The person who turned out to be a scapegoat for the failure of the President of The United States to respond to the Katrina Disaster, Michael Brown, is on CNN now telling his side of the story to Wolf Blizer and a CNN correspondent I who's name I don't know.
I got in this at the tail end, but it seemed that he's had a hard time but did respond to all of his questions. He also explained that he started a new consulting firm on Homeland Security and has clients. Why? He's seen it all from the best of times to the worst of times and knows what to do.
I just wonder how all of this is going to impact President Bush.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Collins and Other NFL Players Safe for Three More Days
The NFL extended the start of the Free Agency period by three days to give teams like the Oakland Raiders time to work out contract problems.
Rumor: Raiders To Release QB Kerry Collins Today
Quarterback Kerry Collins, whose cap value for '06 is $12.898 million, remains with the Raiders but he's expected to be among the cuts later today -- mostly for economic reasons.
The Raiders have until midnight to remove their current $14.8 million excess over the salary cap.
NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue Press Conference - Special League Meeting
This is from NFL Media.com. The big news to me is that 56 percent was never a number. Where did it come from?
New York Grand Hyatt Regency Hotel
March 2, 2006
Good morning. Obviously we concluded a short but important meeting with our owners. As I think you all know, we came here to explain to them why we're deadlocked with the Players Association. The Players Association has on the table a demand which doesn't recognize the reality of our league's economics today. It's a very excessive and unrealistic demand. So we went through that. The membership endorsed the conclusion that our labor committee -- the eight owners on our Management Council Executive Committee -- had reached when we met with them late yesterday afternoon and last evening. We are indeed deadlocked because of the excessive elements of the Players Association's economic demand and that demand did not provide a basis for any further negotiations. That conclusion of the Management Council Executive Committee was unanimously endorsed by the entire membership. Any questions?
Q: What is the difference between 56 (percent of revenues) and 60 (percent)?
PT: It's not the difference between 56 and 60. I don't know where those numbers come from. It's the fact that, in the last half dozen years, we've created a structure that has enabled us to build an unprecedented number of new stadiums, great stadiums, many of them with very large investments by owners and the league of private resources. Those stadiums, coupled with our TV revenues, have been the engine that has provided prosperity for the players. And the proposal that the Players Association has on the table basically is kind of a "have your cake and eat it, too" proposal. They want to have all the revenues that come out of these facilities and that come out of our growing media rights, but they do not in any way, shape or form recognize the cost to the owners of building those stadiums and investing in all of the things that it takes to generate the revenues. So it's just an untenable economic proposition from the owners' standpoint.
Q: Have you come to terms on what the revenue pool should be and now it's a matter of determining a percentage?
PT: Until you have an agreement, you haven't agreed to anything. We've got sort of tentative understandings that the revenue pool that would go into the salary cap would be certainly much broader than the old DGR concept, but the key thing is that they don't recognize either in the definition of the revenue pool or in their economic proposal the cost structure that goes into generating the revenue.
Q: Is there a fundamental difference in opinion among the owners on revenue sharing?
PT: Nothing could be further away than that (assessment). The revenue sharing issue has never been an impediment in the past to getting an agreement with the Players Association. We've had this agreement in place now with a salary cap and free agency for 13 seasons. I think '06 is the thirteenth season. The revenue sharing issue has never been an impediment, and it's not an impediment now to an agreement with the Players Association. The difference between now and the past is the fundamental change in the way they are defining their expectations as to the percentages that should go to the players and the unwillingness in this proposal, or inability, to recognize the very real costs that are associated with doing all the things the league has done to build new stadiums, generate revenues, invest in a whole range of enterprises that produces the revenue.
Q: What concerns you most about the current situation?
PT: We don't have an agreement and there is a deadline at midnight tonight.
Q: What is the next step from here?
PT: We're going to go back and talk about next steps, but I think at this point, it's not about making phone calls. It's about the Players Association fundamentally changing the character of their proposal and the character of their demands.
Q: How dire a situation is it?
