Go Bengals!

I don’t care much who wins tomorrow’s Super Bowl, the Rams or the Bengals, but I favor the Bengals.  Why?  Because they’re the underdog and have never won a Super Bowl.  I’d like to see them do it.

Football, Politics and Mindless Tribalism

Politics and football have something in common:  they both attract true believers who devolve into mindless tribalism.  For example, I’m a 49ers fan and really wanted them to beat the Rams and progress to Super Bowl 56 —but they lost.  Now I have nothing to gain or lose by this; I don’t get any money or rings or any tangible reward.  It’s just a matter of pride, go team!  

Politics also has its mindless tribalists.  Instead of supporting those who make our lives better, we mentally associate with one party or the other because that party is “our tribe.”  Trump helped create the best economy in 50 years, achieved energy independence and border security, helped create 7 million new jobs, end the Korean War and got several Muslim countries to make peace with Israel.  But to many Democrats, that doesn’t matter:  he’s not their tribe and his achievements make their tribe look bad.  So they hate him instead.  How foolish.

San Francisco Forty-Niners vs Seattle Seahawks Today 1/19/2014

The Niners play the Seahawks today and the winner will go to the Super Bowl.

I'm a long-time Niners fan, so naturally I am rooting for San Francisco.  I'll be happy if the Niners win, but I won't be crushed if the Seahawks do (I'll be mildly down for the rest of the day, but that's all).  The reason is simple:  sports are for fun, they are not the end-all and be-all of existence.

I am supposed to attend a compulsory meeting of the tax preparers for my employer today, and that meeting would prevent me from seeing the game.  Sports may not be the be-all and end-all of existence, but I'll be damned if I am going to miss the game.  So I informed my wife that I won't be attending the meeting, and if anyone asks, it's because I have a temperature.  Yep, a temperature of 49 degrees F.  Or, Forty-Niner-itis.  What if they fire me??? Let 'em.

Seattle has the home-field advantage, and their fans are purposely noisy in order to disrupt the plays of their opponents, when those opponents are on offense.  Seattle has refused to sell tickets to the game to Californians, probably to prevent any rooting section for the Forty-Niners.  That's a bit chickensh*t, but it does show how seriously many people take football.

Oh, there's another game today as well, between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos.  That game will decide the other team that goes to the Super Bowl.

Probable winners today?  Seattle and Denver (because both have home field advantage).  However, as I told my friend Curmudgeon of Political Clown Parade, quoting the late Al Davis:  "football is a game of funny bounces."  Nothing is certain when two great teams collide.

The Washington Love: Politically Correct Names for a Football Team #Redskins #politicalcorrectness #racism #sports #football

The Washington Love

In my last post, I created a list of possible new names for the Washington Redskins, names with insulting stereotypes for white people, as a way to "level the playing field" so to speak.  My thinking was that we should embrace our negative stereotypes, hang 'em out there, celebrate them and own them.  However, that approach may not work.  What we need are names for sports teams that insult no one, are inclusive and conducive to racial healing and are transgender inclusive (choke....yes I'm kidding).

Once the new names for sports teams are in effect, we will enter a new era of love and good feeling, where no one on earth is ever offended or insulted ever again.  Hearts and flowers and ballet lessons will be the new norm, and peace will descend like a chorus of angels singing and playing harps and piccolos.  Generals will beat their swords into plowshares and start pot farms.

Here is a starter list for your consideration:

The Washington Twinkletoes

1.  The Washington Love
2.  The Washington Diversity
3.  The Washington Rainbows
4.  The Washington Hugs
5.  The Washington Inclusives
6.  The Washington Gays
7.  The Washington Liberals
8.  The Washington Che Gueveras
9.  The Washington Renewables
10.  The Washington Free Stuff
11.  The Washington Amnesty
12.  The Washington Peaceniks
13.  The Washington Doobies
14.  The Washington Transgenders
15.  The Washington Twinkletoes
16.  The Washington Carbon Credits

So whatta ya think?  Will this movement towards a lovey dovey new sports franchise work?

