smokinandjokin

I saw a promo last night that UT is on ESPN this Monday night at 9pm against #8 A&M. Suddenly, I can't wait to watch. He is that good. Strangely, both teams play Saturday as well, with A&M drawing the much tougher game- @ #6 Kansas.

I'm not even going to make fun of you. I just feel bad for you.

CD sales are WAY down, and have been on the decline for several years. The artists hardly make schit off of legal downloads...I think they get $0.12 out of the $0.99 per song on iTunes, but are probably only seeing $0.03 of that after managers, agents, studio musicians, etc. are factored in. Mega-tours playing as many dates as possible and charging big bucks are the only real money-maker in the industry right now.

When I woke up this morning, I was hoping there would be another thread bashing WGR...Thankfully you came through! For a group who hates 550, you guys sure listen a lot....

I don't think the thought was that Big Pat was washed up...It was just a financial decision that they couldn't pay him what his market value was. His importance was definitely underestimated, though, as the prevailing thought was that Fat Sam and any other slob would be able to do the job. That was the miscalculation. Ruben was cast aside as finished by Buffalo, you're right. My friend made a good point yesterday, saying that he's fine getting rid of players- in fact, it's necessary in the current league setup. However, don't get rid of a guy and then say, "Ok, you're up" to whomever is next in line, regardless of their talent or their preparedness to be a starter. At least have a plan. Your point is well taken- TD clearly had no plan for these two positions.

The first two are already mentioned in this thread: Little Miss Sunshine- Yes! Alan Arkin is effin hilarious and needs to win the award for Supporting Actor. Thank You for Smoking- Yes! Clever and funny. Syrianna- I just watched it with three others; I enjoyed it and think I 'got it,' but it takes concentration. The others hated it. The Departed- Still probably in a few theaters; whenever it comes to video, it is a must see. Waking Ned Devine- Hadn't seen it in a while, just caught it on HBO the other day. Great flick, definitely worth your 90 minutes.

Ha!- I did check that as well, only because he looks so dominant some times- he is in fact only 18 years old, born in September of 1988. Wow.

He didn't shoot that well in the 3OT game that UT lost, I think he was like 14-32 or something. But he was incredible at the end of regulation and in the OT's, hitting all kinds of big shots. You're right about Augustine as well, I think he was 15pts and 11 asts last night. Nice player. Of course, I could probably play point off of Durant and average 8 or 9 assists...

I usually come to this board and vent... ...BY POUNDING OUT A COUPLE OF POSTS ON MY NEW HEWLETT PACKARD WIRELESS KEYBOARD!!!

If only there was a way...[cue the cosmic music as the screen melts into my vision...] A lingerie bowl between hotties from each city? Winning city gets the homefield? With a panel of judges headed up by yours truly deciding on the overall hotness of each squad, and awarding 7 points at the beginning of the game to the better looking team.

Not to make excuses or even keep this rediculous thread going, but don't underestimate the motivation factor. Right or wrong, the majority of the athletes we send to international events are multi-millionaires, who have been pampered, sponsored, and well-compensated for many years. Travelling abroad to play in a semi-amateur tournament is probably more of a hassle than an honor to them. While most of us mortals can't even comprehend representing your country as being a hassle, it is the way some of these guys look at it. The other nations, conversely, view beating the USA as the major highlight of their tournament, year, lives, etc. A victory often triggers national holidays and celebrations in these countries. The USA literally takes every team's best shot in every event, no matter the sport, no matter the round. The USA is like Notre Dame football or the Yankees...The other teams don't care who's wearing the uniform, they just want to say they beat them. And you can tell by the celebrations after a USA loss what the game meant to their opponent. I can't imagine that beating Argentina in a 'FIBA Basketball' tournament means a whole hell of a lot to Tim Duncan. Not that that line of thinking is right, or that it's an excuse...But it's definitely a factor.

This raises another question- Do the radio advertisers go ALL OUT for the Super Bowl, like they do for television? I would assume not, as the thinking is that most people will be watching...However, there must be quite a few who are working, driving, etc. who will tune in via radio...So yes or no on the big creative splurging for radio ads? And if no, what is the biggest radio advertisement event???

The only game I had seen Texas play this year was their 105-103, 3OT loss to Oklahoma State. In that game, 6'10" freshman Kevin Durant was a man among boys, nearly willing the Horns to victory with 37 points and 12 rebs. Durant is a bit lanky to bang inside, but at 6'10", he's not afraid to mix it up in there. And his game facing the basket is nearly unstoppable at the college level. He handles the ball incredibly well, and can shoot the three. He's like Garnett with a better perimeter game. So I saw that Texas is playing on ESPN2 last night at Bobby Knight's Texas Tech, and I decided to tune in. I wanted to verify that the incredible performance I saw a few weeks ago wasn't the exception. Durant was a terror last night in Texas' 76-64 victory, scoring 37 points and collecting 23 rebounds. He scored 49% of his team's points, and had 56% of the team's rebounds. He alone outscored Tech 24-22 in the 2nd half in what some are calling the greatest performance in Texas hoops history. His bio says he's from Maryland, so somehow Texas pulled a major coup and scooped him out of ACC country. They better enjoy him, because he will be a star in the NBA next year. With Oden arriving at Ohio State, and Florida returning all five starters from the national champ team, Durant may have been slightly overlooked. If you like NCAA hoops, and you see Texas playing on TV, I recommend you tune in and check out #35. Chances are, you won't be disappointed.

