January 2006 Archives

31 January 2006

First The 3-4, Now Chris Palmer?

Palmer hired as QB coach (Mac Engel, FWST)

With more than a week's worth of speculation and nearly all of the suspense evaporated, the Cowboys made official the hiring of former Texans offensive coordinator Chris Palmer to their coaching staff on Monday.

He is expected to report to Valley Ranch today.

Palmer, however, will not replace Sean Payton as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator, at least not in title. Palmer might share the job of calling plays, or coach Bill Parcells might handle it on his own.

Instead, Palmer will replace David Lee as the team's quarterbacks coach.

First the 3-4. Now Chris Palmer.

Is Bill Parcells building a Super Bowl contender or the Houston Texans?

Beats the hell out of me.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/31/06 23:21 | Dallas Cowboys | Technorati | Comments (1)

30 January 2006

The Media Tilts Left? Really?

Media Bias Is Real, Finds UCLA Political Scientist (UCLA News, 12/14/2005, via Brothers Judd)

While the editorial page of The Wall Street Journal is conservative, the newspaper's news pages are liberal, even more liberal than The New York Times. The Drudge Report may have a right-wing reputation, but it leans left. Coverage by public television and radio is conservative compared to the rest of the mainstream media. Meanwhile, almost all major media outlets tilt to the left.

These are just a few of the surprising findings from a UCLA-led study, which is believed to be the first successful attempt at objectively quantifying bias in a range of media outlets and ranking them accordingly.

"I suspected that many media outlets would tilt to the left because surveys have shown that reporters tend to vote more Democrat than Republican," said Tim Groseclose, a UCLA political scientist and the study's lead author. "But I was surprised at just how pronounced the distinctions are."

"Overall, the major media outlets are quite moderate compared to members of Congress, but even so, there is a quantifiable and significant bias in that nearly all of them lean to the left," said co‑author Jeffrey Milyo, University of Missouri economist and public policy scholar.

The results appear in the latest issue of the Quarterly Journal of Economics, which will become available in mid-December.

This really comes as no surprise, but I'd be interested in seeing their methodology. Unfortunately, the journal is subscriber-only, so it's going to have to wait (unless some reader out there is a subscriber and would be kind enough to forward the article).

UPDATE (01-31-2006): My friend Ethan sends along a link to this page, which has a link to a pre-publication version of the article.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/30/06 22:35 | Media Matters | Technorati | Comments (5)

Busting Down The Open Door

Study Ties Political Leanings to Hidden Biases (Shankar Vedantam, Washington Post)

Emory University psychologist Drew Westen put self-identified Democratic and Republican partisans in brain scanners and asked them to evaluate negative information about various candidates. Both groups were quick to spot inconsistency and hypocrisy -- but only in candidates they opposed.

When presented with negative information about the candidates they liked, partisans of all stripes found ways to discount it, Westen said. When the unpalatable information was rejected, furthermore, the brain scans showed that volunteers gave themselves feel-good pats -- the scans showed that "reward centers" in volunteers' brains were activated.

Partisans are partisan.

Some political philosophy prof -- I think it was George Carey -- once said something to the effect that contemporary social scientists frequently use axes to bust through open doors. But, it's kind of fun nonetheless.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/30/06 22:23 | American Politics | Technorati | Comments (0)

So Are We Cynics Or Realists?

Americans Not Shocked by Abramoff (Rasmussen Reports)

Forty percent (40%) of Americans say that used-car salesmen are generally more ethical than members of Congress. A Rasmussen Reports survey finds that Just 27% believe the nation's elected representatives are more ethical....

That low level of expectation by the general public provides the context for public perceptions of the Abramoff scandal. Just 15% of Americans believe Abramoff did anything different than what lobbyists typically do. Forty-seven percent (47%) say Abramoff's actions were the norm while 38% are not sure.

A slight majority of Americans (52%) believe the Abramoff scandal involves members of both parties in Congress. Seventeen percent (17%) say it involves Republicans while 5% say it involves Democrats.

As an election issue, people say that political corruption in important, but they don't see a clear solution. Just 31% believe there will be less corruption if Democrats win control of Congress. That figure is offset by 24% who say there will be more corruption with Democrats in power. A plurality (39%) say nothing much would change.

As you would expect, there are tremendous partisan differences on responses to that question. Among those who are not affiliated with either major party, 49% say corruption would remain about the same if the Democrats are put in charge.

How long before the frothing contingent figures out that it's all a Karl Rove plot to destroy confidence in government to do anything?

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/30/06 22:13 | American Politics | Technorati | Comments (1)

29 January 2006

DEA - For The Last Time?

We roadtripped over to Gruene on Friday for what may well be the last Dead End Angels show.

It's a weird deal.

As a fan, I have trouble ~~believing~~ accepting that a band with such a unique, polished sound is just gonna shut it down. Especially before they put together a second CD. Now that they finally know how to play and write and harmonize and travel together (and maybe even get on each other's nerves a little), it just seems like a perfect time to put together that second CD and play decent listening venues.

But, that's the pushy fan in me speaking.

The only thing I know for sure is that guitarist Rick Poss is going to be playing with Greg Trooper at the Mucky Duck on February 23, and I'll be there to see it. That should be good. But I really hope to hear him playing DEA songs again at some point (and so does he, he told me Friday).

In any case, thank to our friends for another show worth roadtripping for, and for three+ years of good tunes and good times. Whatever the future holds, I've gotten some great live recordings and some good musician-friends outta the deal. That's pretty good.