Alabama vs Texas, BCS Championship Game is This Evening

The BCS championship game is on television tonight. I have mixed feelings about the teams.  My ancestors settled in Alabama in time for the Civil War and fought for the South.  Alabama was once the site of the family's home; it is our ancestral homeland in a sense.  My great, great grandfather is buried there.

I first set foot in Alabama in 1994 and was amazed at how beautiful and green it was.

After the war my great grandfather moved the family to Texas to escape the carpet baggers.  Ever since then most of my family was born and reared in Texas, and we identify more with Texas now than we do Alabama (no one remembers Alabama but we all remember Texas).

So I can't in good conscience root against Texas, the greatest state of all time, in my family's view.  So all I can say is....may the best team win!!

Game time is 5:30 PM here on the west coast.  It is 8:30 PM on the east coast.  Westerners may be stuck in traffic at kickoff, so drive carefully but get home as quick as you can.

Game On: Florida vs Alabama for the SEC Championship Today

The University Florida Gators will kick off against the University of Alabama Crimson Tide at 4 PM ET.  Check local time schedules for different time zones.

At stake is the championship of the Southeastern Conference (the SEC) but the game is more interesting than that.  The AP Poll has Florida rated number 1 and Alabama number 2 in national rankings, and the winner will move to the national championship game.

This is the first time that the number 1 team has played the number 2 team in a playoff game.  Both teams have perfect records of 12 - 0 going into the game.

This game is bound to be a grudge match.  Florida and Alabama met for the SEC championship only a year ago, with Florida rated number 2 and Alabama rated number 1; Florida won handily, 31 - 20.  Florida and Alabama have met for the SEC championship seven times previously.  Florida has largely prevailed, winning five times out of seven.

My ancestors were from Alabama and so I am rooting for the Crimson Tide.  Both, however, are great schools with great teams.  May the best one win!

Football Heroes and the Super Bowl

I don't really care that much about sports, but back around 1980 when the 49ers were winning Super Bowls, I did care. As a Bay Area guy I had been rooting for the Niners for many fruitless and frustrating years. Super Bowl 16 was, for me, the greatest of all time.

In 1987 I was invited to attend a Charity dinner in San Francisco to hear a speech by Bill Ring, a 49er who had succeeded against the odds due to his size -- he was shorter and lighter than most professional football players. He was a nice guy and I chatted with him. Also at the dinner were several current 49ers. Leo the Lion Nomellini was there, too, a 49er from the old days. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1969. I shook his hand and said hello. He has since passed on.

The thing that really impressed me was how big these guys were. That and the size of their necks. How do you get a neck that big? They looked like tree stumps with a head on them. And what size collar do you wear? A 28? Just guessing.

They held an auction of a bunch of stuff, including a case of champagne, and the Niner guys were really hoping to win. When they didn't, they threw their tickets down in disgust.

I didn't want the champagne, I wanted the team-autographed white and brown football. It had the signatures of Joe Montana, Dwight Clark, Ronnie Lott and Steve Young, as well as the rest of the team. I didn't have any cash so my business partner bought a row of tickets for me when he bought his own. He handed me the wrong batch, because in that batch was the ticket that won the football. I happily repaid the $10 on Monday. I'll bet he's still pissed off, all these years later.

I really wanted that football. The funny thing was that, when the MC stuck his hand in the fish bowl filled with tickets and drew one out, I knew it was mine. I don't know how I knew, I just knew. I had a strange kind of tickly feeling in my chest. When they called my number I wasn't surprised but I was very excited. I got a feeling that something was going on that was beyond ordinary experience but I didn't know what. If only I could duplicate it and control it, I'd go to Vegas. Alas, that was the only time it ever happened.

I still have the football in a plastic case in my den. It was my lucky night. The next drawing was for a pair of tickets to a 49ers game and I won that too. I'll bet half the people in the room thought the auction was fixed for me to win. Who the hell is that schmuck, they must have been asking.

I don't know what happened. There must have been a 49er fan turned angel who was looking out for me that night.