Tucker Carlson: Michael Vick "Should Have Been Executed"

Tucker Carlson disagrees with a call that President Obama made to the owner of the Eagles, in which the President stated that he was glad that the Eagles were giving Michael Vick a second chance.  Michael Vick was convicted of running a dog fighting ring and did prison time.  


Tucker Carlson made the statement while filling in for the show Hannity on Fox News.  


"I'm a Christian, I've made mistakes myself, I believe fervently in second chances, but Michael Vick killed dogs, and he did  in a heartless and cruel way," Carlson said. "And I think personally he should have been executed for that. He wasn't."


John Bobst aka The Force of Nature


Check out my blog at www.theforceofnature.net

Tucker Carlson On Michael Vick: Put A Sock In It

Tucker Carlson, Conservative Editor of the Daily Caller and fill-in for vacationing Sean Hannity on Fox News  (oh, man) opened up and said that Philadelphia Eagles Quarterback Michael Vick "should have been executed" for his fiscal involvement in the business of dog fighting.

On this issue, Tucker Carlson needs to put a sock in it.

Like so many others in what I've come to call The Matrix - that combination of images, ideas, and the at times tireless attempts at maintenance of them, that defines American Society and forms what we call "stereotypes" - Carlson can be counted on to make a stupid statement from time to time.

And Tucker's really a smart guy.

Really.

It's just that Tucker says and does things that...Well, take how he impersonated MSNBC's Keith Olbermann a few months ago, flirting with an identify theft charge in the process.  

You see what I mean?

But if Tucker bothered to look at what's driving his need to make that statement - that subconsciously he thinks it's OK to associate executions with an African American man - he would see that wealthy white families like the Rooneys, who own the Pittsburgh Steelers, were involved in dog racing. Dog racing has a near-equal level of abuse to man's best friend, yet PETA and Carlson have ignored this.

Not a statement.

Tucker Carlson would not even think to suggest what my logical conclusion would point to. And that's the problem.

If Michael Vick were a wealthy, white dog racing owner, Carlson would have never suggested he be executed.  But because he's a black guy, it's OK.

Welcome to The Matrix.  

Vikings vs. Eagles: Mike Vick Victim Of Bad Game Plan

The Vikings vs. Eagles game may have been different if Philadelphia Eagles QB Mike Vick had a better game plan. This video was created to show what the Eagles should have done to place Vick in a position not to be hit as much as he was.

Have him sprint right, but from a formation that puts immediate receiving pressure on the defense. The Eagles left Vick as a sitting duck; he's of average height and defensive linemen were just putting their hands up to block passes. The Eagles offensive coaches failed to get him out of the pocket by design. The result was a lot of hurries, batted passes, and sacks.

But it must be noted that Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier came up with a whale of an offensive and defensive game plan. The Vikings under Frazier for a full season will be a force in the NFL.

Jim Toth and Reese Witherspoon: Engaged to be Married

Jim Toth proposed to actress Reese Witherspoon over the holiday weekend.  This will be actress Reese Witherspoon's second marriage.  Jim Toth, an agent for the Creative Artists, and Reese Witherspoon started dating shortly after the end of her two year relationship to actor Jake Gyllenhaal.  The actress is represented by Creative Arts but not by Jim Toth.  "They are both extremely happy," said a representative for Reese Witherspoon.

John Bobst aka The Force of Nature

Check out my blog at www.theforceofnature.net

Adam Sandler: Another Death Hoax

Adam Sandler was the victim of a celebrity death hoax.  The rumor was reported by the Global Associated News and goes a little something like this.  "Sandler lost control of his snowboard and struck a tree at a high rate of speed… Sandler was air lifted by ski patrol teams to a local hospital; however, it is believed that the actor died instantly from the impact of the crash" 


This same hoax was spread around about Charlie Sheen a few days ago and Morgan Freeman was also recently the victim of a death rumor.  


John Bobst aka The Force of Nature

Check out my blog at www.theforceofnature.net

Tuesday Night Football: Eagles vs Vikings - Mike Vick Hurt By Game Plan

The first Tuesday night pro football game played since 1946 had a surprise ending. The Minnesota Vikings under Rookie Quarterback Joe Webb beat the seeming World-beating Philadelphia Eagles in Phili, 24 to 14.

While Webb's cool, calm, clutch performance in his first start made a lot of people say "Tavarez who," (referring to the Vikings other QB Tavarez Jackson) and cemented him as their new signal caller, it was a very bad offensive game plan that prevented Vick and the Eagles from playing up to expectations.

Michael Vick can't win. When his athleticism overcomes a bad game plan, everyone cheers him. When his athleticism can't overcome the bad game plan, everyone boos him. But the bad game plan, and the coaches who created it, goes without criticism.

Against the New York Giants last week, Vick overcame a bad offensive game plan with his legs and timely passing. But the Vikings used the same defensive game plan as that of the Giants, and with Vick not able to muster the same energy as the week before to essentially play out of that awful game plan, the Eagles offense stalled.