Of course, if the future holds a second CD after a hiatus, that would be best. I mean, Scott DID tell the Gruene crowd "we'll see ya again soon" at the end of the show. It's documented.... :)

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/29/06 23:50 | Music | Technorati | Comments (3)

A Quote You Won't Find In The Chronicle

Promotion keeps Wallace off the field (Danny O'Neil, Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

[Seahawks coach Mike] Holmgren chose Wallace with a fourth-round pick, and he was drafted as a quarterback and not a multi-purpose player.

"He is not just an athlete as some of the quarterbacks coming out of college have been characterized over the last few years," Holmgren said. "He really has great skill passing the ball."

At the NFL scouting combine in 2003, Houston general manager Charley Casserly said Wallace should either prepare to play in Canada if he wanted to stick at quarterback or become a multi-position player like Randle El.

"A lot of people doubted and said, 'You can't play quarterback,"' Wallace said. "I know I can play. I wanted to be a quarterback. And now, it's just like if I can contribute in any way, one or two plays, it's a team sport.

"I want to help our team out."

Wallace is a quarterback, that much is clear, but the question moving forward is how much more he might be.

It's always nice when reporters in other cities dissect the shortcomings of Charley Casserly. Goodness knows the Seattle PI reporter didn't talk to Chronicle columnist Richard Justice, or he'd instead have come up with a quote that Casserly REALLY wanted Wallace, and it was Dom Capers who REALLY sad bad things about him.

Whatever.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/29/06 18:14 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (2)

27 January 2006

Danger Train Collision?

KSEV-700 is reporting a Danger Train collision this morning.

The Danger Trains were running when I crossed at Elgin earlier.

This is shaping up to be a World Class Friday!

UPDATE: Laurence Simon has more on the collision. That's more reporting than any media outlet in town has posted to the web. Why cover this stuff when there is inane babbling about Houston 1836 or Vince Young dominating the news cycle, right?

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/27/06 07:37 | Danger Train | Technorati | Comments (2)

26 January 2006

He Should Have Claimed Sudden Acceleration Syndrome

KTRK-13's Deborah Wrigley checks in on some mayhem in southwest Houston:

A southwest Houston parking lot was the unlikely scene of a multi-car pile-up Thursday morning. The chain reaction accident happened in a lot of the HCA West Houston Medical Center.

Car after car after car was left smashed, torn and dented. Eight were damaged in all. It started with a Toyota Camry. Police say an 84-year-old driver hit the gas instead of the brake.

"I'm thinking he was probably doing at least 45 to 50 (mph), because the last car he hit -- it smashed it," said HPD Officer Neal Sapre. "After he hit the first sign he just continued to accelerate."

Eyewitness Nitih Mehta said, "There was so much power to the car. I mean, he was probably& The accelerator was pushed all the way (to the floor). He just flew over the median. There was a lady here. She was in another car. She just saved herself."

Remarkably, no one was hurt, including the driver, whose car eventually landed atop three parked cars.

"I saw when they pulled him out. He was an older guy. He got out with his cane and walked over to the ambulance," recalled medical technician Wayne Wilford.

The casualties are the vehicles themselves. People were inconvenienced and had to find rides home from work. But it was offset by the thought of what might have been.

He should have claimed it was Sudden Acceleration Syndrome.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/26/06 22:35 | Other | Technorati | Comments (0)

24 January 2006

Matt Welch, MSM

Blogger extraordinaire Matt Welch, who created the term "warblog" and has penned his share of articles for alt media, is now officially a member of the mainstream.

He's announced on his blog that he is now an assistant opinion editor for the Los Angeles Times. That's a good move for the Times, which will be getting a unique combination of talent and experience with Matt. This LA Voice blog post suggests that this move is part of a bigger effort at the Times to fight "the dead-tree entropy affecting all newspapers...."

Welch was a co-founder (with Ken Layne) of the L.A. Examiner blog, which set the standard for what a cityblog should be. (Anything good about blogHOUSTON, I ripped off from those guys; the bad is all on me). He's going to be a great addition for the Times. (Update: And they could use some great additions).

Other newspapers suffering from dead tree root rot ought to consider shaking up their news and opinion operations similarly, especially given the talent just floating around our local blogosphere.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/24/06 22:41 | Media Matters | Technorati | Comments (3)

Might as well clear out the Lions' dead weight

Ford's recovery starts in reverse (Sarah Webster, Detroit Free Press)

Ford Motor Co. said Monday it plans to cut up to 30,000 jobs and shutter 14 plants in a sweeping restructuring it hopes will turn its North American auto business back into a profitable venture.

[snip]

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Ford said the automaker would idle 14 manufacturing facilities. Ford's North American work force has 122,000 people, approximately 87,000 hourly workers and 35,000 salaried workers.

Inexplicably, another of Bill Ford's employees -- Detroit Lions GM Matt Millen -- gets to keep his job.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/24/06 10:22 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (2)

22 January 2006

Boring Championship Games

How about those blowouts in the NFL conference championships today?

Given the chores I needed to do, that was probably best. It was a productive day for me.

And the Texans can get Gary Kubiak named as head coach now.

I wonder how long it will take him to announce that Reggie Bush will be the team's first pick in the draft? It will be fun to watch Richard Justice and John McClain sputter if he announces it sooner than later.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/22/06 22:24 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (0)

21 January 2006

C-USA Refs Assess Penders Technical For Passing Out

The CoogFans loyalists frequently complain about C-USA basketball refs.

I've seen some good officiating and quite a bit of bad officiating in the league, but this would seem to give the CoogFans folks some serious ammo:

Houston coach Tom Penders was taken from the court and treated by EMTs and UAB doctors after complaining of lightheadedness, disorientation and dizziness Saturday.

