Superman's Dead

On the way home from work I was listening to my MP3s and heard "Superman's Dead." When I got home I happened to run across a mention that the 20th anniversary of "The Death of Superman" took place this month. November 18th to be exact, in Superman #75.

 If you remember, this was a really big deal at the time. Not so much for comics, because everyone who paid attention knew Superman would return, but for the media and people who knew little or nothing about comics because they actually thought Superman was really dead.

Since I mentioned it, here's the song. It doesn't actually have anything to do with the Man of Steel.

The Association’s Official Polygraph

Bloggers Note:  In baseball, we use a lot of "B-D-Ls" in the game.  Catcher Kyle H. was pretty good about it too...even when the umpire asked what it meant!  Ball. Don't. Lie.

Rome Take - November 21

I’m telling you…Rasheed Wallace is the best thing to happen to the NBA…pretty much ever. How the Association continued to flourish without this guy the last two years is a miracle to me. Why do I say that. Well, there’s this!





Yeah Aflac! After a missed free throw by Afflalo. Legendary. Then, last night there was this. Check Sheed after he was whistled for a ticky-tack reach in foul on Austin Rivers!



Ball don’t lie! That ball don’t lie! And Sheed’s right. That ball don’t lie. That thing had barely hit the iron before Sheed was bdl’ing it. Sheed doesn’t talk trash…he screams truth. Sheed is the Association’s official polygraph. And the needle bounced on that one. And I loved how he went first amendment rights on the ref, I can yell! I can yell all I want!

Sheed, you can do whatever you want! Just don’t stop doing it.


"I can yell.  I can yell all I want.  I didn't direct that to nobody."  Awesome!

Hey Diddle Diddle, Ray Rice Up The Middle

Rome Take from Monday, Nov. 26:

The greatest teams always find a way. And so do the worst. And just when it looked like the Chargers were finally going to beat a team not named the Chiefs, they dug deep, found another gear, and once again, went right into the tank. Baltimore needed to convert a 4th and 29 to stay alive. And it was at that very moment, that the Chargers made a statement. And sent a message to the rest of the league: nobody comes into our house. And loses to us!

Roll Ray Rice. 11 guys with bolts on their buckets and about 8 of them just assumed someone else would make the tackle. And no one did. And Charger fan save your nonsense about the refs gifting Rice that spot. So they gave him the last half yard: your defense gave him the first 28 and a half, so save it... You're a punch line now.

Shoot, Rice was even dropping rhymes about you. Nursery rhymes that is: "Check down. Hey diddle didle, Ray Rice up the middle." Right. And the cow jumped over the moon. And the dish ran away with the spoon. And the head coach will get whacked real soon.

Check out the video on NFL.com

Steeler Fan, Its Time To Panic

Rome Take from Monday, Nov. 26

Steeler Fan: it's time. Go ahead and panic. And start praying for Ben Roethlisberger's aorta. Because if his ribs don't get right soon, Pittsburgh is going to get run right into the offseason. And I'll give you 9 reasons why.

Reason #1: you just lost to Cleveland. Reasons 2 through 9: the eight turnovers they (puked) onto that field. Steeler Fan, remember your rap? That you'd be just fine without Big Ben, because you have four backs that can tote the rock? Well… all four of them fumbled yesterday.

And so much for the thought that Charlie Batch's experience would keep that train on the tracks. You're confusing experienced with old as dirt. Didn't dude used to back up Terry Bradshaw? Batch isn't holding down the fort, he's lighting it on fire. Look… you can turn it over 7 times and still beat the Browns. But not 8. And if you do it against Baltimore this week, you'll lose by 8 touchdowns.

When I entered Eastern Michigan University, Batch was just starting his NFL career!  Not to mention, I believe Batch received TWO extra years.  SIX years of college football.  Yes, he's old as dirt!

What's Going On?

So Maryland and Rutgers have joined the Big 10.  I guess I understand the country is going to be looking at five main conferences for football and the Big East is like a minor league team or a feeder program for the Yankees (Royals, Brewers, Pirates, etc.)  But do those teams make the Big Ten any better?  You've heard nothing but how bad the Big Ten is this year and how awful their bowl record is since Ohio State were National Champions (35-52ish?)  All you hear about is how weak the Big 10 is and how strong the SEC is.  So, how do you respond?  You get Maryland and Rutgers.  Neither team helps for football.  We already have Illinois, Minnesota, Indiana, and Northwestern.  Yes, Rutgers has been better lately...but that coach left for the National Football League and his players will soon be gone.

You can make the argument that Maryland will make the conference stronger in basketball, but that was when coach Williams was roaming the sidelines under the Bush administration.

However, I don't have a solution or better recommendation.  But going more east rather than south is not making the league stronger.  If they want to make a splash, they HAVE to get Notre Dame.  I'm not suggesting they should have taken a run at Louisville or Kentucky or Tennessee, but at least it would have been south.

If the ACC gets Louisville or UCONN, the ACC becomes probably the top basketball conference.  With Duke, UNC, UConn/Louisville, Notre Dame, and Pittsburgh.  But, the Big 10 still looks good with MSU, OSU, UM, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Maryland.

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For Veterans Day the NFL brought some veterans to games and I'm sure had some patriotic pregame activities. However, they've spent the whole last month wearing garish pink on their uniforms to support "breast cancer awareness" or some such. Does that seem right to you? Compare that to the MSU Spartans basketball team (and UConn), who opened the season in a hangar at the U.S. Air Base in Ramstein, Germany and wore special uniforms for the occasion. Seems to me the NFL comes up a little short.

Skyfall

Saw the new Bond film, Skyfall, last night. It was fantastic. A few thoughts:

-I'd say it is the best Bond film yet, even trumping my other favorite, Casino Royale.

 -It's also the most beautifully shot movie I've seen in quite some time. Shanghai in particular stands out.

-The Bond girls are relatively unimportant to the story. That's not a problem, just a notable difference from most of the other movies.

-You'll be surprised by where the plot goes. I didn't expect many of the things that happen and was surprised by some of the choices made, but they all worked well in the end.

-Bond's classic Aston Martin DB5 makes a return.

-The movie ends with a few changes and set up for more sequels. I believe Daniel Craig is signed for two more.

Prometheus

Finally saw Prometheus tonight. Great atmosphere, fantastic visuals, incredibly dumb story. Kind of like the last Star Trek movie, except less coherent. It's more like a series of cool scenes that are only tangentially related to each other. I like Ridley Scott, but he has to find better material to work with.

?

Can I get credit for supporting Chuck Pagano even though my head is already shaved?

What's the Call?

Awesome.  Weirdest play ever.  Did you get the call right?  Did the professional umpires get the call right?  Yes.  Need help on what the issue was all about?  The interference probably saved a triple play.

Wait...what?

Hurricane Katrina?

What's your Vision?

Everything is Spinning Out of Control

Doing some musical research this morning I found out that Audio Adrenaline is back with a new lead singer, Kevin Max Smith, formerly of DC Talk. The Newsboys have been fronted by another former DC Talk member, Michael Tait, since 2011. That is too weird.

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Now that the Winter Classic has been cancelled, a question: Is the NHL, and I mean the league and players together, actually suicidal? After the last work stoppage the NHL was booted from ESPN, which now seems to go out of its way to ignore hockey altogether, and returned to being mostly a regional sport (Upper Midwest and Northeast) after making national gains. I'm not sure the league can afford to lose another season. Sure, people in Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, New York, and Alaska will come back, but will anyone else care? If they can't figure it out real soon they might as well stop bargaining because there will be nothing left to save.