RF23 – Can’t We All Just, Just Get Along? Please.

RF23 – Can’t We All Just, Just Get Along?  Please.

Okay sports fans and social fans, today’s take is going to be a mixed bag of sports, political thoughts and social thoughts.  In the past, I have tried to stick with only sports, but since last week and events over the weekend, I feel compelled to force my takes on you all to ponder.  So let’s have at it.

 Sports:

Heat/Thunder:  Last week and Sunday I can honestly say the two best teams in the NBA are playing for all the marbles.  The Heat took a two games to one lead over the Thunder, and quite frankly, take away the melt down in game one, the Heat should be up three games to none. Probably against any other team that shouldn’t be playing this would be true, but Oklahoma City is not that team.  The Thunder reminds me of that young, inexperienced team that has all the talent, knows they have it, and don’t know any better.  They keep coming at you in waves, until they wear you out.  Need an example, ask San Antonio.  Need a better example? Aask the Lakers, still not convinced?  Ask Dallas.   In each one of those series, the Thunder were either on the ropes against San Antonio and just plain better than the Big Three or the Lakers.  You can slap them around and like someone who doesn’t know better, keeps coming back.  And that’s OKC. Unfortunately, they’re playing a team, that is hated and looking to give a bunch of naysayers and lets call them what they are haters the big EFF YOU!.  Lebron James came of age, when his team was staring at elimination against Boston and took over a team that was labeled Dwyane Wade’s.  With Wade struggling and Bosh out with a strain muscle, Cleveland Cav fans got a reminder of what James could do with little support and saw the player, who rightfully packed his talents and moved to South Beach, do what he did for Cleveland.   I suppose that pissed them off more.   I picked the Heat, cause I want James to get that monkey off his back, so he can play ball without the pressure of needing to win one and just playing ball to just win championships.  Many great players have walked in the NBA and come up short of a championship.  Problem with that, they end up on TNT, giving their take on how to win championships, oops, sorry to Barkley fans.

Rome v. Stern:  Most of you don’t listen to sports talk radio, so I’ve taken the task to listen to the shows for you.  I think it’s a fair trade of, some of you listen to Lil Wayne or Drake, so I won’t post my thoughts on their greatest hits like, “I ate Ice Cream”  “That’s a Rock” and “Giligan’s Island.” Now I know those aren’t any of their songs, but you get the gist.   Last week nationally syndicated sports radio host and CBS Sports show host Jim Rome had NBA Commissioner David Stern on talk about the finals and other NBA issues, when Rome mentioned the NBA lottery.   Rome asked Stern if the lottery was fixed because conspiracy theorists believe the lottery is rigged after the NY Knicks picked up Patrick Ewing in 1984.  This year the New Orleans Hornets was given the golden envelope and conspiracy folks really went off due to the fact that the League at the time owned the Hornets, and oh this is the same league that denied the Lakers Chris Paul.  I don’t know how to say this, but Stephen A. Smith summed that trade up very well, when he pointed out that Stern works for the owners, the league is the owners, so when the Lakers/Hornets and Rockets attempted to make that trade it was bad timing.  Bad timing due to the CBA was not signed and one of the owners reason for locking the players out was fair competition and revenue sharing!  So when the Lakers, who has a history of taking advantage of teams in the past by grabbing good players and winning championships, other owners rightfully protested.  Did I mention that the CBA was not signed yet, so the Commissioner under orders from the league (Owners) had to nix that deal.  Now, I’m sure they weren’t happy about the Clippers getting Paul, because that in turn gave them a big two or three.  So you have Rome asking the commissioner, on behalf of conspiracy theorists, if the Lottery is rigged and Stern takes exception by asking Rome if he still beats his wife.   Rome took the question as Stern meant for it to be: ridiculous!  But then it got worse. Stern accused Rome of doing things for cheap thrills and then clarified his remark by saying Rome uses cheap tricks and to make matters worse, Stern invoked Stephen A. Smith into the verbal altercation.  Smith had nothing to do with the argument, but drew the ire of Rome Clones.  On Thursday, Rome mentioned the incident, however has not at this point addressed the commissioner use of cheap trick and cheap thrills.  He seem fixated on the beating your wife question.  This is yet another bad incident for Rome, in which he may not recover.  If you Ram fans remember, In 1994, Jim Rome got into a fight with then Rams quarterback Jim Everett, when he referred to Everett as tennis player Chris Everett.  Chris Everett is a female tennis champion. 

