Guys, just finished up a new Truth column. It is going to be a two-part series on the rules for fans and the NBA. Tell me what you think. http://www.clutchcity.net/feature.cfm?FeatureID=140
Very good article, Jeff. I had this strange dream last night where the Rockets approached you to work for them as a Customer/Community Relations Consultant. Talk about bizarre, huh?
very good artcile you made some excellent points. You tried to hit all your points from every angle, keep up the good work
Excellent article Jeff! I have to say that I think this is your best piece yet. One thing to Kagy..."However, just like there are unwritten "rules of the road" like stay out of the fast lane if you aren't going fast (ask Brian Kagy and he'll explain)"...go ahead and explain!!
nice read to start the day. Excellent point about the NBA helping out the fan sites. How much does it cost to have a links page!? It would be a huge help to all, the NBA, site owner/operators/administrators, players and fans. A couple of questions though: *given that there are no ads/banners on teh site, how does it stay operating? CC crew funds only? Given the size and traffic of the site, can't image it's cheap. The flow on traffic to QUALITY sites from nba.com (or whatever) could make ads/banners practical/profitable for those sites. I don't want CC to fold like some of my other fav websites did! *just how much does the beer cost?
I totally disagree with Jeff on one important point. I don't admire these guys as people but only as athletes. I could care less what they think, do, feel off the court, as long as they bring it every night. I'm not interested in their personal lives and I don't look up to them as citizens, we shouldn't. First off, what percentage of NBA players father illegitimate children all the time? How many of these guys smoke out before every game? (Charles Oakley's words) Just as I could give a good god damn about my politicians personal lives I couldn't care less about athletes. They never have anyhting intelligent to say. An ESPN interview usually goes like this: "Well, we all pulled together and decided we were gonna win as a team and we pulled through, things just went our way, we hustled harder and played smarter, we hope to keep it up next game. Thanks" Yeah Thanks, I'm now an enlightened man. Anything an athlete has to say is usually a variation on this theme. Save for Charles Barkley, who kicks ass!!!
Jeff, Quite nice! Well written and thorough. A very pleasurable read. I just wish you stressed the free beer and championship issues a little more!!!!!! Thanks for carrying our message forward. ROCKET!!!
No idea. What percentage does it all the time? No idea. How many? Ironically you say below they have nothing intelligent to say, but damn it all, you'll quote 'em! Never? Wow. Hmm... if you were asked the same stupid questions by the "intelligent" reporters, I'm sure you'd get kind of bored answering them 20 times after each game, too. Exactly how do you want them to answer? Do you want physics equations as responses? One of these days I hope a moron-of-a-reporter asks a question like "do you think you'll win" and the athlete responds with "no". I doubt the reporter will know what to do next since every interview is so scripted. It's a game. And of course Charles is full of wisdom... And of course, you care about what Charles says because he's an upstanding citizen. Don't get me wrong, I love Barkley as a personality, but he's not overly intelligent which you seem to admire. He just opens his mouth and says whatever happens to be on his mind at the time it opens. Most of his predictions are stupid and are about as erroneous as Petuh Vescey's. He has a new "greatest player I've played with" every week. How many times did he say during his career that a team was "done" only to have them come back and win? You talk about fathering illegitimate children, but Barkley hangs around at the Men's Club and flaunts it despite the fact he's married and has a kid. He throws people through windows, spits on kids, and starts fights. But that's all ok, 'cause he "kicks ass", right? I could say all fans are stupid for having thoughts like yours, but that would be a generalization and I'd have no proof backing it up. If anything the proof is that all fans are not like you, so I won't say "all fans are stupid" because that would be... stupid.
Sorry Buddy, but as usual you missed the point completely. I didn't mean to strike a chord with the less gifted of us on this board by saying all athletes were stupid. That's not what I meant. I was only disagreeing with Jeff that fans should look up to athletes as people. I love Micheal Jordan, he's a great ATHLETE, but I would never want my son to look up to him. He's a horrible gambler. That's what's wrong with this country , Doc, too many of you adolescent 40 year olds revere these ATHLETES as Gods, which they are not, and set bad examples for the youth of this country. A good chunk of NBA players father illegitimate children, Dikembe Mutumbo, Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon to name but a small fraction. Most NBA players smoke weed before playing. Those are Charles Oakley's words,and I'm not handing him a PhD cause he said it, only someone as dumb as you would think it takes an intelligent man to point something like that out. And No I don't expect these guys to give me an explanation of Plato's Cave Allegory but come on Doc don't defend these guys' intellect cause it reflects badly on you. Now, if you happen to be an athlete or a member of the Houston Rockets, sorry to have offended you, but I don't look up to athletes as persons, and neither should you.