Penders returned to the floor for the start of the second half after being evaluated and cleared by medical personnel. UAB assistant athletic director Norm Reilly said Penders fainted.

Penders was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, an inflammation of the heart muscle, in 1991, and in November 1997 he had a pacemaker implanted. It is not known if his previously diagnosed condition is related to the fainting spell.

During the episode, Penders was assessed a technical foul because the referee apparently thought Penders was reacting to a foul call and showing him up. The technical was not rescinded.

Reilly, who was sitting across the floor from Penders, gave this account:

A foul was called at UAB's shooting end shortly before the end of the first half. Penders reacted to the call, then dropped to his knees in a sort of crouch. It appeared he was reacting to the foul call, but when he didn't get back up, people realized something was wrong.

The game was stopped, a stretcher was brought onto the floor and oxygen was administered to Penders, who was talking and moving and reached for the oxygen mask.

Here's hoping Coach Penders is okay. That's the main thing.

The Coogs wound up losing the game by three points. In a game that close, it's undeniable that a boneheaded decision by the officials helped decide the outcome of the game. Still -- while an upset road win would have been nice, UH played its best game in ages and shot well. That bodes well for future games, although it just makes me shake my head over losses to Rice and Central Florida (which lost on its home court this week to basketball powerhouse South Dakota State University).

UPDATE: I wonder if the league will fine Penders for this typically candid comment after the game:

"I have a heart condition and I've had several episodes where I stand up too fast and get light headed. I did a three-mile fast walk this morning and probably didn't get enough fluids before the game," Penders said.

The coach said he had no idea until later that he was called for a technical foul.

"I don't remember anything to be upset about. To get called for a technical foul for collapsing to the floor is extremely poor judgment on the officials part," he said.

It sounds like Coach Penders is feeling just fine.

UPDATE 2: Here's Michael Murphy's assessment for the Chronicle:

"I just started seeing stars," he said. "I don't know what happened. I never lost consciousness, so I felt it was OK to come back (and coach the second half). That was a heck of a game. A great game. They had to make what I would call a circus shot to win it."

It was an appropriate description since clowns had stolen the show long before Kinnard's shot skipped off the glass. Referees Harrell Allen, Frankie Bordeaux and John Hampton were like the Beatles of bad calls, crippling both teams by calling a mind-numbing 45 fouls.

The officiating was crystallized by one call:

With 52.6 seconds to play in the first half, Penders rose to his feet, staggered and then crumpled to his hands and knees on the sideline. After a few moments, Penders went flat as medical personnel rushed to attend to him.

Hampton strolled by, paused and called a technical foul on Penders, apparently thinking the Houston coach was reacting to a questionable intentional foul call on Smith.

But even when Penders was taken off the court on a stretcher, Hampton refused to rescind the technical.

"I didn't even realize they called a technical on me until I was told later," Penders said. "That's absurd, that's all I can say. But I'm not going to say that the officials cost us the game."

UAB and UH play very similar, aggressive styles. I'll never understand why referees think 8,000 fans are cramming into an arena to see them totally try to take such exciting teams out of their games. It's very frustrating.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/21/06 20:51 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (1)

DEA at Cypress Creek Cafe

Callie and I roadtripped to Wimberley last night for a Dead End Angels show at the Cypress Creek Cafe.

Our friends in the Dead End Angels haven't been playing much together lately, and unfortunately it looks like last night's show and next week's show in Gruene are likely to be the last we see for quite a while, for various reasons. So it seemed like a good idea to trip over, check out a new venue, and catch up with our friends (who really make some great Americana music when they decide to get together).

The Cypress Creek Cafe is a pretty sweet venue. The cafe itself is quite good, which got things off to a nice start (filet mignon, broccoli, and salad for those wondering if I'm holding fast to the South Beach lifestyle). The shows take place in the club in the back of the restaurant. It's cozy, and kind of smoky, but the sound system is good (I can't say how good until I listen to my live recording), and the crowd was appreciative of original Americana music (if not entirely quiet during the performance).

I can't write anything new about the DEA sound. These four guys just sound really good on those rare occasions when they get together. Rick Poss is a guitarist who can steal shows, but realizes that great sounding bands are a team. Scott Melott pens some thoughtful lyrics (illustrative lines from an oldie but goodie: "The truck stop lights are bright tonight. They hide the way she glows") and then figures out how to make 'em sound great. Melott and Craig Bagby harmonize nicely. Troy Wilson is the typical unsung bass player -- he does his job.

They played nearly three hours of mostly original tunes last night (throw in covers of Dylan, Ryan Adams, Doug Sahm, and Neal Kassanov). It wasn't the best show of theirs I've seen, but it was pretty darn good. I'm glad I got a live recording of it, especially because Alejandro Escovedo popped in and helped on vocals with a song of his they recorded on their CD (Escovedo produced that CD).

I wish there was some way I could convince these knuckleheads (just kidding, guys!) that they need to play Houston every weekend just for my entertainment, and I really wish I could convince them to do a second CD (the first one came when they were not totally familiar with each other; they are now, and I bet a second CD would be many times better). But, it looks like they're all going to be focusing on some other projects after next Friday's show at Tavern in the Gruene (amicably so -- there hasn't been any big angry split). So if any readers here want to catch them at least one more time, in their current configuration, that's the place to be next weekend.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/21/06 17:57 | Music | Technorati | Comments (2)

20 January 2006

Delete Button

There's finally a delete button in Google Mail.

No more scroll-menu for deleting mail.

When did they do that? It had to be recent.

UPDATE: Umm, I guess I could take the "New Feature" alert on Google Mail as an indicator it was recent. :)

Isn't it fun watching me answer my own questions of late?

