As I See It

The way I see it, we have lost touch with our purpose and misplaced our desire.

Surrounded by a society of liars, we rarely see what our heart requires.

The way I see it, money has become happiness and greed one's pursuit,

but a wise man knows, loot brings as much happiness as a broken parachute.

The way I see it, we should value life's gifts and bask in the moment,

but that never happens because we don't stop to smell the roses.

I MOVIE: Spartan Baseball

In My Humble Opinion: Charlie Weis

Once regarded as the offensive genius that masterminded the Patriots Superbowl dynasty, Charlie Weis is now hoping mediocrity is enough to maintain a job.

As Notre Dame stands at an unimpressive 6-5 in Charlie's fourth year at the helm, most believe his promises of excellence to the Irish football program was nothing more than wishful thinking. Repeatedly, Weis has failed to come through on verbal commitments he has made to the press, players and fans of Notre Dame.

It was Weis who said upon taking the job the he would have a definite "schematic advantage" having come from such a complex NFL system. It was his belief that he had become so intelligent from learning under Bill Belichek that the college game would be a walk in the park. Weis also said that 6-5 is "unacceptable" for Notre Dame football, yet stands in the midst of yet another mediocre season under his schematically superior mind that wins games on paper but does poorly once kickoff starts.

In my humble opinion it's time to see Weis for who he really is. He is a product of a truly brilliant mind named Bill Belichek who has made those who coach under him look incredibly intelligent when really they are only pulling strings. Notre Dame bought the hype and thought this genius must have been passed on during his stay in New England, but rather the Irish's situation has exposed Weis' inability to run a team on his own.

Maybe the Irish should have considered the fact that he has never owned a significant head coaching job before his stint at Notre Dame. Maybe they should have seen a man who has a boundless mouth but hasn't figured out how to walk his talk. Maybe they should have seen his arrogance as a flaw rather than applaud his confidence.

Rather, Notre Dame forked over $40 million dollars to a man who convinced the fans of "touchdown Jesus" that he was in fact their savior. After only one year of success and plenty of cockiness from the head ball coach, Notre Dame bought his sales pitch and made him the most overpaid man in college football.

Only hindsight shows us our mistakes but four years later it is clear that Weis' boundless confidence was nothing more than a smoke screen. If 6-5 is truly "unacceptable" to you, than in my opinion you should take responsibility for making false promises and step down. If Weis is any sort of man, the $40 million dollars he has been promised should be given back to the school for not following through on a commitment.

Japanese Internment Memorial

Being forced to live behind barbed wire is hardly comforting for anyone, yet there are still venues for freedom even in an internment camp. Some of the Japanese chose art as their outlet, others enjoyed simple pleasures like cooking or socializing.

A popular venue of freedom inside the interment camp was the baseball diamond, where the great Japanese tradition was continued during WWII. As we saw on the memorial, a vignette was devoted to showing how important this game was to sustaining the peace of mind of the Japanese during these testing times.

I can relate to the incredible sense of freedom that they must have derived from this beautiful game. While their conditions were surely more severe then what I have to endure, the baseball diamond is the one place I can go where all my troubles seem to disappear. For the Japanese, it was a refuge that allowed men, delegated to captivity, a chance to derive happiness from a game that gave them purpose. For me, and for many of the men who lived inside the internment camp, baseball was therapy for the troubles of everyday life.

Word of the Week #8

Word: Promulgate (verb)

Def: 1. To make known by open declaration: proclaim 2. To make known or public the terms of a proposed law 3. To put a law into action or force

Sentence: ...and new laws be promulgated with so much solemnity, that before the constitution could be disturbed, there would be time enough for everyone to reflect that it is above all the great antiquity of laws which makes them sacred and venerable, that men soon come to despise laws which can be changed every day; and that when the habit is acquired of neglecting ancient usages in the name of improvement, great evils are often introduced in the endeavour to correct lesser ones.

Source: Jean-Jacques Rousseau "A Discourse on Inequality" (pg 60)

New Sentence: Laws are often promulgated to the public in deceiving ways.

Blog #6 In My Humble Opinion

All but one player who was picked in the first round of last April's NFL draft came to terms on a contract with their respective team. The one disgruntled player who didn't was Michael Crabtree, a highly touted receiver from Texas Tech University who set a number of school records before leaving early for the draft. The long saga of Crabtree's relationship with the San Francisco 49ers has been covered in every bay area newspaper for the past couple months.

After sitting out nearly a month of the season, Crabtree and the 49ers finally came to terms on a six year contract that will pay the receiver over $20 million per year. In my humble opinion, this is a disgrace to the game of football and the business that it has become. Players are now able to demand ridiculous amounts of money before proving anything at the professional level. If they turn out to be a bust like many do, the entire franchise can be set back for years. This has happened in several instances such as Ryan Leaf and Alex Smith, both of whom doomed their franchises from nearly a decade.

Football used to be played by tough guys who cared more about hitting someone in the mouth than hitting the bank. In my opinion this isn't the case anymore as the game has become overrun by greed and the lures of multi-million dollar contracts. In my opinion, if you have proven that you deserve to be paid top dollar then you are entitled to receive due credit, but rookies who are coming out of the draft with no experience should have no place to demand $20 million a year.

If I'm a teammate of Crabtree's on the 49ers I'm making sure he earns his pay. It's clear he already thinks he is better than the current group of wide receivers, but if he doesn't prove that right away there will be a price to pay. Crabtree is setting the bar extremely high for himself, and already polishing a reputation that reflects a "me" before the team mentality.

In my opinion the 49ers made a mistake giving in to Crabtree's demand. Yes, they need his play making ability on the field but at what cost? They allowed a rookie and inexperienced agent to boss them around in negotiations, showing future players who think they are worth more then they are paid that they can do the same.

Link to article: http://www.mercurynews.com/sports/ci_13504478?nclick_check=1

Word of the Week #7

Word: Alacrity (noun)
Def: Promptness in response, cheerful readiness
Sentence: It is excellent, we must all allow; yet this government never of itself furthered any enterprise, but by the alacrity with which it got out of its way.
Source: Civil Disobedience (Henry David Thoreau
New Sentence: The student's alacrity during class was clearly evident during discussions