The NBA: I Can’t Watch This Game

Posted on February 2, 2015 by admin

Ridiculous RS: vocals, guitar, bass; TomP: percussion & production

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“Basketball, of all sports, is easiest to manipulate.” — Garth Woolsey, sports columnist for the Toronto Star

The NBA arguably sports the best athletes in the world.
Basketball is a deceptively simple game; one that looks easy, but in actuality is very difficult to play well.
Ambidextrous skills are required, and its speed & quickness are hard for non-players to truly judge & appreciate.

When played well, professional basketball is a beautiful TEAM game.

So why does the NBA, the best basketball league in the world, continue to have declining television viewership & fan attendance? It’s because the NBA is perceived by many basketball purists as being selfish, dirty, and a fixed league. Evidence for this thesis is best illustrated with video proof, provided below.

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy became infamous in 2007, before reports of a FBI investigation into his betting on games he officiated during his final two seasons.
Donaghy was found guilty, and spent 11 months in prison for his actions.
He cooperated with the FBI, in exchange for a reduced sentence. In his testimony he described the nature of NBA officiating under commissioner David Stern, which is illustrated in this 60 Minutes interview and his book, Personal Foul: A First Person Account of the Scandal that Rocked the NBA.

Any whistleblower must be judged for their integrity, to be determined credible. As the scandal broke, Stern was asked by the media about Tim Donaghy’s rating as an official, his response was, “As a matter of on-court performance, he’s in the top tier of accuracy.” No evidence has ever been produced implicating Tim Donaghy for fixing any games he officiated, either for himself or the NBA.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-FLHKsbWkU

The idea that a LEAGUE would fix its games, including its championship series, is unthinkable to many–yet it makes sense when sports are looked upon as a business, which is precisely what they are.
Professional sports are defined by the courts as entertainment, and the leagues including the NFL, MLB, NHL & NBA are legally allowed to fix their games, if they so choose.
Fixing games, in order to maximize fan interest & television ratings is simply smart business.

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The most popular and marketable player in NBA history was undoubtedly Michael Jordan. After Larry Bird & Magic Johnson retired in the early 1990’s, Jordan became the centerpiece in David Stern’s strategy of marketing its biggest names. Preferential treatment from the refs had become the norm for star players, and Air Jordan became unguardable, in every sense of the term. The Chicago Bulls would win 6 championships from 1991-98, with very little resistance, as none of those NBA Finals went more than six games, in a best-of-seven format.

By the time of Michael Jordan’s second retirement, the NBA fell into a ratings crisis, from which they still haven’t recovered; the 2014 regular season & post-season ratings are half of what they were in 1998, Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls.

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The NBA from February 1, 1984 – January 31, 2014, was under the control of commissioner David Stern, a high-powered lawyer known for his dictatorial style. He inherited a league on the rise with Bird & Magic providing a natural rivalry in Boston & LA, and an influx of talent in the mid 1980’s that would become the heart of the 1992 Olympic Dream Team; likely the best basketball team ever assembled, even though it excluded all-time NBA greats Hakeem Olajuwan and Isiah Thomas.

As these legends faded & retired in the 1990’s, what largely replaced them wasn’t at that level of greatness & maturity. The next generation of NBA stars were often players who left college early, including: Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway, Vince Carter, and Jason Kidd; or in the cases of Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, and later LeBron James– jumped straight from high school to the NBA. These young players whom David Stern chose to elevate to superstar status, were often seen more for their selfish behaviour–on & off the court, than for their basketball skills.

Criticism of star players & the officiating in particular was always muted by Stern, who labelled it “corrosive.” The Director of Officiating and league officials office, which represents the NBA owners, were staffed with yes-men who would comply with Stern’s diktats. Ed T. Rush, Ronnie Nunn, Stu Jackson, and Rod Thorn were the mediocrities deputized to manipulate officiating and gag any criticism, with a system of financially punitive fines and suspensions-without-pay.

Players, coaches, team executives & owners were punitively fined for publicly questioning officiating. Referees are still not permitted to speak to the media unless the NBA approves it in advance. All this has led to a double standard in officiating, where star players & top-money teams benefit, in order generate fan ‘excitement’ & maximize revenue. This process, which began in the 1980’s, qualitatively changed in the 2000’s, where league championships & playoff series are now rigged to ensure marquee match-ups & prolonged series, in order to generate more revenue.

Two of the most infamous examples (there are many more) of the NBA manipulating championship outcomes are:

2002 Western Conference Finals: Lakers/Kings
This blatant officiating bias was clear to anyone watching at the time. Over a decade later, it is still pointed to by basketball fans as the most obvious fix in NBA history. Shaq & Kobe, along with head coach Phil Jackson and half of Hollywood in the crowd, were certainly the favorites of David Stern. The Sacramento Kings were clearly the best team in the 2001-02 NBA, and this entire series was a tragic farce. Anyone who claims this horrible officiating was an accident is either lying or hopelessly naive.

2006 NBA Finals: Heat/Mavericks
After Shaq was traded by the Lakers, he teamed with D-Wade in Miami to become the newest NBA dynamic duo and David Stern marketing darling.
Watch this critical final sequence at the end of pivotal Game 5 (series tied at 2-2, tie score), as Dwyane Wade commits a back-court violation on the in-bounds pass (not called), then drives and gets the phantom foul call to win the game at the free throw line.
This was a re-occurring scenario all series, and is one of the examples discussed in Donaghy’s book.

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The prize of the inaugural 1985 NBA Draft Lottery was Patrick Ewing (C, Georgetown), and it was well understood that NBA commissioner David Stern wanted him in the biggest media market.
Stern is also a lifelong Knicks fan.
The NY Daily News reported the accounting firm of Ernst & Whinney, hired by the NBA to seal the envelopes, also audited the accounts of Gulf + Western.
Gulf + Western (renamed Paramount in 1989) owned the NY Knicks in 1985.
Watch this video and note the fourth envelope as it is tossed into the side of the drum, folding a corner.
It is this bent envelope which David Stern reaches for, uncreases with his left hand, and then announces as being the #1 pick.

Of course all this video evidence is circumstantial, as hard proof of manipulation as policy is impossible without an admission from higher-ups. Stern would say he’s not that good a magician; his opponents would point out that he is.

It is simply the consistency of this circumstantial evidence that leads so many to the conclusion, the NBA is fixed. The whistles & lottery winners favor large-market franchises & star players so overwhelmingly, that the chances of this being a coincidence are statistically reduced to nil. Decide for yourself.

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Physical play is another feature of the NBA– No Bitches Allowed. Its de-evolution into downright dirty play, is a reflection of ruling-class values. The plutocracy that dominates our global political economy is the core ideology for all professional sports, and therefore rigged leagues with unequal rules and condoned violence are logical outcomes.

Some of the NBA’s biggest stars are allowed to be its dirtiest players, for instance watch what happens to those who try to defend Kobe Bryant:

Watch here as Dwyane Wade kicks his defender in the groin, cross-checks opponents going to the basket, and generally take offense to any player who attempts to guard him closely. All this earned him a one-game suspension, in total.

Bruce Bowen was probably the dirtiest player of this era, which is quite a statement. His speciality was walking under the jump shooter to have them land on his foot and roll their ankle, as shown time after time in this video:

How does the NBA not suspend for karate-kicking a jump-shooter in the face?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edb6bz_C9ms

Bruce Bowen had his 500 consecutive games-played streak snapped in 2008, when he was suspended one game (the only suspension of his career) for kicking Chris Paul while down on the floor, shown here:

Unfortunately this is just a sample of what he was allowed to get away with, as his ‘lockdown defense’ helped the San Antonio Spurs win 3 NBA titles during his career.

In Personal Fouls, Tim Donaghy discusses the makeup of a typical NBA crowd, “It seems that night after night, arenas throughout the league are loaded with wisecracking, inebriated hecklers who are just itching for a fight.” Donaghy narrates what it was like to officiate one of the ugliest scenes in American sports history, the ‘Malice in the Palace,’ a full-scale brawl between the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons, which spilled into the stands and then back onto the court, on November 19, 2004:

A progenitor of this sort of play was Bill Laimbeer, as Larry Bird discusses in this clip.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLMYNxW6Mqs

This cheap shot on Scottie Pippen is a fair example of the Detroit Pistons ‘Bad Boy’ style in the late 1980’s/early 1990’s, which really has no place in basketball:

Today the Pistons of this era are glorified, and what we now have in the NBA is less like real basketball, and more like UFC & WWE. The NBA has become largely unwatchable to many purist fans who value integrity and fair play. Any comparisons of players in this era to greats of the past becomes difficult, if not impossible, due to the distortions of the rules. When star players of today are allowed to travel and foul at both ends without being whistled, how does a fan compare them to earlier-era players?

The individual stats & championship ring totals of modern NBA superstars have too often been league-aided; achieved through rigged refereeing. Acknowledge the puppet-master, not the puppets. Basketball fans rightly feel the NBA has no legitimacy anymore, and the only solution at this point is to stop watching. Please join us.

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My All-Time NBA Team

12 Players– listed in order

PG: Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson
SG: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant
SF: Larry Bird, LeBron James
PF: Karl Malone, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan (4/5)
C: Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon

Inactive List (3 players maximum, all out with phantom injuries)

PG: Isiah Thomas
SF: Charles Barkley
PF: Dirk Nowitzki

A great coaching staff & front office is needed to handle these egos:

Red Auerbach
Jerry West
Phil Jackson
Tex Winter
Doc Rivers

Favorite Player All-Time: PG Darrell Armstrong, #10 Orlando Magic– Heart & Hustle

Why I (We) Don’t Vote

Posted on November 4, 2014 by admin

The last time I voted was Bush v. Gore 2000.
For the record, I lived in Mount Dora, FL, and I cast my vote for Ralph Nader.
Who knows how it was counted?

Votes are now counted electronically.
It has been proven (over & over) that anyone can easily manipulate the software in the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM’s), to intentionally miscount votes.
Both Democrats & Republicans do it in the districts they control, as much as they are allowed by the other party.
Three companies control 90+% of the EVM market– Sequoia, Diebold, ES&S.

Please Recycle

The 435 congressional seats up for grabs (the lower house of the legislature), represent a net-worth of $2 billion this time around.
Their money goes straight to Madison Avenue, which exclusively serves the interests of Wall Street.

Political advertising is void of serious content.
Attack campaigns are the Madison Avenue norm; reflecting their ideology of violence & hate, combined with ignorance & fear.