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/20/06 07:34 | Other | Technorati | Comments (3)

18 January 2006

A Question

Can anyone recommend any freeware video editing software?

Ideally, I'm looking for something like Audacity, but for video.

I just need to be able to take an mpeg video file, chop what I don't want off the beginning/end, and maybe change the amount of compression when I save it.

Are there any such freeware programs out there?

UPDATE: Never mind. It seems that MS Movie Maker (part of XP SP 2) will do what I need.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/18/06 14:26 | Other | Technorati | Comments (0)

17 January 2006

Poor Peyton

Hey Peyton, need some help? (DJ Gallo, ESPN.com)

Sure, it may sound as though Manning stabbed his linemen in the back -- or in the knee, in the Colts' case -- but I say cut him some slack. The guy is frustrated about coming up short every season. All I want is for him to learn from his mistakes and take more responsibility for his own failings when the Colts are inevitably eliminated next season.

That's why I've put together a few team-friendly alternatives he can use the next time he hears the words, "I'm trying to be a good teammate here" come out of his mouth. I'm hopeful they'll be of use to him.

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so I'll try to imagine what it's like to be imperfect."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so I'm going to buy my liquored-up, idiot kicker an entire case of vodka."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so I'll consider retaining Tony Dungy as my associate head coach next season."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so I'm taking the whole team on tour with Kenny Chesney."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so I won't ask my daddy to get my offensive line traded."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so next year I might even run a play or two that my offensive coordinator calls."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … so I'm going to let Tee Martin start for me in the playoffs from now on."

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here … but instead I'll just be myself."

Ouch.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/17/06 23:42 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (1)

16 January 2006

This Can't Be The NFL

NFL: Polamalu overturned interception the wrong call (Associated Press)

The NFL said the referee made a mistake: Troy Polamalu caught the ball.

The league acknowledged Monday that referee Pete Morelli erred when he overturned on replay Polamalu's interception of a Peyton Manning pass Sunday in the playoff game between Pittsburgh and Indianapolis.

Mike Pereira, the league's vice president of officiating, said in a statement that Morelli should have let the call on the field stand.

"He maintained possession long enough to establish a catch," Pereira said. "Therefore, the replay review should have upheld the call on the field that it was a catch and fumble."

This is very disappointing. I always enjoy the complete silence from the NFL when its referees blow calls. It's kind of funny.

Anyway, yes, it was clear to everyone that Polamalu intercepted the ball, and that was just one of several blown calls this weekend.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/16/06 22:32 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (3)

15 January 2006

Too Funny

Ham-handed Dems didn't lay a glove on Alito (Mark Steyn, Chicago Sun-Times)

It's a tragedy to watch once-fearsome attack dogs spend a week chasing their tails because they're "concerned" about the "Concerned Alumni of Princeton" -- though, of course, these days one's heartened to find Sen. Kennedy still capable of chasing tail. Still, would it be too much to ask these guys to put in a little rehearsal time and practice grilling themselves in front of the bedroom mirror:

Sen. Leahy (D-Vt.): "I find it troubling that as a young man you joined an all-white club affiliated with a national institution that has a very troubling historical pattern when it comes to the treatment of minorities."

Sen. Leahy (D-Vt.): "Yes, it's true I joined the Vermont branch of the Democratic Party in the 1950s. But, I mean, I never met George Wallace or Robert C. Byrd or anyone . . ."

Sen. Kennedy (D-Mass.): "I find it, uh, troubling, uh, that as a, uh, grown man you were a, uh, member, uh, of an, uh, organization, uh, with, uh, a, uh, very troubling, uh, track record on, uh, the treatment of, uh, women."

Sen. Kennedy (D-Mass.): "Yes, it's, uh, true I was a member of the, uh, Kennedy family."

Sen. Kennedy (D-Mass.): "Please don't interrupt. And it's, uh, true, is it not, that you've, uh, made, uh, jokes that could be regarded as, uh, inappropriate and offensive to, uh, women, uh, you've, uh uh, known?"

Sen. Kennedy (D-Mass.): "Well, uh, I named my dog Splash, but, uh, other than, uh, that, uh uh..."

Steyn is hilarious.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/15/06 19:34 | American Politics | Technorati | Comments (1)

The Abortion Capital of the Country

91,700 abortions in city (Paul H.B. Shin, New York Daily News)

For every 100 babies born in New York City, women had 74 abortions in 2004, according to newly released figures that reaffirm the city as the abortion capital of the country.

And abortions for out-of-town women performed in the city increased from 57 to 70 out of every 1,000 between 1996 and 2004, a subtle yet noticeable trend that experts say may reflect growing hurdles against the procedure in more conservative parts of the country.

The new Vital Statistics report released by the city Department of Health this month shows there were 124,100 live births, 11,700 spontaneous abortions and 91,700 induced abortions in the city in 2004.

That means 40 out of 100 pregnancies in the city ended in a planned abortion - almost double the national average of 24 of 100 pregnancies in 2002, estimated by the Alan Guttmacher Institute, a Manhattan-based nonprofit group that researches reproductive health issues.

Choice becomes more troubling when we start to talk about real numbers.

Presumably, even Senator Clinton would agree that this is not an example of abortion becoming rare in her adopted state.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/15/06 18:52 | American Politics | Technorati | Comments (0)

Disclaimer

I updated the disclaimer page recently.

There are some substantive updates, particularly to the comments policy.

I would add that regular commenters might want to consider setting up a commenting account. It's easy to do, and allows commenters to edit their comments after the fact, skip the captcha challenge, and (I believe) skip the comment control moderation on older posts.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/15/06 13:42 | Announcements | Technorati | Comments (2)

If You Aren't Outraged...