Now the social:

Disclaimer, I’m not a huge of fan of Barack Obama, we don’t agree politically and like most black folk there are some social issues we definitely don’t agree on.  In the past month or so, this president, has, well, come out the  closet in regard to his stance on gay marriage and most recently, after saying in 2010, that he had no executive power to provide amnesty or change the law regarding amnesty, Changed the law by giving blanket amnesty to illegal aliens.  Now some of you agree with this action and with that, I have one question.   Can we let U.S. citizens serving time for theft out of jail or prisons?  And this includes repeat offenders.   Why?  Because if we are willing to grant illegals blanket amnesty for whatever reason, we should be able to grant and restore the rights of those who are in jail or prison for theft.  I see no difference in the two.  And oh, since we’re excusing kids who were brought here by their parents, illegally and allowing them to have all the rights offered as if they were United States Citizens, then we should return any and all loot to the children or family of the thief in prison.   Again, I. see. no. difference.    One more question, how is this the fault of the American people that these kids were brought here by their illegal parents?  Where is the accountability?  I’m sorry, but if you were brought here by your parents, illegally, sorry! The free ride is over, it’s time to continue paying the price of the wrong doing of your parents, sorry.  Secondly, this is simply an election ploy to get reelected.  This president cannot run off his record and neither can his supporters.   The only thing this president and his minions are going to run off is racism.  That’s right, last week, if you’re white and you say, the president looks cool...racist! And if you disagree with this president on anything, racist!  If you refer to Obama Care as Obama Care, racists!  If you use his middle name, racists! And lastly, if you ask a question, where everyone perceived him to be done with his press conference, racists!   So it’s going to pretty interesting to hear Obama supporters give their support for this guy based on his record, it’s gonna be like hearing them give his campaign issues (which by the way, a good majority of black Obama voters admitted to voting for him because of his race).   Last heard was hope and change.  I now believe the American people are going to use that same slogan to rid ourselves of this failed presidency. 

Rodney King: (Extra Disclaimer: The next opinion does not reflect the good men and women serving in our  law enforcement or the Los Angeles Police Department, like other organization there are a small minority that the public remembers the bad and not enough atta boys or girls.  Good officers like the late Randall Simmons who was shot and killed on duty and the LAPD officer who for charity sat in a Santa Monica Beach Ferris wheel). However, there was sad news over the weekend, 1992 Police brutality victim, Rodney King passed on what I think may be under suspicious circumstances.  According to reports King was found by this girlfriend at the bottom his pool in his Rialto, CA., home.    Also, according to friends and family, King was a good swimmer.   I don’t need to go into this long drawn out recap over what this man means to history and in February I may place him in my Black History Month Person Profile.  What King did or is responsible for is the reform of, if not all Police Departments across the country, then at least the LAPD.  Now I don’t agree with the method or the circumstances of King’s actions, but regardless of his actions, it did not equate to the brutal beating placed on him and two other passengers that night.   And to add insult, the lack of morals of a jury of  twelve citizens to acquit the cowards behind a badge, carrying a gun is just as reprehensible.  In my opinion that jury is equal to the OJ  and Robert Blake juries.   These were men who were entrusted to protect the citizens and for them and all others like them to sully that badge is just plain sad.   What’s sadder, was that King probably had turned the corner of his troubled life. I last heard him on the Larry Elder Show talking about his ordeal that happened twenty years ago.  He owned up to his part and answered the tough questions, the one thing that really stood out was his last statement on Elder’s show, “…when I put my hands out and complied, the beating was supposed to stop...it didn’t and I thought I was going to die, I knew at the time what death felt like.”