The Story Just Keeps Getting Better And Better

I've been watching and blogging about the Little League World Series competition for years.  Its just one of those events that gets the attention of us parents who are into sports. This year's LLWS competition features a phenom who I was waiting to actually see before posting anything about her.  As fate would have it, Sports Illustrated magazine has beaten me to the punch.

Mo'ne Davis, a starting pitcher for the Taney little league team out of Philadelphia, PA., will be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. There's never been a little league player featured on the iconic cover of SI.  

"She is only the 18th girl to have played in 68 years of the Little League World Series and the first female pitcher to have thrown a shutout."

Mo'ne, though she may not realize it yet, has picked up a torch from past female sports pioneers.  That torch continues to light the way and show us all that games such as America's Pastime need begin planning for America's Futuretime.  Because the past was an exclusionary era that could never have entertained the idea of a girl highly competing against boys in baseball.  Get ready, the future is here. And get accustomed to hearing Mo'ne's name followed by "The First," as she continues wowing us with her incredible character and calm competitiveness.

That's right, she throws like a Girl! Strike Three!

Aug. 20, 7:30 pm

Game 24: Nevada vs. Pennsylvania

ESPN

The Fix Is In - Stock Market Manipulation

Rigged Stock Market


The unmasking of high-frequency computerized stock trading and the method by which a few are robbing the many on wall street.

I haven't read the new book "Flash Boys" by Michael Lewis, but seeing him featured on 60 Minutes talking about the book's subject matter added to my feelings of an unfairly fixed global economy.  And the scary thing about this financial fix is it took a small fish (Brad Katsuyama) to recognize the pattern and bring it to the attention of the big fishes.

It shouldn't surprise us that computers can be manipulated to cheat any system of transaction, but it ain't the computers shouldering the blame, its the crooked human element; the wolves of wall street.

In one part of the show they discuss the trickery of making things so complex that nobody would attempt to look deep into the mathematical algorithm routing the financial transactions.  So what's a few seconds here and a few pennies on the dollar there? By slowing down the high-speed transaction Brad was able to fix the Fix, or so it seems.

Watch 60 Minutes "Rigged" for a good dose of ol'skool scamming using modern technology.  I believe its just the tip of the iceberg of financial market manipulation.  Its what we little fishes don't know that sneaks up and bites us on the butt. Think Housing Market Crash.

McGloin Makes Case For Vigorous Look/See At QB

I can only assume after seeing the performance of all three Raiders quarterbacks last night, that Matt McGloin just hasn't shown in summer camp what he always shows in live game action; leardership and the will to just win baby! Plus he puts a good touch on his throws.

Projected starting quarterback Matt Schaub looked good for all of a handful of plays before throwing a bullet pass that looked uncatchable as it deflected off the receivers hands and into the opposition's for an interception.  That was how the night started for him. It would only get a fraction better as the passing game just seemed to struggle under his leadership.

Rookie Derek Carr, currently slotted at backup quarterback, looked okay but the offense stuttered and sputtered as it eked out points thanks in part to Detroit Lions penalties. I believe Carr was slated to play the entire second half if not for suffering a rib injury and concussion.  

In comes Miracle McGloin with the unenviable task of delivering the Raiders their first victory of the year. He came close in game one against the Minnesota vikings, where his lone 10-yd scrambling touchdown wasn't enough.

Last night against Detroit, McGloin came through with a 19-yd touchdown pass to receiver Brice Butler with six ticks left on the clock.  Granted, it was against backup backups, but everyone on that field is playing their hearts out trying to secure a roster spot.  The Detroit defense wanted to stop the Raiders just as much as the Silver & Black offense wanted to punch it in.  On this pre-season night in Oaktown, the home team offense won the battle and the war, capping it off with a Janikowski extra point that gave the Raiders a 27-26 lead.  The lead would stand and the Raider Nation would celebrate like it was Christmas in August.

