10 Piece Nuggets

Ten Piece Nuggets-Life

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

We debated.

Usually, Mondays in the fall are dedicated to a rundown of the top 25 in NCAA football.  But, only half of the country is playing football right now.

And during our debate, we wondered how we could ignore the fact that the most anticipated debate, you know the one, is but 36 hours away.  So, the crossover between sports and politics these days has us doing the same.   While unfortunate, it’s reality.   Therefore, we chose to bring you a serving of Ten Piece Nuggets randomly chosen from all that is fit to virtually print.

  1.  One of the two BCS Playoff semifinal games in 2019 pitted LSU v. Oklahoma.  Before we hit October both teams are all but eliminated from the 2020 playoff conversation.  LSU debuted a new QB, Myles Brennan.  It mostly looked like his first game.  But he did manage to throw for 345 yards.  DC Bo Pelini’s new, more aggressive defense debuted as well.  It has miles to go.  Miss St. shredded the overmatched secondary for an SEC record 623 passing yards.
  2. Oklahoma managed to lose from ahead.  Leading 17-7 after one quarter, they trailed 24-23 by halftime.  Then their defense, which has always had miles to go, slept through quarter no. 3 and for a minute in the fourth as well.  Unranked Kansas St roared to a 48-23 insurmountable advantage and held on at the end for a 48-41 victory in Norman, OK.  Everything on defense is not OK in OK nor BR.
  3. What’s the main reason that we opted out (that’s a popular phrase these days) of a top 25 rundown? The Big 10 and PAC 12 will not kick off until late October at the earliest, but the AP decided all FBS teams planning to play in the fall would be eligible for inclusion (that’s a popular word these days) in the Top 25.  Most voters put the most highly regarded teams from those late-arriving conferences back into their rankings, but not all did.   That’s so 2020.
  4. Is there any truth to the rumor that if you Google search “PAC 12 football” the word “follower” pops up?
  5. On the football COVID front,  Georgia State didn’t need to postpone its game on Saturday at Charlotte after all.  On Sunday, the school announced that the postponement was the result of COVID-19 tests that were read incorrectly.  The incorrect results showed four positive individuals and contact tracing identified 17 others, including one coach, who would require quarantining.  According to Georgia State AD Charlie Cobb, those in question were retested on Friday, and that night all their results came back negative. Thursday’s swabs were retested and came back negative as well.
  6. We ask out of ignorance, “how do you get four tests of four different individuals all wrong all at the same time all independent of one another?  We ask out of further ignorance, “how do you retest the same four and get four negatives the next day?  People stand in line to get a Q Tip roto rootered three-quarters of the way to their cranium for this?

  7. Illinois State offensive coordinator Kurt Beathard quit his job Wednesday, over his apparent dislike for the Black Lives Matter movement’s intrusion into the locker room.  On his way out, Beathard admittedly left a note on his office door reading “All Lives Matter to Our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.”  From his comments, it seems that Beathard, the son of four-time Super Bowl Champion Bobby Beathard, may have become a suspect for tearing down a BLM sign in the locker room.  “That locker room crap is wrong. I took the sign down somebody put on my door,” Beathard told the paper. “I didn’t take anything off that wasn’t put on my door.”  Cancel culture works in mysterious ways.  He walked before it worked on him, we speculate.

  8. The New York Times published details Sunday of what it claimed were President Donald Trump’s tax returns to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), going back more than two decades, showing “chronic losses and years of tax avoidance,” it said.  And?  We ask a simple question.  Did he and his cadre of CPA’s do anything illegal?  And, the paper added that no evidence of any Russian collusion was uncovered.  Shocker.

  9. “Donald J. Trump paid $750 in federal income taxes the year he won the presidency. In his first year in the White House, he paid another $750,” the story continues.  And, Hollywood roared at the reveal.  Bette Midler was succinct, “that son of a bitch!”   Jane Lynch, whoever she is tweeted, “a clown living on credit.”  And Rob Reiner had the hottest take, “President Donald Capone.”  We ask again. Did he or his cadre of CPA’s do anything illegal?  Does anyone in Hollywood purposely pay more in taxes than they owe?

  10.  Mybookie.ag has the very latest presidential odds.  Joe Biden is favored.  He’s a $13 to win $10 bet.  President Trump is even money.  You bet $10 to win $10.  Want a long shot?  Kamala (remember pronounced “comma la”)  Harris returns $500 on a $10 plunk down.  Has anyone seen her since she was nominated for VP?  She’s been a scarce as Joe.  Does it matter?

That’s all folks!

Ten Piece Nuggets-Life

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

If you like your sports straight or neat like you like your whiskey, 2020 is producing bad barrels to pour.  Sadly, the two are intertwined far too much.  But, at least you can enjoy the Ten Piece Nuggets below where we give the zaniness to you straight if not neat.