Dear Doc, I would have thought that someone of your inflated intellect would have been able to distinguish between two different points and not just read through my post and get inflamed and start writing a la Barkley, straight off the top of your head. Let me make this real easy for you Doc. The TWO seperate points were: 1- Atheletes are not role models. I never said Charles was a role model, just that he doesn't put me to sleep when he's interviewed. 2- I never said Charles Barkley was an intelligent man, again, just that he doesn't put me to sleep. TWO different concepts Doc : Role Models and Intelligent Men. Sorry to have gotten in your pants, DOC.
I see it took 2 posts for you to run and defend your bs. Allow me to take your points and use them against you. Your words don't lie, or do they? ---------------------------------------------------- This is a stupid generalization. If you don't believe me, just accept it and genuflect before me; I'm right, you just don't know it. You then go on to say, Yes, so a few raise illegitimate children and several smoke weed, so that means we treat all of them with disdain/disrespect. Makes no sense, but then I guess from your responses, making sense isn't your priority. Moving on with Brainiac's quotes : Yet you run with the following post later : Nice contradiction. Seems as if you don't even know what you mean. Next time think before you type and make wild generalizations. If you do, you won't have to say "that's not what I meant". Trust me. I used to think just like you... then I turned 13. I never had a disagreement that several NBA players are probably stupid; there are probably several. I never had a disagreement that several NBA players smoke weed; there are probably several. I never had a disagreement that several NBA players fathered illegitimate children; several have. What I had a disagreement with is your MORONIC generalization that no NBA players should be looked up to because several have vices. You say what's wrong with the world today is 40 year olds that revere athletes as gods. Unfortunately for you, ignorant one, I agree with you. What you don't seem to understand is that... 1) I was taught by my parents to judge people as individuals and not judge the individual by a group. If 99.9% of the people are wrong, it is not right for me to say the other 0.1% should be deemed wrong as well. Obviously your parents did not instill this belief in you. That is my point in this ridiculous "debate" that has caused you to reach into the depths of your Homo Hapless cerebrum and come forth with the gibberish and non-sensical, indefensible, blabber you've produced. I mean really, did it really require you making 2 posts to not be able to defend yourself? 2) I'm not 40, I'm 31 and still old enough to beat your argument down into submission. My proof is this post. And lastly, I hope you don't raise your son to be as closed-minded and as ignorant as you appear to be in this thread because we don't need any more of those type of people in this world. I also hope your son doesn't read this bbs, because it would be a damn shame for him to have to see daddy be put to bed like he's being done now... The next time you decide to grace this board with a post describing "what's wrong with the world today", perhaps you need to answer the question "what's wrong with me today". Someone once said "change is implemented from within". You obviously need to look within before you condemn others... If you wish to respond to me (do us all a favor; don't), be my guest. I won't respond any further because I can't argue with you if you don't have anything intelligent to say. And if you respond, try to keep it to 1 post; unless your synapses really do fire in 19-minute intervals which was the time difference between your last 2 posts. I don't trip that way, but thanks for the offer; it's been noted. ... I'm late for my effin' 30 minute nap because of this. Somebody's gonna pay. ZRB, R0ckets03, ... arrgg
Bingo: I never meant to suggest we should consider athletes role models if they don't deserve it. What I was suggesting is that we should consider inappropriate behavior from them no different from inappropriate behavior from a non-athlete. In essence, they should be held to the same standards. However, I did not say ANYWHERE that athletes should be role models. I only suggested that they shouldn't act like 3 year olds on the floor, call out their teammates or coaches in public or that they shouldn't spit on anyone. I don't think it is stretch to say that these are rules that apply to all of us.
damn it!!! I'm just not mature enough to take it like a man!! So, having nothing intelligent to say is different from being stupid. Now I'll keep this short so MAYBE you'll understand. Look up to athletes all you want, i don't give a damn. And please , acknowledge that there is a difference between admiring someone for being an athlete (athletic skill, coordination, balance bla bla bla) and being a righteous person. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree. BTW, DOC, this double post, is just for YOU
JEFF, I never suggested you suggested we should consider them role models regardless of their behavior. My original disagreement with you was over the phrase :"we want to admire you not just as athletes but as people". I loves your article, apart from this. If some people can't understand that, well then, I guess, oh well, the US education system can only go so far.
I wish people would stop including "smoking weed" as if it is some kind of horrific thing. The ban on weed is one of the stupidest laws in the world. Smoking weed does not make someone a bad person.
