Some Memes You May Enjoy

Many a truth is said in jest.

- I'm an awful person for laughing at this.

- Many a truth is said in jest.

- Satire or reality?

- Heh Heh

Some Memes You May Enjoy

Many a truth is said in jest.

- Many a truth is said in jest.

- Wait isn't this true?

- About right

- I'm an awful person for not only laughing at this but also thinking it may be close to the truth

Some More Memes You May Enjoy

Many a truth is said in jest.

- Funny because its true!

- This works!

- True - may skip this one

- Love him or hate him - he's not wrong.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Reminder that carbon offsets have always been a hoax and that the ridiculous billionaire on Silicon Valley was based on Mark Cuban. 

- Tucker Carlson Episode 50 with John Daly

- Why it took Tesla so long to deliver the Cybertruck

- FCC nixes Starlink RDOF appeal. Everyone I've spoken with enjoys their Starlink connection (like Musk says it's much better than nothing). Meanwhile everyone who has Comcast is considered served by the FCC.

This Sounds Like a Good Idea

The Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs Company (MCCPDC) is a registered pharmaceutical wholesaler and purchases drugs directly from manufacturers, bypassing middlemen to lower the the price of more than 100 medications, it said in a statement.

Interesting announcement. Guessing publicity will be the biggest challenge. Announcing that MCCPDC was going to carry Ivermectin could solve that. Will also be interesting if the Big Pharma companies boycott advertising on Shark Tank in response.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

If the White House were to announce Grima Wormtongue as the new Press Secretary - would that be an upgrade or a lateral move over the current one?... Change my mind: the hardest thing to do in sports is to score a goal in the 5-hole on a water polo goalie. Think about it... First or second chair?... Word of the day, "Akrasia" - Greek word that translates as a "weakness of will" but in practice means to know what should be done but still not doing it. I like this word... Donate Bloob... Reminder the culture of the Dallas Mavericks was a sexual harassment, #MeToo nightmare before going all-in on the Black Lives Matter movement. Perhaps if Harvey Weinstein said he was going all-in on BLM instead of promising to go after the NRA all would have been forgiven...  

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Perhaps Donald Trump's greatest historical achievement is that he took Hillary Clinton completely out of the political equation. Think about it - when's the last time you heard mentioned Hillary's name about anything. Thank you Mister President!... I admit to being e-Bike curious... The soap opera-like implosion of the Dallas Mavericks is mesmerizing. The firing of the long-time GM. The resigning of the long-time coach. The influence of the former gambler know-it-all who is portrayed as the Rasputin to Cuban's Czar. Fascinating. So much going on that the sexual harassment organizational dumpster fire that existed under Cuban has largely been forgotten (but not by everyone)... Are we getting close to the point where Impeachment becomes a big campaign issue in the 2022 Congressional races? At what point did it become a big issue in the 2018 Congressional races? There's a lot more to go on than there was in 2018 such as Hunter Biden's influence peddling with payouts to the "Big Guy" than there were back then too. How soon before we get sitting Democrat Congressmen being asked if they would vote to impeach?..   

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

How spoiled are Boston sports fans? Largely because we've had 12 championships since 2000 (6 Patriots, 4 Red Sox and one each for Celtics and Bruins) - most sports fans don't even bother to count the 6 NCAA Men's Hockey championships (7 if you count Providence College's) since 2000 (4 Boston College, Boston University and now UMass)... Heh Heh... Texas passes the Star Spangled Banner Act which makes it mandatory to play the National Anthem at sporting events. Good job Mark Cuban for making this an issue and making people believe you actually hate the country that made you a billionaire... Still say that miniature pony chariot races would be a TV ratings bonanza. Especially if they had monkeys as the charioteers... This book is not about what I hoped it was about... 

Top 5 - Reasons Why NBA Rating are Going Down

Here are my Top 5 reasons why NBA TV ratings will drop.

1. Politics - whether it be the NBA putting Black Lives Matter on the court in the Orlando bubble or Mavericks owner Mark Cuban announcing he'd no longer play the National Anthem before Dallas homes games. The "in your face" manner that the NBA handles politics is very off-putting (to say it mildly) for a large segment of the the US (many of whom used to be fans but no longer).