"That bad game plan," sets the relatively short Vick up in the pocket as a sitting duck, a focal point for blitzes. And those pass rush calls have come more and more over the last four games. But instead of rolling Vick out to have him throw more often than not, Eagles Head Coach Andy Reid kept Vick in the pocket.

The result: hurries, batted passes, and sacks.

And a shocking Vikings win.

Videos On Videoblogging - Tips, Irina Slutsky, And Gavin Newsom

In this vlogger's ongoing effort to encourage more people to video-blog, here are three videos I've made on the subject.

The first video, or vlog, is the most recent to date, and includes basic tips on videoblogging. The second vlog contains interviews with a number of people, including San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, and asking "What Is New Media To You?

That one was fun and demonstrates how easy it is to use the camcorder to record the views of others and produce a vlog.  (But, in the case of Cathy Brooks, I asked her to send a MPEG file of her "in car" vlog.)


Vlog number three explains how I produce a vlog and what equipment I generally use.  The fourth vlog is another favorite, and features pioneer vlogger Irina Slutsky and "Television of Tommorrow" producer Tracy Swedlow talking about video-blogging.

How To Vlog:



What Is New Media To You:



How I Make A Vlog:



Irina Stutsky And Tracy Swedlow - Vlogging Pioneers:



But, with all of this, you've got to do it yourself. Get out there and vlog!

Vanity Fair Magazine Print Edition Is Real Thin (Media News)

Vanity Fair is this blogger's favorite print magazine to buy at San Francisco International Airport when traveling. "VF," for all of it's faults, does a great job of presenting a certain way of the good life. While it could be more diverse in it's presentation of what that means, Vanity Fair is always an enjoyable read. The problem today is it's shrinking. Check out my video:



Yep. Vanity Fair's January 2011 print mag edition is a full 50 percent smaller in thickness than past issues. VF fans are used to seeing a thick, heavy, magazine, as was the case as recently as the December 2010 mag.

The one with Cher on the cover, wearing fishnets.

Or the April 2010 issue where Michael Douglas announced the new Wall Street movie, and the David Letterman sex scandal was detailed in all of its glory.

Those issues, two of countless many VF's I own, are all damn thick, heavy magazines.

Then, there's Johnny Depp, or the VF issue with Depp on the cover. There's only two words for it: shockingly small.

Curious, a little cyber walking revealed that Conde Nast, the company that owns Vanity Fair and other publications, embarked on an initiative to have its properties think in a more "business like" way. After losing $1 billion in ad revenue in 2009, it's no surprise to lean Conde Nast has some problems, but then, as it's CEO Chuck Townsend pointed out, so does its competition.

Its print competition.

Much was made of Chuck Townsend announcing how well Conde Nast was doing compared with Hearst Corporation and TIME media properties, but that's print. Magazine ad revenue as a whole barely recovered from the recession, and newspapers are just plain taking on water. Print's seen better days and before the Internet World.

The question is what's the future for Vanity Fair?

I can't see VF lasting as a monthly. Quarterly, yes. Monthly, no. Moreover, it's future is in television and multimedia. And it's got to up its audience grab from Oscar-related content.  Why in heck it doesn't emphasize video and video-blogging is beyond me, but the old heads there better wisen up before it's too late. The VF brand can survive, but it's got to grow out of its print-oriented mentality.

Blog Platform Downtime: Blogger Wins Tumblr Loses

Royal Pingdom decided to compare blog platforms for reliability way back in October; they just released their test results on December 17th. Blogger won and Tumblr lost.

Blogger - the favorite of this blogger, even though we also have a Word Press platform, too - had a 100 percent uptime rate. That means Blogger blogs were up and running 24 and 7, or 100 percent of the time during the two month reporting period from October 15th to December 15th.

For Tumblr, something weird happened on December 5th: the largest blog outage known to man in a long time. For 24 hours Tumblr was down from December 5th to December 6th, giving it a 97 percent uptime rating.

Yikes.

Add to that, Tumblr had down times before the giant December outage.

And it just happened to occur just when the watchful eye of Royal Pingdom weighed in.

Nice.

Yeah, Blogger!

Stay tuned.   (Here's the full report.)

Matt Ryan, Roddy White and Falcons Forget Short Pass; Drew Brees and Saints Don't

Lost in all of the stuff about how Atlanta Falcons Wide Receiver Roddy White's Twitter Tweets fueled the New Orleans Saints to their 17 to 14 victory over the Dirty Birds tonight at The Georgia Dome, was one fact: when it mattered most, Matt Ryan and the Falcons forgot the short game.

New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton showed once again why he's the NFL's best play caller not name Peyton Manning, Andy Reid, or Bill O’Brien of the Patroits. With just over 8 minutes on the clock he and Quarterback Drew Brees directed a 13 play, 90 yard drive that featured six straight passes. The last pass was a touchdown to rookie Tight End Jimmy Graham that Head Coach Mike Smith and the Falcons should have seen coming: the pass to the big tight end lined up all alone over the small cornerback, where the Saints throw a quick look-in pass within five yards of the goal line. Something they did in Super Bowl 44 against the Colts.

