Sports Musings

1. From a "worm's eye" view, one wonders about salaries of the highest paid professional athletes. How can it be justified that such people are paid many, many times the wages of governors, our president, teachers & those of us who sustain the American way of life?? I know. "It is what it is." Whatever the market will bear.

But why does the market bear it? Why are ticket prices to games so outrageously high? (Obviously to pay the entertainers, the athletes people want to see.) But why?? If supply and demand was such a perfect rubrick then we shouldn't need local taxpayer subsidies of the need by professional sports cities to build larger, gaudier temples. But many cities believe they have no choice. If they don't cave in and subsidize, the team will leave and take with it all the peripheral profits.

2. Why won't the BCS bite the bullet and create a workable playoff system for college football?? Can't they figure out how to include the historic bowl games into the tournament structure leading up to the "championship game"? I know. Those bowl cities plus the "big 6" or whatever it is conferences don't want to face the prospect that they might lose something, anything. But the general preference (and yes, I'm guessing that this is true; haven't researched any polls or anything) by the public for a playoff system is trivial in the eyes of those preventing a solution? Apparently.

3. Why doesn't the NFL deal with overtime games the same way college ball does, with a FAIR opportunity by both teams to win? Why the "coin flip" advantage to whoever gets the ball first? I frankly haven't even heard a rational excuse from NFL as to why they've drug their feet this long.

4. What is it we Americans don't "get" with regard to European "football" (what we call SOCCER)? As a TV spectator sport, soccer is boring. Is it that much better live? (I know that that's true of hockey). And I know that soccer for kids is very popular here. The reason for this is obvious to me. Soccer is much more democratic than other "skill" sports. A kid who is relatively slow and uncoordinated can get out on the soccer field, run around, kick the ball (or try to) occasionally, and that kid and his/her spectator relatives can enjoy the experience. The good athlete will still feel challenged going against the good athletes on the other team. None of this is nearly so true with basketball or baseball.

But this affection for kids soccer doesn't translate into any interest in watching adults kick the ball long ways in scoreless ties in professional games. The phenomenal bicycle kick that MAY occur once a game isn't worth the wait.

5. Perhaps more later.

Republican Monday morning quarterbacks

Republicans are self-destructing for the amusement of the general public?? Appears that way.
Republicans nearest to the center of power within the Republican establishment have decided that Americans are not rejecting their worldview. They think both that we just don't properly understand and appreciate what they "know" is right - (even though they had 8+ years to implement their programs). There's also a portion of them that think the only problems that linger from their days in power stem from the fact that they never implemented conservative enough solutions. They never trusted the Bushes. W. talked a good game, but was obviously a light-weight (in their view).

Media & Moderates

It may not be their intention, but the culpable media tend to eliminate all moderates. I guess it's easier to frame the points of a debate for their audience if the options are a stark contrast. And for purposes of sales and ratings, they think they don't need the moderates. They can get all the sales and all the ratings they want from the ideologues they appeal to, the extremes.