The Raiders still have much work to to do, especially in the defensive secondary where I saw too many breakdowns in coverage. Better player to player and player to coach communication is needed.  Overall the defense did okay, holding the Detroit running game to 52-yds and shutting down the passing game when it mattered most, down the stretch.

Just Win Baby!


game notes from Raiders.com

Individual Notes: Offense

• QB Matt Schaub began the game efficiently, completing his first three pass attempts to three different receivers for 37 yards and two first downs. Schaub continued to move the ball efficiently and finished eight-of-13 passing (61.5 percent) with 87 yards and one INT. Schaub has a career completion percentage of 64.0 percent.

• WR James Jones earned his first start and hauled in his first reception as a Raider, gaining 13 yards and a first down via a back-shoulder throw from Matt Schaub on the game’s first drive. He finished the game with two catches for 29 yards. James had a career-high 817 yards on 59 receptions (13.8 avg.) and three TDs with the Green Bay Packers in 2013.

• RB Darren McFadden broke into the end zone on a 1-yard TD run to cap off an 11-play, 60-yard drive to record the Raiders’ first points in the opening half this season. McFadden now has two preseason TDs in his career to add to his 23 rushing TDs and five receiving TDs in the regular season.

• FB Marcel Reece got involved in the passing attack early, picking up a first down on a 10-yard reception from Schaub. This season, Reece is looking to join Marcus Allen as only the second running back or fullback in NFL history to record at least 300 yards receiving in at least five consecutive seasons, joining Marcus Allen.

• WR Brice Butler led the Raiders in receiving for the second time this preseason, posting 74 yards on four receptions (18.5 avg.) with the game-winning TD. Butler now leads the Raiders through the first two games with eight catches for 118 yards (14.8).

• Rookie QB Derek Carr led three scoring drives after relieving Schaub in the second quarter, posting his first NFL TD pass on a 3-yard strike to TE Jake Murphy in the third quarter. The 80-yard scoring drive included Carr’s two longest passes to date: A 29-yard strike to WR Brice Butler and a 38-yard completion to WR Greg Little, which brought the team down to the 3-yard line. Carr’s first drive of the game, coming in the second quarter, led to points as KSebastian Janikowski booted a 28-yd FG, his first of the 2014 campaign.

• QB Matt McGloin entered the game in the fourth quarter and orchestrated a 13-play, 68-yard (2:26), game-winning drive that culminated in a 19-yard TD pass to WR Brice Butler with six seconds remaining. His first pass was a 29-yard strike to a leaping WR Andre Holmes, and his last a bullet to Butler in the back of the end zone for the game-clinching TD. He finished seven-of-15 passing (46.7 percent) with 114 yards and one TD. 

Individual Notes: Defense

• Rookie LB Khalil Mack recorded his first NFL sack in the third quarter, dropping Lions QB Kellen Moore for a 1-yard loss on the way to the third three-and-out stand recorded by the Raiders.

• LB Nick Roach recorded his first sack of 2014 when he dropped Lions QB Dan Orlovsky for an 11-yard loss, tying his longest career sack, which was also his first career sack, coming on Dec. 20, 2009. If Roach records 5.5 sacks this season, he’ll be the 10th Raider and the first undrafted Raider to do so in each of his first two seasons with the franchise.

• DE Justin Tuck broke through the line of scrimmage and brought down Lions RB Reggie Bush for a 6-yard loss on the first play of the second quarter. Tuck has been credited with 71 regular-season tackles for loss since 2008.

• Fourth-round draft pick (116th overall) CB Keith McGill made his NFL debut in the third quarter. McGill was the last of the Raiders’ eight draft picks to appear in this preseason.

 Individual Notes: Special Teams

• Following the Raiders’ second-quarter TD, K Sebastian Janikowski converted his first ever extra-point attempt snapped from the 15-yard line, part of a rule-change experiment instituted by the NFL for the first two preseason games of 2014. Janikowski finished 3-of-3 on PATs and 2-of-2 on FGs (28, 36).