In this election cycle, there has been zero serious discussion of: US militarism & torture, domestic spying, police brutality, 20+% real unemployment, social inequality, global warming; or any other significant issue.

Over 60% of eligible U.S. voters will abstain on November 4; out of apathy, protest, or disgust.

Those are your early returns on the only numbers that matter in this election.

Zombieland Redux

Posted on October 31, 2014 by admin

Moneybug — Ric Size

RS: How’s the practice of dentistry going in Zombieland?

DDS: Not pretty. It’s always been difficult enough just doing the dentistry, but on top of everything else now, we’re dealing with the plague of the 21st century: a fast-acting virus that swells your brain; and makes you feverish, hateful & violent.

RS: It’s amazing how quickly things can go from bad– to total shit-storm. Tell us what happened?

DDS: Check out the photo…

Eustis, Zombieland

RS: Whoa, looks like zombie wasteland.

DDS: Actually, that’s just Eustis. I remember just minding my own business, practicing out of a 3-chair dental office, late in the summer of 2013. It had been the severest economic drought my local-area colleagues & I could ever recall, when an 18-year old black female emergency patient walked-in; needing an extraction of an abscessed upper molar. She was given an emergency treatment plan with complete fees, which were agreed upon by her & her partner; a 30-year old black male. Both had clusters of red-flag indicators for crack-cocaine use, which was spotted by my receptionist & myself. After the tooth was successfully & painlessly extracted, her partner (whom had left) returned to the office even more agitated– refusing to pay the bill my receptionist presented. I was forced to nut-up-or-shut-up, to an out-of-control individual who possibly/likely had a weapon in his vehicle. He finally relented and paid for services, but his anger continued & escalated as he left the parking lot. It shook everyone up, quite a bit. After that, I realized I couldn’t expose my staff and/or my patients to that, anymore.

RS: When friendly & affluent people are driven away by an economic apocalypse; and what’s left are mostly fucked-up monsters, then maybe it’s time to close the practice?

DDS: Exactly. Cutting emotional ties with my staff & the patients I cared for was a difficult decision. I LOVE my staff & auxiliary team. We had treated and gotten to know MANY real patients over the years, who made our lives infinitely richer for the experience; but I can’t expose them to the threats of ravenous zombies, just to make a living. Many of my long-time patients were shocked & saddened when I made the announcement, but my staff & I knew it was the right decision. It just didn’t make good fiscal sense for me to re-invest in a office in Zombieland. I’m a practicing locum tenens dentist now, and my headaches are much fewer. I still maintain the website for my practice at EustisFamilyDentist.com— totally zombie-free.

RS: That means you travel light, right?

DDS: Nothing but my duffel bag, and the new backpack I bought for carrying my dental tools; I’m pretty good about wearing seatbelts.

RS: It’s been 6+ years since those fuckin’ zombies who run Wall Street, flushed all the decent-paying jobs down the crapper– and there ain’t no gettin’ them back; how is dentistry different today?

DDS: At ground zero [September 15, 2008], most dentists still had steady-to-thriving practices, with plenty of patients who had good-enough paying jobs to afford regular treatment; including occasional restorative upgrades like crowns, bridges, and dental implants. After the financial crash, zombies began to outnumber people; and corporate dental chains undercut traditional solo family practices with their low-end retail approach. Many real people couldn’t afford actual dental care anymore, and the zombies couldn’t tell the difference. Many practitioners had already turned to meat, so a mass extinction of solo practices ensued. As you can see by the illustration above, I was caught up in the wash.

RS: Bummer. In my experience, any practice with more than two locations is a clinic, whose business model is low-cost/ high-volume production; are these the only jobs new dentists can expect to find in the market?

DDS: Yes. Debt for recent graduates is absurdly high; $250,000-$500,000 in many instances now. This puts young dentists on the corporate treadmill, just to make their monthly student loan payments; which can be $5-10+K/ month. Very few high-calibre private practices will hire recent graduates, as they don’t have the necessary skills or experience. Corporate dental chains offer around $150,000-$200,000 per year–depending on production. Getting paid that, isn’t even really guaranteed. Do the math: after repayment of student loan debt, there’s not much left for a fledgling dentist to live on. Today, corporate dentistry is wracked with over-capacity, poor morale, and an upside-down office model that will cause these corporate chains [Aspen, Christie, Coast, Heartland, etc…], to collapse like a house of cards when their day comes. Still, it’s amazing to see how far you can get with costume dentistry & a cut-throat attitude.

RS: Better fasten your seatbelts folks, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride. How can young dentists be expected to learn their profession under such scorched-earth conditions?

DDS: They can’t, for the most part; even though evidence-based dentistry & the Internet have made these graduates smarter & more-prepared than ever for real-world practice. By today’s professional standards, dentists are physicians of the oral cavity & its surrounding structures; diagnosing and appropriately treating: tooth decay, gum disease, TMJ & occlusal diseases, oral cancer, etc. The erosion of the standard-of-care through the economic warfare policies of lenders, insurance giants, pharmaceutical/supply companies, etc.; has lowered the quality-of-care for most people, despite all the gains in science & technology. The only practices that are thriving now are the elite, boutique-style offices in the 90210-type districts. That represents about 1% of all the practices.

RS: So, how are you surviving in Zombieland?

DDS: I play it smart and follow the rules– My Rules. Rule # 1: Look yourself in the mirror, every day. Rule #2: Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, everybody makes them– that’s why it’s called a practice– it’s how you manage them that counts. Rule #3: Flexibility & Core Strength. Rule #4: Enjoy the little things 🙂

RS: What are your thoughts on organized dentistry?

DDS: The American Dental Association (ADA) is an ossified bureaucracy, just like every other union. The ADA blocks information flow & open discussion on water fluoridation & amalgam safety— just to name two high-profile examples. Capitation insurance (HMO/DMO) has been allowed to eat away at working dentist’s bottom lines while lowering the quality-of-care to patients; as ADA careerists are wined-and-dined & perked by the insurance industry. Today most wet-gloved dentists are toiling longer & harder, for less. Most of these practitioners (80% ADA members) have no idea who the ADA president is? The ADA HQ is in Chicago, Zombieland. Its presidents are installed, and not constituency elected.

RS: I’ve heard there’s a place untouched by all of this…

DDS: Out west?

RS: Yeah. You heard that too?

DDS: Out mid-west (where I’m from), that say it’s better back east; back east they say it’s better out west–it’s all nonsense. You’re like the ‘patient’ who needs a root canal/crown vs. an extraction; arguing with me over Tylenol #3 vs. Oxycontin. I tell real patients after extractions that Tylenol #3 is what you use if Ibuprofen 800mg alone isn’t cutting the pain; most just take Ibuprofen. Those who take a few Tylenol # 3 as needed; often tell me they had to cut it in half, because it’s so strong it made them vomit. Narcotic-addicted zombies react with disappointment in their corpse-language when I hand them a script for twelve (12) Tylenol #3, which is the maximum number I prescribe. Their protests to my staff & myself always include: not strong enough, not enough, allergy to Ibuprofen & Tylenol #3 — but NKDA to every other strong synthetic opiate known to man, etc…

RS: Wow. People lying & getting in my face like that, would provoke me to make them feel how hard I could punch– even if it was just using words.

DDS: That’s a line that doctors are pulled towards by manipulators & other socio-paths– but can never be crossed. It’s one of the things that really sucks about being a professional in Zombieland.

RS: You seem to have a sick sense of humor when it comes to zombies; do you really hate them?

DDS: I’m beyond hate. This has become a war for survival– real people vs. zombies. We can’t co-exist, because zombies are completely selfish & irrational. If allowed, they will continue to munch on & defecate all over this Earth, until everything decays into a sea of pus. Once those of us who still think & feel understand that we are ALL orphans in Zombieland, and we come to realize it never really was OUR country to begin with; then we can achieve a permanent socialist revolution, because we truly have nothing to lose.

RS: Time to nut up or shut up; how do you get around & keep in shape?

DDS: I try to blend in– suits my style. I’m active and like to get out and do stuff. Zombies generally don’t mess with their own, so a goofy hat & sunglasses keeps me mostly under their radar. Occasionally, I can bike out to the courts to hit up against the wall; just enjoying the serenity of being the ball…

RS: You expressed that last thought very poetically.

DDS: That’s because I am you, pleased to meet me — LOVE our Music!!

RS: That’s why we do it. Thank you 🙂

DDS: So, have you considered a collaboration with Eddie Van Halen; any upcoming live shows?

RS: I would have loved to with Eddie, but he’s a zombie; as far as playing live goes– the promoters & venue owners are ALL hardcore zombies, who have it locked up to themselves pretty tight.

DDS: That totally blows…

RS: …my mind is wondering if you have any final, good-for-the-whole-family Pearls of Wisdom?

DDS: Just this: In those moments of doubt after you’ve eaten, when you can still feel the food in-between your teeth; don’t get all stingy with your floss. Just think, if those edentulous zombies had simply flossed, brushed, improvised with a toothpick, or even rinsed after meals; they could have avoided becoming dental cripples with plastic teeth that don’t work.

RS: Woulda/Coulda/Shoulda

This is Central Florida, signing off from Zombieland

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Moneybug– Ric Size

TomP: percussion, backing vocals & production
Craig Roy: bass
Jessica Lynn Martens: violin & backing vocals
RS: vocals & guitar

Hand claps by TomP, BeccaP & RS

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9/11: Connecting the Dots

Posted on September 11, 2014 by admin

[download label="Download 9-11"]http://ricsize.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/RicSize_911.mp3[/download]

Preface: The current US military re-entry into the second Iraq War (2003-11), should give us all pause to re-examine the events of 9/11 which have led to this crisis. The official US enemy is now the Islamic State in Iraq & Syria (ISIS). Just months earlier, ISIS was a US proxy in its joint effort to overthrow Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, and before that Muammar Gaddafi in Libya. Such is the Orwellian logic of US imperialism, in which there are no permanent allies or enemies—only permanent interests.

The best available evidence overwhelmingly supports the 9-11 Truth position, which is: the events of 9/11 were a massive conspiracy against the American people by US deep state figures.
The list begins with Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, Richard Perle, Richard Armitage, Paul Wolfowitz, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, John Ashcroft, etc…
It was a joint financial-elite/military operation, and its cover-up a bi-partisan political affair, from the top ranks down; with complete compliance from a corporatized media.