All of Brees passes were of the short variety.

By contrast, when the Falcons got the ball with a whopping 3 minutes left, and needing only to get into field goal range, they got greedy. The first play was a broken-field run by Matt Ryan for about 20 yard, then the drive stalled and they went three-and-out, as Ryan tried to throw down field to score, rather than short to work the clock and move the chains.

If that series were replayed and the Falcons Smith said "OK, Zennie. Let's see what you can do," I'd have used Ryan's legs on a planned bootleg to open the series, worked a set of short passes off play action to Falcons Running Back Michael Turner, then called the roll-out pass to the left to Roddy White. Work short. Work the ball.

That's what the Saints did, and in a series so devastatingly perfect, Bill Walsh was smiling down from Heaven.

Saints at Falcons: The Georgia Dome Experience

As you're watching the New Orleans Saints vs. Atlanta Falcons Monday Night Football game at The Georgia Dome, it's a good time to point out one thing: The Georgia Dome's an excellent place to watch a football game.

This blogger's watching the contest in Suburban Atlanta, but elected not to go to the game because of the ice patched streets. But the last Falcons home game, against the Green Bay Packers, I did attend and what an incredible experience. Here's the video:



As the video shows, the seats for my long time friend Keith Johnson and I were excellent and provided a great place to watch the Falcons win 20 to 17. (thanks to his wife for giving Keith his hall pass!) Section 129, row 33, seats 7 and 8. That's the north end zone corner.

What's great about watching football at the Georgia Dome is it's a theater for the game. Everything, from the seats to the structure, to the roof itself, focuses on the field of play. Of the seven Super Bowl's I've attended, the Georgia Dome was the second best stadium host to the game, with the best one being Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas.

A New Falcons Stadium?

Reports have it that Falcons owner Arthur Blank wants a new stadium so the team can move out of the 18-year-old Georgia Dome. The Georgia Dome itself should be that new stadium. It needs wider club level corridors, meeting rooms and second level "terrace club zones" to fill in the vast amounts of empty space between the curtain walls and the stadium seat structure, a large central entrance atrium, more and upgraded luxury boxes, and all-new giant screens.

Blank reportedly wants an outdoor stadium, but given his desire to gain more overall revenue, that's not a good idea. A dome stadium's ability to host more events means more money than a comparable outdoor stadium.

Keep the Georgia Dome. It's a winner. Like the Falcons.

San Francisco 49ers Fired Mike Singletary - Advice For Jed York

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When it was announced that the San Francisco 49ers fired Head Coach Mike Singletary, my mother made a quizzical observation: "I wondered about that, because it seems like he's always arguing with somebody." That was telling.

My Mom doesn't know or pretend to know football, but she does know people, and Singletary's explosive exchange with Troy Smith didn't sit well with her. Now, for good measure, she didn't agree with Troy Smith "trying to show him up" as she put it, either.

But Singletary, as the head person, is expected to hold a more dignified position than he presented on the sidelines. "The 49ers need someone like Bill Walsh," she said.

They do.

That's what brings me to this portion of my blog post: the idea that the 49ers, and more to the point, Team President Jed York (in photo), need in a general manager, a person who embodies the style of the late, legendary head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.   And to find that person, York must first read one book cover-to-cover: Building A Champion.

That's the book on making a winning football franchise.  A book written by Coach Walsh, with Brian Billick, who was a Niners assistant under Walsh, then went on to earn a Super Bowl ring as Baltimore Ravens Head Coach, and is now an NFL Network Analyst.

In it, Walsh lays out a blueprint the 49ers once followed, and have gotten away from.  Just look at the coaches the Yorks have hired since the end of the Walsh / Eddie Debartolo era and the time when Denise Debartolo York took control in 2000:  John York, Ted's father, replaced Steve Mariucci with his first hire, Dennis Erickson in 2002.  In 2003, Erickson posted a 7 and 9 record.

Eventually, Erickson gave way to Mike Nolan, who's best year was 7 and 9 in 2006.  Nolan stepped down for Singletary mid-year 2008.  In total, Erickson, Nolan, and Singletary have a 45 win - 82 loss record, or roughly a 6-win, 10-loss average.

In total, the York's have produced a 6 and 10 organization.

By contrast, Bill Walsh, George Seifert, and Steve Mariucci posted a combined .656 record, and that includes Coach Mariucci's worst years with the Niners: 4 and 12 in 1999, and 6 and 10 in 2000.  Then Steve came out of his slump with 12 and 4 and 10 and 6 records.

And in its entirety, the 49ers under Walsh's approach and coaches set lofty standards for sports organizations to follow.  What Niners like legendary defensive back Ronnie Lott called "The 49ers Standard."

That's lost on this organization, and solely because it seems the Yorks as a whole are afraid to use the platform Coach Walsh left for them.   But it's there.  In books and on video tape.  It's there.

All Jed York has to do is study it until his eyes drop off.    He should do that before he even thinks about hiring a GM.