• CB TJ Carrie broke off an electrifying 50-yard punt return late in the third quarter to set up a Sebastian Janikowski FG from 38 yards out. Carrie added another return for 13 yards later in the game.

Raiders & Cowboys: PRACTICE

Raider Nation in Full Effect

The two teams Tune-up their gameplans with two days of scrimmages in Oxnard, Ca. in front of football starved fans.  On tape it looks awesome.  

Tonight is the Raiders 2014 home debut as they take on the Detroit Lions in their second pre-season.   The  barbarians (fans) were gathering at the coliseum gates before daybreak.  Tis the season mate!

Oh Captain, My Captain

Robin Williams, actor/comedian, has left us. He was so much more than just another celebrity. In San Francisco, he will be remembered as one of the misfit residents that once made up the 'city of misfits' who could find no other home so welcoming.

Though today's San Francisco, through gentrification, resembles little of what once was an accumulation of eccentric, adventurous and artistic souls touching the lives of one another, the city can proudly lay claim to budding young talents the likes of Robin Williams.

Appearing strange and unusual to those outside San Francisco's borders, the man was and always will be a San Francisco treat to us 'Abbey Normals' who shared the city with him.

"Words and ideas can change the world"

Oh Captain, My Captain

Sail On

Robin Williams
1951-2014

The Power of Obedience

Obediance

The worse crimes in history would not have been possible without mass obedience and conformity to the demands of power.



Subordination of Professionals

An education that omits what's needed to understand power, thereby protects it.

To take our freedom for granted is to extinguish the possibility of attaining it.

The choice is not whether we obey and disobey, but what we obey and disobey.

Competing forces are battling for our minds

Limited experiences may have limited your knowledge
----------------------------------------------------------------
Documentary title:  The Lottery of Birth - Creating Freedom

Documentary title: Generation Like - PBX Frontline

Stockholm experiment - Stanley Milgram

Serena Williams, Tennis' Top Cat

Without question I can honestly say that #1 ranked tennis champion Serena Williams is my athletic prototype of a perfect woman.  Her recent Bank of the West victory over #8 Angelique Kerber has proven yet again just how strong and resilient Serena is at 32 years old.

As a fan of competitive sports I give honor and recognition to this phenomenal tennis champion who continues to grace us with her unmatched athleticism.  It could be some time before we see a female athlete dominate with such beauty, grace and power as Serena has.  You Go Girl!

Top Cat! 

The most effectual Top Cat! 

Who's intellectual close friends get to call her T.C. 

Providing it's with dignity. 

Top Cat! 

The indisputable leader of the gang. 

She's the boss, She's a pip, She's the championship. 

She's the most tip top, 

Top Cat. 

Yes She's a chief, She's a king, 

But above everything, 

She's the most tip top, 

Top Cat. 

Williams holds the most Major singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles combined amongst active players, male or female. Her record of 32 Major titles puts her seventh on the all-time list: 17 in singles, 13 in women's doubles, and 2 in mixed doubles. She is the most recent player, male or female, to have held all four Grand Slam singles titles simultaneously ('02–'03), and only the fifth woman ever to do so. She is also the most recent player together with her sister Venus to have held all four Grand Slam women's doubles titles simultaneously ('09–'10). Her total of 17 Grand Slam singles titles is sixth on the all-time list,^[6] and fourth in the Open Era, behind Steffi Graf (22 titles) and Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova (18 titles each).^[6] She has won 13 Grand Slam doubles titles with her sister Venus Williams and the pair are unbeaten in Grand Slam finals.^[7]Serena Williams is also a four-time winner of the WTA Tour Championships.^[8]Williams is only one of five tennis players all-time to win a multiple slam set in two disciplines, matching Margaret Court, Roy Emerson, Martina Navratilova andFrank Sedgman. The arrival of Venus and Serena Williams has been credited with launching a new era of power and athleticism in women's tennis.^{[9][10][11][12]}

Williams has won four Olympic gold medals, one in women's singles and three in women's doubles, an all-time record shared with her sister Venus.^[13][14]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serena_Williams

Black Hole - House of Pain - Nov. 03. 2013

What's Happenin Family

I See Ya!

