Lady GaGa, The Jonas Brothers and Gravy Boat are all in the business of music and part of my new series called "Music Monday" where we feature blogs and videos about local and national singers and groups.
Lady Gaga is the incredible pop pretty singer with infectious dance tunes like "Poker Face. The Jonas Brothers have become a World phenomenon. Now, I present to you Gravy Boat.
Gravy Boat - which features Steve Gerard, Erik Frykman, Marc Ramsey and Don Frank - is based in Marin and plays in the San Francisco Bay Area. Now, my connection to this cover band is my friendship with Erik and his brother Lars, which goes back to when we were, oh, 14 years old.
Lars and Me: 1974
Fast forward to August 2009, and I visited San Francisco's popular bar and restaurant La Barca to here Gravy Boat for the first time. I also brought my camcorder, much to the surprise of Lars and Erik. The result is an awesome moment captured in time.
Gravy Boat has been going strong for 15 years and specializes in top pop, rock, and R&B tunes like "I Wanna Rock and Roll", featured in the video. They have an amaingly diverse song list, ranging from "Fire" by the Ohio Players, to "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol.
What I enjoy about Gravy Boat, and I'm not writing this because Erik and Lars are my friends, is that they perform with an infectious energy. Once they get going, there's no stopping them or the crowd. I've got to give it to them, they're great entertainers.
About "Music Monday by Zennie62"
I got the idea for Music Monday from Twitter. It's both a hastag (#musicmonday)and a account page where bands and singers are tweeted every Monday. I got this hairbrained idea that bringing the concept to my blogs with pages designed to gain visibility could help small bands get noticed faster. Gravy Boat is my first experiment.
If you are part of a band or know of one that should be featured here, send me a .mov file of the group or a YouTube link or if you're in the San Francisco Bay Area or the Atlanta Metro area let me know when and where you're performing and I'll visit with my camcorder, or make sure I have someone there.
Lady GaGa, The Jonas Brothers and Gravy Boat are all in the business of music and part of my new series called "Music Monday" where we feature blogs and videos about local and national singers and groups.
Gravy Boat - which features Steve Gerard, Erik Frykman, Marc Ramsey and Don Frank - is based in Marin and plays in the San Francisco Bay Area. Now, my connection to this cover band is my friendship with Erik and his brother Lars, which goes back to when we were, oh, 14 years old.
Lars and Me: 1974
Fast forward to August 2009, and I visited San Francisco's popular bar and restaurant La Barca to here Gravy Boat for the first time. I also brought my camcorder, much to the surprise of Lars and Erik. The result is an awesome moment captured in time.
Gravy Boat has been going strong for 15 years and specializes in top pop, rock, and R&B tunes like "I Wanna Rock and Roll", featured in the video. They have an amaingly diverse song list, ranging from "Fire" by the Ohio Players, to "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol.
What I enjoy about Gravy Boat, and I'm not writing this because Erik and Lars are my friends, is that they perform with an infectious energy. Once they get going, there's no stopping them or the crowd. I've got to give it to them, they're great entertainers.
About "Music Monday by Zennie62"
I got the idea for Music Monday from Twitter. It's both a hastag (#musicmonday)and a account page where bands and singers are tweeted every Monday. I got this hairbrained idea that bringing the concept to my blogs with pages designed to gain visibility could help small bands get noticed faster. Gravy Boat is my first experiment.
If you are part of a band or know of one that should be featured here, send me a .mov file of the group or a YouTube link or if you're in the San Francisco Bay Area or the Atlanta Metro area let me know when and where you're performing and I'll visit with my camcorder, or make sure I have someone there.
The lastest information on the ongoing story of the trade of New England Patriots Defensive End Richard Seymour to Oakland has Raiders Head Coach Tom Cable on the NFL Network today at 4 PM PST saying that the star lineman told him he wants to come to Oakland.
That counters earlier information that Seymour didn't want to come to Oakland. He was traded to Oakland for the Raiders 2011 first round draft pick, leading some to scratch their heads regarding why the Silver and Black would make such a trade for someone about to turn 30 years old.
The NFL network's Alex Flanagan said it for me "It seems confusing." Mike Mayock said that the Raiders could control Seymour by slapping the much-hated "franchise" tag on him after 2010. Solomon Wilcots observed that would be just the thing to cause Richard not to appear at Raiders headquarters.