PT: It's about as dire as dire can be. We feel that one of the very positive things about the National Football League since the early '90s has been our Collective Bargaining Agreement, one that works for both sides. We've put a proposal on the table that would extend that through 2011. We recognize that the last year of the current agreement is certainly not ideal in terms of operational realities. Without an extension, it's certainly not a good situation for anybody.
Q: What kind of new rules for free agency will be in place during the uncapped year in 2007?
PT: We don't have any new rules. I think I've basically covered everything that is important today. There has to be a fundamental change in their proposal for anything further of a constructive nature to begin to take place.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
US Military Using Navy People for Army and Marine Troops Jobs as They're "Tired" According to this guy
It's a rather controversial post that must be shared. What it reads is that we're reassigning troops in one division to make up for losses and health problems in other. All this and a vast majority of troops say it's time to come home from Iraq.
Vince Young and The Wonderlic - Is Profootballtalk.com Making Fun of His Race? Sure Seems So
Hey, I like the information that Profootballtalk.com -- an NFL news website -- issues. Granted, much of it is from the newspapers online, but they do dig and ask questions.
But their cartoons, which appear fresh everyday, seem to take on a racist tone.
At first, I wondered if I was being too sensitive to the matter of race with respect to this cartoon:
As I walk around the site, the Profootballtalk.com Message Boards ask people not to be racist. So, I give them a pass.
But to test my view, I clicked around the Profootballtalk.com site and found this Al Davis cartoon within seconds:
I think what's up here is a simple case of cultural insentivity. What's the deal with showing a picture -- doctored -- of Al Davis shaking hands with Chef from South Park? Well, they're obviously making fun of the hiring of Art Shell as Raiders Head Coach. But it also seems like a kind of reach back into the past where blacks were made fun of by using cartoons of us with large eyes and super dark skin.
Look, the photo was doctored to depict this image.
I never see Profootballtalk.com lampooning Italians in the mafia, or Irish drunks, so why the focus on blacks?
Just a question -- a good one.
But their cartoons, which appear fresh everyday, seem to take on a racist tone.
At first, I wondered if I was being too sensitive to the matter of race with respect to this cartoon:
As I walk around the site, the Profootballtalk.com Message Boards ask people not to be racist. So, I give them a pass.
But to test my view, I clicked around the Profootballtalk.com site and found this Al Davis cartoon within seconds:
I think what's up here is a simple case of cultural insentivity. What's the deal with showing a picture -- doctored -- of Al Davis shaking hands with Chef from South Park? Well, they're obviously making fun of the hiring of Art Shell as Raiders Head Coach. But it also seems like a kind of reach back into the past where blacks were made fun of by using cartoons of us with large eyes and super dark skin.
Look, the photo was doctored to depict this image.
I never see Profootballtalk.com lampooning Italians in the mafia, or Irish drunks, so why the focus on blacks?
Just a question -- a good one.
Colts over cap; cuts are possible - Indy Star
Colts also signed LB Gary Brackett, who caused the fumble by Jerome Bettis, and the return that nearly won the game for Indy.
Arbitrator's ruling puts team $6 million over limit
By Mike Chappell
mike.chappell@indystar.com
A ruling Wednesday by an NFL arbitrator specifically regarding the contracts of quarterback Peyton Manning and wide receiver Marvin Harrison could result in several significant player cuts by the Indianapolis Colts as they attempt to comply with the league's projected 2006 salary cap of $95 million.
"They're in a tough spot,'' said Mark Levin, director of salary cap and agent administration with the NFL Players Association.
Instead of being sufficiently under the cap so they could re-sign some of their remaining free agents without cutting players under contract, the Colts are $6 million over the cap after the decision by special master Stephen Burbank, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
Burbank's decision could be a devastating blow to the Colts' financial planning. That could change, however, if the NFL's owners and players reach an 11th-hour deal to extend the collective bargaining agreement.
At issue, for now, are roster bonuses of $9 million due Manning and $10 million due Harrison. The Colts intended to implement a normal bookkeeping maneuver that converts a roster bonus into a signing bonus and prorating it over the next four years. That would have lowered Manning's '06 cap number from $17.766 million to $10 million and Harrison's cap hit from $14.4 million to $6.9 million.
