The Old Blog

Ricky Williams pulled a Robert Smith yesterday, announcing his retirement after only 5 years in the NFL. It never looked like Ricky was really committed to his job, and he certainly saw his share of controversy (posing in a wedding dress, getting busted for pot twice, and giving interviews with his helmet on?), despite a desire to be left alone.

But you know what? I can’t blame him. Ricky just wanted the same things as a lot of 20-somethings: he wanted to travel the world, smoke a little weed, and find himself. Unfortunately, the NFL got in the way of all three. Fortunately, it paid him millions and millions of dollars beforehand.

Update (7/26/04):
This dipstick Paul Attner) argues that Ricky is being selfish by not playing football, even though his heart isn’t in it. No doubt that if Williams had played this year despite his desire not to, Attner would have written a column at the end of the season calling Ricky selfish for playing another year (and making another few million) even though his heart wasn’t in it.

It’s one thing to be an ornery sportswriter; it’s another to take out your frustration at not becoming a professional athlete on someone who had the talent but lacked the desire.

Republicans learned a lot from the 2000 election. With less than 20% of the necessary signatures to get on Michigan’s presidential ballot, Ralph Nader looked to be out of luck. Until state Republicans turned in 43,000 of their own, in an attempt to divert votes from Kerry. Did the lefties who voted for Nader four years ago learn a similar lesson? We’ll find out in November.

In other news, I saw a Naderite on the street today, asking people to sign a petition to get him on the ballot. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that if the Green Party didn’t choose Nader, there isn’t a chance in hell America will.

Tim McCarver may have said it was the worst game he could remember seeing (even though it included his man-crush, Derek Jeter), but tonight’s Red Sox/Yankees game was one of the season’s best, from a fan’s perspective. It had everything from a brawl to a 10-run hour-plus inning to a walk-off homer. Just before the final pitch, I thought to myself, “wow, this game could end on the next pitch, with either team winning.”

And yeah, if the Sox don’t get Randy Johnson, they may have trouble going very far this season, but to win this battle was huge.

Coincidentally, ESPN Classic was airing footage from last year’s ALCS during that exciting 8th inning today. I’m sure it made for some great channel surfing.

I first said something like this in elementary school (when the swearing at the bus stop was enough to make life R-rated), but now I have an Internet Quiz to prove it!

My life is rated NC-17.
What is your life rated?

(Tip of the hat to Steve Silver, who saw this first)

The headline and subhead for this article kinda sum up the last four years, huh?

Bush vows to heed 9/11 report advice
But no specific steps, timetable set yet

Love him or hate him, Ken Jennings is a day away from being the reigning Jeopardy! champ for the summer (today’s show was the last new one that will be shown until the fall).

The only rumor I’ve heard about the streak ending is that he loses after 38 days (with a plumber opponent, no less). That would make it within the first week of the “new season.” If this is true, I wonder if Jeopardy! intentionally stopped the new episodes this week in order to maintain the drama for another couple months?

Update (7/24/04):
Oh, he did it–and set the all-time single-day mark ($75,000) in the process.

In response to the Linda Ronstadt fiasco, Other Statements at Concerts that Caused Riots.

The state of Texas is getting close to buying thousands of health textbooks that fail to even mention the word “condom.”

Instead, as a way to prevent STDs, the books suggest “getting plenty of rest.”

Meanwhile, Texas has the highest teen birth rate, and one of the highest percentages of unwed teenage mothers and teenagers with STDs in the country.

So let’s see if I have this “Texas sex education” thing down:
Don’t tell kids about contraception; that way they won’t have sex.
When they do what nature tells them to anyway and get preggers, don’t let them have an abortion.
Now that they have a kid at age 16 and have to give up school and the hope of a decent-paying job, don’t give them any financial breaks.
Yell at them for being “lazy” because they’re poor and chastise them for being “unwed mothers,” even though you denied them education that could have prevented it.
Tell them to vote for George Bush and his “compassionate conservatism.”
Repeat.

Doug Mientkiewicz is scared he’s going to lose his job to Justin Morneau. Perhaps Minky and his .244 average, 5 homers, and 23 paltry RBIs should try hitting a little bit.

If I were Terry Ryan, I’d jettison Cristian Guzman or Luis Rivas and put Mientkiewicz in at second or shortstop.

Mark Pasquale, owner of “Halftime Pizza” in Boston, was so angry about the DNC construction and the fact that the event would be *gasp* catered that he decided to hang up a Pro-Bush sign and leave the country for a week. How going to Canada (and serving John Kerry pizza) shows your right-wing patriotism, I’m not sure, but the fact that he apparently bolted the sign into the wall shows how serious he is.

And people say Massachusetts is full of liberals.

Viking Pundit has more on the story, including a pic.