BOXING: Oscar De La Hoya vs. Manny Pacquiao is Real!; Hopkins-Pavlik; RJJ-Calzaghe…
August 28, 2008
Oscar vs. Manny! (Dec. 6):That’s right. In what will be billed as Oscar’s final fight on December 6, 2008, he will fight Manny Pacquiao. Won’t a super-welterweight like Oscar crush a lightweight like Pacquiao? Possibly, but they will both be fighting at welterweight. Pacquiao will come up 12 pounds and two weight classes to make it happen, but Oscar will have to come down a weight class and hasn’t fought at 147 in seven years (but did fight at 150 his last fight). When boxing’s biggest draw fights the best pound-for-pound fighter — boxing wins. And while this shouldn’t need any extra promotion, Oscar said last month that “this fight is very personal” since Pacquiao had a handshake deal to sign with Golden Boy promotions in the past, but ended up signing with Bob Arum. Sounds like a cute hype angle, but really — who cares. The money here is on Oscar because of the weight factor, but I would never count Pacman out. What do you think?
Bernard Hopkins vs. Kelly Pavlik (Oct. 18): Gotta love these fights when the last great middleweight is matched up with the current and possible future great middleweight. Sure, Hopkins will be 44 and coming off his loss to Joe Calzaghe, but how many times have we pronounced Bernard dead before (see Tito and Tarver)? Much respect to Pavlik for taking this one. He has everything to lose, but very little to gain except a shiny name on the resume. Pavlik has never faced a technician like Bernard before, and Bernard is not one to get knocked out. And has anyone actually ever looked really good fighting Hopkins? Boxingnews24 breaks down further “Why Hopkins-Pavlik is the Right Fight?”
Roy Jones Jr. vs. Joe Calzaghe (Nov. 8): Six years ago this would have been an absolute dream match-up of two undefeated fighters with ridiculous hand-speed at the top of their craft. Calzaghe was always the best opponent Roy never fought in his prime (forget Darius). Now it is just too hard to imagine Roy having enough left in the tank to beat Calzaghe. What makes things worse is that Joe has announced that this will be his last fight before he retires. In doing so, he will have easily surpassed Floyd Mayweather as this generation’s most carefully crafted career. At least Floyd fought tough competition in his early lightweight years.
For more than 10 years Joe C. fought at 168 with Hopkins 8 pounds below him and Roy 7 pounds above him. Yet he only fights them when they are past their prime. Now a Kelly Pavlik-Calzaghe fight would be a potential fight-of-the-year match-up of forward styles and young vs. old. But it won’t happen. Nor will Calzaghe fight a Jermaine Taylor. So I will be rooting extra hard for RJJ, but I just don’t see it. In any case, no fighter — even if undefeated — should go down as an all-time great if he consistently ducks the best competition. They don’t even get entrance into the discussion! Joe C. should be admired for his health, wealth, and business acumen, but boxing-wise he will retire with a tainted legacy. Period. End of story.
Other Upcoming Notable Fights in 2008:
– Sept. 13 (HBO PPV): Joel Casamayor vs. Juan Manuel Marquez, & Sergio Mora vs. Vernon Forrest
– Sept. 27 (HBO):Shane Mosley vs. Ricardo Mayorga
– Oct. 11 (Showtime):Antonio Tarver vs. Chad Dawson; Samuel Peter vs. Vitali Klitschko
– Nov. 15 (HBO): Jermain Taylor vs. Jeff Lacy
– Nov. 22 (HBO): Ricky Hatton vs. Paulie Malignaggi
George Chuvalo:ESPN’s Outside the Lines has this must-see videoprofile on iron-man boxer George Chuvalo and the heroin-addictions of his sons. Wow.
Herbert Muhammad Dies: For boxing fans Herbert Muhammad was Muhammad Ali’s long-time manager. His other well-known historical significance is that he was also one of Elijah Muhammad’s sons. He died following heart surgery. R.I.P. and condolences to his family.
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Some Related Boxing Posts:
Dem Convention Day 2: Hillary Asks - “Were You In This for Me?”
August 26, 2008
Before we begin, let me get something off my chest. Memo to cable news hosts and pundits:
BIGOTED WHITE VOTERS ARE NOT BARACK OBAMA’S CHARACTER FLAW!!!