Kinda how I boycott all Jessica Alba movies because of her refusal to have sex with me?

I won $7500 on a Super Bowl square two years ago, and that went right into the safe in the basement...Tax free!

And no tailgaiting. The NFL loves it's fans.

Perhaps they are just referring to the bomb the Sabres dropped on the Bruins last night?

Wouldn't ~3 years of work with a reputable firm after school pay pretty darn well, and put you a long way toward paying off your school debt? I realize you think you might be unhappy, but you are the one who chose to go to law school and take on these loans, and soon you will have a wife to consider when making all decisions. What is your wife's stance on school? Is she excited about her new family being saddled with debt, and nothing much to show for it? The more I read in this thread, the more I think you need to finish. Two-thirds of a law degree equals jack schitt, other than many thousands of dollars racking up interest. Finish, then explore your options. You are teetering on the 'woe is me' line, and it sounds pretty weak. In this information age, you had to know exactly what law school would require (both at school and in the wallet), and you had to know the options that would be available for employment upon finishing. Armed with this information, you chose to pursue this endeavor just 1.5 years ago. What happened since then? You've decided your personality doesn't mesh with other law students? Please. Hell, that alone might make you a commodity.

Eli Manning, 57.7% completions, 24 TD, 18 INT, by all accounts had a terrible year. Vince Young, 51.5% completions, 12 TD, 13 INT, by all accounts had a great year. Funny game.

Incredible! There is no containing those cannons!

I think I would feel pretty confident heading over there with minimal training if I knew I had the support of the Americans, who operate with incredible precision as the world's finest fighting force. I would be less than enthused to know that I was going to work outside of my field and have to count on the Iraqi military or police to have my back. The disheartening part is that with the IED-warfare the insurgents are using, where in their mind, 1 wounded soldier = 1 victory, it's impossible to avoid sketchy situations. It's more dumb luck that your vehicle goes trouble-free while the one behind you trips a wire. The injuries have mainly been a result of unluck rather than poor planning, poor execution, recklessness, etc. That's what makes it so hard to have a friend or loved one over there, as I know first hand. Thank your son-in-law for his service, and tell him to take care of his business and get home soon.

Yawn. A bi-annual event that leaves out most of the best players in the world. Maybe if you considered the world golf rankings at the end of 2006, you'd see a vast array of countries, with the USA more than holding their own (including 3 of the top 4.) They also took a game that was played seriously in one country on earth, this one, and made it a true world game. But you're right, Spain is better. I also enjoyed how you failed to mention that the rules are quite different from the rules our players have played with their entire lives. So...you're citing a one-and-done knockout tournament as evidence of American demise in a sport where the BEST teams only win 55% of their games? Sweet. When have they ever won? Interesting that USA doesn't quite have the athleticism of other world powers, and both football and soccer are fall sports in this country...I wouldn't mind seeing Reggie Bush if he played soccer 14 hours a day from the time he was 3 years old. The USA is a world power in Under-20 tournaments, but it hasn't translated into the men yet. Canada, Czech Republic, Sweden, Russia, USA. Pick one. I guarantee they win the next major tournament or Olympics. Again, if you would check the world rankings, the USA is one of two countries with two players in the world top-10. Andy Roddick is ranked 4th and James Blake is ranked 6th. The other country? Croatia, with players ranked #8 and #10. Although it could be argued that anybody not named Roger Federer sucks at tennis right now. He's unreal. Your grasping at straws with this one. Americans will be the favorites in every event under 800M, plus decathalon, heptathalon, pole vault, etc. while a smattering of opponents from dozens of other countries will be able to 'steal' a win in certain events every once in a while. Big deal. Does anybody even remember these people ten minutes after their event is over? That includes the Americans. I defy you to find a more pure athlete than an NFL running back. Or linebacker. Or wide receiver. Huh? Once again, I'm not afraid to post the evidence for you. Can you find five?

Yes, definitely a huge financial risk for the owners. Barbaro could've lived, but it was probably always a longshot that he would be able to support himself on his hind legs to mount a mare. Not that the owners were in financial hardship by any means, but they certainly could've lost out on many millions had that been the case. I think that fact alone shows that the horse was truly a gift to them, and they wanted to give him every chance to survive and live a normal and pain-free life. They always said if Barbaro wasn't comfortable, they would end things. He had two setbacks in a week, including one very painful night, and they made the decision the next morning. They handled the whole thing very admirably, IMO.

Sorry, but that statement is 100% false when pertaining to thoroughbred horse racing. They do it all the time for other horse breeds, but not thoroughbreds. There are many reasons the Jockey Club does not allow a horse to be registered as a thoroughbred unless a sire and mare are witnessed 'doing the deed.' Some of those: -Artificial insemination does not guarantee that you are getting the sperm of the horse you assume you are paying for to sire -Thoroughbred breeding records are meticulous, and there would be no way to verify the bloodlines with 100% accuracy -For betting purposes, it is important to know a horse's bloodline, and be certain of the sire and mare -If artificial insemination was allowed, everyone would want to breed with Secretariat and the other select few top horses, because there would be ready access to the sperm. That would introduce in-breeding in future generations which would cause endless problems. -By allowing a stallion to only cover a couple hundred mares a year rather than the couple thousand possible with AI, it also preserves the high prices paid for horses of the finest or most popular lineages.

To Peyton Manning: On the 30-year anniversary of noted womanizer Terry Bradshaw starting in the Super Bowl, do you feel it's significant to be the first virgin to start at QB in the Super Bowl?