  1.  Joe Biden, months back when asked, said the most important thing that he was looking for in a VP candidate was “the ability to take office on day one.”  It didn’t sound like a ringing endorsement of his own longevity.  Kamala Harris got the job and apparently is taking his concern to heart.  Yesterday on the stump she said, “A Harris administration together with Joe Biden as President of the US will provide 100 billion dollars in low-interest loans and investment to minority business owners.”  Biden’s hiding low and Kamala’s riding high.
  2.  Will the VP candidate, or based on the above the Presidential candidate, take time to visit the two LAPD officers who are recovering from the blatant assassination attempt Saturday?  She visited Blake and his family in Wisconsin and even had effusive praise for him.  Cali’s her home state.  Wisconsin wasn’t around the corner.
  3. Trump visited Kenosha, WI last month and met with law enforcement officials, but not Blake nor his family.  Do you think the battle lines for 11/3 could be drawn any more clearly on the above the law and total disorder front?
  4. Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva on Monday challenged NBA star LeBron James to match the reward money being offered for information on the gunman who ambushed and shot two deputies over the weekend.  Villanueva said the reward money reached $175,000.  “This challenge is to Lebron James. I want you to match that and double that reward,” Villanueva said. “I know you care about law enforcement. You expressed a very interesting statement about your perspective on race relations and on officer-involved shootings and the impact that it has on the African-American community.  “And I appreciated that,” he continued. “But likewise, we need to appreciate that respect for life goes across all professions.”
  5. Speaking of Cali, the record heat forced Governor Newsom to ask for thermostats to be raised or in-home power to be turned off altogether to minimize the widespread brownouts.  You wonder what happens in a year or three when millions more battery operated cars will need recharging in the citizen’s garages.
  6. Today is 49 days or exactly seven weeks till election day.  Do polls mean anything anymore?  If so, President Trump is doing better by 4% points with probable Jewish voters at this moment than how they exit polled in 2016.  He has the support of 30%.  It’s the highest since George Herbert Walker Bush in 1988 for a Republican.  The Jewish community has supported Democratic nominees every four years since Calvin Coolidge.  They are nothing if not very consistent.
  7.  Turning to sports, if you missed it, 54-year-old golfer John Daly announced Sunday that he has bladder cancer.  He’s quite the optimist about his recovery, saying that it was identified early.  BBR identified early on that Daly was one of our staff’s favorite people.  He’s plenty flawed like all of us, but he owns who he is and rarely apologizes for it.  We often say the same about Charles Barkley.  They put the “real” in keeping it real.
  8. “Caddyshack” turned 40 years old this summer. It’s abundantly quotable and features a cast of 1980s comedy titans including Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, and Rodney Dangerfield.  But Academy Award nominee Michael O’Keefe played the main character, Danny Noonan, a caddy at the fictional Bushwood Country Club.  Last week, O’Keefe wrote an open letter on Golf.com asking to be allowed to return to his caddying craft and be on a bag at Winged Foot this week.  O’Keefe got his wish Monday. He caddied for Danny Balin during practice rounds. O’Keefe even wore a Bushwood CC hat.
  9. Here comes the Tom Brady “can’t play any more stories.”  One week does not a season make.  With no preseason games it’s hard with a new cast assembled to have live bullets coming at you in week one.  In our overreactive media world, who must fill 24 hours everyday, it’s what they do.  And they do it poorly.  Brady is definitely not who he was, but let’s give it a few weeks in Tampa before we are convinced his world is ending shall we?
  10. Here’s more unsolicited advice.  A local respected NFL analyst noted that 12 of 14 teams that won through Sunday had the more mobile quarterback.  He went on to say that you cannot win in the NFL anymore without one.  Dropback passers are so yesterday.  Sure.  Like Brady’s missteps in week one, let’s let the season progress a bit before we head down every rabbit hole that can be written or spoken about.

You’ve been served.

Ten Piece Nuggets-Random

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Greetings from the middle of the country.  It’s 20 degrees cooler here than at the world headquarters of BBR.com.  Regardless, we have some hot takes below.  Ten Piece Nuggets, as random as they come, are served.

