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One Knight, Alone

Posted by pblackwell | 01/07/07

By 1974, Frank Sinatra was secure with his own life – the trials and tribulations, the Rat Pack and ratty associations with mobsters. He ruled his own kingdom and could do whatever he darn well pleased.
What’s more, everyone respected that prerogative. So in that famous Madison Square Garden concert in the ring, “The Champ” could, in a secure and egotistical way, cue up “My Way” in this haughty manner. “This here is the national anthem”, he proclaimed. “But you needn’t rise.”
The schmaltz of that Sinatra standard has been co-opted too many times to count, but when it blared in a basketball arena in Lubbock, Texas on New Year’s Day, everyone present understood the connection...

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Totally fooled

Posted by pblackwell | 01/15/07

To find the best college football teams of 2006, one need only look to four disparate locales in Florida, Louisiana, California and – Idaho?
That’s right, good friends, if you want to make the proper analogy to current pop culture, the season just completed in the Arizona desert needed Ashton Kutcher as a host – because we all got punked.
Just two short months ago, we spent inordinate amounts of time dissecting a single game between well-heeled rivals that, at the time, occupied the top two spots in every single poll in the land.
Then, when that 42-39 thriller was done in Columbus, many of us just could not live unless Ohio State and Michigan renewed acquaintances in Glendale with the national championship at stake – never mind the rest of the country...

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Off to the ’08 races

Posted by pblackwell | 01/21/07

Never mind the current occupant of the Oval Office. Enough ink has been spilled on the reign of W to cover the planet several times over, as Mr. Bush has done his best to build the hopes of a nation – just not the one of which he is a citizen.
Now, if only the United States were the top priority of the president of the United States. That would be a refreshing change, whether an elephant or a donkey gets the votes come November 2008.
And don’t kid yourself – the race has already started, full-bore. Either the top candidates have declared their intentions, or they’re warming up to do so in the form of the ever-popular exploratory committees.
We have a great democracy...

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Colts-Bears, standing tall

Posted by pblackwell | 01/28/07

In the modern sports world, withering criticism is routine, especially when a well-regarded team or individual skids off the tracks. One bad game, or one bad play, and you’re put on the barbecue.
Still, it’s safe to assume that no two NFL teams have ever endured more grief for their art than the current editions of the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears – which only makes their presence in Super Bowl XLI that much more satisfying.
Their success in getting to South Florida is the reflection of two wonderful coaches. The collective history Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith will make as the first African-American head coaches in this ultimate game will be well-covered in the days ahead, as will every other angle for the media mob that descends on Miami...

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