Suddenly, whether the team can re-sign running back Edgerrin James, one of 11 players who will become an unrestricted free agent Friday, might be the least of its worries. If Manning and Harrison count a combined $32 million against the cap, the Colts probably will have to jettison several players.
In the current climate, owner Jim Irsay said "it's going to be very difficult to keep Edgerrin and probably difficult to keep (starting linebacker) David Thornton."
Complicating every team's attempt at dealing with their rosters and the salary cap is the lack of a new collective bargaining agreement. Negotiations broke down Tuesday in New York. Barring a last-minute resolution, the new league year will open Friday without an extension.
An extension likely would include a higher salary cap, topping $100 million, which could help alleviate the Colts' cap problem.
The lack of an extension carries restrictive guidelines regarding player contracts, including the conversion of roster bonuses. According to NFL spokesman Greg Aiello, Burbank ruled such conversions are prohibited under the labor agreement if they violate the so-called "30 percent rule,'' which keeps base salaries from increasing more than 30 percent each year over the first year of the contract.
The special master is an arbitrator provided by the labor agreement and approved by both the owners and players.
It's believed a special master's ruling is final, but Irsay said the issue is far from resolved.
"We'll know more in a week or so,'' he said. ". . . If there are any disagreements internally on contract language, I feel we'll be OK there. Whether there will be an extended dispute with any of our guys remains to be seen. We feel that we're going to prevail and that we're in good shape.''
Arbitrator's ruling puts team $6 million over limit
By Mike Chappell
mike.chappell@indystar.com
A ruling Wednesday by an NFL arbitrator specifically regarding the contracts of quarterback Peyton Manning and wide receiver Marvin Harrison could result in several significant player cuts by the Indianapolis Colts as they attempt to comply with the league's projected 2006 salary cap of $95 million.
"They're in a tough spot,'' said Mark Levin, director of salary cap and agent administration with the NFL Players Association.
Instead of being sufficiently under the cap so they could re-sign some of their remaining free agents without cutting players under contract, the Colts are $6 million over the cap after the decision by special master Stephen Burbank, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
Burbank's decision could be a devastating blow to the Colts' financial planning. That could change, however, if the NFL's owners and players reach an 11th-hour deal to extend the collective bargaining agreement.
At issue, for now, are roster bonuses of $9 million due Manning and $10 million due Harrison. The Colts intended to implement a normal bookkeeping maneuver that converts a roster bonus into a signing bonus and prorating it over the next four years. That would have lowered Manning's '06 cap number from $17.766 million to $10 million and Harrison's cap hit from $14.4 million to $6.9 million.
Suddenly, whether the team can re-sign running back Edgerrin James, one of 11 players who will become an unrestricted free agent Friday, might be the least of its worries. If Manning and Harrison count a combined $32 million against the cap, the Colts probably will have to jettison several players.
In the current climate, owner Jim Irsay said "it's going to be very difficult to keep Edgerrin and probably difficult to keep (starting linebacker) David Thornton."
Complicating every team's attempt at dealing with their rosters and the salary cap is the lack of a new collective bargaining agreement. Negotiations broke down Tuesday in New York. Barring a last-minute resolution, the new league year will open Friday without an extension.
An extension likely would include a higher salary cap, topping $100 million, which could help alleviate the Colts' cap problem.
The lack of an extension carries restrictive guidelines regarding player contracts, including the conversion of roster bonuses. According to NFL spokesman Greg Aiello, Burbank ruled such conversions are prohibited under the labor agreement if they violate the so-called "30 percent rule,'' which keeps base salaries from increasing more than 30 percent each year over the first year of the contract.
The special master is an arbitrator provided by the labor agreement and approved by both the owners and players.
It's believed a special master's ruling is final, but Irsay said the issue is far from resolved.
"We'll know more in a week or so,'' he said. ". . . If there are any disagreements internally on contract language, I feel we'll be OK there. Whether there will be an extended dispute with any of our guys remains to be seen. We feel that we're going to prevail and that we're in good shape.''
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