  1.  Biden’s reluctance to denounce violence after his party has all but encouraged it is a losing hand.  Polls told him so.  That’s why he reluctantly, finally said as much, ever so meekly earlier this week.  The public opinion for who is to blame for the “peaceful” violence shows up strongly in the latest JP Morgan Chase poll.  It shows an 8 point swing to Trump from Biden and advises investors that they see the race as 50/50% with a 5-6% unknown of respondents perhaps duping them by stating that they were Biden supporters but in fact are Trump supporters.  Hmm.
  2. Remember when Hillary famously said, “if you get him, you get me?”  She was referring to William Jefferson Clinton when he was running for President.  Well, if you get Joe Biden you get Kamala Harris.  And you get all that’s behind curtain number three says Monty as Joe is doing his best Weekend at Bernie’s impersonation of Bernie.  No, not Sanders.
  3. So who is Kamala (comma la)?  Is she the aggressive States’ Attorney General of Cali who drew significant criticism for throwing the book at criminals and refusing to hear appellate claims?  Or, is she the person who asked for donations through a fund set up to provide bail money for arrested “peaceful” rioters in Minnesota? Or is she a political chameleon?
  4. Nearly four years ago America rejected, first in the Republican primaries, then in the general election, all career politicians.  Like him or not Trump disposed of Graham, Rubio, and Bush first.  Then after Bernie (this time Sanders) stayed too long and wore Hillary Clinton down, Trump took her out.  Four years later you have a government career of 40 plus years in Biden and a career of approaching 30 years in government in Harris.  Will the pendulum swing back that far that fast?  The general election is nine short weeks from today.
  5. The President has momentum from the GOP convention and the above-mentioned polls on national violence.  Will Biden emerge from the basement and actually campaign or debate in person?  Incumbent Governor of Washington Jay Inslee (D) won’t.  Rush Limbaugh speculated yesterday that Inslee would be the first of many Democrats on the undercard to duck a face to face debate in an attempt to give cover to Biden to stay hiding.  Muhammed Ali emerged from a few rounds of “rope a dope.”  Will Biden?  He actually campaigned in person yesterday in Pennsylvania, home of Punxsutawney Phil ironically.
  6.  Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler is in so far over his head that he doesn’t even know which side of the narrative to take, so he takes both.  Take a look at his succession of tweets here.
  7. Madame Speaker Pelosi had her head in a washbasin yesterday.  She must have needed a wash prior to a dye of those pesky 80-year-old grey roots popping up again.  She also forgot her mask.  San Francisco, home of the speaker and the beauty salon, is a county that has not yet allowed salons to reopen.  Oops.  “It was a slap in the face that she went in, you know, that she feels that she can just go and get her stuff done while no one else can go in, and I can’t work,” salon owner Erica Kious told Fox News.  Will she blame it all on Trump today?  Surely some of the greys are his doing.
  8.  Would the Saints trade Alvin Kamara (should it be pronounced “comma ra” like Kamala?)?  You bet.  They likey won’t, but savvy GM Mickey Loomis and long time head coach Sean Peyton are wheeler-dealers and have a good deal of house money stored up with ownership.  They’ve never viewed Kamara as an every-down back and they aren’t going to break the bank accordingly.  His year-long nagging injury last year was a great equalizer to his vaunted elusiveness and furthered their view.  His three-day holdout ends today after they floated his name around the league.
  9. The NFL will follow the NBA and MLB’s lead allowing/encouraging social justice slogans and victim’s names on unis, and the playing field itself.  In fact, Commish Roger Goodell weighed in yesterday.  Citing a police officer shooting Jacob Blake in the back on Aug. 23 in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Goodell said the incident has “brought forth more feelings of anger, frustration, anguish, fear for many of us in the NFL family.”   NFL “family” member Colin Kapernick refused to comment when contacted by BBR.  Family.  Roger Roger.
  10. Rumor has it that the BIG 10 is strongly considering reconsidering their hasty decision to forgo fall football as well as all fall sports.  In fact, it is more than a rumor.  It leaked late last evening that Kevin Warren, Bug 10 Commish might now try for an early October start.  What’s the difference between Spring(as planned), October (as might be planned), late September (as the SEC. ACC, Big 12, and others have planned), and early September ( as the NFL is doing)?  Nothing.  Politics.  Power.  It’s all based on following the science we are told.  It’s never been based on science.

Time to for a walk in the cool breeze.

 

Ten Piece Nuggets-Sports, Random, and News.

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

It’s Friday.  And it’s time to get your happy hour started a bit early.  We’ve got ten hor deurves.  You need to make a beer run.  And, do not forget your mask.  To the Ten Piece Nuggets we go.

  1. Joe Maddon, manager of the 8-18 and last place LA Angels, is mad.  He’s tired of seeing SF reliever Shaun Anderson throw at Mike Trout’s head.  “Enough is enough,” Maddon said after Thursday’s 10-5 road loss dropped the Angels’ record to 8-18. “This is the major leagues. There’s a level of accountability here also.”  Just wondering, who should be held accountable for the 8-18 record?
  2. Do you remember when we all used to sing happy birthday to a family member or friend and then have them blow out all of the candles?   Then you would all have a slice of that cake.  Turns out that singing and a strong exhale or two (blow them all out!) might not be what the doctor advises in 2020.  Maybe in 2021?
  3.  The Washington Football Team continues to be in the news.  A few days after hiring the first-ever black President, this time the news isn’t so good.  Washington coach Ron Rivera has been diagnosed with cancer but plans to continue coaching.  Rivera was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma located in a lymph node, the team said in a statement. Rivera said the cancer is in the early stages and is considered “very treatable and curable.”   That part is good news.
  4. It’s way too early to deem the NFL protocols a success in holding  COVID-19 at bay.  But, a few days into 32 training camps a total of only four players have tested positive.  It’s a start.  And, there is a long way to go.  The NFL is pretty adamant about starting the season on time.
  5. No so fast NBA commissioner Adam Silver said.  His league is likely to delay its planned Dec. 1 start for the 2020-21 season.  The hope is to get paying fans back into arenas.  The league’s gross revenue is roughly 8 billion with a “b.”  The fans in the areas account for 40% of that, or 3.2 billion still with a “b.
  6. MLB has postponed 34 games this season because of positive tests and counting.  Two Mets’ games this weekend are postponed after two members of the traveling team tested positive yesterday.  MLB soldiers on though.  And, that is a good thing.
  7. The NFL Kansas City Chiefs are putting in place new policies during games at Arrowhead Stadium with regard to Native American imagery.  Fans are now prohibited from wearing headdresses into the stadium. Face painting that is styled in a way as to imitate Native American cultures is also prohibited.  The Arrowhead Chop and the pregame beating of a drum, often by a former player or coach or other local celebrity is also on the chopping block.  Maybe they can announce if the “chop” stays or goes by beginning with, “after further review, the ruling on the field….”  So, let’s see, keep the stadium name of Arrowhead, and keep the arrowhead logo, and keep the name Chiefs is fine.  But the fans, those dreaded creatures, they can’t be allowed to do anything to offend anyone.  After further review, this makes no sense.
  8. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot defended the Chicago Police Department’s ban on protesters being able to demonstrate on the block where she lives.  She told reporters yesterday that she and her family require heightened security because of threats she receives daily.  If it’s a peaceful protest, as we’ve been told repeatedly by the good mayor,  why worry about safety?  It only takes 51% of the voting population to put someone into office.  Does anyone have a tent big enough to put over the Chicago circus?
  9. Meanwhile, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms suggested that the GOP is using the Chinese coronavirus pandemic to “spread misinformation and interfere with voting,” forcing many to “risk their lives” to exercise their right to vote. Risk their lives?  Really?   It only takes 51% of the voting population to kick someone out of office as well.
  10. Joe Biden’s acceptance speech last night was only 24 minutes long.  But, most analysts and reporters thought it to be quite effective.  Hillary’s was twice as long four years prior.  Fans of the nominee turned out to watch the speech.  The DNC built security walls to barricade supporters and voters into a specific outside area to watch Biden’s speech.  The walls were set up to keep both progressive and conservative protesters at arm’s length.  Again, there was no word on why this was needed for the “mostly peaceful” protests that have been popping up across the country.

