHY

Turn Turn Turn

Honestly that's the song I was listening to when I came across the news that legendary R&B singer Ruth Brown had passed away today. Can't deny that I first came across her in the John Waters flick Hairspray (her Motormouth Maybelle was a truly memorable character), but I checked out a couple of her CD's from the Salem Public Library when I lived in Salem(taped them to cassette, which I might still have somewhere). Thank you for the memories Ruth, I enjoyed them immensely when I had the chance to come across them.








RUTH



Also, on the eve of the big college football showdown between number one Ohio State and number two Michigan in Columbus, legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler has passed away today as well. (below, with the late Ohio State coach Woody Hayes).





BO S.



As for my choice in that game, which I won't be able to watch cause I'll be there watching Arizona at Oregon..........Hail To The Victors!!

Sophia For Pirelli

You looked spectacular in Prêt-à-Porter over a decade ago, now comes the news that she's posing for the famous Pirelli calendar, at age 71.




STORY

Toxic Algae Is My Excuse

Nibbling sea lions in San Francisco's Aquatic Park, probably in a territorial manner, or the aforementioned ingestion of toxic algae.



MOVE ON

If It Doesn't Work There, Send Him To Haiti

One way to get at President Bush on his tour in Indonesia: perform voodoo rituals. We'll see whose magic is stronger (I'm betting that the voodoo won't work actually).




THAT VOODOO THAT YOU DO

Success Brings Its Own Problems, Rutgers Football Finds Out

As fans of the major college football teams in this area can attest to (University Of Oregon, of which I've been a season ticket holder for 11 years, and Oregon State University), the increase of numbers of victories on the field will result in larger crowds in the stands. Rutgers, long a doormat of college football (I mean, how long has it been since there's been a powerhouse football team near New York City?), is now dealing with an increase of former football lettermen, who in years past were allowed to stand on the sidelines. As the current teams seeks a spot in one of the coveted Bowl Championship Series (BCS) games, possibly even a shot at the national championship title, it would only be fair for those players who toiled in years past for teams that struggled to win even one game to come back and help celebrate the success of this year's team. The picture from today's New York Times, by Suzy Allman, shows a good picture of the conditions in the allowed area.



STORY

You Say Marijuana Is Non-Addictive...

......for you my friend..........that might be true. You get the munchies, sit home and watch your TV......... just gimme a hit, son, I'll show ya what that sh*t'll do!



Well, it's not often we get to quote lyrics from The Supersuckers (above, circa 1997), twisted country album Must've Been High, it's just the first thing that came to my head after the story down in Georgia about banning pop-flavoured candy. Haven't seen it round these parts (very surprising, actually), but it's probably better than Charleston Chews I'd bet.



CANDY=POT?

Because One Is Too Much

A disturbing piece from the BBC about the choices an apparently increasing number of women in Afghanistan have made in view of their extremely limited choices in life. How sad that such a fate is preferable to a wretched existence, may God grant mercy on their tortured souls.



STORY

The Triffids Save What You Can

Just came across this new video interpretation from one of my fave Triffid songs from the lush side of their various styles. From the Calenture album, Save What You Can is a grand ending for their major record company debut for Island Records; heck, it even came out in the U.S. as well, and I faithfully bought both the vinyl and CD versions upon release. Domino Records has started a long overdue reissue of the Triffids catalog, starting with the widely acknowledged classic Born Sandy Devotional earlier this year. R.I.P. David McComb, one of the musical greats of our lifetime.

Pepsi Tops Coke?

Where are these surveys by the American Customer Satisfaction Index when I need them, unless they are packaged to look like those endless credit card and insurance quotes mailings that flood my mailbox which I shred up without bothering to look at. If so, then I only have myself to blame for the following results. Also, Nike has slipped behind Reebok/Adidas, which ought to cheer up the knuckle-dragging anti-Uncle Phil contingent over at Oregon State no end.



PEPSI..............TOPS COKE............????

Revenge Is Best Served Cold

2007 MLB season kicks off with the New York Mets visiting the prime evidence that this world is indeed the dominion of Satan, judging from the results from last year.








2007 KICK OFF

Great Conversation Starters

I think that's what Jeri Ryan's saying about her girls in this month's FHM........I forgot what I was gonna say to her next after "Uhhhhh"...............