The bottom line folks is he's still not physically with the Raiders as of this writing. Nick Haswell of Football Reporters Online still can't get over the trade news.
2009 Dallas Cowboys Preview-By J.P. Fox for Football Reporters Online
Coming off of a horrific ending to the 2008 campaign, the Dallas Cowboys are desperate to not let another season without a playoff victory pass them by. With a season that ended with a 44-6 loss in Philadelphia, with a playoff spot on the line, people in Dallas, and around the country, could begin to wonder about the job security of head coach Wade Phillips. Criticized for running “cupcake” training camps, not being tough on his players, and failing to fully prepare his teams for games, Phillips is definitely on the hot seat coming into his third season as head coach of America’s Team. With an impressive 22-10 regular season record in two years with Dallas, Phillips has not been impressive in the closing months of the season in both years with the team. In his final three games of the ’07 season, Phillips and the Cowboys went 1-2. Dallas ended up losing to the division rival New York Giants in the Divisional round of the playoffs. In his final four games of the ’08 season, the Cowboys went 1-3 and missed the playoffs. With an owner like Jerry Jones, mediocrity will not be accepted. Phillips better get the Cowboys to the playoffs, and WIN in the playoffs, to keep his job.
Quarterback Tony Romo could also be in a make or break year. He was inserted into the starting lineup midway through the 2006 season and brought the team to the playoffs. The following year, he led Dallas to a 13-3 record, but ended the season without a playoff victory. And in 2008, the Cowboys missed the playoffs by getting romped in Philly to end the season. Romo is the heart and soul of the Cowboys. When he goes, the team goes. Some people are ready to put Romo is the same breath as a Peyton Manning, before he won the Super Bowl. Manning just couldn’t get the Colts over the hump. Now Romo has got to get the Cowboys over that hump or he will have a lot of people not too happy about him receiving a $67 million contract before proving himself.
Jerry Jones has rid the offense of Terrell Owens but inserted Roy Williams as the #1 Wide Receiver. The team gave up three draft picks and a $45 million contract to get Williams to Dallas, from Detroit, midway through last season. The team also has speedster Miles Austin at wideout, as well as Patrick Crayton, a good possession receiver, and Sam Hurd, an up-and-coming player. But the receiving corps with probably only go as far as Roy Williams takes them. He will step into the huge, gaping shoes that Terrell Owens left behind. Roy Williams will probably need to have a season like his 2006 campaign, for the Cowboys to keep on ticking. Dallas had T.O. for the last three seasons to be their #1 receiver and now that elite role for the ‘Boys will go to big #11.
The strength for the Cowboys offense will be their running game. They have a three headed monster in Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice. Felix Jones is the teams’ biggest weapon and with him healthy, the team will have an extra dimension that they lacked in the ten games he missed last season due to injury. Three players on the offensive line, Flozell Adams, Leonard Davis, and Andre Gurode, have made the Pro Bowl at least twice in their career. With Marion “The Barbarian” as the between the tackles, short yardage runner and #1 back, Felix Jones as a change-of-pace and third down back, and Tashard Choice available to give both of them a breather, the Cowboys should have no problem running the ball this season. The Cowboys were ranked 8th overall in the NFL in total defense last season. But one thing the team did lack was forced turnovers. They ranked in the bottom half of the league in that category. Returning for the defense is star linebacker DeMarcus Ware, who racked up 20 sacks in 2008, Terence Newman (cornerback), Jay Ratliff (defensive tackle), and Ken Hamlin (safety), who each have made at least one pro-bowl, and linebackers Bradie James and Anthony Spencer. Gerald Sensabaugh comes over from Jacksonville and will replace Roy Williams at the strong safety spot. Sensabaugh will bring more play-making ability than the aging Williams. Keith Brooking, who had 100+ tackles with Atlanta last season, replaces Zach Thomas. At defensive end, the Cowboys will have Marcus Spears, a young player who is coming into his contract year, and Igor Olshansky, who comes over from San Diego to replace Chris Canty. Olshansky was drafted by San Diego when Wade Phillips was the defensive coordinator there. And lastly, at the cornerback spot opposite Terence Newman, the Cowboys will go with a rotation of second-year players, Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick. Jenkins was drafted in the first round last year and Scandrick, the fifth. Throughout the year, Scandrick outplayed Jenkins and many thought Scandrick would open the season as the starter. Instead, Jenkins will start the first game, Scandrick will start the second, and they will rotate until one significantly outplays the other.