Have a peaceful weekend.

 

Ten Piece Nuggets-Sports and Life Intertwined

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Sports and the real world are joined at the hip these days.  And that is unfortunate.  The escape has escaped us for now.   Hopefully, it will return.  Ten Piece Nuggets return below and reflect on just that.

  1.  The wokest (auto correct wants to turn wokest into weakest, hmmm) of the Power 5 college football conferences, the Pac 12, has a problem/opportunity on its hands.  Football players believed to be numbered in excess of 100 across the conference authored what they call The Players Tribune, and presto #WeAreUnited is born.  It’s a rapidly evolving set of demands.  That’s how The Movement works.   For now, know that they want a lot more than just a stinking full-ride scholarship to a great university.
  2. Their leverage, at least in their minds is to opt-out of playing this fall if their demands are not heard.  The Movement gives them the microphone to try to advance these causes at this time.  COVID-19 provides further cover.  It always sounds logical to demand “player safety” needs to be met if not exceeded.
  3.  Why should they risk exposure if schools aren’t assembling in their traditional manner this fall?  Actually, it’s a lot safer for the players if the regular students aren’t on campus.  They’re getting tests and test results a lot quicker than the general population too.
  4. They’ve asked for 50/50 percent revenue sharing.  Best of luck there.  The football teams underwrite the other sports programs and acutely the female sports teams.   Some colleges even siphon off the excess to subsidize the out of control costs of the college itself.
  5. “They see all of this clearly through the lens of racial justice,” said Ramogi Huma, the founder of a college athlete advocacy group called the National Collegiate Players Association.   Apparently free room, free books, free education, free health care, free tutors, free food, positional coaches, strength coaches, nutrition coaches, and head coaches aren’t enough.  It’s exploitation they say.  Why did they sign the scholarship papers to begin with?  It must have sounded like a good deal until it didn’t.  Justice dammit!  It’s never enough.
  6. The NBA tipped off.  Did you watch it?  The ratings will be interesting to watch to see how many decided to watch.  MLB entered week two.  At least 30 teams did.  Miami is still in time out.  Philly was.  St. Louis might be headed that way.  Shortened and late start seasons, no fans, opt-outs, virus concerns, and social justice concerns make for a less than desirable product we think.
  7.  Hey Joe.  Hey Joe!  Wake up.  It’s time.  Who is your VP nominee? You promised us an answer in the first week of August.  Will it be a minority candidate like Kamala Harris?  Or, will it be a minority candidate like Native American Elizabeth Warren? The suspense is killing us.  No, it’s not.  Have you seen one, just one, yard sign in your town that promotes Biden for President?  The election isn’t about electing him.  It’s about ousting Trump.  It’s the only way the Democrats can sell this lipstick on a pig candidate.
  8. In a Facebook post on Sunday morning, political commentator Dan Bongino wrote:  Not a joke and not hyperbole – I’m hearing from people close to the situation that Biden’s cognitive decline is rapidly worsening and is becoming increasingly difficult to mask. The Democrats are going to have to make a decision soon.  The excuses (Trump lies, so don’t waste your time) to get him out of debating The Donald are flowing.  Like him or not Trump is a young 73 in many ways.  Like him or not, Biden is an old 77 in many ways.
  9.  Biden’s been hiding for months.  Looks like Bill Clinton has gone underground as well.  Or did he go to a remote island?  Well actually according to some flight logs released in court documents emanating from the pending Ghislaine Maxwell case Willie did head to Epstein’s island 11 times.  What’s weird is that he opted out (not like the Pac 12 kids) of Secret Service coverage for seven of the trips.  Slick he is.
  10. And finally, Black Lives Matter (BLM) protesters issued “social justice” and “black liberation” demands regarding “diversity” to a restaurant owner in Louisville, KY, including a directive for “donations” to organizations run by non-whites.  Sounds like a shakedown.