Dust samples from ground zero reveal traces of nanothermite, a military-grade pyrotechnic composition, which was likely used to facilitate a controlled demolition of the twin towers.
WTC Building 7 also collapsed later in the day, in the same manner, at near free-fall speed; even though it wasn’t struck by a plane.
Eyewitness testimonies from firefighters & survivors consistently refute the US government’s official conspiracy theory, which is:

Nineteen fanatical Arabs hijacked four US commercial flights, none of which ever emitted a distress signal, then disappeared from radar and flew unchallenged into the WTC twin towers and the Pentagon.
The most sophisticated and well-funded intelligence & security apparatus in human history had no inkling that any of this was about to happen, due to a failure to connect the dots.
Therefore, no US official is accountable for the events of 9/11.

Bush administration officials immediately blamed Al Qaeda & Saddam Hussein for the September 11th attacks, calling for an invasion.
Phony Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) claims were floated to the American public & the UN, as a pretext for war.
On March 19, 2003, despite the largest global anti-war protest in history a month earlier; shock & awe was unleashed on the people of Iraq.

By 2004, the Bush administration admitted there were never WMDs in Iraq, but the wars still continued…
Fallujah
Abu Ghraib
1,000,000 Iraqi’s dead
4,500+ US soldiers dead & forgotten.
Millions maimed and psychologically scarred in this dirty imperialist adventure.

Oil is the most important commodity in the modern world.
It surpassed cotton in the late 19th century, when the internal combustion engine became widespread throughout the industrialized world.
The US ruling-class interest in Iraq (and more generally, the Middle East) is simple: monopolize the most important resource in the world.

The true targets of the Middle East wars are China & Russia, who are considered strategic competitors.
The ruling class ‘thinking’ is to keep these competitors from getting the oil they need to help their economies grow.
The US has lost its position as the undisputed world’s economic superpower, and thus uses its military supremacy to maintain global dominance.

The same methods are now used to maintain rule at home.

Of course, the world can not be conquered militarily, so this ‘plan’ is complete madness.
It ends with either a permanent international workers’ revolution or mutually assured destruction, via nuclear weapons.

The events of 9/11 must be understood in this context for there to be any progress towards truth and ending the destructive capitalist policies of the ruling elite.
The deep state figures who led us into these conflicts, must be held accountable for their war crimes.
This is not merely an empty gesture, but rather a necessary step towards ensuring humanity’s survival.

Why Marxism?

Posted on August 25, 2014 by admin

Just Because mp3

RS: gtr & vocals
Tom Pearce: percussion & production
Bill Pelick: lead gtr & bass
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The economic level of all societies in human history is the foundation for its political & social culture.
Marxism is a scientific method for measuring & understanding capitalism.
Capitalism is the ever-evolving economic system we all live in.
Capitalism is about money & power, which are emotionally-charged interests for everyone.
Marxism provides an objective measurement of capitalism, by boiling everything down to its atomic root–the commodity.

All commodities can be thought of as a congealed amount of human labor.
Human labor creates all commodity value, which is measured in money.
A commodity is worth the money-amount of human labor it contains.

Human labor itself is a commodity; it is in fact the most unique & valuable of all commodities.
It is from the theft of worker labor-value, that the capitalist becomes rich & powerful.

All modern philosophical, political and social ideologies reject Marxism’s fundamental adherence to rational Enlightenment principles.
Marxism is also unique in embracing dialectics, which all bourgeois ideologies virulently oppose.
Dialectics is the study of motion & transformation, recognizing the significance of changes in quantity/quality, possibility/inevitability, etc…

For example: when a sufficient quantity of heat is added to water, it qualitatively changes form– turning into steam.
Revolutions are achieved in the same manner.

Marxist philosophy is dialectical materialism.
It recognizes matter [1] as primary, rejecting all variants of idealism; all of which inevitably introduce ‘god’ into their equation.
Marxists think dialectically, correctly interpreting deep-going economic, political, and social processes.

The greatest classical Marxist of the 20th century was Leon Trotsky.
Trotsky ranks second only to Karl Marx, in terms of socialism’s historical importance.
Trotsky collaborated with V.I. Lenin to achieve the first [and only] successful worker’s revolution in human history.
This revolution was strangled by a combination of imperialist encirclement after WW1, Russia’s historical backwardness, and critically by the lack of an industrialized ally in the west– namely Germany.

After WW1, reaction spread across the globe and revolutionary party leaders were exterminated by fascist death squads in Europe & China, or jailed in liberal democracies such as the US.
After Lenin’s incapacitation by stroke in 1923, Trotsky was isolated by a growing bureaucracy which was conservative & reactionary in nature.
The bureaucracy was ultimately embodied in Joseph Stalin, whose secret police murdered millions of old Bolsheviks & revolutionary fighters in the 1930’s, devouring the revolution from the inside.
It is still a testament to the power of socialist property relations & centralized state-planning, that a backwards & defeated Russia in 1917 would survive imperialism’s attempts to strangle their revolution; and still catapult itself to world superpower status under Stalinism– until the USSR’s final collapse in 1991.

As an alternative to Stalin’s ‘Socialism in One Country’, Trotsky posed his Theory of Permanent Revolution.
In essence it states, a revolution that achieves socialism will be permanent in nature.
This implies its international character; its permanence will prevent the growth of bureaucracies.
The workers of the world must own this revolution and be its caretaker.

Trotsky is the great unmentionable in official 20th-century history & political discourse.
His contributions include: planning & carrying out the Bolshevik revolution with Lenin’s Bolshevik party; forming & commanding the Red Army during the civil war (1918-22); and establishing the Left Opposition line in opposition to Stalin’s “Socialism in One Country.” Trotsky’s contributions were expunged and his character distorted in all the history textbooks composed by Stalin’s censors.
This exiled revolutionary found no asylum in the US or Europe, and was forced to flee to the third world as WW2 broke out.

One of Trotsky’s most far-sighted achievements was to build a 4th International.
Stalinism’s Communist Party [3rd International] had capitulated to fascism, allowing Adolph Hitler to take power in 1933, without firing a shot.
The 4th International was founded in Paris in 1938, two years before Trotsky was assassinated by an agent of Stalin– in Coyoacan, Mexico.

Trotsky’s life & writings still remain a target of gutter journalism, especially among the intelligentsia.
Their mainstream filth is easily exposed & refuted by Marxists, as the 4th International is still in existence.
Its daily organ is the World Socialist Web Site.

Dialectic Art

A boy wanted to be a rock star, so he learned music
To create new music, she had to become an artist
In becoming an artist, they became a revolution

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What are the Police?

Posted on August 22, 2014 by admin

There is much popular anger over the police atrocities against the people of Ferguson, Missouri.
What’s happening there is what goes on everyday in NYC, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and any other large US metropolitan area.

Tactical officers fire tear gas into the crowd Ferguson MO 8-11-14

The #myNYPD hashtag campaign fiasco, only proved how out-of-touch the cops are with the population they claim to serve & protect.

The still-unexplained events of 9-11 and the reaction in its wake, allowed the ruling establishment to build a police state.
US military & CIA techniques of urban warfare, drones, death squads, and torture are all now in place at home.
Tanks, police in riot gear using tear gas, SWAT teams, and ‘black hole’ prison sites are now a living US reality.
Their use against its working people is a conscious class policy of the ruling elite, fronted today by president Barack Obama.

The political establishment in its entirety represents the largest stakeholders & CEO’s of Bank of America (CEO- Brian Moynihan), Walt Disney (CEO- Bob Iger), Microsoft (CEO- Satya Nadella), Exxon (CEO- Rex W. Tillerson), etc.; who are determined to maintain their inequality at any cost.
The philanthropy of Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, etc., is a thin veneer to cover up their selfishness & ruthlessness.

The Boston Marathon lockdown of April, 2013 represented a watershed moment in American history; the first time one of its cities was placed under martial law.
Warrentless, mandatory house-to-house searches were conducted– in seeking a lone fugitive.
For an entire week, citizens of Boston were not allowed to freely move or assemble; as the FBI, police and the military controlled the city.

—–

While the police are a tool of the ruling class, it doesn’t take much insight to realize that most cops are themselves working class.
This is the revolutionary potential that must be harnessed by the working people.
Like the US military which has its conscious objectors, the police must also have those within its ranks who are disgusted with its state of affairs.
Police families have some of the highest incidences of alcoholism, domestic violence, and murder/suicides.
From this diseased institution, any healthy wheat must be separated from its rotten chaff, in order to seed a revolutionary people’s militia.

The working people must consciously fight to gain control of the police, wherever possible.
In places where police corruption is thorough, preparations must be made for resistance.
In these cases the population’s overwhelming numbers will be decisive in removing guns from the hands of these killers-with-badges, and putting them in jail where they belong.

Finally, the power behind the police needs to be disarmed.
These puppet masters are the real criminals, and they must be exposed.
Remember–the masters of capitalism will never voluntarily give up this fight, and they must be completely rooted out, arrested & tried before a jury of peers for their crimes against humanity.

Only then, will the police brutality cease.

==============================================>>

NFL History: The Super Bowl Era

Posted on August 18, 2014 by admin

The inaugural Super Bowl (January 15, 1967); the AFL/NFL merger in 1970; and the premiere of Monday Night Football (ABC 1970), helped catapult the NFL past MLB as America’s game by the 1980’s.

American football in its Super Bowl era is defined by specialists on offense; at quarterback, running back, lineman, and receiver. Defenses also became specialized, but less so, as it has always been every defensive players job to tackle & create turnovers. Special teams were one of the biggest innovations of this era; as coaches started realizing its value in scoring and determining field position.

Straight-ahead toe punchers were the NFL place-kicking style since its beginnings and predominated since the drop-kick disappeared in the 1930’s, when the rugby ball was replaced with the more throwable modern design.
In the early NFL, many games were lost/tied due to missed extra points/short field goal attempts. In the era of 16-20 man rosters, where physical survival was always the most important skill; those who took kicks could not be called place kickers in the modern sense.

Norwegian place kicker Jan Stenerud (K Kansas City Chiefs 1967-85) revolutionized American football with European football (soccer) skills, bringing distance and accuracy to NFL kicking during his 19 seasons. NFL field goal percentage increased steadily during his career, as did the distance from which head coaches would allow their kickers to attempt field goals.

In the KC Chiefs 23-7 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV (1970), Stenerud scored the first nine points on field goals of 48, 32 and 25 yards, in a game that was over by halftime. He led the league in FG % 4 times, and was always at or near the top in FG% from 40+ yards. Jan Stenerud was the first place kicker to regularly convert 50+ yard FG attempts.