Racism is AMERICA’S PROBLEM, not Obama’s. Let’s stop talking about how something is wrong with Obama because he can’t reach these racists. Here is an idea? Let’s have pundits call all these voters out on their bullshit when they make up the most non-sensical excuses (e.g., “he is elitest”, “we don’t know him well enough”, etc.) on why they won’t vote for Obama. Why not call out that woman who is pro-choice and favors universal health care, but says she will vote for McCain? Why not expose these voters for exactly what they are, and maybe even educate them a little…
8 - 9:15: Very unimpressed — not sure what Howard Dean is doing here with a parade of regular people — none of which communicate very well. I could only guess that he is shooting to get rid of that ridiculous “elitist” tag. Also, speakers like Kansas Governor, Kathleeen Sebelius just has to come stronger. Most valuable contribution might have been Jim Whitaker, Mayor of Fairbanks Alaska. He is a republican endorsing Obama, because “he is an American first”.
9:15: Things don’t really start unto Fedrico Pena Former Mayor of Denver, and then Brooklyn Rep. Nydia Velazquez are the first two speakers to have some passion in their voices. “More of the same” is the common message of the convention.
9:20 - 10:10: Swing-State Speakers Tour
– Senator Bob Casey from Pennsylvania gets the audience into it. “He votes with George Bush 90% of the time, that’s not a maverick – that’s a sidekick.” “Not four more years, four more months!” catches on.
– Mark Warner, Former Governor of Virginia: “John McCain will continue spending 10 billion dollars a month in Iraq.”
– Governor Ted Strickland of Ohio: “It’s time for a president who will bring our jobs back and bring our troops home. For the change we need, it’s time for Barack Obama.”
Also, Lindy LedBetter, was the first speaker that I’ve heard to bring up the Supreme Court appointee issue which has gotten little attention. There are a couple of really old folks on the courts and too many 5-4 votes as it is.
10:10: Deval Patrick Governor of Massachusetts Comes Strong:
Patrick is best speaker of the night thus far by marrying substance, clarity, and conviction. Three pieces stood out for me. 1) He reminded folks the myth of the Republican party as “fiscal conservatives” as Republican administrations continually outspend Democratic ones by incredible proportions. 2) John McCain wants to privatize social security — not good.; 3) The Bush administration did not only abandon americans during Katrina — but after it as well.
10:20: Governor Brian Schweitzer Montana: So far he is coming strong and getting the audience into it while exposing just how much John McCain is in bed with big oil including wanting to give 4 billion dollars in tax breaks to oil companies.
Senator Hillary Clinton:
“The time is now to unite as a single party with a single purpose. We are on the same team, and none of us can afford to sit on the sidelines. This is a fight for the future and a fight we must win together.”
“No way, no how, no Mccain.”
“Barack Obama is my candidate, and he must be our president.”
“Those are the reasons I ran for President, and those are the reasons why I support Barack Obama”
GRADE: Okay, I have some complaints with some lines here, some omissions there, and another missed teachable moment to put the historic barriers of gender and race in their proper perspective. Even so, Hillary did more than I anticipated – perhaps a commentary on my low expectations. I feared an “F” speech, I expected a “C” speech, and she gave a “B” speech. Politically speaking, had she personalized it far more with more specific references toward Obama (and Michelle), it could have been an “A”. She asks her supporters: “Were you just in this for me?”
As long as Hillary seemed only in it for Hillary, the answer for many was “yes”. Now the updated answer may very well decide this election… Either way, this “Hillary issue” should be put to rest by the media who must be reminded who actually won the Democratic primary…
Dem Convention Day 1: Michelle Obama Saves Day
August 25, 2008
Democratic convention officially kicked off at 5 pm. I’ll be adding my random thoughts throughout the night. Here are my first two thoughts:
1) Howard Dean kicked it off and then there was an opening prayer (not Dean) with multiple Jesus citations. Okay, I know that Republicans have hijacked the religious vote putting anti-gay rhetoric over feeding the poor, but this one surprised me a bit. Definitely going for some of those those evangelicals…
2) I also saw a news update of John McCain standing with freakin’ Daddy Yankee. McCain even dropped a reference about Gasolina. Firstly, do you think McCain listens to Daddy Yankee? (BTW, will Daddy Yankee get some reggaeton version of “Dixie-Chicked”?)
Okay, Dems touting Jesus? McCain shaking his old ass to Daddy Yankee? What the fuck is going on here? Its going to be strange week…
3) 8:30 pm: Nancy Pelosi’s speech was very wooden. I wasn’t expecting MLK or anything, but she could have practiced that shit in the mirror a couple of times. Pelosis is followed by Barack Obama’s sister…
4) In a video Jimmy Carter reminds folks that the aftermath of Katrina has not gone away… maybe we could siphon that Iraq money to something that might be productive. Later on, in an interview on PBS with Jimmy Carter, he is refreshingly candid about the role race plays in this campaign amongst many white voters.