We’re opting out to a remote island now.

Ten Piece Nuggets-Life as We Know It

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Our summer of discontent rolls along as the year 2020 continues to disappoint.  We’ve got some nuggets to get you through the start of the workweek.

  1.  Redskins owner Daniel Snyder is a little red in the face.  A few days after announcing that the Redskins nickname and logo were gone, he announced that three of his close inner circle coworkers were as well.  A third party investigation confirmed 15 claims of sexual harassment within.  Snyder wasn’t directly implicated, but his leadership, or lack thereof, was.
  2.  In his statement, Snyder condemned that behavior, and said he wants to set “a new culture and standard for our team.”  Snyder has owned the team for 21 years.  All claims occurred under his reign.  Sometimes it just takes time.  Would he have relented on the Skins name if he didn’t know ahead of time that he was going to get taken to task for this mess as well?  Better to keep the team and say mea culpa than to stand on heretofore principle, eh?
  3.  Speaking of people who had heretofore principle,  Drew Brees thought it wise to tweet out his concerns for the NFL’s lack of concern for the players this coming season.  He’s worried that the league isn’t doing enough to combat/minimize/eliminate that pesky virus that you can’t see that hits you like a blindside linebacker.  Sounds like more Brownie points with his teammates to us.  Perhaps tomorrow he’ll tweet out how unjust the virus is to those facing systemic racism.  Oh, say can you see (see what we did there?) Brees kneeling for the first game’s national anthem?  His two WWII grandfather vets would be so proud of his leadership recently.
  4. A local Arizona TV station scored a rare TV interview with Joe Biden.  News anchor Mark Curtis said, “Arizona is very much in play in 2020, so we appreciate you taking some time and talk to the people of our state.”  “Oh, you’re an important city.  You guys are going through hell right now, are ya?” Biden responded.  Like Phoenix, Biden has risen from the ashes.  Well, sorta.
  5. Speaking of TV, CNN reported “breaking news” yesterday.  Eighty-five infants under the age of 12 months have tested positive in one Texas county they tweeted.  The Nueces County health examiner took to the podium after hysteria broke out and clarified that these have been recorded cumulatively since mid-March.  One is too many, but is 85 too many?  No context was given relative to any other county or age group.  No infants died directly due to the virus, though one died of as of yet undetermined causes.
  6.  Down in Florida, an incredible story is developing.  Nearly 150,000 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported.  The change in the number of hospitalizations or ICU beds needed is negligible.  Are the elderly staying inside?  Is the medicine used in combinations improving outcomes?  Is it a somehow weaker strain?  Maybe CNN can enlighten us on what should be a real story of great interest.
  7.  The peaceful protesters in Seattle decided to spray paint and break the front windows of a downtown Amazon Go storefront yesterday.  Amazon put the “Black Lives Matter” statement front and center on its web page and contributed over $10 million to the cause weeks back.  For the Antifa militants and the other rioters that apparently wasn’t enough.  Is it ever?
  8. Police in Seattle were nowhere to be found as this went down.  Are they ever when it comes to this?  Wait until they get defunded.  Would three out of ten rioters even be able to tell you why they targeted Amazon?  Could it be that over 1,000 police departments across the U.S. have partnerships with Ring, the smart doorbell security owned by Amazon? Additionally, human rights groups have called for the ban of Amazon’s facial recognition technology, Rekogntion, which they argue poses a threat to immigrants and religious minorities.   Why identify criminals in this woke world?
  9. Kamala Harris is the likely VP candidate and running mate for Joe Biden, don’t you think?  Biden has delayed the announcement twice.  He didn’t delay while she recovered from plastic surgery, did he?  Botox?  She got her money’s worth on the high and tight part.  We aren’t judging.
  10. Or did he delay due to warring factions within the party?  A group of “progressives” representing a large proportion of delegates won by Sen. Bernie Sanders in California has signed a letter to Biden urging that he pick a running mate from a shortlist of candidates that does not include local Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA).  She has long had trouble consolidating support from the left because of her record as a prosecutor in San Francisco and California.  Like Amazon, she should not identify nor punish criminals in this woke world.

If the NCAA announces a postponement or cancellation of the upcoming fall season this week, you should pray for one BBR staff member.

 

 

 

Ten Piece Nuggets-Life

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

With hot dogs, apple pie, prohibited fireworks, and tearing down statues, America celebrated it’s 245th Fourth of July.   It’s life in the year 2020.  Oh, and there is this coronavirus problem, too.  So below, it’s life served up one nugget at a time, and ten in all.  Pass the BBQ sauce and dig in.