Ray Guy (P Oakland/LA Raiders: 1973-86) specialized in punting opponents into poor field position. In ways never seen before, Guy revolutionized NFL punting with his whip-like flexibility, leading the NFL in punting average 3 times and finishing 10 seasons in the top-5. His accuracy at pinning opponents close to their goal line compelled the NFL to start tracking “punts inside the 20” in 1976. He was the first punter to understand the importance of net yards per punt (punt yards minus return yards), applying extreme “hang time” to his punts. Ray Guy would boom 50- yard cloud-scrappers, allowing his coverage teams time to defend against a big returns. Many times from his end zone, he would blast a punt over the returner’s head, completely flipping field position for his team.

Ray Guy, a #1 pick by innovative owner Al Davis in 1973 (and one of the most valuable players in modern NFL history), was finally inducted into Canton in 2014. He’s currently listed beneath “Coaches” and “Contributors” in the NFL HoF ‘by position’ listing. Most old-timers don’t consider punters & kickers as ‘real’ football players, even though these positions have historically had a huge impact on winning & losing.

The 1970’s NFL was innovated and dominated by modern-era coaches including; Don Shula (Miami Dolphins), Chuck Noll (Pittsburgh Steelers), Al Davis/John Madden (Oakland Raiders), and Tom Landry (Dallas Cowboys). Steroids became part of the landscape for NFL linemen, and artificial turf added another occupational hazard for players. An increased incidence of skin burns, ligament tears and concussions all awaited those who played in stadiums equipped with artificial turf.

The greatest QBs of the day were Bob Griese (Miami 1967-80), Roger Staubach (Dallas 1969-79), Dan Fouts (San Diego Chargers 1973-87), and Ken Anderson (Cincinnati Bengals 1971-86) . The best running backs of this era were O.J. Simpson (Buffalo Bills 1969-79) and Walter Payton (Chicago Bears (1975-87). Both of these ball carriers played on poor teams for most of their careers, which added proof to the argument that a great quarterback was necessary for a championship team.

O.J. Simpson was a college football star at USC, winning the Heisman Trophy in 1968 before transitioning into a NFL superstar. The charismatic Simpson was a poster child for the NFL in the 1970’s & 1980’s. After retiring from the NFL, he did color commentary on Monday Night Football, starred in television commercials, and even Hollywood movies– always as a friendly & joking personality. Simpson was notorious among ex-players for beating his wife, and his true nature was finally revealed to the American public in 1994-95; when he was compelled to hire a top legal team to buy an acquittal for the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, despite overwhelming physical evidence against him.

In 1997, a civil court awarded a judgment against Simpson of the $33.5 million for their wrongful deaths. In September 2007, Simpson was arrested in Las Vegas and charged with numerous felonies, including armed robbery and kidnapping. He was found guilty in 2008, and sentenced to 33 years in prison. He will not be eligible for parole until 2017.

More than anyone else, O.J. Simpson personifies the ugliness lurking behind the NFL’s benevolent mask.

—–End of 1st Quarter

NFL HoF comparison Example #2: 1970’s-era WR comparisons

Fred Biletnikof (1965-78 Oakland) 190 G, 589 Catches, 15.2 Yds/Catch, 76 TD
Cliff Branch (1972-85 Oakland) 183 G, 501 Catches, 17.3 Yds/Catch, 67 TD
John Stallworth (1974-87 Pittsburgh) 165 G, 537 Catches, 16.2 Yds/Catch, 63 TD
Lynn Swann (1974-82 Pittsburgh) 116 G, 336 Catches, 16.3 Yds/Catch, 51 TD

Listed alphabetically, the best player of these four was Cliff Branch, and he’s only one not in the NFL Hall of Fame.

Mobsters were still welcome to buy NFL franchises. In 1977 Eddie DeBartolo, Sr (after being refused in a half-dozen attempts to buy a MLB franchise) purchased the San Francisco 49ers and turned it over to his son, Eddie, Jr. Wikipedia describes DeBartolo Sr. as “a powerful strategic thinker.” Dan Moldea shares this research:

“U.S. Customs Service had received information from one of its special agents, William F. Burda, in January 1981 that the DeBartolo organization ‘through its control of particular state banks in the state of Florida is operating money-laundering schemes, realizing huge profits from narcotics, guns, skimming operations, and other organized-crime-related activities. This organization is reported to have ties to [Carlos] Marcello, [Santos] Trafficante, and [Meyer] Lansky; and because of its enormous wealth and power has high-ranking political influence and affiliations.'”

In other words, the shopping malls that made Eddie DeBartolo’s fortune were financed with laundered Colombian drug money.

The 1980’s were dominated on the field by Bill Walsh (San Francisco 49ers head coach & GM) and Joe Gibbs (Washington R-word head coach), both winning 3 Super Bowls for their franchises. Pro football’s greatest stars were Joe Montana and a legendary college draft class in 1983, that had three HoF QBs: Dan Marino (Miami 1983-99), John Elway (Denver 1983-1998) and Jim Kelly (USFL/Buffalo 1983-96).

Outside linebacker Lawrence Taylor (NY Giants 1981-93), became the new NFL prototype on defense, terrorizing offenses with his unique brand of intelligence, athleticism & skill. He was unintentionally responsible for one of the most gruesome injuries in modern football history, breaking Washington R-word QB Joe Theismann’s leg [and ending his career] on Monday Night Football. To Taylor’s credit, he immediately signalled to the R-words bench to get their medical staff on the field, as Taylor was horrified by what he had just done. ABC showed the definitive shot, a ‘reverse angle’ replay of this injury, over & over during its broadcast.

The USFL challenged the NFL monopoly from 1983-85, and did well in three seasons using a spring schedule that challenged MLB. Casino & real estate mogul Donald Trump owned the New Jersey Generals. In his blustering George Steinbrenner-like fashion, Trump outbid the NFL for one college star after another; while never coming close to winning a championship.

By 1985, Donald Trump was using his free-spending ownership in the New Jersey Generals to push for a merger with the NFL, which would significantly increase the value of his franchise.

Trump’s clout forced the USFL into rapid expansion, as they moved to a fall schedule in 1986. Other USFL owners realized the futility of going head-to-head with the NFL, and the league went bankrupt before the ’86 season– slowly dying in court. Its greatest stars such as QBs Jim Kelly and Steve Young went back to the NFL teams that claimed their draft rights.

The NFL Players Association had misrepresented & betrayed its rank-and-file since its inception in 1956. The NFL owners didn’t even he recognize the NFLPA as the official bargaining agent for the players until 1968. A 1974 players strike ending in a defeat for the players. The 1982 strike ended with a players revolt against their own union, with NFLPA executive director & head lawyer Ed Garvey stepping down.

Even more disastrous for the NFL players, was the 1987 strike which collapsed within a month, after the owners brought in replacement players. Approximately 15% of the NFLPA’s members crossed picket lines to play during the strike including veteran stars: Mark Gastineau, Randy White, Joe Montana, Doug Flutie, and Steve Largent.

A collective bargaining agreement that allowed NFL players to benefit from free agency wasn’t ratified until 1993. Still today, no NFL contract is guaranteed. If a player blows out a knee after signing a multi-million dollar deal, he can be cut & released from his contract by the team. Signing bonuses have been notoriously clawed back by ownership.

—-Halftime

In 1985, William “Refrigerator” Perry (DT 1985–1993) became a prototype for sports de-evolution, by becoming the first 300-pound NFL lineman; helping the Chicago Bears win the Super Bowl—-

In 1979 ESPN was launched, providing 24-hour a day sports programming. In 1987, ESPN gained partial rights to the National Football League. Players salaries and owner franchise values have skyrocketed since, due to massive broadcast revenues. Today the NFL Network is a successful premium channel, delivering 24/7 NFL content.

The NFL adopted instant replay into its officiating in the 1980’s/1990’s, due to massive referee incompetence. Instant replay has likely been used to fix NFL playoff games and decide Super Bowls; the most infamous example is the Tuck Rule game, which is better seen than explained.

The NFL in the 1990’s was initially dominated on the field by the post-Bill Walsh San Francisco 49ers, led by QB Steve Young (1984-99) & WR Jerry Rice (1985-2004); then the Jimmy Johnson coached Dallas Cowboys, led by WR Michael Irvin (1988-99), RB Emmitt Smith (1990-2004), and QB Troy Aikman (1989-2000).

Three-time MVP, QB Brett Favre (1991-2010) restored legitimacy to the Green Bay Packers, with his unique combination of gun-slinging playmaking & good-sport toughness. Deion Sanders (ATL/SF/DAL, 1989-2005) was likely the best NFL cornerback and one of the best punt returners, ever– an electrifying playmaker. Barry Sanders (RB Detroit Lions 1989-98) may have been the NFL’s best ball carrier ever.

In the 2000’s the New England Patriots, coached by Bill Belichick were the NFL’s only sustained dynasty. Free agency, with its salary cap restrictions made it difficult for championship teams to maintain a stable nucleus, with contending teams constantly poaching their rosters.

Belichick and the Patriots front office, were among the first in football to use statistical analysis metrics, equivalent to sabermetrics in baseball, to quantify player value in terms of wins. This gave New England a consistent edge in player drafting as well as on-the-field tactics & overall strategy.

Modern NFL play-calling is high-percentage short-gain/low-risk passing on early downs, and going for it more frequently on 4th-down; passing up field goal attempts for potential touchdowns– providing the distance for a first down/touchdown is makeable. The most valuable position in football is by far, quarterback. It’s not impossible, but it is very difficult to win a Super Bowl without at least an above-average QB.

Some of the best players from 2000-present were/are: QBs Peyton Manning (Indianapolis Colts 1998-present), Tom Brady (New England Patriots 2000-present), Drew Brees (SD/New Orleans Saints 2001-present). The best play makers were RB LaDainian Tomlinson (SD Chargers 2001-11), WR Randy Moss (MN/OAK/NE 1998-2012) and punt return specialist Devin Hester (Chicago Bears 2006-present).

Unfortunately by this time, off-the-field problems were starting to overshadow the actual football. Team captain & star middle linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens, Ray Lewis was a suspect under investigation for a double murder committed on Jan. 31, 2000. The NFL intervened on Lewis’ behalf, and he was dropped as a suspect by the police.