Earlier in the week, I followed a link from Dwight Silverman's whimsical local linkblog that has gained prominence over more traditional editorial content in the online Houston Chronicle, and wound up on this blog post that deems Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison a liar.

The contention is that Sen. Hutchison said one thing on Tim Russert's Meet the Press, then said another thing in a letter to said blogger.

The Funk Continues

UH suffers a puzzling loss: Central Florida pens new chapter to recent struggles (Michael Murphy, Houston Chronicle)

When the Cougars break down Saturday's game tapes, they might want to pay special attention to how Central Florida (7-7, 1-1 in C-USA) performed.

The Golden Knights moved the ball to the open man (18 assists), which is why they shot 50 percent from the floor (22-of-44); they hit their free throws (13 of 18, 72 percent); crashed the boards (outrebounding the Cougars 42-33); and they judiciously used the 3-point line (9-of-19, 47.4 percent).

The Cougars? First of all, they guarded center Anthony Williams like someone owed him money. Williams, who came into the game averaging 7.8 points, matched that in the first five minutes of the game and finished with a season-high 25 points, adding nine rebounds.

And despite a scouting report that included a breakdown of Central Florida shooting guard Justin Rose's rebounding ability, the Cougars allowed the 6-3 jumping jack to finish with a season-high 14 rebounds, double what the nearest Cougar had (Ramon Dyer's seven).

The Coogs' offense has totally broken down the last two games, and the more troubling thing is that the Coogs' defense has also not been what we've grown accustomed to under Tom Penders. They're giving up too many layups, which probably prompted Penders to start Tree Adiefe last night even though it's pretty clear he's a work in progress.

It's hard to pick any one thing that's gone wrong for the Coogs, but overall the guard play really has been a key factor. Lanny Smith has been in a funk for a while, Oliver Lafayette's sweet shot has disappeared of late, Brian Latham is a guy you count on for defense and energy from the bench (not lots of threes), Bloom is streaky (he got the start over Lafayette after making some shots against Rice, but didn't deliver last night), and the others haven't shown much in the way of offense. The Cougar big men just aren't dominant post offensive players, and the Penders offense doesn't emphasize that anyway, so when the guard play drops off, his teams can look pretty bad. If not for the inside play of walkon Sam Anderson last night, this game might have been worse. Ramon Dyer continues to play well, and you'd think there might be an effort to set him up for more shots, but it hasn't been happening.

Last year's team didn't have as many shooters as this year's team, but somebody (usually Andre Owens, sometimes Lanny Smith) usually would step up and rally the crew. During this little stretch, that hasn't happened. Here's hoping they get it going against Southern Miss at home Wednesday. They cannot afford to start 0-3 in a weakened C-USA.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/15/06 11:03 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (0)

12 January 2006

It's The Context, Stupid

Delays aided flu's spread in Turkey, experts say (Elisabeth Rosenthal, International Herald Tribune)

I have to say, when I first saw this headline today, my immediate thought was "MAN.... THAT is some real influence peddling."

Such are the times.

But honestly, I would have pegged it on the Roves. Or the Cheneys. :)

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/12/06 14:48 | Other | Technorati | Comments (2)

11 January 2006

Why The Latest Scandal Makes Me Yawn

The Abramoff Scandal (R, Beltway) (Rich Lowry, NRO)

The GOP now craves such bipartisan cover in the Jack Abramoff scandal. Republicans trumpet every Democratic connection to Abramoff in the hope that something resonates. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.), took more than $60,000 from Abramoff clients! North Dakota Democratic Sen. Byron Dorgan used Abramoff's skybox! It is true that any Washington influence peddler is going to spread cash and favors as widely as possible, and 210 members of Congress have received Abramoff-connected dollars. But this is, in its essence, a Republican scandal, and any attempt to portray it otherwise is a misdirection.

Abramoff is a Republican who worked closely with two of the country's most prominent conservative activists, Grover Norquist and Ralph Reed. Top aides to the most important Republican in Congress, Tom DeLay (R., Tex.) were party to his sleazy schemes. The only people referred to directly in Abramoff's recent plea agreement are a Republican congressmen and two former Republican congressional aides. The GOP members can make a case that the scandal reflects more the way Washington works than the unique perfidy of their party, but even this is self-defeating, since Republicans run Washington.

Republicans must take the scandal seriously and work to clean up in its wake.

Abramoffed (Hendrik Hertzberg, The New Yorker)

“The scandal is not what’s illegal. The scandal is what’s legal.” So goes Kinsley’s Law of Scandal, handed down many years ago by the iconoclastic writer Michael Kinsley. By this definition—probably the more pertinent one—the Abramoff affair is not just a Republican scandal, and not just a “bipartisan” one, either. It’s simply the currently most visible excrescence of a truly national scandal: the fearful domination of private money over the public interest. And it’s going to take something a lot more serious than the fall of Jack Abramoff—or an outbreak of bogus charity—to fix it.

10 January 2006

Why I Like Houston In January

My mom sends along the following photo of their yard, as a snow storm is pounding Oklahoma:

Oklahoma snow

It's pretty, but I'll take Houston in the winter!

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/10/06 11:26 | Other | Technorati | Comments (7)

Tough Call: Young Or Bush?

Young has NFL scouts dazed, confused (Randy Galloway, Fort Worth Star Telegram)

There's a respected NFL scout, a longtime friend, who has been giving me a blunt and brutal opinion for more than a year on the quarterbacking talents of one Vince Young.

By the way, both the blunt and brutal were part of an agreement that his name would never be used.