5) 8:45 Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. is the first speaker to liven things up. Nothing too special here, Jackson Jr. should have been the first speaker…
6) Caroline Kennedy-Schlossberg pays tribute to Senator Ted Kennedy and Obama. Yeah, she also seems pretty wooden. She makes the analogy to the hope and inspiration that her father JFK once brought and Obama today. Then she introduces a video tribute to her “uncle Teddy”.
7) 9:33 Ted Kennedy gets out of his hospital bed and pulls the cancer version of a Willis Reed! TK promises that he will make it to January to see Obama sworn in. After championing universal health-care and the ideals of Obama, he ends with “The work begins anew, the hope rises again, and the dream lives on.” Read closer and the buzzwords of “begins anew”, “hope” and “dream” channel JFK, Obama, and MLK. Maybe just a coincidence…
10:10: Jim Leach — a former Republican congressman — talks about America’s terrible standing around the world. TV cuts away.
9) 10:20 - Senator Claire McCaskill from Missouri champions policies of Obama. She was a great choice for no other reason that Senator McCaskill looks just like the stereotypical midwestern “white mom”. Perhaps many of those former Hillary supporters who just can’t seem to let go might be moved because McCaskill looks like them. This is a stupid statement on the surface — but people are stupid — and racist too…
10) After a video retrospective on Michelle Obama, she is introduced by her brother Craig Robinson who is the coach of the Oregon State men’s basketball team. At Michelle’s request Robinson once assessed Barack’s character from viewing his game on the basketball court. The result? ”confident, but not cocky”, “a team player”, and “won’t back down from any challenge”.
11) Michelle Obama clearly gives best speech of the night. Given the comparison to other “first lady” speeches, I thought she has done extremely well. After the first couple of minutes she seemed very comfortable (Pelosi should take notes). The title of the speech was called:
“Convincing Bitter Older White Female Hillary Supporters that Feminism Applies to Black Women too”
Some notes:
– She discusses her father’s medical bouts with MS.
– She said Barack knows “the world as it is”, but knows how “it should be”.
– She referenced the 88th anniversery of women winning the right to vote, and the 45th anniversary of MLK’s speech on the 1963 March on Washington speech. The references were clearly defining not only unity, but times that preceded her opportunities as a black woman.
– She pays homage to Hillary Clinton and the “18 million cracks in that glass ceiling.”
– She expresses ”why I love this country.”
– She also expresses how she has “given back” to the country including that she left a job at a law firm for a career in public service.
– “Barack Obama I know today is the same man I fell in love with 19 years ago.”
– “We committed ourselves to building the world as it should be.”
– A very strong closing was followed by a videotape greeting by Barack.
Summary of Night: Most of it was pretty weak, but Ted Kennedy’s Willis Reed moment, and Michelle Obama’s speech made it a successful night. Of course, we are grading on a curve here that takes into account “convention standards” which are little more than pandering rah-rah events.
Finally, if media could stop talking about this Barack/Hillary divide for at least 5 minutes, it would be nice…
Barack Obama Picks Joe Biden as Vice President
August 23, 2008
The text message came into my phone at 3:07 AM. “Barack Obama has chosen Senator Joe Biden to be our VP nominee, watch the first Obama-Biden rally live at 3pm ET on www.barackobama.com”
Here are some quick thoughts:
From purely a politically strategic point of view, I think that I like it, but need to do some more homework. Sure, there will be some negative commentary on past Biden “debate clips”, and we will hear about how “clean” he thinks Obama is. In between, he may fill the perceived voter doubts about Obama’s foreign policy experience. I deliberately say “perceived” because I believe that Obama is already 1000 times more qualified than McCain on foreign policy. Any president — save our current one — can hire experts around them to fill in their gaps, but Obama goes into foreign policy dialogue as someone who is actually LIKED and RESPECTED all around the world. This is the first step of productive dialogue with any foreign nation. The fact that Obama is far superior a communicator than McCain doesn’t hurt either. But I digress.
I also like the pick for something that will most likely not reach the nightly news anytime soon. An Obama-Biden ticket is America’s best chance to signal an end to the despicable, devastating, disgusting, and discriminatory “crack vs. cocaine” disparity laws. This law along with mandatory minimum sentencing, prisons for profit, “3-Strikes”, and others were all enacted in the years after the success of the Civil Rights movement. In other words, they are Jim Crow’ direct off-spring the way Jim Crow was slavery’s first-born. Of course, this doesn’t mention a whole host of nephews, nieces, and cousins – but I digress.
