just to say you don't like b-ball

time well spent lol what an adventure your life must be :)

Thanks again for good column, King!

I agree with many posters. Had high hopes for Suns with Big Cactus, but he certainly has weaknesses to go with his strengths. And it completely changed the Suns' game, which was awfully uneven but damn explosive, too.

In hindsight, I would've advised Suns to spend more time getting their minds right, doing mental focus excercises, executing on every single play, etc. Studying games of the Spurs not just to evaluate an opponent, but to see precision, teamball dedication, and mental toughness in action. It's a rarity to see a Spur out of position.

I fiercely hated the Spurs last year for the cheap fouls (and resulting bogus suspension), flopping, and Duncan's incessant whining, but even still Nash is right and I gotta give 'em props for doing what they do.

I'll still send flowers, though, if New Orleans sends 'em packing...

but I'll grant you that a person forwarding emails from right-wingers COULD just be monitoring the conversation, and isn't necessarily pushing the content.

That said, the Clinton campaign is slimy and dishonest. Lies, smears, flip-flops and intentionally trying to stoke racial/gender/class tensions and divisions are the bread and butter of this campaign.

To too many Clinton supporters, this is evidence that politics is a contact sport and Clinton has the gametes to play well.

To Americans fed up with the lies, scare-tactics, and, yes, Paternalism of the Bush administration, this looks frightengly familiar.

You can keep trying to blame Obama for this Orwellian nightmare that is the Clinton/McCain campaign and corporate media's tabloid propoganda, but it doesn't hold water, and I suspect you know it.

I am angry. I started by respecting the two candidates (but favoring Obama after Edwards' departure) and watched healthy competition and debate boost Democratic values and ideas. But then came the kitchen sink strategy, etc., etc.

The real "Elites" are the jaded cynics who think We The People are so stupid that we have to be lied to and have our fear/biases manipulated in order to do what's good for us.

(Or perhaps this is optimistic; are we sure what's good for us is even on the map? WalMart has eaten through how many small businesses owners in small town America?)

Now I like Lebron James. When he hit the scene, there was (understandably) a strong sense of "Who does this kid think he is?"

But it seems to me that the 18 year old kid with tons of press and money and athletic talent turned out to be an amazingly down to earth team player and decent guy.

The Washington Wizards didn't buy it. They adopted a strategy of "James isn't all that." They resented what they saw as James' pretension (like his idol Jordan, he wears 23), and they thought that—like many stars—he got more than his share of favors from the refs. The decided to get in his face, play tough defense, and even take tough fouls on him rather than let him get to the basket.

So far, this all sounds familiar and ok. Cleveland fans might object to this characterization, but teams all over the league manufacture narratives and amplify insults real or imagined to get themselves motivated and psyched up.

But here's the kicker: the Wizards didn't just play hard-nosed ball--they played dirty. They cut his legs without even trying for the ball. They actually punched and slapped him in the head while he was taking shots and even after plays had been whistled dead. They taunted him and talked trash. All on national tv (with instant replay).

James responded with calm and poise, playing well and even helping opposing players to their feet.

Washington fans, though, felt like they were the biggest victims in the world. They didn't see the objective reality that their players were taking cheap shots because they couldn't defend James. The cheered the tactics and called James a "cry baby" for having the temerity to be hit with sucker punches and keep on playing. And then, when one of their players was actually suspended for a cheap shot, they made him into a martyr of their cause.

Watching last night's game, I was also struck by how reluctant the sportscasters were to call the Wizards out on their pugilism. (I imagine they want to stay neutral and not get a billion letters from angry Wizards fans.) They spoke euphemistically of tough play and played the he said/she said game:

-some people think Lebron is soft

-some think the Wizards are a little rough

See what I mean? Or am I just imagining these parallels?

p.s. the Cavs advanced to the next round

Nice writing, and I agree that TAL is something to celebrate. Glass may be a bit awkward at times, or even a little precious, but he's also human and smart enough to be self-effacing and funny (not that the show never misses).

To my mind the show is a wonderful mix of an artistic aesthetic and genuine human empathy and curiousity.

In this glib age, it takes some courage to be earnest rather than hiding always behind ironic coolness, and I salute the effort and result.

"How about when Obama's in office? Will the Black Panthers and Louis Farrakhan be in charge?"

—tigercrane

I read this more as a rhetorical question than a charge/assertion, but think it's worth mentioning that Obama admires how Abe Lincoln chose a very non-partisan cabinet (explored in the book Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin).

I tend to think his cabinet would have a diversity of opinions/perspectives—not in the naughty centrist way of selling out principles for power, but in the constructive way of building bridges with Republicans, Independents, and socially conscious religious folk who can see common interests and want to fix our country...

just FYI...