Lewis was never able to produce the clothes he was seen wearing the night of the homicides. The Ravens won the Super Bowl a year later, and Ray Lewis (1996-2012) went on to become arguably the greatest middle linebacker in NFL history. The murders have never been solved.

In June 2002 Pat Tillman, a linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals enlisted in the United States Army, motivated by patriotic duty after 9-11. The NFL assisted the Bush administration in its use of Tillman as propaganda to sell its dirty “War on Terror.”

Pat Tillman served several tours before he died in the mountains of Afghanistan on April 22, 2004– in a friendly-fire incident.

The US Army initially reported Tillman had been killed by enemy fire, and maintained this lie for over a month; until the Pentagon notified the Tillman family that he had died as a result of friendly fire. In 2007, Kevin Tillman also an Army Ranger in a convoy behind his brother Pat at his end; read testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform committee, of the Pentagon’s version of Pat’s ‘heroic’ death.

“Above the din of battle, Corporal Tillman was heard issuing fire commands to take the fight to an enemy on the dominating high ground. Always leading from the front, Corporal Tillman aggressively maneuvered his team against the enemy position on a steep slope… in the face of mortal danger, Corporal Tillman illustrated that he would not fail his comrades. His actions are in keeping with the highest standards of the United States army.”

Pat Tillman was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for valor, for his fictional bravery. The Bush administration cynically lied about Tillman’s friendly-fire death, to exploit its propaganda value.

—-End of 3rd Quarter

By 2006, Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick was implicated in a dog fighting scandal, involving over seventy dogs, most of them pit bulls showing signs of injuries. Vick and four of his associates were convicted for conspiracy in interstate commerce and unlawful animal cruelty. Michael Vick served 21 months in prison. He was reinstated by the NFL in 2009.

Sexual assault allegations were made against Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger in 2008 & 2009. In 2010, after intense pressure from the NFL, the district attorney for the plaintiff held a press conference to announce that Roethlisberger would not be charged; expressing how the plaintiff no longer wanted to pursue criminal charges due to the level of media attention. The district attorney stressed that she was not recanting her accusation.

The NFL handed Ben Roethlisberger a 6-game suspension (later reduced to 4 games) in 2010, for “ungentlemanly conduct.”

From 2009-11, the New Orleans Saints operated a slush fund that paid out bonuses for inflicting crippling injuries on opposing players. Players targeted by the Saints coaching staff included star QBs Brett Favre (Vikings) & Kurt Warner (Cardinals). NFL officiating was so incompetent that none of the bounty hits in question were ever penalized or deemed illegal by in-game officials.

In 2012, the NFL owners locked out its referees, and started the season with replacement officials, despite safety complaints from the NFLPA. The owners were refusing to pay the modest referee union demands, amounting to a $3.2 million/year, in a $9 billion/year league. By Week 3, hapless NFL officiating was taken to a new low during Monday Night Football, when Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson threw the first game-winning interception in league history. Embarrassment over the inexplicable replay decision forced the owners to give in to union demands, which amounted to an extra $100,000/year expense for each of the 32 NFL team owners.

New-era NFL owners are mostly billionaires, buying franchises for personal amusement as well as seeking public subsidies for new stadiums. Since the 1980’s, 70% of the cost for new NFL stadiums has been paid for by taxpayers; for which team owners keep all revenues on tickets, concessions, parking and television broadcasts– for games played in publicly-financed buildings.

In 2013, Minnesota Vikings owner Zygi Wilf, was ordered by a federal judge to pay $85 million for “organized crime fraud,” finding him in violation of the New Jersey state RICO act.

Today, the NFL is still opening new stadiums with synthetic playing surfaces, despite overwhelming research and player preference towards playing on natural grass.

Player compensation for concussion related diseases and other realities of post-NFL life have been slow in actualization. The NFL continues to take the stance that its game is safe, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. The NFL denies players are getting brain damage from concussions received during NFL games & practices.

Performance-enhancing drug (PED) suspensions are a weekly occurrence; here is the ever-expanding list. Human Growth Hormone (HGH) is now the preferred PED, due to its difficulty to detect with testing.

Obesity and unhealthy playing weights for modern NFL linemen is an ugly scanda l the NFL refuses to seriously discuss publicly. Player weights at all positions have increased at least 30-50% since the 1970’s.

As discussed earlier, alcohol & gambling have always been part of the NFL. Bootleg whiskey from the 1920’s has been replaced with omnipresent beer advertising for every game. In the 2000’s, domestic violence & DUI arrests for NFL players became common news.

Today, billions of dollars are collectively bet on every NFL contest. Nevada is the only state where sports bookmaking is legal in the US. Las Vegas bookies establish and monitor the betting line of every NFL game. Over 99% of football betting (office pools, fantasy leagues, handshake wager, etc.) is illicit. Accurate team injury reports are required by the NFL, and teams are fined by the league office if they don’t strictly comply. Cooperation from the NFL is insisted upon by their mobster partners, so they can set an accurate betting spread.

NFL Security is employed by the league to deal with every scandal in this media-driven age. Justice Department officials are employed by the NFL to do research, use their contacts, and develop attack-campaigns designed to intimidate, squash and/or blacklist any perceived opponents of the NFL.

The NFL is a non-profit, and Commissioner Roger Goodell takes home over $30 million annually for carefully filtering & interpreting any NFL information released to public. He has been aggressive in his use of public relations in the NFL’s attempts to bury all scandals. Dan Moldea’s Interference, neatly characterizes the function of NFL Security officials:

Phil Manuel, former Senate investigator: “The oldest trick in the book is to hire old Justice Department officials and make them understand that they are to protect the security of the NFL owners.”

An IRS agent taken off an NFL-related gambling probe: “What we’ve got here are connections among the Cosa Nostra, the federal government, the big attorneys in the D.C. area, sports figures, and the television news media. We were getting too close to the people at the top. [He] was being protected by people within the Justice Department.” p. 171

“We have a basic rule in the NFL,” says a former law enforcement official who advises the NFL of security matters.” It is to keep it upbeat and keep it positive. But above all keep it quiet.” p. 33

—–Two-Minute Warning

As far as what sports fans can learn about the NFL from its pre-Super Bowl era– it is sketchy at best.
Too little data exists (even for many skill-position players such as QB, RB, WR), while most players (offensive linemen & all defensive players) have no meaningful records of their actions.
The all-NFL/all-pro designation is nothing more than sportswriter & coaches opinion, from its inception in the 1930’s.
There is virtually no game film, and what little exists is usually of poor quality and not available to the average fan.
This lack of objective data for player performance, along with its omnipresent mobster & gambling influence, are the defining features of early American football.

In 1985, a Harris Poll showed the NFL was more popular among US sports fans than MLB: 24% to 23%. In 2014, 35% of sports fans called the NFL their favorite sport, while only 14% preferred MLB.

The NFL reflects popular culture in decline. Its glorification of violence dovetails with militarism and ruling-class values. It is a difficult, but necessary task to reduce it’s hold on popular consciousness. The NFL, like capitalism itself, is rotten to its core and cannot be reformed– both will have to be revolutionized by the people, before its self-destructiveness reaches the limits of human sustainability.

Click here to read Part 1– American Football: Early NFL History

American Football & Early NFL History

Posted on August 18, 2014 by admin

Baseball has many hidden lessons in its vast database, as every player’s actions are precisely recorded at the plate, in the field, and on the mound.
These player records exist back to baseball’s infancy, in the 19th century.

American football (NFL in particular) on the other hand has very little historical data for its individual players as field goals (FG), extra points (XP) and safeties, as well as any touchdowns (TD) scored via offense, defense or punt/kick returns; weren’t recorded in the NFL until 1932. Rushing attempts, number of receptions (& total yards for each), along with quarterback (QB) stats; were also not kept until 1932.

Passer rating was first developed in the 1930’s, using available measures to determine overall effectiveness at the quarterback position. Although its formula has varied, it is still the best statistic for the position; as all the best quarterbacks, 1) stay on the field and, 2) have the highest passer ratings of their era. The first great NFL QB [and nickname] was Slingin’ Sammy Baugh (Washington R-words 1937-52).

MLB vs. NFL stats comparison

Jim Thorpe was a multi-sport star in the early 20th century; here are his MLB career numbers in six seasons, mostly with the NY Giants.
In 289 games (1913-1919) as an outfielder, Thorpe batted .252/.286/.362.
NL averages in 1917 were .249/.305/.328, so we can rate him as slightly below-average in getting on-base, but above average in power; making him roughly an average big-leaguer of that era.

Jim Thorpe is also in the NFL Hall of Fame (HoF), a charter inductee in 1963.
These are his career NFL stats: Eight seasons, 52 games played as a halfback; 6 TD rushing, 4 TD passing.

With this paltry amount of data, how is anyone supposed to know anything about what kind of football player Jim Thorpe was, outside of anecdotal & subjective opinion?
If it is impossible to determine this for a charter NFL HoFer, then what does that say about the less-than-star players of the early NFL era?
It says their contributions in blood, broken bones & shattered teeth weren’t even worth noting, because the only records that mattered were gate receipts & betting slips.

—– Timeout!

American football has its origins in English rugby.
By the late 19th century, most Ivy-league & midwestern universities had rugby & football clubs.
As a violent mob game, deaths from injury were common in its early era.
The popular use of mass-formations such as the flying wedge, in which a large number of offensive players charged as a unit against a similarly arranged defense, resulted in brutal collisions often leading to serious injuries and deaths.
Helmets weren’t mandatory in the NFL until 1943.

Walter Camp (player Yale 1876–1882) has been given the title “Father of American Football”, for inventing football’s line of scrimmage and the system of downs.

Field goals were lowered to 3 points in 1909, and touchdowns were raised to 6 points in 1912.

The NFL was formed in 1920, primarily as a vehicle for gamblers. MLB owners had just installed judge Kenesaw “Mountain” Landis as their commissioner, in order to clean up the Black Sox Scandal and restore public trust in baseball. Judge Landis was firm & uncompromising in banning eight Chicago White Sox players for life, for conspiring to throw the 1919 World Series. Gangsters were shut out of baseball and needed a new sport to fix.

Much like professional boxing, NFL history is dominated by organized crime. In the early 1920s, Chicago Bears owner George Halas turned to Charles Bidwill, gambler & bootlegger associate of kingpin gangster Al Capone, for financial help.

In 1932, Charles Bidwill bought the Chicago Cardinals, which his family still owns today.