Streets of San Francisco - Wall Art II

Streets of San Francisco - Wall Art

NFL Referee Summer Camp

Finally, with some off-season training, they're learning to let the players play and keep themselves from determining outcomes of games. 

Everyone Loves A Race

One of these days I'm gonna fulfill one of my boyhood dreams; I'm gonna drive the fastest car in the world in a race that I can't be beat in.  A car so fast that even the challengers lips can be seen saying 'that's a fast freaking car."





Yeah, here's my car racing a Euro Fighter Jet. Yes, its that fast folks.

Somoan Raider Delivers

Come the regular season, we're not playing for respect; f@ck respect, we're playing for a championship.  Anything less would be unRaider-like.  The Raiders have added more seasoned impact players this off-season than I've seen added since the Gruden days. I think its the beginning of a beautiful relationship between players and coaches. As Somoan Raider so poetically stated in putting this video together, Let's Get It Started.  Good Job my Pacific Island brotha! Great Job!

ESPN wants to rank us a bottom dweller in the league, I say thank you for not only proving the conspiracy still lives after Big Al, but also a big thanks for giving Raiders fans and players some gristle to chew on leading up to the start of the season.  

The Silver and Black are finally emerging from a deep, dark place.  Once they taste the blood of a beaten opponent I don't see this mix of veterans and young'uns letting up until the full mission is accomplished.    Its our time, its our turf, and I pity the fool who thinks they'll be able to come up in here and play us like a bottom dweller.  

Let'em believe the ESPN hype if they want. With the toughest schedule of any team this season, many analysts don't expect us to win a game. But this Raiders team is way too hungry to let others expectations define their commitment to excellence. Its only July, and already I feel the Raiders getting started on being great.  If you're an opponent on our schedule this coming season, you should start preparing for that date.  The Raiders will be playing a style of football bordering on a felony.  They'll be taking what they want and committing assault with weapons of mass destruction.  I'd hate to be the one to say I told you so, but I told you so. They're coming.

Freakin World Cup Soccer

Now I know why us Americans have a hard time watching soccer.  Its not that there's not enough scoring, its just that we look at the game and wonder why a guy with the ball keeps kicking it to the opposing team.  We sit back on our couch thinking our fat butt could've rundown the soccer ball and made a play better than the professional on the field.  And while we're thinking all this it never enters our mind that the players are battling exhaustion and total fatigue.

I watched the World Cup Championship game today between Germany and Argentina.  I ran through all the Americana emotions and wonders which had me screaming 'Come'on Man' from my lazy boy style recliner.  I was sure that I, back in my prime, could've scored at least one goal for the under producing offense of Argentina.  Germany just seemed so much more in control of the ball and the game, and yet after 90 minutes of regulation the game was tied 0-0.

Throughout the game, as I rooted for the underdog Argentina, I screamed and kicked in frustration on almost every miscue the Argentinians seemed to make.  And honestly, I'm no strategist of soccer, but there seemed opportune times that just a little less matriculating and more aggressive storming of the opposing net might've resulted in an Argentina score. I mean, how many times can you let the German team take the ball away and play keep away for God knows how long.  I now realize that I didn't have a clue to just how good the German team is. 

In hindsight I Gotta give the Germans credit for sticking to their game plan. I suppose they played the game the way its meant to be played; as a fearless team unafraid to attack and confident in their defense. I still question some of Germany's flopping and foul calls, but it didn't take away from the game. Germany was the better team and deserving of a hard fought victory.

I believe myself and many other American sports fans have taken much away from this year's World Cup competition.  We as a nation have improved in world soccer competition, but still have a lot of catching up to do.  