So that outlines who will be playing for the 2009 Cowboys. The team is not too far off from becoming relevant again. They have a strong defense that will look to improve on their strong 2008 numbers with a couple of new faces. Also, a strong running game will only better Tony Romo’s chances of becoming that quarterback that every Cowboy fan hopes he is. A strong running game only opens up big things for a quarterback, and when you have three young, hungry runners, your quarterback is set up to flourish. I believe the Cowboys need a couple players to have big years for the team to break out: Felix Jones, Roy Williams, DeMarcus Ware. Jones missed 10 games last year, Williams had 19 catches in 10 games with the Cowboys, and Ware is looking to force more fumbles and become more relentless in the running game this season. Every Cowboy fan is hoping that the ‘Boys can claim that first playoff victory since 1996 but mostly, they are hoping the team can join the Pittsburgh Steelers as the only teams with 6 World Championships.
Al Davis Did What? By Nick Haswell-Football Reporters Online
Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders just traded their 2011 First Round Draft Pick to the New England Patriots for Future Hall of Fame Defensive End Richard Seymour. This is just the latest transaction by the Raiders that proves the insanity of Owner Al Davis. It’s almost hard to imagine that the Raiders were participants in Super Bowl XXXVII, just 7 seasons ago. Since the morning of that game, where All-Pro Center Barrett Robbins went AWOL before the game, the Raiders have become the joke of the NFL. The Raiders have a record of 24-72 and a winning percentage of .250 since 2003, good for the worst record and winning percentage in the NFL. As Al Davis has gotten older, it seems that his roster moves and coaching hires have gotten crazier. Here is a look at the top 5 reasons that Al Davis has gone crazy since 2003: 5. Signing DE/DT Tommy Kelly to a seven-year, $50.5 million contract in 2008: A 4-year pro that has never been to a Pro Bowl and is coming off a torn ACL gets the largest contract ever for a defensive tackle. That’s exactly what the Raiders did by re-signing Tommy Kelly. Kelly was a defensive end his first four seasons in the NFL, but with Warren Sapp retiring, Al Davis was compelled to overpay to re-sign Kelly and move him and his 6-6, 300 lbs. frame to defensive tackle. But to sign Kelly to a contract that paid him more than Albert Haynesworth (in 2008), Kevin and Pat Williams, and Vince Wilfork is quite ridiculous. 4. Offering Head Coaching Position to Tom Cable following 2008 season: Tom Cable is a fine offensive line coach and has been a very successful offensive coordinator at the college level at Colorado and UCLA. But as a head coach, he has a less impressive resume. As a head coach at the University of Idaho from 2000 to 2003, Cable’s record was 11-35, with 4 consecutive losing seasons. After taking over for Lane Kiffin during the 2008 season, Cable led the Raiders to a 4-8 finish. His head coaching record is not exactly worthy of a head coaching position in the NFL. 3. Trading 2011 First Round Pick to Patriots for Richard Seymour: Trading for a future Hall of Famer is not a crazy idea. But trading away a First Round Draft Pick for a player that could only be in uniform for one season is. Not only could Richard Seymour not be on the Raiders past 2009, but given the Raiders past performance, the Raiders could lose a top 10 draft pick in 2011. And how much will this move improve the Raiders, to win 5 or 6 wins, instead of 4? But the Raiders and Al Davis are desperate to improve their run defense, which has been the worst in the NFL the past several seasons. But exactly where Seymour fits in Oakland’s defense is in question. Seymour has been a 3-4 defensive end his entire career. By being traded to the Raiders, Seymour either moves to a 4-3 defensive end or to a 3-technique defensive tackle, where Tommy Kelly is currently starting. 2. 2009 NFL Draft: Wide receivers Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin were still on the draft board when the Raiders drafted in the #7 overall spot in the 2009 NFL Draft. But Al Davis and the Raiders surprised everyone and drafted speedster receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey from Maryland. Davis and the Raiders are notorious for their love of players with speed, especially with skill position players. Heyward- Bey ran the fastest 40-time at the 2009 NFL Combine at 4.30 seconds. But he is not a polished route-runner and doesn’t possess the best hands. Heyward-Bey was projected as a late first or second round pick. And then in the second round the Raiders selected safety Mike Mitchell from Ohio. Mitchell was considered a late round pick, but Al Davis surprised everyone and took Mitchell early in the second round, when he could have taken him several rounds later. 