JERI

A Straight-Up Trade, Alcohol For Ritalin?

An incident with a teacher's aide and a student that doesn't involve sex. Good news, in the never-ending quest to protect everyone from everybody and everything. But doesn't everyone win in this case?




TRADE-OFF

Seattle 24 St. Louis 22

Thanks to our generous boss, a number of us from work were able to take a package tour offered by EOLA HILLS WINERY to Seattle to witness an exciting NFL game between the Seahawks and the St. Louis Rams. It was a hard hitting game with the defenses perhaps having the edge on a blustery Seattle fall afternoon with wind and rain blowing through the section in the middle of the Qwest Field stadium (we were well covered on the east side stand, with a very good view of the action). Josh Brown wound up kicking the winning field goal from 38 yards out with nine seconds left to bring the Seahawks from behind. It was a short drive for the Hawks, aided by a personal foul penalty on the Rams' troubled Ritchie Incognito on the previous Rams touchdown drive that saw the Rams kick off from their own 15 yard line after the penalty was assessed.


With Hawks RB Shaun Alexander and QB Matt Hasselbeck still out with an injury, it was up to back-ups Maurice Morris and Seneca Wallace to lead the counter-attack for the potent St. Louis offense. Wallace did enough with his passing and scrambling to get enough yardage at the critical times, and Morris had perhaps his finest game as a pro, racking up 124 yards on 21 carries. It was a fabulous match-up between two former Oregon university stars, with the Ducks' Morris getting the edge with the running stats (and win) while the Rams' (and former Beaver) Stephen Jackson had the most spectacular run, the 14 yard helmet-jarring touchdown run that put the Rams up 22-21 with 2:30 to play, and on which Incognito was tagged with his personal foul penalty. Jackson wound up with 93 yards on 18 carries. (photo below)


Of course, the play of the game was Nate Burleson's electifying 90-yard punt return for a touchdown down the left side of the field, right in front of the Rams bench. Not sure if he was touched much, but our vantage point offered a view that had me jumping up and down, and also in circles, when Burleson hadn't even reached the Hawks own 40 yard line.



SEATTLE ACCOUNT


ST.LOUIS ACCOUNT



MAURICE MORRIS ON THE RUN




BURLESON'S 90 YARD PUNT RETURN




ACTION JACKSON GETS IT DONE

Sayonara, Sonics, Signed Seattle

SONICS




From today's New York Times. Count me as one who thinks sports teams aren't the highest priority in the world, but they are often a great focal point for a community.


As Sonics Pack to Leave Town, Seattle Shrugs
By JESSICA KOWAL
Published: November 13, 2006




SEATTLE, Nov. 12 — Empowered by a wave of venture capital, a hiring boom and pride in its homegrown billionaires, this city has decided it no longer needs a mediocre professional basketball team to feel good about itself.


On Election Day, residents rebuffed their once-beloved Seattle SuperSonics, voting overwhelmingly for a ballot measure ending public subsidies for professional sports teams.

The owners, who bought the Sonics in October for $350 million from Howard Schultz, the founder of Starbucks, had warned that the team would leave unless the city provided a new arena.

The vote delighted Citizens for More Important Things, a group that, with the help of a statewide health care union, spent $60,000 to sponsor the initiative. Other cities “may be so desperate to lure tourists there that they have to overpay for an N.B.A. team,” said Chris Van Dyk, a founder of the group. “Seattle doesn’t have to lure anybody.”


Mr. Van Dyk’s priorities are schools, transportation projects and health care, and he openly disdains wealthy people who buy professional teams, pay huge salaries to players and then demand handouts. Owners who threaten to take their teams elsewhere, Mr. Van Dyk said, are no better than “the neighborhood crack cocaine dealer.”

Told of Mr. Van Dyk’s comments, Clayton I. Bennett of Oklahoma City, chairman of the group that owns the Sonics, sighed.

Seattle “turned its back on the N.B.A.,” Mr. Bennett said in a telephone interview, and gave up its chance to build a “multipurpose” arena suitable for basketball, hockey and conventions.

