Sunday, September 1, 2013

Stupidity runs rampant: A plethora of Dunce Caps are handed out

As one of my high school teachers used to say, "stupidity runs rampant". Just take a look at these examples of human incompetence........

We start in New York. Former Metropolitan Transportation Authority frontman Joe Lhota is running for Mayor on the Republican ticket. On Saturday, he landed on the front page of the New York Daily News, branded as heartless when he stated on Friday that he wouldn't have suspended subway service on Thursday to save a pair of stray kittens that were trapped under the tracks. Despite this, the Daily News, in today's editions, endorsed Lhota for the GOP primary on September 10, after endorsing Christine Quinn for the Democratic primary the same day.

So who gets the Dunce Caps? Lhota, for running the risk of blowing the primary by showing a glaring lack of compassion, and Daily News editors for 1) endorsing Lhota, 24 hours after blasting him in print, and 2) taking a cheap shot at Democratic candidate and scandal magnet Anthony (Son of Oscar Mayer) Weiner with a double entendre headline on the bottom of the front page. A lame attempt at humor, and poorly timed, at that.

Our next stop is Foxborough, where, despite the public support of owner Robert Kraft, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick rewarded Tim Tebow for leading the NFL's Evil Empire to a victory on Thursday over the Giants by cutting the QB. Belichump also refused to even consider keeping Tebow on as a tight end or at any position other than QB, since he otherwise would've been carrying a clipboard for Tom Brady anyway. The Pats cut a couple of spare-part tight ends on Friday, which would've left a roster spot open for Tebow, but returning starter Rob Gronkowski, perhaps the most fragile man on the team, after what feels like a zillion surgeries on his arm, appears ready for the opener next Sunday vs. Buffalo, as he finally worked out with the team today, according to ESPN. Real swift, Belichump. NOT! In fact, if Tebow signs with, say, Miami as a backup QB, I really hope he sticks it to you once and for all!

I went on record saying that Tebow would be best utilized as a tight end, since there was little chance of him seeing any game action during the regular season as a QB, but Belichump didn't see it that way.

Next, we go to College Station, Texas. Texas A & M QB Johnny Manziel, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, has let the success go to his head. We all know about the scandal surrounding his signing autographs for memorabilia dealers that was in the headlines all summer. As a sort of compromise, and a lame one at that, mind you, Manziel was "suspended" for the first half of Saturday's season opener vs. Rice, seen on ESPN. All he did was throw 3 TD's and draw a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, specifically taunting, before coach Kevin Sumlin pulled Manziel from the game. Of course Texas A & M won the game, but as ESPN analyst Mark May said earlier today, this arrogant behavior on the part of the sophomore signal-caller has already turned fans against him, and it's almost a given that Manziel won't return for his junior season, as he's likely to turn pro after this season, regardless of whether or not he wins a 2nd Heisman, becoming the first man in nearly 40 years to pull off that feat. I actually doubt that'll happen, to tell you the truth, and his antics yesterday will come back to haunt him 3 months from now.

Finally, NCAA HQ is our last stop, because their archaic, anachronistic policies have become a definition of hypocrisy in college sports. They won't let athletes make money in order to help support themselves, and yet, the NCAA, like the pro sports leagues that they've become a feeder system for, moreso than ever, has a website where they sell replica jerseys of certain star players of various colleges (i.e. Manziel and Alabama's AJ McCarron), so they're making money off these players, but they don't want to give up a piece of the phat pie they share with their broadcast partners (Fox, ESPN/ABC, NBC, CBS) and help some of these kids who come from diverse backgrounds, some of whom probably needed financial aid just to pay tuitions to get into school in the first place. Wake up and join the 21st century! Colleges have become a glorified farm system for the pros, and no one's trying to convince these kids that education comes first!

It's time to change the system, because patchwork repairs ain't gonna get it done.

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