1. Offering Head Coaching Position to Lane Kiffin: When Art Shell was fired by the Oakland Raiders in 2007, one of the first people Al Davis contacted for the open head coaching job was USC co-offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian. After being rebuffed by Sarkisian, Davis moved on to bringing in Sarkisian’s co-coordinator at USC, Lane Kiffin. Despite never being a head coach at any level, or coaching a position at the NFL level (Kiffin was the offensive quality control coach for the Jaguars in 2000), Davis offered the position to Kiffin. Kiffin’s tenure with the Raiders was contentious, almost from the start. There were reports that Kiffin entertained the idea of leaving the Raiders for a college head coaching job before the end of the 2007 NFL Season. Reportedly, Al Davis drafted up Kiffin’s resignation papers following the 2007 season for Kiffin to sign, but Kiffin refused to sign them because he would lose a guaranteed $2 million by signing the papers. Al Davis needs a puppet as his head coach, as Davis has the last word on roster moves and coaching hires. Kiffin was not one who would cooperate with Al Davis in this capactity and his hiring and firing ended up turning the Raider organization into even more chaos.
According to Mike and also Peter King of SI.com, Seymour is "angry" that he was traded to the Oakland Raiders, described as "football's literal black hole" over at Profootballtalk.com.
Peter King writes:
Seymour, I'm told, is angry about the deal. He lives in Foxboro, has children he may have to relocate to new schools as the school year dawns and has to get acclimated to a new defense (and an awful team) a week before the opening game. "I would not be surprised if he doesn't report,'' a good friend of Seymour's told me Sunday. I would. Aside from not earning his 2009 salary of $3.7 million, Seymour wouldn't be able to be a free-agent if he doesn't play this year. As it stands now, his contract is up after this year, and if he plays well and stays healthy, he could hit the jackpot when next year's probable uncapped season plays out.
So what's looked like a trade with a possible upside may turn into a complete disaster. How can the Raiders fix this? With CEO Amy Trask putting in a call to Seymour right now on Labor Day to adress his concerns. The call alone would do a lot of good.
According to Mike and also Peter King of SI.com, Seymour is "angry" that he was traded to the Oakland Raiders, described as "football's literal black hole" over at Profootballtalk.com.
Peter King writes:
Seymour, I'm told, is angry about the deal. He lives in Foxboro, has children he may have to relocate to new schools as the school year dawns and has to get acclimated to a new defense (and an awful team) a week before the opening game. "I would not be surprised if he doesn't report,'' a good friend of Seymour's told me Sunday. I would. Aside from not earning his 2009 salary of $3.7 million, Seymour wouldn't be able to be a free-agent if he doesn't play this year. As it stands now, his contract is up after this year, and if he plays well and stays healthy, he could hit the jackpot when next year's probable uncapped season plays out.
So what's looked like a trade with a possible upside may turn into a complete disaster. How can the Raiders fix this? With CEO Amy Trask putting in a call to Seymour right now on Labor Day to adress his concerns. The call alone would do a lot of good.
The White House just released the text of President Barack Obama's planned speech to be given on September 8th. The Presidents plan to talk to the school kids of America drew fire from some who believed - and still believe - its a "Trojan Horse" for his political platform. Of course, some of those people - like Alan Keys - think Obama's not American, too:
But President Obama's American, and the speech isn't a political statement. Read the text - carefully and again, slowly.
Here's the speech.
Arlington, Virginia
September 8, 2009
The President: Hello everyone - how's everybody doing today? I'm here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we've got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I'm glad you all could join us today.
I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it's your first day in a new school, so it's understandable if you're a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you're in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could've stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.
I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn't have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday - at 4:30 in the morning.
Now I wasn't too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I'd fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I'd complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, "This is no picnic for me either, buster."
So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I'm here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I'm here because I want to talk with you about your education and what's expected of all of you in this new school year.