“I’m not saying it’s the most important thing or the only thing, but I think professional sports are an important component to the overall economy and quality of life in any marketplace,” Mr. Bennett said. “It’s about flying the flag of the city nationally and globally.”


The vote last week guarantees that the Sonics will leave their current home, KeyArena, in 2010, he said. The team may move to the Seattle suburbs and plans to talk to the State Legislature about that in coming weeks, but most people here think Mr. Bennett and his partners will move the team to Oklahoma City.

Even without the Sonics, Seattle would still have professional baseball and football teams, the Mariners and the Seahawks.

Antistadium sentiment was also reflected in Sacramento, where voters rejected a sales tax increase to pay for a new arena for the Kings, the basketball team there.

Residents and elected officials here have gone back and forth on financing for sports facilities. In 1995, voters narrowly rejected a sales tax to finance a baseball stadium for the Mariners. But after the team had a record season, the Legislature decided that the public would pay for most of a new stadium, Safeco Field, which ultimately cost more than $500 million.


In 1997, Paul Allen, a founder of Microsoft and one of the city’s billionaires, sponsored a statewide campaign that persuaded voters to commit $300 million to replace the Kingdome for the Seahawks. In return, Mr. Allen bought the team and put $100 million into a new field.

Last season, the team went to the Super Bowl for the first time, and Mr. Allen credited boisterous fans for victories at Qwest Field.

Owners of professional teams have long argued that arenas and stadiums increase economic development, jobs and tourism. With some economists challenging that view, the owners have developed a new argument: that a team enhances a city’s social status, said David J. Olson, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Washington.

Seattle is not buying it.

“Citizens in Seattle look around and see Microsoft and Boeing doing fabulously, the Port of Seattle is booming and trade with China is going to define this city’s existence for the next 50 years,” Professor Olson said. “Seattle has said, We can be a big-league city, we can be an international city, without kowtowing to professional sports franchises.”

The Sonics were Seattle’s first professional team and first love, especially after they won a National Basketball Association championship in 1979. But the team’s record, aside from a playoff run in 2004, has been middling for years.

KeyArena, the smallest of any N.B.A. team, was renovated in 1995 with $75 million from taxpayers.

Public sentiment turned against the Sonics last winter when Mr. Schultz, the Starbucks chairman, demanded that the state provide $200 million to refurbish the city-owned arena. The team would have contributed $18 million.

It did not help the Sonics that on the morning of last week’s vote, a local newspaper heralded a deal to build a privately financed headquarters for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation near the Sonics’ home.

The foundation, which gives billions of dollars to improve global health and public education, has paid $50 million for the land, will build three office buildings and will pay $1.7 million for traffic improvements. The city’s main financial commitment is to build a $15.3 million parking garage, which it will own.

To many Sonics fans, the rejection of sports financing proves that old, laid-back Seattle has been crushed by elitist Prius-driving do-gooders.

To say there is “no cultural value” in the Sonics is “ludicrous,” said Paul Merrill, a 34-year-old stand-up comedian who was 7 when the Sonics won the championship. Yet even Mr. Merrill, who helps run Supersonicsoul, “the Sonics blog for the Sonics people,” finds it hard to justify public spending on a new arena, an attitude reflected in a joke he tells in his comedy routine.

As a big basketball fan, Mr. Merrill says, he should come up with 200 million reasons why the city should pay for a $200 million arena: Where else can he buy a $7 pretzel? And, sure, that money could build housing for the homeless, but can homeless people dunk?

The real punch line, Mr. Merrill said, is that even he can think of only seven “reasons” to keep the Sonics in Seattle.






First noted in the first blog HERE

Shea la vie

In a not-too-surprising move, the new home stadium of the beloved (in these parts anyway) New York Mets will apparently be named after a business, and be called CitiField. Not thrilled with it, to be honest, the good news is that it's short, I suppose.



THE NEW SHEA?

Spell It Right............Or Die Trying.

A game in style similar to Asteroids, one has to spell the words correctly in order to stave off an attack from all sides. Several layers of play on this game, if you're playing at work you might want to have the sound off.






SPEL RITE OR DYE

More From The Water Is Wet Dept.

On the eve of tonight's big USC v Oregon game, comes this article from today's LA Times about the use of instant replay in college football.