But this guy's standard line on Young as a future NFL quarterback was always "not with my name on him."

Meaning he certainly wouldn't be recommending that his team draft Young in the first round.

"Throws like a girl," was his non-PC answer as late as early December.

But this same scout was also at the Rose Bowl last week, evaluating talent.

When I caught up with him by phone over the weekend, he sounded dazed and confused.

"What do I think now?" he answered, repeating my question.

"I don't know what to think now. Except that Vince Young is the most unique player I believe I've ever seen.

"There's been nothing like him. I scouted [Michael] Vick a lot. He's better than Vick. But ..."

But what?

"If I worked for Houston, I wouldn't know what to tell them. I think I'd still take [Reggie] Bush with that pick. But somebody is really going to be very wrong, or very right, on Young."

[snip]

Some of us also say Vick is the most overrated player in the NFL.

But Young has more working for him, including the natural-born leader aspect, along with being a better passer.

Anyway, can a college quarterback limited to working out of the shotgun, and throwing with a funky sidearm delivery, actually be a success in the National Football League?

That depends on which scout you are asking.

Or which evaluation process is being used.

But Jeff Ireland believes strongly in Rac-Ac.

"Rac-Ac?"

Never heard of it.

Ireland, the Cowboys vice president of college and pro scouting, answered, "It means run-after-catch accuracy."

OK, now I understand.

Is the quarterback delivering the ball to the right spot, allowing a receiver to run for additional yardage after the catch?

"Vince Young does that, and does it well," said Ireland. "In our business, we look at his delivery, and it's so screwed up, the way he kinda flicks the ball out there with a side-armed motion.

"A scout sees that, and he goes, 'Oh, no.'"

But if you keep watching, explained Ireland, the ball is delivered with accuracy and touch.

"Young's Rac-Ac is very good," he said.

"And then you mix in the ability to buy time with his feet, escape trouble, and then do something after that, and you've got what we are looking for."

Is Ireland sold on Young being an NFL success?

"First, he's obviously a terrific talent, and second, I don't think the NFL has ever seen anything exactly like him," he answered. "If we had the first pick in the draft, a lot of work would be involved.

"But he's the kind of player, with that size, that speed and the ability to avoid the direct hit, well, I wouldn't want to be passing on him."

Jeff Ireland, with Bill Parcells' blessing, played a big role last year in upgrading the talent significantly in Dallas, through the draft and free agency. He's a guy who's probably worth listening to. He makes a very good point about Young's accuracy and touch (especially when moving around), something we've talked about here in the comments. There is no doubt Young is a college playmaker. I'm not so sure folks will be running around so wide open in the NFL when things break down, but I'm inclined to listen when pro-personnel directors say they look for guys like Young.

I think Young will be a success, eventually, in the NFL. I've also said recently that I prefer the Texans take Reggie Bush. But I'll just admit right now that I'm a lot like that scout that Galloway quotes -- if I had to tell Bob McNair which player to take, well, I wouldn't know exactly what to tell him. It's one thing rambling on a blog, but quite another actually to pull the trigger on the thing.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/10/06 08:49 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (6)

08 January 2006

That Ought To Make Things Interesting

Young decides to leave UT for the NFL: Longhorns star quarterback becomes the first player in a decade to leave school early for the draft (Suzanne Halliburton, Austin American-Statesman)

University of Texas quarterback Vince Young announced Sunday that there's nothing more he can do on the college stage and will forgo his senior season to take his talents to the National Football League.

His decision, which he prayed about with his pastor from Houston's Mount Horeb Missionary Baptist Church on Sunday morning, came just four days after he led the Longhorns to their first national football championship in 35 years.

"This has been a real fun ride, real beautiful," Young, an All-American and winningest quarterback in school history, told a roomful of reporters at UT's Moncrief-Neuhaus Athletic Complex. "I'm going to cherish the memories."

Texas fans will carry the memory of a confetti-splashed Young kissing the crystal national championship trophy minutes after the Longhorns secured a come-from-behind 41-38 victory over Southern California in the Rose Bowl last Wednesday night. Young dashed eight yards for the winning score with 19 seconds remaining, capping his 467-yard all-purpose performance to snap the two-time defending national champion Trojans' win streak at 34 games.

From Young's demeanor Sunday, it was obvious the decision was difficult. He became the first Longhorn to leave school early since defensive end Tony Brackens did so in 1995. No other player in Texas Coach Mack Brown's eight-year tenure in Austin has given up eligibility for the draft. Stars such as Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams and All-American running back Cedric Benson and linebacker Derrick Johnson turned down instant millions to stay in school for their senior seasons.

His stock will never be higher after his showing in the Rose Bowl, even if he had returned to win the Heisman. He made the right decision.

It also should make the Big 12 pretty interesting next year. Texas will fall back to the pack somewhat, with a number of teams expected to be better. There may not be a national championshp contender from the conference next year, but there should be some real battles.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/08/06 23:01 | Big 12 Football | Technorati | Comments (5)

07 January 2006

What A Punk

Marcus Vick dismissed from Va. Tech team (Associated Press)

Virginia Tech quarterback Marcus Vick was dismissed from the team Friday, the result of numerous legal transgressions and his unsportsmanlike conduct in the Gator Bowl.

University president Charles Steger announced the dismissal on the same day that coach Frank Beamer met with Vick and his mother in their Hampton Roads home, the school said. Beamer informed them of the decision during the meeting.

Vick, the younger brother of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, was suspended from school last year for several legal problems. The junior came under new and intense scrutiny this week after replays showed he stomped on the left calf of Louisville All-American defensive end Elvis Dumervil during the Jan. 2 bowl.

