Wired: October 2008

I was sitting in my den the other day and I began thumbing through the October 2008 issue of Wired magazine; probably my most recent favorite issue of Wired. Personal highlights in the issue included the following stories:

Pleistocene Park: Scientists rewilding ecosystems with modern analogs of long-extinct animals; theoretically restoring ancient ecosystems.

Jay Walker’s Library: Priceline.com and Walker Digital founder, Jay Walker and his incredible 3,600 square feet personal library.

Inside Google Chrome: A behind the scenes look in the making of Google Chrome.

Pro Wrestling…The NBA…Same Difference

For decades, NBA fans have speculated (particularly during the playoffs) that the NBA gives “star” players preferential treatment and/or manipulates the outcomes of games through the actions (or inactions) of their officials. The league has vigorously denied these accusations in the past, but now disgraced former NBA referee, Tim Donaghy is claiming in his new book, Blowing the Whistle, that there is a “rampant culture of fraud” in the league.

Interestingly the book’s pubisher, Triumph Books was ready to begin printing the book until the NBA came calling (excerpt courtesy of Deadspin):

“About 10 months ago, (Donaghy) shopped the book to Triumph Books, an imprint of Random House, according to a source close to Donaghy. Triumph, the source says, "put forth a huge effort to verify every statement in that book." (Triumph's editorial director, Tom Bast, declined to comment.) Two weeks ago,Blowing the Whistle was ready for printing; 60 Minutes had plans to interview Donaghy in conjunction with the book's publication. Then the NBA came calling. "They came after Random House and threatened a lawsuit," the source says, "and Random House just rolled and decided to not go with it. It's really that simple." To his knowledge, no one at the NBA had actually read the book.

There are many reasons to simply dismiss Donaghy’s claims based on his character, current financial status, relationship (or lack thereof) with his former employer and colleagues, etc.. But, I can’t help but think of how quickly I dismissed Jose Canseco’s claims of rampant steroid use in Major League Baseball when he came out with his book, Juiced. Sadly, as we all know now, the majority of what he claimed was truthful. Certainly, most of what Donaghy claims in his book could be lies, but NBA conspiracy theorist now have someone who worked on “the inside” finally corroborating what they have suspected all along.

Mark Cuban Endorses Medically Supervised Steroid Use

He’ll clearly get some negative publicity for his endorsement of medically supervised steroid use for athletes who are recovering from injuries, but in Mark Cuban’s world any publicity is good publicity. Publicity aside, I find nothing wrong with what he is saying.

There are currently millions of Americans who are taking steroids for various medical conditions. And yes there is a gray area with athletes who, if Cuban has his way, may be prescribed steroids for conditions and injuries that are not life threatening. But, it seems reasonable to allow an athlete who makes his/her living pushing his/her body beyond its physical limits (training and conditioning, games, injuries, surgeries, etc.) year after year, to use a medically approved and medically monitored substance to speed up healing.

There are some obvious regulatory issues associated with implementing such a program and defining what specific dosages are medically appropriate for what athletes (for instance the amount of steroids a long distance runner would need may not be the same amount of steroids that a three hundred pound professional wrestler needs to receive a therapeutic benefit); perhaps requiring a medical board to review an athlete’s use on a case-by-case basis. But, as many of us know a bureaucracy rarely get things done in a timely manner. By the time a medical board approved a hypothetical steroid regimen for an athlete, such a regimen may not even be necessary since the athlete may already have healed on his own.

Whether such a program could be instituted at this point is irrelevant since the powers that be in athletics are terrified to even entertain the thought of such a program in light of the recent Major League Baseball steroid scandal. But, kudos to Mark Cuban for bringing up the issue and at least starting the conversation.

The Vatican Opens its Doors to Anglicans

 

The spiritual side of a Game is not something we’ve ever discussed here, but I came across this fascinating article by Jacqueline L. Salmon and William Wan of The Washington Post regarding the invitation by the Catholic Church to those in the Anglican Communion who have become disillusioned by the Church’s social and theological direction:  “In a remarkable bid to attract disillusioned members of the Anglican Communion, the Vatican announced Tuesday that it is establishing a special arrangement that will allow Anglicans to join the Catholic Church while preserving their liturgy and spiritual heritage, including married priests.”