2. Player movement - LeBron James, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Kyrie Irving and others have all now played for multiple teams and treating fan loyalty like something that is disposable is harming fans willingness to consume the NBA's product. Plus the way that many of these relocations happen is also distasteful to many fans (looking at you James Harden).

3. Too much ISO and 3's - there's way too much isolation play and too many three point attempts. Watching someone try one-on-one moves or kick out for a 3-point shot is boring basketball. Sure simple math says 3-points are better than 2-points but for the viewer 3-passes before a shot makes for more exciting play. In a way the point above was about too much player movement (from city to city) and this one is about too little player movement (on the court).

4. China - this is separate from politics because even many who support BLM are upset with the NBA's kowtowing to China. It was naked crass greed and very repellant. LeBron James wants to lecture me on human rights but defends China? Go fuck yourself.

5 Costs - there are no fans at games right now but even when there were the cost to attend games was getting out of reach for the average fan. It is not a stretch to say to be a season ticket holder these days you'd have to be earning at least six-figures a year. Taking away access to attending games in person hurts a person's desire to watch that same product on TV. Covid precludes people from attending today but the very costs (tickets, parking, concessions, etc.) having been putting the experience of attending a game out of reach for years.

I could also include the awful way replay is being handled, especially in the last minutes of the games and the refereeing of games in general but that's a post for another day.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

I think in the next few years professional sports leagues and teams will go to subscription services where subscribers get live feeds of the games without commercials - like being at the games. There will be discounted subscription packages that include commercials. Subscribers could also have the option of choosing their own announcing teams with the announcers and teams splitting the proceeds. This could be the future of sports on TV... Goats yelling like humans... The Canadian Odyssey could be a cool story of a hockey player who goes overseas to play for Canada in the Olympics but then gets in a series of adventures that complicates his return home...  If I could learn to play one "instrument" - it would be this one... Reminder on the show Silicon Valley the douchebag billionaire character Russ Hanneman was modeled after real-life billionaire douchebag Mark Cuban... If the NFL MVP voting took place after the Super Bowl instead of at the end of the regular season - is there any doubt that Tom Brady not Aaron Rodgers would be the winner?... 

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Hollywood sold its soul to China. Wait - Hollywood had a soul?  Meanwhile Hollywood's appeal is becoming more selective.

- While the world was dealing with Covid-19 - China destroyed democracy in Hong Kong.

- Coelacanths aren't the "living fossils" we were led to believe as kids. They are still endangered and very rare.

- Mark Cuban is a giant douchebag and the White House supports his decision to nix the National Anthem before Mavericks games.

- The NBA then says WTF Cuban are you that stupid and would purposefully try to kill our TV ratings? Mark Cuban, the giant douchebag, then turns into Brave Sir Robin and reverses his decision.

September 12th Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations on the day after September 11th.

Next year will be the 20th anniversary of the attacks on September 11th. Is it to much to ask that the day gets its proper due? Is it too much to hope that with the election behind us and people waking up to the toxic effects of social media that the country will be more united once again?... Mark Cuban is obviously in the first stage - denial. Will the next stage of anger get him kicked off Twitter?... My hope is next year the nation will be more united but in the age of "Social Justice" even September 11th can be divisive - as the NFL found out (look at the comments)... One of the things that always comes to mind on September 11th is Wells Crowther - The Man in the Red Bandanna. Boston College has a red bandanna game every fall in his memory. Never bet against BC in that game because the emotions are just off the charts... 

Flotsam and Jetsam

 Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

There's no election for the Governor in Massachusetts this November (next election in 2022) but if there were I think President Trump would receive more votes than Governor Charlie Baker. Many are unhappy with Baker's handling of the shutdown... Learned a new word yesterday "Akrasia." It is a Greek word that translates to "weakness of will" but in practice means to know what should be done but still not doing it. I like that... "Respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, or makes you happy." - Robert Tew... Cool - an epithelial cell as seen through a powerful microscope... Part of me wonders if Mark Cuban has been so out front in the "Black Lives Matter" and social justice push in part as a way to clean away all those #MeToo complaints that the Dallas Mavericks operated a toxic environment.  Is it cynical to think this is a bit like Harvey Weinstein saying he would double his efforts against the NRA?... Interesting look at Tesla's unique business model and why it is so key to the success of the company... 