No penalty was called on the play and Vick claimed its was accidental. He further hurt his cause by claiming to have apologized to Dumervil, but the Louisville player said no such apology was ever offered.

On Friday, it was revealed that Vick had been stopped for speeding and driving with a revoked or suspended license in Hampton on Dec. 17. Vick's license had been taken away last year when he was cited for reckless driving and marijuana possession in New Kent County.

Stomping the calf of the Louisville player was a particularly punk move. Still, it's a little surprising to see anyone dismissed from the Virginia Tech program, for any reason at all.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/07/06 13:41 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (2)

Drama Queen Re-Ups With Dallas

Parcells staying with Cowboys: Deal keeps coach through '07; Jones likes team's direction (Jean-Jacques Taylor and Todd Archer, Dallas Morning News)

Five days after the end of a disappointing season that started with so much promise, Dallas Cowboys coach Bill Parcells agreed to a contract Friday that secures his future for the next two seasons.

The deal wipes out the last year of his existing contract and includes a substantial raise.

Financial terms were not disclosed, and his agent, Jimmy Sexton, could not be reached for comment. An ESPN report said each of the remaining two years were worth at least $5 million. Mr. Parcells has earned $4.25 million in each of the first three years of his contract.

"I just wanted to see what Jerry wanted to do," Mr. Parcells told The Dallas Morning News at Valley Ranch as he sat in his Lincoln Town Car with the door ajar.

"As soon as I found out, I was ready to go."

After the Cowboys lost to St. Louis, 20-10, Sunday and finished the season 9-7, the 64-year-old coach said he wanted to take a few days to decide whether he had the energy and stamina to withstand the rigors of a 19th NFL season.

I thought Parcells would play Drama Queen for at least another week, so it's good that this thing got resolved. I figured both Sean Payton (OC) and Mike Zimmer (DC) would get hired as NFL head coaches, Parcells would retire, and Jerry Jones would be forced to start over after every other team had gotten its head coaching pick. Thank goodness it didn't turn out that way.

My ideal scenario would be Parcells coaching for another two years, then easing into the personnel department, and Charlie Weiss coming on board as head man. That probably won't happen, but it would be pretty sweet.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/07/06 13:22 | Dallas Cowboys | Technorati | Comments (0)

06 January 2006

Just Another Day...

U.S. Sen. Harry Reid writes a letter (Steve Sebelius, Las Vegas CityLife, via Brothers Judd)

U.S. Sen. Harry Reid writes a letter to Interior Secretary Gale Norton, urging her to reject an Indian tribe's application to open a tribal casino.

One day later, a rival tribe opposing the casino request sends Reid's PAC $5,000, while a second rival tribe ponies up another $5,000.

Coincidence? Or the kind of quid pro quo of which federal indictments are generally made?

The question has been repeatedly asked in the past month, after the Associated Press revealed a massive letter-writing campaign from both Republicans and Democrats on behalf of Indian tribes represented by controversial lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Reid's March 5, 2002 letter (also signed by U.S. Sen. John Ensign) was part of that campaign. Reid has collected a total of $67,400 from Abramoff-connected clients between 2001 to 2004. Ensign took in $16,293, although he has reportedly given that money to the Nevada Patriot Fund, a group that takes care of service members killed in the Iraq occupation.

Was Reid wrong? Did he perform an official favor for Abramoff, who was frantically seeking congressional support to bar the Jena tribe of Choctaw Indians from opening a casino in Louisiana that was opposed by the Louisiana Coushattas and the Mississippi Choctaw tribes, both of which operate casinos that would have competed with the Jena operation? (In all, 33 lawmakers -- including U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley and House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. -- wrote letters to Norton opposing the Jena plan, and shared in an estimated $830,000 awarded by clients of Abramoff.)

Just another day in the wake of a "Republican" scandal, eh? :)

The entire story is an interesting read, actually. It would be an informative (but time-consuming) exercise simply to track the purely local coverage of all pols affected by this scandal, and to try to figure out which local news outfits get into the details heavily, and which local outlets take the lazy route and talk about "links" without much substantiation. Stories of national interest with local angles give local news organizations a real chance to shine, but they don't always take the opportunity (remember the Chronicle -- but not the Houston Business Journal -- getting scooped on Enron by national newspapers?)

Of course, for executive editors who like shiny things, sometimes it's more exciting to hire a new cartoonist than to cover the local/state beat fanatically.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/06/06 10:13 | Media Matters | Technorati | Comments (2)

05 January 2006

That's The Pete Carroll Bill Simmons Remembers

Bill Simmons has a hilarious column/liveblog/diary/thing posted on ESPN.

Great stuff.

And since everyone is rightly celebrating Vince Young's super performance last night, let's throw out this bit of fun from Simmons:

Let's be honest -- there's no way Vince can succeed in the NFL with that throwing motion. It's impossible. It can't happen. I'm telling you. There has never been a successful NFL quarterback who threw like that. And by "that," I mean, "throws like someone who just realized they have dog poop on their hand and is trying to fling it off."

Ouch.

In any case, he's a pretty darn good college QB.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/05/06 22:11 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (7)

04 January 2006

SuperVince

I wonder if USC fans were feeling pretty good with their team leading 38-26 with 6 minutes left?

After watching Vince Young all year, I just figured he was going to lead Texas to a dramatic comeback. And so he did. He's a special player.

Incidentally, I am already tired of seeing interviews of USC people (Pete Carroll and Matt Leinart). They got all the pre-game hype. Can Texas at least get a little post-game hype now? I mean, they did win the thing.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/04/06 23:29 | Big 12 Football | Technorati | Comments (8)

Who Cares What Casserly Thinks About The Seahawks?