In the 1920’s, towns like Hammond IN, Pottsville PA, and Duluth MN had NFL teams. The NFL needed a franchise in New York for the league to succeed. In 1925 NFL President, Joseph Carr recruited bookmaker Tim Mara to establish the NY Giants football team.

Art Rooney, a notorious gambler purchased the rights to establish the Pittsburgh Pirates (renamed Steelers) in 1933. Rooney financed the team for its first decade on racetrack winnings– via inside tips courtesy of his bookie friend, Tim Mara.

These are just a few capsule biographies of the legendary owners enshrined in Canton, OH. More can be read in Dan Moldea’s book Interference: How Organized Crime Influences Professional Football.

In its earliest days, professional football was shunned by universities, with many college administrators prohibiting their players from having anything to do with the NFL. It wasn’t until 1936, that a college draft system was finally agreed upon by the universities & the NFL.

Most players were paid under $100/game, and NFL games were commonly fixed. Players would also bet their game salary, if they were confident of a win. Key players could be bribed to throw a contest since there was little media interest outside of the tabloid press. Football players & fans were heavy-drinking roughnecks, so mobsters in the bootlegging & gambling rackets were natural partners for the NFL.

The NFL Championship Game of 1946 proved how deep gambling interests ran in professional football. New York Giants players, Frank Filchock & Merle Hapes, took bribes from gamblers to throw the championship game; which the Bears won 24-14.

—–Halftime

The best-known early-era football player was college star, Harold “Red” Grange.
Grange earned football fame & glory for his electrifying runs at the University of Illinois from 1923-25.
In his 20-game college career he ran for 3,362 yards; caught 14 passes for 253 yards; and completed 40-of-82 passes for 575 yards.
Grange, a 3-time All American, scored at least one touchdown in every college game he played, but one.

Nicknamed the ‘Galloping Ghost’, Grange barely lasted two seasons as a star in the NFL.
His left knee was crippled in a game against the Chicago Bears in 1927.
Grange missed 1928, and then re-joined Halas’ Bears for six relatively mediocre seasons, until he retired in 1934.

College football was more popular than the NFL into the 1950’s.
Michigan & Notre Dame built huge stadiums where students & alumni flocked to the spectacle, in a time before radio & television.
College coaches Glenn “Pop” Warner (coach 1895-1938)) and Knute Rockne (coach Notre Dame 1918–1930), are considered football’s greatest innovators of this era.

The NFL was dominated by tough and punishing two-way players such as Chicago Bears RB Bronko Nagurski (1930-43) and Green Bay Packers RB Johnny Blood (1925-38). In 1925, rosters were limited to 16 players and the fat rugby ball couldn’t be thrown very far. Stretchers were routinely used to carry off injured players.

Curly Lambeau, head coach for the Green Bay Packers (1919-1949) had been an early innovator; developing a passing attack and winning 6 NFL titles with great players such as Arnie Herber (QB 1930-45) & Don Hutson (WR 1935-45).

Every NFL franchise has its sordid past, and the publicly-owned Green Bay Packers are no exception. The most notorious events in Packers history involved Curly Lambeau’s stand-off in the late 1940’s with the team’s executive committee, for control of the team.
The executive committee were a dozen power-hungry local businessmen that served as the Packers de facto front office.

Conflicts of interest arose over Rockwood Lodge, the training facility for the Green Bay Packers from 1946-49; insisted upon & designed at great expense, by Lambeau.

Rockwood Lodge was reviled by Packer fans, because it necessitated a drive outside the city to watch practices.
The players hated practicing on the field of rock, which created injuries and depleted their roster; the Packers went 3-9 in 1948, followed by 2-10 in 1949.
At the end of the 1949 season, the Green Bay Packers were on the verge of bankruptcy; three weeks behind on payroll & gate receipts to opponents, with no incoming revenue.
The Packers had become a target for contraction, as the impending AAFC merger would add new NFL franchises in large-city markets of Cleveland, San Francisco & Baltimore.
Curly Lambeau reportedly wanted to move the Packers to California; while fans & the executive council insisted the team stay in Green Bay.

Rockwood Lodge was almost completely vacant on January 24, 1950, when it mysteriously burned to the ground; its cause remains unsolved to this day.
The only official response from the team after the incident came from Packers secretary-treasurer Frank Jonet, when he confirmed that Rockwood Lodge was fully insured.
One week later, Lambeau resigned his position with the Packers and moved to Chicago to coach the Cardinals.
The Packers, fell firmly under the control of the executive council and eventually received a $75,000 settlement from their insurance company; which prevented the team from folding.

Larry Names, author of a definitive early history of the Green Bay Packers states: “Everyone in Green Bay knew at the time, that they went out there and burned that place to the ground to save the franchise…torching Rockwood Lodge is what allowed the Packers to survive.”

NFL Integration & Specialization of the Game

Black athletes had been allowed to play college football since the 19th century, although the ACC & SEC didn’t integrate until the 1960’s & 1970’s.
The NFL had a handful black players in its early years, but none ever played under a professional contract.
A Jim Crow owners agreement in 1932 (insisted upon by Washington R-words owner George Preston Marshall), barred blacks from the NFL until after WWII.

In 1946, the Cleveland Rams received permission from the league to move to Los Angeles.
Los Angeles civil-rights activists successfully lobbied the (publicly-funded) LA Coliseum commission; insisting upon an integrated team as a term for lease approval.
UCLA football star Kenny Washington played for the LA Rams in 1946, becoming the first black athlete to receive a contract to play a professional American team sport.

The NFL initially adopted the rules of college football. Starting in the 1930’s, the NFL made significant rulebook changes to separate itself from the college game.
The most significant NFL rule changes in its pre-Super Bowl era were:

1933– legalizing the forward pass from anywhere behind the line of scrimmage.
1950– unlimited free substitution.
1951– no tackle, guard, or center is eligible to catch a forward pass.

The new substitution rules were designed to open up the game by specializing offense, defense & special-teams platoons. As the number of players/team was steadily expanded from 32 in 1950, to 40 in 1964, these now-available roster spots would be filled with valuable specialists.

By the 1950’s, specialization of the game started to change its style, particularly in the evolution of the modern QB, led by Otto Graham (Cleveland Browns 1946–1955) and Johnny Unitas (Baltimore Colts 1955–1973). This led directly to the television success of the NFL in the 1950’s, when it finally passed college football in popularity.

Early modern-era QBs: Bart Starr (Green Bay Packers 1956–1971), Len Dawson (Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs 1962–1975), and Fran Tarkenton (Minnesota Vikings/NY Giants 1961–1978); helped move professional football from a three-yards-in-a-cloud-of-dust style, into a more wide-open passing attack.

Jim Brown (Cleveland Browns 1957-65) and Gale Sayers (Chicago Bears 1965-71) were the greatest running backs of the pre-merger era.

RB Paul Hornung (Packers) and DT Alex Karras (Lions) were suspended by the NFL in 1964, for betting on games. In Dan Moldea’s Interference, QB Len Dawson candidly discusses throwing games for money in the 1960’s.

Hornung and Bart Starr led the Green Bay Packers, coached under Vince Lombardi from 1959-67, to NFL dominance; winning 5 NFL championships, including the first two Super Bowls. Lombardi retired from coaching after Super Bowl II, and died of cancer in 1970. The Super Bowl trophy has since carried his name.

The arrival of the AFL in 1960, challenged the NFL’s monopoly and brought other innovations to the pro game. Franchises were established in seven new cities: Houston, Denver, San Diego, Oakland, Buffalo, Kansas City & Boston; along with the Jets in NY. All are still in existence.
AFL team photos from the 1960’s show rosters filled with one-half black players; while the average NFL roster was less than one-quarter black players, and the Washington Redskins were the last NFL team to integrate in 1962—by government order.

The 1963 AFL San Diego Chargers are widely credited as pro football’s first steroid team, with its offensive lineman compelled to take steroids during training camp & throughout the season.
The Chargers won their only AFL title that year.

The NFL Hall of Fame opened in 1963 in Canton, OH, with a charter class of 17 members; six of them coaches, owners or league executives.
Standards for the NFL Hall of Fame are inconsistent and nebulous, as demonstrated below:

NFL HoF Comparison Example #1: Linemen from the 1950’s & 60’s

Art Donovan (DT) Baltimore Colts (1950-61):
Career stats: 12 seasons, 138 games, 8 fumbles recovered, 1 safety
HoF card reads, “Five time All-Pro…Donovan developed into one of the best defensive tackles in league history…one of the most popular players in the league…many feel he was at least as valuable to the Colts as a morale builder with his sharp wit and contagious laughter.”

Jerry Kramer (RG) Green Bay Packers (1958-68):
Career Stats: 11 seasons, 130 games
Not in the HoF; although he too was a five-time All-Pro, anchoring multiple championship teams.
There is no real career performance data for either, outside of all-pro voting. As far as anyone can tell, Donovan and Kramer were both dominant linemen, on opposite sides of the ball– essentially the same players in value. Can anyone explain why one is in the Hall of Fame and the other isn’t? Maybe Jerry Kramer wasn’t very funny or popular.

Click here to read Part 2— NFL History: The Super Bowl Era

What is Zionism & Antisemitism?

Posted on August 5, 2014 by admin

Atheist Psalm mp3
RS: gtr & vocal
TomP: percussion & production

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Zionism is Israeli/Jewish nationalism.

Most Jews live in Israel (42%) or the US (42%), and their aggregate population of 14 million comprises 0.2% of the world’s total.

Judaism’s Old Testament texts, traditions, values and hierarchy, strongly influenced later Abrahamic religions such as Christianity & Islam.

Historically, Jews were educated servants of the aristocracy as moneylenders, rent collectors, etc; any jobs the ancient Greeks, Romans or medieval Church aristocracies considered too odious for their own hands.

This is the origin of the merchant class under feudalism, and the bourgeois class under capitalism as defined by Karl Marx.

This hatred, by the ancient aristocracy of the rising business class, is the modern origin of antisemitism.

The great bourgeois revolutions of the late 18th (US & France) and 19th (Napoleonic Wars) centuries, swept away monarchies and reorganized the world under the modern system of nation-states.
The historically stateless Jews were now being systematically persecuted by nationalist racism & terrorism.

By the early 20th century, Jewish immigration to the US increased sharply; first under the whip of tsarist terrorism in feudal Russia, then under the rising tide of European fascism after WW1.
Six million Jews were murdered by Nazis in Europe during WW2, because fascism was allowed to grow unchecked worldwide in the preceding decades.