Now I've given a lot of speeches about education. And I've talked a lot about responsibility.
I've talked about your teachers' responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn.
I've talked about your parents' responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don't spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.
I've talked a lot about your government's responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren't working where students aren't getting the opportunities they deserve.
But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world - and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.
And that's what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.
Every single one of you has something you're good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That's the opportunity an education can provide.
Maybe you could be a good writer - maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper - but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor - maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine - but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.
And no matter what you want to do with your life - I guarantee that you'll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You're going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can't drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You've got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.
And this isn't just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you're learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.
You'll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You'll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You'll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.
We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don't do that - if you quit on school - you're not just quitting on yourself, you're quitting on your country.
Now I know it's not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.
I get it. I know what that's like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn't always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn't fit in.
So I wasn't always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I'm not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.
But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn't have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.
Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don't have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there's not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don't feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren't right.
But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life - what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you've got going on at home - that's no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That's no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That's no excuse for not trying.
Where you are right now doesn't have to determine where you'll end up. No one's written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.
That's what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.
Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn't speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.
I'm thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who's fought brain cancer since he was three. He's endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer - hundreds of extra hours - to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he's headed to college this fall.
And then there's Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she's on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.
Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren't any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same.
That's why today, I'm calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education - and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. Maybe you'll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you'll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you'll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn. And along those lines, I hope you'll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don't feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.
Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it.
I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work -- that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you're not going to be any of those things.
But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won't love every subject you study. You won't click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won't necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.
That's OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who've had the most failures. JK Rowling's first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published.
Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."
These people succeeded because they understand that you can't let your failures define you - you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn't mean you're a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn't mean you're stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.
No one's born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You're not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don't hit every note the first time you sing a song.
You've got to practice. It's the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it's good enough to hand in.
Don't be afraid to ask questions. Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn't a sign of weakness, it's a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don't know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust - a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor - and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.
And even when you're struggling, even when you're discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you - don't ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.
The story of America isn't about people who quit when things got tough. It's about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.
It's the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.
So today, I want to ask you, what's your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country?
Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I'm working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you've got to do your part too. So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don't let us down - don't let your family or your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.
ESPN reports that San Diego Chargers Linebacker Shawne Merriman was accused of suspicion "choking and restraining" his girlfriend as she tried to leave his home at 3:45 am. This is what's written on ESPN's website:
Deputies responded about 3:45 a.m. to Merriman's house in Poway, north of San Diego, after a woman called to say she was choked by the player and thrown to the ground when she tried to leave, Sheriff's Department spokesman Jan Caldwell said at a news conference.
Merriman, 25, was taken into custody and booked into the central jail at about 8:30 a.m. He was released shortly after 11 a.m. Caldwell said she didn't know if he posted bail or was released on his own recognizance.
Tequila left Pomerado Hospital at 7:36 a.m. Sunday, ESPN's Colleen Dominguez reported. She was observed and treated, but not admitted. Her stay at the hospital was approximately two hours.
Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union Tribune was interviewed by ESPN's and said "this does not fit with the Sean Merriman I know. Now, I only know Merriman's fantastic football career, and little else, but I know nothing about Tila Tequila, so I went on a little Internet searching spree.
Tequila's real name is Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen, or Tila "Tequila" Nguyen and is known as an MTV star. She had a show on that network called A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila and was on for two years before it ended July 8, 2008. Tequila has been featured in Maxim, Stuff, and Penthouse magazines.
Her MySpace page was reportedly the most popular in pageviews in 2006, which is no mean trick to achieve. So I visited her MySpace page, scrolled down to "About TILA TEQUILA IS IN SAN DIEGO", and found something really interesting...