  1.  Portland, as American as it gets it the weirdest of ways, had a big monument, and a bronzed elk perched beautifully on top.  Yes, an elk.  Had.  Some “peaceful” protesters lit it on fire Saturday and kicked the elk to the curb.  ANTIFA took credit (if you want to call it that).  Either the elk was racist or Portlandian vegans’ disdain for meat reached its zenith.
  2. Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffery Epstein’s lover and procurer of underage girls was arrested in New Hampshire Sunday.   The noise you heard from across the pond was Prince Andrew’s exasperation.  The noise you heard on this side of the pond was Bill Clinton’s exasperation.  The FBI has recommended she be held in Bubba Wallace’s garage during her mandatory forty eight hour suicide watch.  They know for a fact that there are no nooses there.
  3. She has a story or twenty to tell.  Might she know where Carol Baskin’s husband is as well?  Tiger King was the most-watched Netflix documentary ever.  If Maxwell is smart (see what we did there?) she’ll spill it all and collect the coins like a king from the streaming network of her choice.  All she has to do is survive long enough to tell it.
  4.  CNN reported, and we quote, “a young protester has died from injuries she suffered when a luxury car plowed into her and another woman during a Black Lives Matter protest Saturday on a Seattle Freeway that has been shut down for days due to the civil unrest, police said.”  It’s getting harder and harder for CNN to lower the bar.  But, try, try, try they have.   You can’t stop looking at the word “luxury” can you?
  5. It turns out that the white protester, dressed in all black, was struck down by a black driver in the middle of the night.  If those facts were reversed, do you think the story’s biased slant would have gone down a dramatically different slope?  Stack another dead body on top of the pile.  The freeway was not located in the town formerly known as CHAZ.  Everything else in CHAZ was free, but it had no freeways running through it.
  6.  Head Coach Mike Gundy of the Oklahoma St. Cowboys survived a two-week investigation into his leadership of the football program.  The internal inquiry spanned two weeks and the AD and his minions interviewed over 20 players.  This came to a boil when Gundy went fishing in an OAN tee shirt.   The investigation found no indications nor incidents of racism.  It did find that relationships between Gundy and several players were strained.  With several teams changing nicknames, maybe “Cowboys” should hit the bricks as well.   “Soyboys” anyone?
  7. Gundy voluntarily agreed to a million-dollar salary reduction and a lesser buyout in dollars and fewer years on his contract.  Good for him we guess.  Way back in the day bosses and employees or coaches and teammates had a person to person conversation, shook hands, and came out of the other side in a better spot.  Gundy also agreed to never shout “I’m a man” again.  No, he didn’t.
  8. The Washington Redskins organization has decided to take a deep dive (again) about removing the “Redskins” moniker.  It’s faced this fourth down and long a few times.  This time they’ll likely punt.  Once the offensive nickname goes, will “Washington” have to follow?  The team’s ownership is the league’s worst as well.  It should go too.  The minority owners have 40% of the franchise.  They’ve had it with majority owner Daniel Snyder.  They’ve formed a search team looking for buyers as they’d like to sell out as well.  In summary, the whole organization is a sellout and offensive to boot.
  9. Rapper Snoop Dogg has smeared several prominent black conservatives, again.  He labeled them the “Coon Bunch.”  His Sunday Instagram post arranged the 11 just as the Brady Bunch appeared on TV.  Herman Cain, Candace Owens, and Terrance Williams amongst others were depicted.  Noticeably absent was Kanye West who is a big Trump supporter.  It turns out that Dogg and West are collaborating on some production work.  “Coon” and “Uncle Tom” are common slurs used by black Americans against black conservatives.  Sounds divisive.
  10.  When America is done burning down cities, changing street and team names, and knocking down statues will it actually have a frank conversation about what the root cause of all of this is?  Real change comes from within.  Brutal honesty will be needed.  Are the accused and the accusers up for it?

Oh.  One last nugget.  If FedEx wants out of their naming rights relationship with the Redskins, BBR is poised to step in.  We want to make football in the DC area great again.

Stay out of the pool for thirty minutes after consuming these tasty morsels.

 

 

Ten Piece Nuggets-2020

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

After a long weekend, and a tough Tuesday that felt like Monday times three, you need your strength.  Time for Ten Piece Nuggets.

  1.  The Brood IX Cicadas are coming!  The Brood IX Cicadas are coming!  Periodical cicadas(locusts) are expected to come out in early summer across southwest Virginia, parts of North Carolina, and in West Virginia.  The last time the cicadas emerged in many of those regions was in 2003.
  2.  As many as 1.5 million of the insects can emerge per acre of land.  While they are some of the longest-lived insects in the world, periodical cicadas spend almost their entire lives underground as what entomologists call “nymphs”.  They’ll last above ground for six weeks at most.
  3. This reminds us of Joe Biden who emerged from his basement Monday long enough to place a wreath at the base of the monument that honors fallen soldiers from the great state of Delaware.  His better half, Dr. Jill was at his side.  Both were sporting facemasks.  Vain Donald Trump and wife Melania did the same in DC without a mask.  Cynics and critics are plentiful.
  4. We doubt that the cicadas will bother with a mask.  And, they’ll go back to shelter in place by late June.  We’ll know when they reemerge in spring 2037 if that process actually works.  Timing is everything.
  5. If you looked at the news on the weekend it looks like the majority of America is pretty much done with sheltering in place.  The parties were many, the locations numerous, and the crowds were large.
    Party On, Lake of the Ozarks

    But the Lake of the Ozarks pool party pic takes first prize for gross indifference to the cause.