The capitalist Cold War solution to prevent another Holocaust was to create a nation-state for Jews.
On May 1, 1949 Israel was recognized by the UN as a nation; occupying Palestine– previously a nation of Islam.
Millions of Palestinians were evicted by US/NATO-assisted military force, in order to build Jewish settlements.

This conflict has steadily escalated ever since.

The Six-Day War in June 1967 and the current Israeli Defense Force (IDF) assault on Gaza, are historical markers for Zionism’s war crimes against the people of Palestine.
Since May 1, 1949 anyone expressing sympathy for Palestinian civilian casualties caused by indiscriminate IDF shelling is slandered as antisemitic.

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Fascism is antisemitism applied indiscriminately.

Zionism is conservative Jewish fascism.

While a mortal enemy of European (Nazi) fascism, Zionism shares many Nazi attributes in ethics, style and function.

Since Zionism is a religious-based ideology, it is important to have a clear understanding of religion.

ALL religions are mythology, and have no basis in scientific fact.

Religion offers ancient philosophy, wisdom & poetry; but no material solutions to complex modern problems– be them technological, economic or political.

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The state of Israel serves US ruling interests in the Middle East, as a permanent garrison in the most petroleum-rich portion of the globe.
Oil is the most important natural resource commodity under modern capitalism, replacing cotton in the late 19th century.
Human labor is the most valuable commodity–Karl Marx, Capital

Israel currently has an estimated 120 nuclear-tipped ICBMs.
That is only an estimate, because the state of Israel refuses to even acknowledge it has a nuclear arsenal.

Israel (goaded by ruling fanatics in the US) remains a potential flash point for global nuclear war– which human civilization will not survive.
Once started, human civilization will burn (or perhaps fossilize) into geologic ash, as Mutually Assured Destruction is the only possible outcome to WW3.

Short-sightedness & hubris are threatening our species’ survival, which only measures a fraction of the dinosaur’s geologic existence.
The dinosaur’s demise was after over 150 million years of surviving & thriving– by a chance asteroid collision.
Homo sapiens have only lasted a few hundred-thousand years in total, and we are already facing self-annihilation– which would be a senseless act of species suicide.

If that becomes our fate, then maybe in a few billion years when life can finally return to this beautiful planet, a more highly-evolved species will discover and properly interpret why we didn’t have it in us to survive.

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Reclaiming the 1994 Baseball Season

Posted on July 31, 2014 by admin

Twenty years ago during July/August/September 1994, the MLB season & World Series were cancelled.
The source of the dispute was a deliberate provocation by ownership & its puppets in the MLB commissioner’s office.
This piece is an attempt to educate & reclaim what was stolen.

Background & Trajectory:

Nineteen-ninety four was a turbulent time in US politics. The neo-conservative reaction to Bill Clinton’s election in 1992 was in full swing, as Newt Gingrich would led a right-wing Republican takeover of the House of Representatives and Senate. This reaction would successfully roll-back Clinton’s liberal-leaning Comprehensive Healthcare Initiative; and turned both of his terms as US president into a tabloid witch-hunt, culminating in the first-ever impeachment of a US president. In 1998, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Bill Clinton for perjury; for lying to conceal an extra-martial affair with staffer, Monica Lewinsky.

What followed in US foreign policy, was a sharp turn towards militarism, starting with missile strikes in Sudan & Afghanistan in August 1998 and the US/NATO bombing of Serbia (March-June 1999).

Domestically, the Bush vs Gore Supreme Court decision, which halted the counting of cast ballots in Gore’s favor, was a consensus ruling-class decision to dispense with democratic rights in order to ruthlessly pursue ruling-class interests. This hijacking of a US presidential election in November/December 2000, is still poorly understood by working people, as are the circumstances around 9-11-2001. These events are the foundations the global surveillance apparatus & modern police-state conditions were all now live under. This has been reviewed & clarified to provide context to events affecting MLB.

The MLB owners had lost their last battle with the players in court in December 1990, when a judge ruled collusion by all 26 team owners and the MLB commissioner’s office, headed by Peter Ueberroth. The player’s union (MLBPA) was awarded $280 million in stolen wages. From the off-seasons of 1985-1987, baseball’s greatest stars including: Tim Raines, Andre Dawson, Phil Niekro, Kirk Gibson, Jack Morris, etc. were not allowed to sell their services as free agents, because all the owners had a ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ to not sign ANY free agents. This was planned by MLB commissioner Peter Ueberroth, and carried out by every team’s management & staff; making all of them accomplices in the ownership’s conspiracy to defraud the players.

By 1994, the owners were in no mood to compromise; threatening to retract previously won collectively bargained player’s rights by unilaterally invoking a hard salary cap in order to depress player salaries. Ownership was intransigent on the hard salary cap, knowing the players would reject it.

The players walked out on August 12, 1994 because it allowed them receive most of their season’s salary while hurting the owners financially by cancelling the post-season.
Much of MLB’s season revenue comes from the post-season. The owners provoked the walkout by insisting on a salary cap, thinking they could smear the players as greedy if they refused. It worked well for awhile, as the sports media attacked the players with its usual reactionary vigor, but when ‘acting commissioner’ Bud Selig went before the cameras on Sept 14, 1994 to announce the cancellation of the World Series; no one believed any owner to be innocent.

The last baseball commissioner Faye Vincent noted, “The Union basically doesn’t trust the Ownership because collusion was a $280 million theft by Bud Selig and Jerry Reinsdorf from the players. I mean, they rigged the signing of free agents. They got caught. They paid $280 million to the players. And I think that’s polluted labor relations in baseball ever since it happened. I think it’s the reason [Union Legal Council, Donald] Fehr has no trust in Selig.”

Donald Fehr and the MLBPA insisted the owners collectively made billions of dollars annually. Fehr argued the players create the value so they must be fairly compensated according to free-market principles. You would have thought he was V.I Lenin leading the Bolsheviks, the way the sporting press vilified him.

The MLB owners were desperate by the spring of 1995. They had decided to bring in replacement players, pressuring minor leaguers to scab for the owners in order to break the strike. One minor league player under particular scrutiny was Michael Jordan, OF for AA Birmingham Barons– a CHI White Sox affiliate. Jordan had retired from basketball after the death of his father, and dedicated himself to becoming a big-league baseball player.

His progress was encouraging, impressing scouts with his development in skills & power in the 1994 Arizona Fall League (AFL), and there was speculation he could be a September call-up in 1995.All that was pushed ahead as he was repeatedly questioned in the spring of 1994, if he would be a replacement player. Jordan was in a particularly difficult situation in that the owner of the Chicago White Sox was the same man who owned the Chicago Bulls, Jerry Reinsdorf.

Reinsdorf had been one of the leaders in the MLB owner’s collusion conspiracy.
To Michael Jordan’s credit, he always refused any offer of becoming a replacement player, insisting that he earn his way to the majors.
All this likely contributed in pushing Michael Jordan back to the NBA, and it was probably where be belonged anyway.

Minutes after the owners submitted, and the ink was dry on the new collective bargaining agreement; Reinsdorf signed free agent Albert Belle to a 5-year $55 million contract, the first super-contract of its kind.
Players salaries have escalated ever since, thus vindicating the players as being correct in not believing the owner’s cries of bankruptcy.

How Bud Selig became MLB Commissioner

Faye Vincent was fired by the owners in September 1992 and replaced with “small market” Milwaukee Brewers owner– Bud Selig. Selig constantly whined about “competitive balance”, having to compete against big-spending teams such as the George Steinbrenner’s NYY and Peter Angelos’ BAL. He pointed to Camden Yards, the Orioles beautiful new park (which was often sold out), and exclaimed, “We need a new ballpark if we are going to compete.”

This came from an owner who employed a front office led by old-time GMs Harry Dalton and Sal Bando, who managed to run off their best prospect ever, Gary Sheffield (3B FLA .276/.385/.584); then claimed they couldn’t afford franchise hero DH Paul Molitor after 1992. Molitor took his HoF bat to TOR in 1993, where he was the second-best player in the AL (Frank Thomas MVP), and became a WS hero helping TOR repeat as WS champions. TOR teammate RHP Dave Stewart famously said here never played with a more unselfish player than Paul Molitor.

The MIL front office led by the Dalton gang had plunged into free agency in the late-1980’s, signing free-agent busts such as 1B Greg Brock (career line .248/.338/.399) & 1B/DH Franklin Stubbs (career line .232/.303/.404). When MIL re-signed fan-favorite & ace LHP Teddy Higuera to a large $ deal, Higuera immediately tore out his rotator cuff; the Brewers front office hadn’t insisted on an MRI while negotiating his extension.

Now under GM Sal Bando (above), the only valuable MIL player was LF Greg Vaughn (.254/.345/.478). Left field and the County Stadium bleachers past its fence, was designated Vaughn’s Valley by the local faithful. Unfortunately, too many balls thrown in by Brewers pitchers ended up in Vaughn’s Valley. In 1994 MIL was last in the AL Central, 15 games behind the CWS when the season was cancelled.

As a fan, I always felt MIL manager Phil Garner was a good skipper, but he had no chance with this team. A friend & I would regularly go to games at County Stadium around that time, and we would observe Garner walk out to the mound again & again in the middle innings. My friend would always put his hands behind his back and make a gesture of being handcuffed.

1994 Hall of Famers

On Jan 12, 1994 LHP Steve Carlton was elected to the HoF.
Carlton was one of the greatest LHP ever: W-L 329-244, 3.22 ERA, 5217.2 IP, 4136 K
The HoF Veterans Committee tapped manager Leo Durocher and NYY SS Phil Rizzuto; career .273/.351/.355 hitter. Nicknamed “Scooter”, Rizzuto played under manager Casey Stengel with Joe DiMaggio, Bill Dickey, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, etc.; and helped the Yankees win 10 AL pennants and 7 World Series in his 13 seasons. Rizzuto served 3 prime athletic years (1943-45; his age 25-27 seasons) in the US Navy.

The 1994 Baseball Season (All stats 1994, unless noted)

In 1994, there was a newly-added Divisional round of playoff games, via the Wild Card. From 1969-1993, MLB had 2 divisions in each league, with only its division champions advancing to the post-season. The NL & AL West were both short-stacked with only 4 teams; all other divisions had 5 teams.