Seattle stands out among the NFC contenders (Paul Attner, Sporting News)

It's sometimes difficult to remember there's a second conference involved in these playoffs considering all the attention given the Colts and those other AFC stars. To say the NFC can't match the AFC in terms of quantity and quality of its elite teams is not an exaggeration, just a fact.

But don't lump Seattle as part of this unimpressive bunch. As the wins mounted up, 11 in a row before Sunday's meaningless loss in Green Bay, the Seahawks gained respect within the league, particularly among their 2005 opponents. "I was more impressed with them after we played them than going in," says Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, whose team lost to the Seahawks, 28-24, in Week 15. "I kept looking for weaknesses on tape, but you will be hard-pressed to find one, particularly on offense. That makes them pretty tough."

The Seahawks have the conference's best quarterback (the underappreciated Matt Hasselbeck), a premier running back coming off his best season (Shaun Alexander) and a Super Bowl-experienced coach (Mike Holmgren). Playing at home, that offense should be good enough, particularly because opponents will have to fly a long way to play the Seahawks -- another plus. Still, an improved defense, which led the NFL in sacks (50), has injury issues in the secondary. "They just don't send terror down your spine," says Texans general manager Charley Casserly about the Seattle defense.

Well well, isn't that interesting?

Now that Charley Casserly has saved his own hide, in no small part by convincing malleable Chronicle columnist Richard Justice that Capers was far more responsible than he (Casserly) for the Texans' disastrous showing this year, Casserly has moved on to talking to sportswriters about other teams?!

Whatever. As sorry as the whole Texans' operation has been this year, Casserly needs to be focused like a laser beam on fixing what is wrong, not talking about other teams.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/04/06 18:25 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (2)

Danger Train Collision (With Blind Man)!

Laurence Simon alerted me to this collision with the Danger Train today:

A man was transported to the hospital with head injuries this morning after he was struck by a light rail train downtown, Metro officials said.

The victim, whose condition is unknown, was conscious and breathing after the accident, said Metro spokesman George Smalley. He was taken to Ben Taub Hospital.

The accident occurred near the intersection of Lamar and Main at 11:45 a.m. Three eyewitnesses told police they saw the man "walk in front of the train," Smalley said.

The man was walking northbound on the west side of Main and would have had to turn or walk to his right to get in the way of the train, which was headed southbound, Smalley said.

That's gotta sting.

Oh, and did I mention that the man struck by the train was blind?

A world-class celebration on Braille's Birthday, no? (Thanks to Laurence for making that connection).

Also, there was a Danger Train collision while I was hiking in the Ouachitas around Christmas that Anne blogged about on bH but that I never mentioned here. The collision actually derailed the Danger Train, making the streets safe for a short time. Emergency personnel treated it as a "mass casualty event" and several people were hospitalized (none of them died, so far as I know).

I cross that intersection (Elgin) every morning, and you better believe I look both ways and don't cross on green unless I'm sure the Danger Train is nowhere in sight. I've seen the operators speeding through that intersection, and I frankly don't trust them to stop if they have the stop light (they are never supposed to have the stop light, according to METRO, but I see it regularly).

I've completely lost count of the collisions, since METRO and local media aren't very good about getting these things reported.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/04/06 13:44 | Danger Train | Technorati | Comments (3)

03 January 2006

Shut Up And Play

Hopes are high that 3-4 defense goes into mothballs (Megan Manfull, Houston Chronicle)

Soon after Dom Capers was fired, a number of Texans said they want to see the 3-4 defensive scheme go with him.

The lobbying began as players cleaned out their lockers at Reliant Stadium soon after Capers' departure was made official Monday morning. Many players didn't seem nearly as concerned with the type of coach the Texans will hire as they are about the scheme that coach will bring with him.

"I do think the scheme played a part in what happened (to Capers)," cornerback Dunta Robinson said. "We've been in a 3-4 defense since Day 1. Sometimes, the players don't always fit the scheme.

"It has to do with you doing something totally different in college, and when you get here, they ask you to play in a system you're not comfortable in. You're supposed to put guys in positions they know how to play."

The NFL isn't college. Your job is to get comfortable with what the coaches come up with.

Besides, the last time I looked, Pittsburgh and New England had managed some success with the 3-4 defense. They wouldn't be bad teams for the pitiful Texans to emulate.

But it's good that Dunta Robinson got his interview for the coaching position out of the way. Now maybe we can get on to some real coaches.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/03/06 22:38 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (3)

01 January 2006

How To Blow Local Sports Coverage

UH applies the pressure: Cougars force 34 turnovers in win over McNeese (W.H. Stickney Jr., Houston Chronicle)

The Cougars (7-3) turned to their pressure defense during a sluggish first half in which they were stung by the 3-point shooting of guard John Ford.

With Ford making his first three attempts from beyond the arc, the Cowboys had no reason to fear the outside shooting of Lafayette and Lamar Smith.

Lafayette had a pair of treys during an 11-0 run that helped the Cougars mount a pair of 13-point leads in the first half.

Houston led 41-33 at halftime as the Cowboys shot 50 percent (13-for-26) from the field (5-for-7 from the arc.)

Smith (10 points, five assists) had a pair of treys during an 11-2 run early in the second half as the Cougars inflated the lead to 52-37.

The problem with this story (written by Stickney and not normal beat writer Michael Murphy)?

There is no Lamar Smith on the team. Stickney is referring to the Cougars' big playmaker Lanny Smith, a name that any local journalist who is going to cover local college basketball really ought to get right.

Oops.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/01/06 08:58 | Sports | Technorati | Comments (2)

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