You've got to read how Tequila describes herself in this message:
You people probably won't even be able to read this because my page is so cluttered...sooo...imma blab a little bit here...hoping you won't read it. Here we go: i like people who are really fucked up. I mean like tormented in one way or another because then i won't feel like such a freak around those that are "normal." nerds, geeks, and freaks are all my friends. Cool people are pretty damn lame. I am very high strung and suffer from multiple personalities. Jane. She's crazy and she always wants to kill me. Tila...poor girl..she works so hard and always wants to make others happy...she deserves a break. I haven't had boyfriend for so long. I always want one, but when there is one around i run. I'm too busy. I love being in love but i hate the consequences. I do a lot of things that are self destructive. I try not to. I like being at home alone...a lot! So much more fun than surrounding myself with a bunch of wacko's out there. I am also bi-polar so that should explain my irratic postings. I like to read. I love to read. I am a nerd. I've always been a nerdy geek trapped inside a umm...woman's body. Yea....that's me. People love me for some reason. I don't know why...i do but i just say i don't know why just to be modest. I want to be a multi-millionaire by the time i reach 25 years of age. And i will.
What I could not help but focus on was this:
I am very high strung and suffer from multiple personalities. Jane. She's crazy and she always wants to kill me. Tila...poor girl..she works so hard and always wants to make others happy...she deserves a break. I haven't had boyfriend for so long. I always want one, but when there is one around i run. I'm too busy.
Now, let me make this clear, I don't care what personality Tila Tequila may have been, choking and restraining any one of them is wrong. But I also know from personal experience anyone who says, let alone blogs, that they "suffer from multiple personalities" and is "bipolar" and "bisexual", is not someone to deal with as they have a tendency to completely self destruct and distort reality and as Woody Allen said in Husbands and Wives "crash their plane right into you."
Unless you crave drama, it's best to run away from such a person just to preserve your sanity.
Also interesting is her Twitter page (which has been "protected" since about four hours ago) and tweets written in French, but loosely translate to..
You did not realize that I knew that you are in love with me, but I am more intelligent than you realize 1:01 PM Sep 5th from web
And this one:
My secret lovers.......always bitter sweet. Love undying....lust then weep...there she goes again.....Where is she now? Who is she with? 12:30 PM Sep 5th from web
What really happened?
All of this makes me wonder what really happened between Merriman and Tequila. Merriman is out of jail, having been released this morning at 11 am; Tequila was at the hospital for two hours, but its reported she was there for two hours, then released, not admitted. And it was reported she was drinking. According to E! Online the pair were partying at a hotspot called Stingaree in San Diego "without incident."
Ha. Except that they were having a load of fun. TMZ.com has a set of photos of Tequila on his lap, or more accurately, his thigh, but another one where it looks as if Merriman is drinking water from a bottle - look for yourself.
By contrast, It's reported that she was drinking at Merriman's house.
This is hard one to deal with because my gut, just my base instincts, say that Tequila got too drunk and Merriman tried to stop her from doing something, perhaps driving, then all hell broke lose. Others were in his home and the San Diego County District Attorney's Office will question them.
I know Sean's an NFL veteran, but this is one of those kinds of incidents they talk about avoiding at the NFL Rookie Symposium. In my view, there's nothing wrong with being a careful snob. People like Merriman have too much to loose and too many people and kids who look up to them to allow themselves to be connected with anyone who claims to "suffer from multiple personalities".
After all this is over, Merriman should get a new set of friends.
ESPN reports that San Diego Chargers Linebacker Shawne Merriman was accused of suspicion "choking and restraining" his girlfriend as she tried to leave his home at 3:45 am. This is what's written on ESPN's website:
Deputies responded about 3:45 a.m. to Merriman's house in Poway, north of San Diego, after a woman called to say she was choked by the player and thrown to the ground when she tried to leave, Sheriff's Department spokesman Jan Caldwell said at a news conference.
Merriman, 25, was taken into custody and booked into the central jail at about 8:30 a.m. He was released shortly after 11 a.m. Caldwell said she didn't know if he posted bail or was released on his own recognizance.
Tequila left Pomerado Hospital at 7:36 a.m. Sunday, ESPN's Colleen Dominguez reported. She was observed and treated, but not admitted. Her stay at the hospital was approximately two hours.
Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union Tribune was interviewed by ESPN's and said "this does not fit with the Sean Merriman I know. Now, I only know Merriman's fantastic football career, and little else, but I know nothing about Tila Tequila, so I went on a little Internet searching spree.
Tequila's real name is Thien Thanh Thi Nguyen, or Tila "Tequila" Nguyen and is known as an MTV star. She had a show on that network called A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila and was on for two years before it ended July 8, 2008. Tequila has been featured in Maxim, Stuff, and Penthouse magazines.