It was a memorable Opening Day at Wrigley Field when Karl “Tuffy” Rhodes hit 3 HRs (2 off Doc Gooden), but the Mets still won 12-8.
The CHC would finish last in the new NL Central.
The Cubs best players were 1B Mark Grace (.298/.370/.414) and intriguing young RF Sammy Sosa (.300/.339/.545).
HoF numbers player 1B Rafael Palmiero, whom the Cubs traded to TEX for reliever Mitch “Wild Thing” Williams a few years earlier, hit .319/.396/.550 for BAL that year.

A no-hitter by LHP Kent Merker (ATL) in his first start of the season on April 8, raised eyebrows around MLB.
If you weren’t a Braves fan, you could only be envious of their pitching riches.
The ATL rotation included HoFers Greg Maddux RHP (16-6, 1.56 ERA, 202 IP), Tom Glavine LHP (13-9, 3.97 ERA, 165.1 IP) and John Smoltz RHP (6-10, 4.14 ERA, 134.2 IP); along with young upstart LHP Steve Avery (8-3, 4.04 ERA, 151.2 IP) and now LHP Kent Merker (9-4, 3.45 ERA, 112.1 IP).
This ATL starting rotation under Bobby Cox & Leo Mazzone became the best staff ever when ATL added All-Star LHP Denny Neagle from PIT for the season in 1997 going 20-5, 2.97 ERA, 233.1 IP as their 4th starter.

RHP ATL Greg Maddux 10 CG, 202 IP, 1.56 ERA in 1994
For comparison: RHP Bret Saberhagen (NYM) was 2nd in NL ERA at 2.74

NL Central– CIN leads, with HOU 0.5 GB led by HoF 1B Jeff Bagwell (.368/.451/.750–MVP), HoF 2B Craig Biggio (.318/.411/.483), and All-Star 3B Ken Caminiti (.283/.352/.495).
The Reds were led by HoF SS Barry Larkin (.279/.369/.419), LF Kevin Mitchell (.326/.429/.681) & RHP Jose Rijo (9-6, 3.08 ERA, 172.1 IP). Deion Sanders, an NFL All-Pro CB & punt returner was their CF (.283/.342/.381) acquired from ATL mid-season. In the spring of 1995 as the baseball strike was nearing an end, ‘Prime Time’ negotiated a $35 million deal to play for the Dallas Cowboys, whenever he was done with the baseball season.
Note: Deion Sanders’ career batting line was .263/.319/.392.

PIT lost HoF LF Barry Bonds after 1992, and finished 22 GB of PHI in the NL East in 1993. They were 13 GB in the NL Central when the season was stopped in 1994.
It would continue to a streak of 20 years of finishing below .500 before the Bucs grabbed a WC in 2013, finishing 94–68.

The NL West was poor, with LAD at 58-56, 3.5 games ahead of SFG.
LAD were led by HoF C Mike Piazza (319/.370/.541), young fiery RF Raul Mondesi (.306/.333/.516) & RHP Ramon Martinez (12-7, 3.96 ERA, 170 IP).
SFG were led by HoF LF Barry Bonds (.312/.426/.647) and 3B Matt Williams (.267/.319/.607)
COL was in its 2nd year of existence, and had serious starting pitching issues.
SD was the worst team in the NL.

RHP Scott Erickson (MIN) threw a no-hitter against punchless MIL on April 27, 1994.
The next day, LHP Kenny Rogers (TEX) threw a perfect game against the CAL Angels.
The standings in the AL West were unprecedented in MLB, at the time of the work stoppage. TEX, with a 52-62 record led the division, one game better than OAK and 2 games ahead of SEA. CAL was 19 games under .500 (47-68), and yet only 5.5 GB.

The CLE Indians had the best lineup of their era:

1B Paul Sorrento .280/.345/.453
Switch-hitting 2B Carlos Baerga .314/.333/.525
Gold-glove SS Omar Vizquel .273/.325/.325
Young slugging HoF 3B Jim Thome .268/.359/.523
All-Star C Sandy Alomar .288/.347/.490
MVP candidate LF Albert Belle .357/.442/.714
Under-rated (borderline HoFer) CF Kenny Lofton .349/.417/.536
HoF rookie RF Manny Ramirez .269/.357/.521
HoF veteran DH Eddie Murray .254/.302/.425

The CLE pitching staff was anchored by Charles Nagy (169.1 IP, 3.45 ERA), and was above-average overall.

The CHI White Sox were 67-46, one game ahead of CLE when the season was called.
The White Sox were led by their great pitching staff of RHP Jack McDowell (181 IP, 3.73 ERA); RHP Alex Fernandez (170.1 IP, 3.86 ERA); LHP Wilson Alvarez (161.2 IP, 3.45 ERA); and young stud prospect RHP Jason Bere (141.2 IP, 3.81 ERA). Between CWS & CLE in 1994, the team that didn’t win the division was likely going the be the AL Wild Card.

The best team in the AL was the NYY at 70-43, 6.5 games clear of BAL.
Defending WS winners TOR were in 3rd, 16 GB. The NYY had finally been allowed to rebuild themselves through the farm system. From 1990-92 MLB suspended owner George Steinbrenner, creating a window of opportunity for the Yankee front office led by Gene Michael, to develop their prospects. Steinbrenner had a propensity for meddling, rushing and/or trading away top prospects. He also handcuffed management by overpaying on free agent bats. This had led to a post-season drought for the NYY that stretched back to 1981.

By 1994, fourth-year NYY player Bernie Williams (.289/.386/.453) was their CF; and they had already smartly acquired valuable parts in Paul O’Neil (.359/.460/.603), LHP Jimmy Key (17-4, 3.27 ERA, 168 IP), and HoF 3B Wade Boggs (.342/.433/.489).

Future Yankee stars still in the minors included: Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte. This was the core for their great championship run from 1996-2000, where they won 4 WS in 5 years. The 1994 season was the end for 1B Don Mattingly (.304/.397/.411), and the season being cancelled cost him only best chance at a post-season. He would be replaced with Tino Martinez (.261/.320/.508), from SEA.

The best AL pitchers were:
RHP Roger Clemens (BOS) 9-7, 2.85 ERA, 170 IP
RHP Mike Mussina (BAL) 16-5, 3.06 ERA, 176.1 IP
LHP Randy Johnson (SEA) 13-6, 3.19 ERA, 176 IP
RHP David Cone (KC) 16-5, 2.94 ERA, 171.2 IP
LHP Jimmy Key (NYY) 17-4, 3.27 ERA, 168 IP

Best AL players were:
1B CWS Frank Thomas 38 HR .353/.494/.729
LF CLE Albert Belle 36 HR .357/.442/.714
CF SEA Ken Griffey Jr 40 HR .322/.403/.674
CF CLE Kenny Lofton .349/.417/.536; 60 SB, 12 CS

NL Best team: Montreal Expos .649 winning % in 114 G.
Les Expos were 6 games better than the Atlanta Braves.
Managed by Felipe Alou, the 1994 Montreal Expos are in the discussion (with the 1995 ATL Braves), as the 2nd-best team of the decade.
The 1998 NYY were all-time great.

Left fielder Moises Alou (.339/.397/.592); CF Marquis Grissom (.288/.344/.427) and borderline HoFer RF Larry Walker (.322/.394/.587) were the best outfield in baseball, driving the MON lineup. Their starting pitching had HoF RHP Pedro Martinez (11-5, 3.42 ERA, 144.2 IP), along with established workhorses RHP Ken Hill (16-5, 3.32 ERA, 154.2 IP) & LHP Jeff Fassero (8-6, 2.99 ERA, 138.2 IP). Their bullpen had young, hard-throwing RHPs Mel Rojas (3.32 ERA, 84 IP) and John Wetteland (2.83 ERA, 63.2 IP).
The 1994 MON Expos were a patiently assembled team, and this franchise was truly cheated out of their best chance of ever winning a World Series.

Brief history of the Montreal Expos since the 1994 strike

After the 1994 strike was settled, MON Expos management began shedding its key players. Art mogul Jeffrey Loria bought the team in 1999, and so mismanaged it that the Expos did not reach an agreement on television and English radio broadcast contracts for the 2000 season. Thus, no Expos games were broadcast on local TV or radio in 2000.

In December 2001, the Boston Red Sox accepted a purchase bid from a group led by John W. Henry, owner of the FLA Marlins. Henry sold the Marlins to Loria, and MLB bought the Expos from Loria for $120 million.

Loria immediately moved the entire Expos front office and on-field staff, including manager Jeff Torborg, to Miami — leaving MON without personnel, scouting reports, and office equipment– including the team’s computers. Without an owner willing to operate the team in Montreal, it was widely understood that the sale of the Expos to MLB was the first step in the process of either moving or folding the franchise.

It was widely speculated around 2001, that the MON Expos & MIN Twins were to be the two teams eliminated by contraction. The contracted-team owners were to be paid handsomely by the survivors. All this was being seriously discussed by MLB owners, only a few years after the ARZ Diamondbacks and TB Devil Rays came in existence in 1998. Owner plans for elimination of two franchises were scuttled when the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission, operator of Minnesota’s Metrodome, received an injunction requiring the Twins to play in the Metrodome during 2002, so MLB could not shut down the MON Expos alone while easily preserving its 162-game schedule.

Post-1994, the Expos became a farm system for contending teams to raid or pick off in free agency. In the summer of 2002, Expos GM under MLB Omar Minaya engineered arguably the worst trade in MLB history; acquiring 3 months of RHP Bartolo Colón (10-4, 3.31 ERA, 117 IP) from CLE in exchange for future All-Stars 2B Brandon Phillips, CF Grady Sizemore, as well as Cy Young ace LHP Cliff Lee.

Believe it or not, Los Expos played home games at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico for parts of two seasons (2003-2004). After losing HoF RF Vladimir Guerrero to free agency after 2003 (without even offering him arbitration, so they could not collect their compensatory draft pick), the Expos finished their last year in Montreal (2004), with a 67–95 record.

In 2005, MLB moved the franchise to Washington, and renamed it the Nationals. The franchise was sold to real estate magnate Ted Lerner (estimated net worth $4 billion) in 2006.

The Montreal Expos from 1994 until their end in 2004, are an example of the ruthless nature of business in sports. The Expos never again had a chance to compete, as MLB and its ownership conspired to strangle the franchise. Their fertile & productive farm system along with their small-market ingenuity & creativity were systematically destroyed by powerful forces that viewed them as an impediment to greater profits. That is the legacy of baseball in Montreal & the lost 1994 season.

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Ric Size

Songwriter, Musician, Artist

Category Archives: Economics