Unlike Mccain, Obama is on record stating that he wants to end the crack vs. cocaine disparity. Biden is quite significant because not only does he want to end the disparity — but he is one of the original fools who strongly supported the legislation in the first place. And in the last couple of years, even he has been fighting hard to overturn them.
Anyway, something to consider. Expect a more thorough future post on this subject.
The Sports Writing Blues: Confessions of an Angry White Fan
August 20, 2008
“GOOK!”: Pau Gasol Has Nothing on John McCain
August 14, 2008
“I hate the gooks, I will hate them as long as I live.”
– John McCain, February 17, 2000
As I heard the words, I just couldn’t believe it. No, not that John McCain said them. Only that I never learned about it – until just one month ago at the Netroots Nation Conference in Austin, Texas. That was when by pure chance, I struck up a conversation with Irwin A. Tang — one of many people I had the pleasure to meet at the convention. I soon learned that he was the author of “Gook: John McCain’s Racism and Why It Matters“. Read more
NBA Linkin’ Park: 5 Players You Forgot About
August 6, 2008
Kermit Washington’s Remarkable Redemption - The Starting Five: It is long past time to forget “The Punch”. In 1994, Washington took a trip to Rwanda to see how he could help out post-genocide. He has been doing tremendous work ever since. Also, listen to Washington give an unfiltered assessment of the Ron Artest you might not know.
Shawn Kemp Confirms Rumors - SLAM Online: The last time you saw him, he was looking a little hefty dragging himself down the court. In this video a 38 year old Kemp looks like he is back close to his “Reign Man” weight and will be playing in Italy this year — perhaps to fill the giant void left by Danilo Gallinari.
Earl Boykins Latest to Go Overseas - Yahoo: Boykins is also heading to Italy, but unlike Kemp he will become Italy’s highest paid player at 3.5 mil for one year. Boykins is one of my favorites as what is mot to like about a guy 5′5″ and 130 soaking wet. Given his slight build, I give Boykins the nod over Mugsy Bogues as the NBA’s all-time best feel-good-you-can-achieve-anything-underdog stories.
The Status of Greg Oden - TrueHoop: Admit it, you kind sorta forgot about him when you were trying to decide if Michael Beasley, Derrick Rose, or OJ Mayo would win next year’s Rookie of the Year award. Oden is coming along slowly but surely. Great anecdote here how he basically knocks out his coach Nate McMillan. Also, for those who don’t know, back in February, Oden publicly endorsed Barack Obama. In other words, I’m liking Oden’s game thus far on and off the court. Usually it’s a choice! (see Etan Thomas & Ira Newble).
MJ is Still at It! - HoopsVibe! You might not have forgot about the man, but forgot that he’s still playing sort of… He says it would be “no contest” against Kobe if he was in his prime. What’s also interesting about the video is that ultra-competitive MJ won’t take it easy no matter if an 18 or 8 year old is guarding him.
Bonus - Basketbawful: Okay, you haven’t forgot about Baron Davis and Steve Nash, but this video is funny!
Jerry Colangelo Can’t See Darfur for the Trees while Silencing Kobe, Lebron, & Team USA
August 5, 2008
USA Team National Director Jerry Colangelo told USA team players in a June team meeting that “he believes that the Olympics shouldn’t be used as a political platform”according to ESPN’s Shelley Smith in this Outside the Lines report. And judging from these before-and-after June meeting statements by NBA stars Kobe Bryant and Lebron James on the ongoing genocide in Darfur, the message has been clearly received. Read more
Did David Stern Threaten Howard Schultz?
August 2, 2008
Did you hear about the big NBA tiff this week? Probably not. Yao Ming and Ron Artest have kissed and made up, but there were bigger fish not being fried. Former Seattle SuperSonics owner Howard Schultz said he was warned by NBA commissioner David Stern that it would be “very expensive” to pursue a lawsuit seeking to return the team to Seattle from Oklahoma City. According to Schultz, Stern told him:
“that if I did not join in the settlement … I should realize that it will become very expensive for me and my partners, and he implied that I should reconsider my position.”
Lebron James, Darfur, and Michael Wilbon’s Perspective Lapse
August 1, 2008
This week Lebron James donated $20,000 toward Barack Obama’s cause. The actual dollar amount is less relevant than his public willingness to take a political side – a rarity amongst athletes with over 100 million in corporate endorsements. Of course, this is a departure from Michael Jordan’s infamous “Republicans buy sneakers too” commentary in 1990 when Harvey Gantt ran twice for a North Carolina Senate seat against Jesse Helms and his blatant race-baiting campaign. And while Lebron is rightfully receiving positive attention, some commentary has just gone too far. It is one thing to laud an athlete for their actions, it is quite another to praise their INaction. Read more
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