I did ask a foreigner what makes non-Americans so fanatic about the game of soccer and the World Cup.  He said without hesitation that its so much more than just a game. He said its something you're born into and live for; a metaphor for life to many.  The chance to compete and/or cheer for your country in a game played the world over by thousands, millions since childhood, is the ultimate sporting experience.  Finally, the foreigner made it clear that America needs time to become passionate about soccer in the way we are passionate about football. Its not something you can turn on and off every four years nor only play hard when the cameras are tuned in.  Until Soccer seeps into the blood of Americans with that need to be great at it, to live and breathe it everyday, only then can an American team find themselves earning the respect of those who've already put so much blood, sweat and tears into the game.  On that I can totally concur.  Today's game had it all. 

Congratulations Germany on your 2014 World Cup Championship

Shot Heard Round The World - Giants Baseball

With the Giants needing a resurrection of sorts these days, I thought it appropriate to remind myself exactly why I continue to watch and suffer through the highs and lows of another torturous baseball season. Its the unforgettable Moments.

Moments like 1951's Bobby Thomson "shot heard around the world," that reminds old Giants fans and new alike, that baseball is a game of little seasonal moments that when sprinkled with a bit of magic can lead to big, breathtaking moments linking peoples, places and sporting lives from one generation to the next.  

Its these moments that are passed generation to generation like a family heirloom given to a young bride, departing soldier or in this case a precocious, inquisitive child.  Just one moment in sports can become an everlasting jewel that one rubs on and shines until it sparkles brightly for those lost in the darkness wondering what joys there are in life.

There are two things that make moments like these so  precious and memorable;  The thrill of experiencing such a dreamlike event and the joy of sharing it with others for the rest of your natural life.  In this scene, you see grandfather and grandchild sharing the joy and thrill of baseball.  One discovering his young voice through the magic of baseball and the other seeing and hearing his voice come out ever so passionately through his grandson's lips as the little guy recites a Giants Moment taught him by grandpa.  

Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, from the movie "Parental Guidance," I give you actor Joshua Rush receiving and giving the gift that is one of the Greatest Unforgettable Moments in Giants Baseball History.



“Bobby Thomson ... up there swinging' ... He's had two out of three, a single and a double, and Billy Cox is playing him right on the third-base line ... One out, last of the ninth ... Branca pitches ... Bobby Thomson takes a strike called on the inside corner ... Bobby hitting at .292 ... He's had a single and a double and he drove in the Giants' first run with a long fly to center ... Brooklyn leads it 4-2 ... Hartung down the line at third not taking any chances ... Lockman with not too big of a lead at second, but he'll be runnin' like the wind if Thomson hits one ... Branca throws ... [sound of bat meeting ball]

There's a long drive ... it's gonna be, I believe ... THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT!! THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT! THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT! THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT! Bobby Thomson hits into the lower deck of the left-field stands! The Giants win the pennant and they're goin' crazy, they're goin' crazy! [crowd noise]

I don't believe it! I don't believe it! I do not believe it! Bobby Thomson hit a line drive into the lower deck of the left-field stands and this blame place is goin' crazy! The Giants! Horace Stoneham has got a winner! The Giants won it by a score of 5 to 4, and they're pickin' Bobby Thomson up, and carryin' him off the field!”

Running of the Bulls 2014

For the past few years I've always posted something about Pamplona, Spain's annual Running of the Bulls event. First I was fascinated by the exciting risk that a man would take to come butt to face with a full grown bull.  After awhile I found myself thinking maybe it was something I'd like to try.  

Then the other year I saw a father running with his young, scared out his wits adolescent son, desperately trying to avoid the onrush of a mad, charging bull.  Don't know if the son lived to tell about it without attending long term therapy sessions.

Last year I'd changed my tune and was rooting for the Bulls.  I figure any fool that would put not only his God-given life in jeopardy, but also that of his child should easily earn a "Darwin Award" and be booted from the island; by sharp bulls horns if necessary.