Flotsam and Jetsam

 Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Not for nothing but under Dana White the UFC has become the most inclusive sport on the planet. Athletes of all colors from various nations are on almost every fight card. There's openly gay fighters and its treated as no big deal. And it is not unusual for women fighters to be the main event. Name another sport that's more inclusive... This is me on an average Sunday morning... Reportedly only 20% of NBA players are registered voters. Even if you bump that number up to account for foreign players who cannot vote in US elections, less than 50% of NBA players are registered to vote. That makes all of their "get out the vote" efforts ring a little hollow - doesn't it?... 5 ways to help independent bookstores during the lockdown... The word "gullet" doesn't get used enough. "Shut your gullet." "He keeps shoveling food down his gullet." Etc... If Mark Cuban really was supportive of racial equality in this country he'd forego his white privilege and sell the Dallas Mavericks to a black owner. Sorry but if Cuban really wants to go by the woke playbook those are the rules... 

Flotsam and Jetsam

 Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Dallas Mavericks owner (does the NBA still use that word?) Mark Cuban recently boasted on Twitter that the NBA's prime time ratings were better than Fox News' Tucker Carlson in the 18-49 demographic by 215%. If you told me a few months ago that Mark Cuban would consider beating a Fox News show in a certain demographic (Tucker Carlson's overall ratings were MUCH better than he NBA's) a "win" then I would have said that things were not going well for the NBA... Happy belated 92nd birthday to NBA legend and Worcester's own Bob Cousy who celebrated the big day on Sunday... "People who are brutally honest generally enjoy the brutality more than the honesty." - Richard Needham... It would be interesting to see a study of who "dosed" more unsuspecting people in the 1960's with LSD - the Grateful Dead (Jerry Garcia was notorious for this) or the CIA under project MK Ultra... The word "overmorrow" means the day after tomorrow. What a great word! How come we never use the word overmorrow anymore?... "You must always be willing to work without applause." - Ernest Hemingway... It would be interesting to look back at the comedians, pundits and celebrities who mocked Ronald Reagan for being old and forgetful as he departed office. Joe Biden is basically the same age as Reagan when he left office yet these same people seem to be oddly quiet about this...

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Lost a lot of respect for Mark Cuban. Can he even say that the country's current crisis originated in Wuhan China? Seriously Mark could  you even bring yourself to admit that much?

-  Commerce Department adds eleven Chinese entities implicated in human rights abuses in Xinjiang. Maybe Mark Cuban will offer these companies slots on Shark Tank to prove how much he tows the company NBA line?

- This is SO wrong (but it made me laugh)

- The family that owns the New York Times were slaveholders. That's it then - if you read the New York Times that means you're a racist (as I understand the new rules of the game).

- German leaders appeal to Congress to prevent US troop cuts in Germany. Cry me a river.

- Interesting look at how politics could be the Chinese Navy's Achilles heel.

- President Xi claims Uighurs were being loaded onto trains for a "Surprise trip to Disneyland". Or maybe an NBA game.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- How history will look back at 2020

- Was a fan of Toledo coach Jason Candle before this but now even more so.

- Good for Taiwan

- If you are home schooling a kindergarten student why not let Richard Pryor help them learn the ABC's 

- Good advice for 1099 employees from Mark Cuban

- Naval Knowledge

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Approaching "grand solar minimum" could cause global cooling. But remember the science is settled.

- Cool

- What I learned living next to crack dealers

- This helps explain why there is a growing feeling of "a pox on both their houses" from Independents and those in the center

- This story isn't going away for Mark Cuban

- How GM is beating Ford in China

- Maybe the best GIF of all-time

Link Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Wow - mesmerizing! Math for the win!

- Tom Crean on the lessons he's learned during a year away from coaching.

- Good advice (not just for 20-somethings)

- "Of course.Mark knew. Everyone knew." This is not good for Mark Cuban. Goodbye all thoughts of running for President in 2020.

- Heh heh (I miss Hazel Mae working for NESN)

- Just a spring training reminder!

- The "unknown unknowns" about DIY CRISPR sets are scary to me. So much could go horribly wrong.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Interesting - why the turtle developed his shell (and it wasn't for defense)

- If you play Pokemon Go please give this some consideration

- Pretty sobering statistics

- Good description of the failed coup in Turkey

- The Patriots press release regarding the end of Deflategate

- Good business advice from Mark Cuban