  6. Which brings us to the great mask debate of 2020.  Now that all of the “science and data” has allowed some but not all states to restart, that same “science and data” is pulling us in two directions about the request/need/mandate to wear face masks.  Never let a crisis go wasted to score political points as well.  As usual the country is divided on a subject and has some strong feelings on it.
  7.  We wonder if Biden suddenly discovered its benefit?  It’s 50/50 if he knows whether it benefits him or those around him.  Black wasn’t his facemask color of choice for any particular reason was it?  “If you ain’t wearing a black facemask it ain’t a black facemask man!”
  8. Meanwhile, Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon has apologized for a skit he did on “Saturday Night Live” in 2000 during which he portrayed Chris Rock while wearing blackface.  According to CNN, video of the skit resurfaced recently on social media channels.  Fallon apologized on Twitter yesterday saying he “made a terrible decision.”  “There is no excuse for this. I am very sorry for making this unquestionably offensive decision and thank all of you for holding me accountable.”
  9. Using Twitter to apologize is the “new normal” these days.  Don’t you hate the phrase “new normal?”  When did what you did before COVID-19 become the “new normal?”  And, before that was the old, old, then new normal, correct?  We digress.  What’s weird is that Fallon has known that he did the skit since, well, since he did the skit. That’s 20 years.  The cicadas have come and gone and now about to come again since then.   Yet, he only apologized yesterday.  Hmm.  The cicadas shed their old nymph skins (ecdysis), expanding their wings, and changing to their adult coloring.  Sounds similar to a 20-year-old Twitter apology.
  10. MLB 2020 has yet to throw out its first pitch.  Now league officials and the player’s union are trying to get together on a plan to launch an abbreviated season.  When, where, who plays who, how many times, and who gets to watch are but some of the questions they face in their “new normal.”  Yesterday, the players union balked at the compensation that the teams want to shell out.  Fewer games, how many fans, and what is the TV revenue all goes into the budget equation.  They’ll get it together.  But, with unemployment fast approaching 20% it’s not a good look when billionaires argue with millionaires.  It never is.

The cicadas swarm is very loud.  It’s like getting mask shamed by an angry crowd at Walmart.  Eat your nuggets and stay away from both.

Ten Piece Nuggets-Life

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

As society wonders about what it’s future will look like, we decided to serve you ten nuggets as we wander around in life as we know it today.  They’re scattered about your plate randomly, but give us a break.  They’re tasty as always.  We don’t upcharge for home delivery.  And, most restaurants are still closed.

  1.  Did you know that Jeffery Epstein had a private office on the Harvard University campus?  Harvard reportedly gave Epstein his own office on campus in exchange for almost $10 million in donations he gifted to the university between 1998 and 2007.
  2. He was convicted of underage sex crimes in 2008. Epstein reportedly visited the campus more than 40 times after being released from jail in 2010.   Money talks and Harvard apparently is always listening.  Harvard University President Lawrence Bacow said in September of 2019 that the Ivy League institution feels “regret” accepting nearly $10 million in gifts from Jeffrey Epstein.  Regret?  What a heartfelt response.
  3. The Harvard University endowment (valued at $40.9 billion as of 2019) is the largest academic endowment in the world.  Might they consider a $10 million dollar gift to some worthy institution that combats crimes against children, especially sex crimes?  Probably not it seems.
  4. Harvard University will receive nearly $9 million in aid from the federal government through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, the Department of Education announced last week.  The amounts vary, but almost every school across the land received some as well.  Might they consider a $9 million dollar gift to some worthy institution that combats crimes against children, especially sex crimes?  Probably not it still seems.
  5.  Madam Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi remained comfortably ensconced in her posh northern Cali home last week.  With so many ice cream flavors to choose from who could blame her.  She blocked the House’s attempt to vote remotely on matters before them citing concerns that it would not be a safe way to do so.  Meanwhile, she has been a loud proponent of vote by mail in the upcoming November 3rd general election. Hmm.
  6.  How do you justify a stance that is opposite of a stance on a very similar subject as she does above?  It’s really not that hard for some.  Take Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.  Please.  “Just because you’re a survivor doesn’t mean that every claim is equal,” she told CNN. “It means we give them the ability to make their case, and the other side as well, and then to make a judgment that is informed.”  Whitmer is apparently an expert on how Tara Reade’s claim of sexual assault differs from Christine Blausey Ford’s claim against the now Supreme Court Judge Kavanaugh.
  7. How does Whitmer find the time to be so well informed on so many subjects given her pressing need to manage Michigan’s coronavirus situation?   Easy.  She just locked down the state another two weeks through May 15.   “Whether you agree with me or not, I’m working to protect your life if you live in the state of Michigan,” Whitmer said, defending her stay-at-home order that extends through May 15. “We’re going to listen to facts and science because we’ve got to get this right.”
  8.  It can’t be lost on anyone at this point that, in general, Republican governors are relaxing restrictions in their states while Democrat governors are extending restrictions.  The original idea was to flatten the curve.  What is it now?  What does an additional two weeks closure do?  Did those same “facts and science” tell you to close down two weeks earlier before Detroit became a hotspot like few others?  And, do you need to treat rural counties the same as metro Detroit?
  9. No one is forced to go into a restaurant.  Individualism and human rights are getting lost in the cause.  And the cause now has blurred lines.  You can wait until a vaccine is available if you wish.  It’s your right.  Several viruses to this day have no vaccine.  It’s still your right.  Does the government attempt to make you more dependent or independent?
  10.  Meanwhile, the NFL continues to have the only “live” sports news worth talking about.  Fresh off of blowout record TV ratings for their draft last week, they will release their regular season schedule this week.  Its plan is to start on time in early September as usual and end as usual in early February with the Super Bowl.  They have contingency plans too, of course.  ESPN estimates that the absence of sports since March will erase at least $12 billion in revenue and thousands of jobs. That total will more than double if college football and the NFL don’t play this fall.
  11. (Lagniappe)  Kim Jung Un is the modern-day North Korean version of Mark Twain.  Rumors of his death were greatly exaggerated. “I, for one, am glad to see he is back, and well!” Trump tweeted.  Whoever coined the phrase “politics makes for strange bedfellows” was prescient.