The heart-stopping run and subsequent parties were originally organised in honor of San Fermin, patron saint of Navarra, although the religious aspect has now faded

I'm truly becoming an old prude when it comes to grown men doing stupid things, just so they can brag about it to friends and anybody willing to listen.  It seems more and more that wealthy, white collar businessmen are taking the plunge against the bulls of Pamplona. I suppose they see it as a badge of courage and adventure.  Maybe a return to the gallant hunter leaving the sanctuary of the cave to challenge his wits against wild animals. 

That is until they find a bulls horn gorged balls deep into their backside, as they lay splayed facedown, spread eagle, eating Spanish dirt; crying and praying for the bull to stop!  And yet and still, feelings of self-importance forces them to pull out their camera phone to capture the moment.

Maybe the animal rights advocates are to be joined in their battle against this event.  Though its the male Homo sapiens usually on the abused end, the beautifully gallant bulls should not be forced to lower their pedigree for a day by chasing fools through what always looks like dead end streets. Why not just feed the fools to the lions?  Now that's something I'll travel abroad and pay to see.

4 games, 2 teams, 1 Bay - Giants vs A's

Well Bay Area, here we are set to enter baseball's all-star break with two of the top teams in major league baseball.  Before the Giants were hit by the injury bug, this four game series looked to be epic.  Now, especially with the A's recent power pitching acquisitions (one an all-star), I see a huge green and gold advantage as tonight kicks off game 1 in Oakland.

We Giants fans are easily reminded of the 1989 bay bridge world series that saw the A's sweep the Giants after the Loma Prieta quake took a bite out of candlestick park.  Though it seems like earthquake weather of late, the only thing looking shaky is Giants pitching and hitting.  They struggled to beat a San Diego Padres team that's ten games below .500.  

The last month has seen the #1 power ranked Giants come crashing back to earth and the question in everybody's mind is have they righted the ship.  Brandon Belt returns and Pablo Sandoval is now out with an elbow bone bruise. Honestly, I think without lead-off hitter Angel Pagan in the lineup, the Giants are dead in the water with a breached hull.  The A's represent a baseball typhoon coming straight toward the Giants full force, ready to batter the weakened Giants vessel for four successive nights. They just swept through the Toronto Blue Jays, leaving them clinging to a second place AL East life raft.

Can the Giants withstand this anticipated summer storm, fighting it off to avoid further sinking?  Can they weather what will be a sure test of their patchwork lineup?  The all-star game coastline is in sight, but for the Giants to make it to shore safely they'll need to batten down the hatches with all men on deck, playing like there's no tomorrow.  Because the Oakland A's now carry MLB's #1 Power Ranking, have seven players voted to the AL All-Star team, and are salivating to lay claim to the crown of Bay Area's best baseball team of 2014. 

The A's are my third favorite team, behind the Giants and Mets.  But I'm not ready to cash in on my Giants just yet.  They're still a bunch of scrappy, never-say-die ball players who can easily turn non-believers into just-you-watch pennant predictors.  Somehow, someway, manager Bruce Bochy will figure out a way to weather the storm and come out of it intact.

The A's & Giants; Just-You-Watch!

Between The Bars

Who knew that a sappy family movie could lay down some nice strings and vocals.  The movie, "Stuck In Love."  The song, "Between The Bars" by Elliott Smith.  It seems to be a song about alcoholism and its addictive control over an individual, beckoning him/her to:

"drink up with me now and forget all about

the pressure of days, do what I say"

In other words, come have another drink and I'll make you forget all your worries. The movie starring Greg Kinnear actually wasn't half bad, but if you ask me its this song that stole the show. And though alcoholism was not the main focus of the movie, it does make its ugly presence known by co-starring in a small role.

Guess I'm in one of those sappy moods waiting for football season to start.  That's real, good'ol rough and tough American football folks, not the one where a kick in the shins and elbow to the midsection is considered unsportsmanlike. Let's face it, World Cup futbol needs pads and pain tolerance. If you ain't cheating then you ain't trying.  Cause come this season the Raiders will be the ones with the nasty, bullying defense and explosive offense. And they're gonna kick, club and clobber their way toward NFL respectability. Can't Wait!