Her MySpace page was reportedly the most popular in pageviews in 2006, which is no mean trick to achieve. So I visited her MySpace page, scrolled down to "About TILA TEQUILA IS IN SAN DIEGO", and found something really interesting...
You've got to read how Tequila describes herself in this message:
You people probably won't even be able to read this because my page is so cluttered...sooo...imma blab a little bit here...hoping you won't read it. Here we go: i like people who are really fucked up. I mean like tormented in one way or another because then i won't feel like such a freak around those that are "normal." nerds, geeks, and freaks are all my friends. Cool people are pretty damn lame. I am very high strung and suffer from multiple personalities. Jane. She's crazy and she always wants to kill me. Tila...poor girl..she works so hard and always wants to make others happy...she deserves a break. I haven't had boyfriend for so long. I always want one, but when there is one around i run. I'm too busy. I love being in love but i hate the consequences. I do a lot of things that are self destructive. I try not to. I like being at home alone...a lot! So much more fun than surrounding myself with a bunch of wacko's out there. I am also bi-polar so that should explain my irratic postings. I like to read. I love to read. I am a nerd. I've always been a nerdy geek trapped inside a umm...woman's body. Yea....that's me. People love me for some reason. I don't know why...i do but i just say i don't know why just to be modest. I want to be a multi-millionaire by the time i reach 25 years of age. And i will.
What I could not help but focus on was this:
I am very high strung and suffer from multiple personalities. Jane. She's crazy and she always wants to kill me. Tila...poor girl..she works so hard and always wants to make others happy...she deserves a break. I haven't had boyfriend for so long. I always want one, but when there is one around i run. I'm too busy.
Now, let me make this clear, I don't care what personality Tila Tequila may have been, choking and restraining any one of them is wrong. But I also know from personal experience anyone who says, let alone blogs, that they "suffer from multiple personalities" and is "bipolar" and "bisexual", is not someone to deal with as they have a tendency to completely self destruct and distort reality and as Woody Allen said in Husbands and Wives "crash their plane right into you."
Unless you crave drama, it's best to run away from such a person just to preserve your sanity.
Also interesting is her Twitter page (which has been "protected" since about four hours ago) and tweets written in French, but loosely translate to..
You did not realize that I knew that you are in love with me, but I am more intelligent than you realize 1:01 PM Sep 5th from web
And this one:
My secret lovers.......always bitter sweet. Love undying....lust then weep...there she goes again.....Where is she now? Who is she with? 12:30 PM Sep 5th from web
What really happened?
All of this makes me wonder what really happened between Merriman and Tequila. Merriman is out of jail, having been released this morning at 11 am; Tequila was at the hospital for two hours, but its reported she was there for two hours, then released, not admitted. And it was reported she was drinking. According to E! Online the pair were partying at a hotspot called Stingaree in San Diego "without incident."
Ha. Except that they were having a load of fun. TMZ.com has a set of photos of Tequila on his lap, or more accurately, his thigh, but another one where it looks as if Merriman is drinking water from a bottle - look for yourself.
By contrast, It's reported that she was drinking at Merriman's house.
This is hard one to deal with because my gut, just my base instincts, say that Tequila got too drunk and Merriman tried to stop her from doing something, perhaps driving, then all hell broke lose. Others were in his home and the San Diego County District Attorney's Office will question them.
I know Sean's an NFL veteran, but this is one of those kinds of incidents they talk about avoiding at the NFL Rookie Symposium. In my view, there's nothing wrong with being a careful snob. People like Merriman have too much to loose and too many people and kids who look up to them to allow themselves to be connected with anyone who claims to "suffer from multiple personalities".
After all this is over, Merriman should get a new set of friends.
The trade shot heard 'round the football and the Internet world is that the New England Patriots long time defensive end Richard Seymour was traded to the Oakland Raiders.
While the transaction seems like a good deal for Oakland, hold on. There are two problems: the first one is that Seymour has not had an all pro season since 2006 and the Raiders defensive formation design is suspect.