STORY




On further review, glitch affected Rose Bowl replays
By David Wharton, Times Staff Writer
November 11, 2006






Texas' first touchdown against USC in the 2006 national championship game at the Rose Bowl should have been overturned, but replay officials had the wrong television feed plugged into their monitor.

The play occurred in the second quarter of what was a last-minute, 41-38 victory for the Longhorns. Running downfield, quarterback Vince Young was hit by a defender and lateraled to teammate Selvin Young, who sprinted the remaining 12 yards to the end zone, giving his team a 9-7 lead.

The touchdown stood, even though one replay angle — seen by television viewers but not officials — showed that Young's left knee touched the ground before he released the ball.

During the game, David Parry, the Big Ten and national coordinator of officials, told The Times through a spokesman that he would not comment.

But Pacific 10 Conference officials said Friday that when they inquired after the play, Parry soon told them there was a problem with the replay setup.

"We weren't in charge of replay at the Rose Bowl," said Jim Muldoon, the Pac-10's associate commissioner. "There was nothing we could do to change that."

The glitch was fixed soon after.

It might also have influenced an earlier call in which Reggie Bush tried to lateral to a teammate and Texas recovered. Bush's lateral might have traveled forward, in which case USC would have been penalized but would have maintained possession in Texas territory.


The ultimate effect of these rulings — both early in the game — is debatable. If Young had been ruled down, Texas still would have had first and 10 on the USC 12-yard line.

But the rulings returned to the spotlight Friday after separate reports by Yahoo.com and the Associated Press.

Parry told AP that replay officials did not receive the camera angle that definitively showed Young's knee down — even as ABC was showing it to the rest of the nation. In fact, he said, the officials told him one of their feeds showed fans in the stadium.

In the resulting confusion, play was allowed to continue with Texas missing an extra-point attempt, and by the time replay officials got the correct feed, it was too late.

Speaking to the earlier Bush lateral, Parry told AP: "It was a very close call, and they did not have indisputable evidence to overturn it."

Even after the feed was corrected, replay produced another controversial ruling. Early in the fourth quarter, a Young pass to Jamaal Charles was called incomplete on the field. Replays seemed to indicate that Charles had possession of the ball, then fumbled, with USC recovering.

The play stood and Texas subsequently kicked a 34-yard field goal to trim USC's lead to 31-26 with 8:46 left.

On the eve of tonight's game between USC and Oregon at the Coliseum, USC Coach Pete Carroll declined to comment.

Muldoon said the Pac-10 did not seek to take any official action in response to the rulings.

Earlier this season, Pac-10 replay officials came under fire for a controversial call involving an onside kick in Oregon's comeback victory over Oklahoma.

"You have to remember, [replay] is about a year and a half old," Muldoon said. "There are bound to be some problems."

*

Times staff writer Gary Klein contributed to this report.

A Burrito Is Not A Sandwich

One less worrying thing that keeps us up at night, the heavy rain and rising river levels in this area notwithstanding.



FOOD, FOOD, FOOD.

A Withnail & I Reunion

Some news about one of my fave films of all time, the English film Withnail & I , and a reunion of sorts of the two characters of the title, played by Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann, respectively. The original film follows the two on a weekend country getaway from their dull lives in late sixties London.





We want them NOW!!!!

John Doe Sings For Kids

The good news: legendary musician John Doe, of seminal Los Angeles punk band x, and also part time actor, most widely seen in Roadhouse or Pure Country, will be performing in Seattle, singing songs suitable for children. The bad news, for me at least, is that the show, intended for the entire family, will not allow adults without children or vice versa to attend. Oh well, hopefully someone records this, sounds like a great show.



JOHN DOE

3-D Hanging Art

A great concept.



3-D Art


EDIT: checking the comments, the following link is the real site of the artists. Can't believe that the blog above watermarked photos that weren't his.




THE REAL SITE

Love Cats? Love Irish Drinking Songs?

Two of the best things ever are combined in one fantastic package. Or not. Judge for yourself.




WHEN KITTY EYES ARE SMILING

Once Again, Sports Is Not War

A soccer team from a high school in North Carolina uses a 90 second (!) sample from a speech from Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels (!!!) as a motivator before a recent match. Okay, no one person brought out the "sports as war" metaphor, but that long of a speech snippet.............from one of those guys?