Cinco de Mayo is but 24 hours away!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ten Piece Nuggets-Random

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

With news coming at us from all angles and sports news scarce, we chose the Ten Piece Nuggets route this AM.   Below are as random of a collection of thoughts on a wide range of subjects as you can get.  A lot of time on our hands means that a lot enters and exits the mind these days.  The delivery matches the country’s mindset we think.  Look at it this way- at least you don’t have to tip for this delivery.

  1.  Are you still surprised that Tom Brady is a Tampa Bay Buccaneer?  Stuff happens, especially in 2020.  Jerry Rice, Brett Farve, Joe Montana, and Marcus Allen all starred for one team for a long time.  They all won Super Bowls.  They all are in the HOF.  And, they all finished their careers with a different team.  Nonetheless, it will still look strange when (should we say if?) Brady trots out from under the pirate’s ship this fall.
  2. OJ Simpson is yet another.  The longtime Buffalo Bill finished his career in a different uniform too.  He became a 49er for a stint.  Of course, he also wore a different uniform for two other stints as well.  One was for a year in the LA County uni.  And, he made yet another comeback with about an eight-year run (Run OJ, run) just outside of Vegas.  But we digress.
  3.  Speaking of drama in Vegas, predictably the NFL show must go on.  The draft is later this month, but won’t be held in the middle of the Bellagio Fountain as planned.  It will be done virtually like it was many, many years ago.  An in-studio set and a network of computers will replace a smoke-filled room and 30 phone lines.  We predict record numbers will watch and watch.
  4. Why record numbers?  If America couldn’t turn its eyes away from Tiger King, the Netflix documentary smash hit, it’s a Vegas sure tell that we are all looking for something to get our minds off of the silent enemy.
  5. While on the Tiger King subject, we wonder.  Is the only one in jail, Joe Exotic, the most “normal” person of all of the actors/characters/people in the seven-part series?  And, isn’t there another documentary screaming at Netflix emanating out of this one?  How did Carole Baskin’s first husband just disappear?  No one just disappears.
  6. And, since we are all bored out of our minds, BBR recommends Succession to you.  The characters are filthy rich, awkward, weird, and out of their minds, too.  The staff wrapped up watching season one last night.  You could do worse.
  7. Adam Schiff, who thankfully we were able to forget for two months, is back at it.  He wants his House Intelligence(we have our doubts) Committee to investigate what we the government did wrong as this pandemic raced to us and through us.  Too soon? It’s never too soon to grab the narrative.
  8. Speaking of investigations, should someone look a bit deeper into the $25 million given to the JFK Performing Arts Center?  The ink isn’t dry yet on the money that the Feds should not print, but will.   It was announced, and BBR is looking deeper into the facts, that the Center made a $5 million donation to the Democratic National Committee late last week.   We don’t know the exact definition of money laundering.  But, this looks like it could use a second rinse cycle to get the tough stains out.
  9.  At a time when nearly all hospitals have canceled elective surgeries for the foreseeable future, Planned Parenthood is requesting donations of personal protective equipment (PPE) for its staff as the group demands elective abortions continue during the coronavirus crisis in the United States.  Meanwhile, Planned Parenthood’s fighting the restrictions of our current state of shutdown.  The group is suing the state of Texas for banning services after declaring abortion “non-essential.”  This one is getting interesting.
  10.  And, finally, here is a BBR staff plea.  Tell everyone you see or talk to who is not practicing social distancing to please do so whenever possible.  Does it help or not is not the question.   It’s not the question because it would be better to do it and find out it doesn’t help than to not do it and find out that it would have.  It’s not very hard either.

Time to run.  Joe Exotic called while we were penning this.  He says that he knows where Hoffa is buried too.