Since 2001 Richard Seymour has been a force on New England's defense. But starting with a knee injury in 2007 and a back injury in 2008, he hasn't been the disruptive player he was known as three years ago. While he did have a career-high eight sacks last year, giving up a first round pick was too much for Seymour. Why Oakland did that is beyond me (it would make more sense for a Seymour three years younger) but he's here so we have to figure out a way to employ him to get best results. Let's look at the pluses of this trade:
Richard Seymour is not old
Richard Seymour while 29 years old, is not old at all. He still has perhaps five good years left in him. If the Raiders focus on enhancing his pass-run skills, then he will be a major addition to the squad. If the Raiders use him paired with Greg Ellis in a hybrid version of Buddy Ryan's "46 Defense" - where Ellis and Seymour would be aligned on the strongside of the formation - it would place considerable pressure on the offenses of the AFC West, especially the San Diego Chargers.
Richard Seymour is a tall defender
Seymour's 6 foot 6 inches tall so having him rush on the left side, when most quarterbacks are right handed, would block throwing lanes like no other player has been able to do. Greg Ellis, who the Raiders got from Dallas, is the same height as Seymour, so having them on the same side in a 46 Defense would spell matchup problems for any offense.
Richard Seymour brings the experience of a winner
Richard Seymour has four Super Bowl rings and is a product of a New England Patriots locker room culture that transformed Randy Moss from a player not really into the game in Oakland to a star player who takes over a game in Boston. Yes, I can understand if you question the Raiders culture, but this move signals a desire to bring in people who can lead the team and set the tone on the field and off of it.
Will Coach John Marshall creatively use Seymour?
My concern is less with Seymour than with Oakland Raiders Defensive Coordinator John Marshall. Will he design schemes that creatively employ Seymour and Ellis? Is Marshall capable of the kind of out-of-the-box thinking that's needed to counter what is a period of revolution in NFL offensive design?
The college game has altered NFL offenses like never before with the Utah Spread and the Wildcat Offense being paired with the passing philosophies popularized by the late 49ers Coach Bill Walsh to produce some of the best passing systems ever seen. It's no wonder why defensive designs like those used by the Baltimore Ravens are more in vogue, with overload defensive fronts and stand-up defensive end / zone blitz schemes.
Is John Marshall willing to be creative with the Raiders Defense? If so, he certainly has the tools to do so. Now, with the addition of Seymour, the Oakland Raiders Defense is a wild card; I don't know how well they will do this year and have to wait until the San Diego game to determine that. But I'm excited to see what's next from this unit.
I just saw an email from The Washington Post explaining that Van Jones resigned from his post as the Green Jobs Czar in the Obama Administration. Sad news as I know Van and have known him as nothing but a good man committed to the betterment of society.
One of the staples of Van's life has been the pursuit of social justice. He's always worked to better the lives of those less fortunate and the creation of the Oakland-based Ella Baker Center is a great example of what he's tried to do to improve life for Oaklanders, especially those who are poor and black.
Van Jones stepped down from a post that was the logical end result of his tremendous growth as a person: a job in the White House. Moreover, those attacking his character themselves are people with questionable backgrounds or anti-social actors. I will not go into that here; but Van should fight back.
Glen Beck is the person Jones should fight back against. Beck's acting like a domestic thug, calling the President racist, then using the media to be the inspiration for others to make terrible statements and threatening acts, like the woman who camped out at a National Guard base, thinking it was a FEMA encampment.
But Beck's not the only one who's unfairly attacked Van Jones. There's a long list of conservatives. To be fair, they did go and get video of things Jones did say, but then posted part of the videos so the comments lack the proper context and have him sounding like a radical totally against America. (By contrast, I have an unknown cyberharasser that makes up lies about my life online. If I learn who this person is, they will be arrested and prosecuted as they're breaking Federal law.)
I'm proud to be an American, but I'm not proud of the modern-day McCarthyite's run amok online. It's as if we're allowing them to get away with murder.
A Landmark graduate
Some of my friends who also know Van point to his enrollment in The Landmark Forum as a key reason for his amazing personal growth. The idea of Landmark, which I've not "done" but seem surrounded by people who have been in it, is to provide a person with mental tools that cause them to overcome their cognitive road blocks and achieve their desired objectives.
Can one say Van became a different person? No. I think it's more accurate to say he became a better version of himself. I met him after his time in the program; the Van Jones I know has never even come off as anti-American and always as one who cares about people.
Good people like Jones must vigorously fight back against their attackers. To me, it's as if he was mugged in broad daylight.