"Pineapple Express" Ends Its Run In NW Oregon

A scene just a couple of blocks away from Chez Green, caused by a lot of rain over the weekend and on through Tuesday morning caused a lot of local flooding.

It was unseasonably warm over the weekend, I should've worn shorts to the Oregon/Washington football game on Saturday (about 20 drops of rain all told, all very late in the fourth quarter, about 3:45 PST). Quite humid as well. Not as bad, IMO, as the 96 floods, as we didn't have any snow or ice to melt away before the arrival of the PE, but the constant, heavy rain was certainly worrisome for people living near bodies of water.

Stories Behind Borat

I saw the Borat movie on Sunday the 5th, the 1:15 showing at the Carmike Theatres in Corvallis. 98% capacity for the matinee showing, some sorority-types from Oregon State sat next to me; I could clearly hear them blanching and cowering at the wrestling scene in the movie, at least until I was laughing as hard as everybody else in the place, laughing until my sides hurt. Anyway, an article about some of the hapless people captured in the movie.


BORAT STORIES

Why Can't We All Just Get Along?

A pro-wrasslin-staged style melee on a Russian talk-show. Glad to see the influence of our culture over their.



I WANT SOMEBODY TO ACT PISSED OFF!!!!!

Oregon Coastal Towns At Risk, Scientist Says

Coinciding with the series of storms currently battering the Pacific Northwest comes this opinion about some more local effects of global warming on our coastline.




SAND ON THE MOVE

Do As We Say, Not As We Do (Part............uhhh, we've lost count)

SIGH

Tottenham 2 Chelsea 1

Just over from White Hart Lane. Fantastic, and quite contested, match. Spurs overcome spotting Chelsea a 1-0 lead on a great attack from Makelele early on to even it on a corner kick knock in from Micheal Dawson just a bit later. Early in the second half, Robbie Keane put on a fantastic dribbling display in the left corner, knocked the ball into the area, and Aaron Lennon found the space amongst several Blue shirts to blast the ball into the back of the net. Oh happy day..........first victory in the League over Chelsea in I-don't-know-how-many- years.


More info later............I've gotta go celebrate.


10 pm edits:


GUARDIAN


BBC


KEANE TALKS

I'm Clenching Now

This is so wrong: a naked man.......... hiding an awl. In his body. SHUDDER




STORY

Tottenham 3 Club Brugge 1

A sweet pair of Dimitar Berbatov goals sandwiched an excellent running and scoring effort by Robbie Keane to lead Spurs to a UEFA group Cup win at White Hart Lane on Thursday, overcoming a quick first strike by the visitors' Salou Ibrahim that left goalie Paul Robinson little chance. Excellent effort by the lads today, especially in the second half according to Martin Jol. COME ON YOU SPURS!!!!!





3-1

'I DIDN'T REALIZE HOW MUCH PEOPLE LOVE TO HATE ME

Seriously, I try, I really do try, not to pay much attention to the train wreck that is known as Britney & Kevin..........but this NY Post article was just too good to pass up. All I can is that no, I don't know. What are you talking about?


NY POST


Plus, a pic from his high school yearbook in Fresno.


FRESNO

Shape Up!!!!

YOU CAN'T POSSIBLY BE TALKIN' BOUT ME?



God bless Paul Goward , his heart was in the right place, it just seems that the skin of some in Winter Haven, Florida was just a little bit too thin.



JELLY BELLIES

Curb Your Enthusiasm, Ivelin

SHOTGUN MARRIAGE



Bulgarian football club Litex Lovech hopes that marriage, and all of the apparent steadiness that that entails, will make fiery striker Ivelin Popov more agreeable to deal with. Godspeed, Ivelin.

Answers To Burning Questions That You Never Knew Existed

Such as kids at a science exhibit in Florida weighing themselves on a scale designed to tell them how long it takes an elephant to poop their weight.




Story is HERE


First noted on the following blog: HEADLINES

"If I see him, I'll hit him in the face"

More Kazakh reactions to the Borat movie. At least one person in that country is starting to see the joke though.



I STILL LIKE!!!