The growing schism within the Anglican Church can be traced to the 2003 ordination of Gene Robinson, a gay man, as bishop of New Hampshire as well as over female clergy and ritualism. It is believed that between 100 and 200 of the 7,000 Episcopal congregations have broken away from the larger Anglican Communion.

An excerpt from the article:

“The Catholic Church's plan "reflects a bold determination by Rome to seize the moment and do what it can to reach out to those who share its stance on women priests and homosexuality," said Ian Markham, dean of the Virginia Theological Seminary, an Episcopal seminary in Alexandria. "It is very, very bold and very interesting."…

…Under the system, the Catholic Church will create "personal ordinariates"--separate units within Catholic churches headed by former Anglican priests or bishops. While married Anglican priests would be permitted, married bishops would not because they are not in keeping with Catholic tradition. These former Anglicans would be considered theologically Catholic but with their own traditions, such as use of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer....

…Conservative Anglican leaders in the United States say the impact will be greater in England than it is here. "The British papers are saying it's the biggest thing since Henry VIII, and in some ways it is for them," said Rev. Martyn Minns of Fairfax City (VA), leader of a group of conservative congregations that broke three years ago from the Episcopal Church. "Over there, you have bishops, congregations, even whole diocese that may shift. Here in the U.S., we've already faced the division and what came out of it was the Anglican alternative.…What the pope said affirms what I'm doing, but doesn't mean I'm going to become Catholic." But other conservative Anglican leaders, including those with strong Catholic leanings, said Tuesday that they are unlikely to join the Catholic Church.”

Update #1: An analysis from the New York Times. Rachel Donadio speculates whether opening its doors to Anglicans, could eventually liberalize the Catholic Church on a crucial issue: celibacy.

Taking The “Foot” Out of Football

An interesting video from ESPN about contrarian Kevin Kelley, head coach of the Pulaski Academy Bruins in Little Rock, Arkansas. Kelley’s team never punts or kicks field goals. Kelley believes that from a statistical perspective, it is more favorable to “go for it” than to kick it. Interestingly enough, Kelley’s teams have won two of the last seven state championships.

G Level: Glory >> Notre Dame vs. USC

This past weekend, USC barely held on for a thrilling win over Notre Dame, 34-27.

In my previous post, I touched on the subject of GAME Levels and one level in particular: the “glory” level. In that post, I showed a clip from the 2008 USC Flashback Fantasy Camp where those in Trojan Nation (typically middle-aged or thereabouts) get the opportunity to be coached by the USC coaching staff.

Without further ado, I present to you the incoming USC Trojans Flashback Class of 2008:

 

…and now the incoming Notre Dame Fighting Irish Fantasy Camp Class of 2008:

Notre Dame is currently listed as a 24 point favorite in the glory matchup.

GAME Type: Specific / GAME Level: Glory / Entertainment Value: DEFCON 1

In an earlier post, I discussed the various GAME Types and Levels that can exist in THE GAME. In an attempt to illustrate one of the many combinations that can exist, I present the following for your viewing pleasure:

GAME Type: specific (football)

GAME Level: glory

USC Trojans Flashback Fantasy Camp 2008

A New Era for Auburn Football?

On the one hand, Bobby Lowder was the founder and CEO of Colonial Bank, the former regional banking powerhouse and now a part of BB&T; on the other hand, he was the most powerful and influential trustee and booster at Auburn University.

He often mixed his two passions, blurring the line between his business and Auburn football.

Now that his bank is gone (the sixth largest bank failure in U.S. history and the largest bank failure of 2009) and his influence on the Board of Trustees at Auburn is diminished, many are wondering if there are better days ahead for Auburn University and Auburn football.

Fortune analyzes the man who many considered “the most feared, loathed, and…misunderstood men to wield power in [Alabama] since George Wallace”.