Quotulatiousness

November 10, 2011

John Scalzi on the Penn State child rape cover-up

Filed under: Bureaucracy, Education, Football, Law — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 12:02

In four points, John Scalzi walks us through what should have happened at Penn State when the first incident was discovered:

1. When, as an adult, you come come across another adult raping a small child, you should a) do everything in your power to rescue that child from the rapist, b) call the police the moment it is practicable.

2. If your adult son calls you to tell you that he just saw another adult raping a small child, but then left that small child with the rapist, and then asks you what he should do, you should a) tell him to get off the phone with you and call the police immediately, b) call the police yourself and make a report, c) at the appropriate time in the future ask your adult son why the fuck he did not try to save that kid.

3. If your underling comes to you to report that he saw another man, also your underling, raping a small child, but then left that small child with the rapist, you should a) call the police immediately, b) alert your own superiors, c) immediately suspend the alleged rapist underling from his job responsibilities pending a full investigation, d) at the appropriate time in the future ask that first underling why the fuck he did not try to save that kid.

4. When, as the officials of an organization, you are approached by an underling who tells you that one of his people saw another of his people raping a small child at the organization, in organization property, you should a) call the police immediately, b) immediately suspend the alleged rapist from his job responsibilities if the immediate supervisor has not already done so, c) when called to a grand jury to testify on the matter, avoid perjuring yourself. At no time should you decide that the best way to handle the situation is to simply tell the alleged rapist not to bring small children onto organization property anymore.

For “organization”, feel free to substitute “Catholic church” for “Penn State University” as required.

November 9, 2011

Penn State’s problem

Filed under: Bureaucracy, Education, Football, Law — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 12:55

Russ from Winterset loses his temper over the truly disturbing way Penn State is handling their child rape issues allegations:

So Joe Paterno is going to retire at the end of the season?

Whiskey? Tango? Foxtrot? Does Joe think he is going to be carried off the MISS PIGGY field to the BEAKER cheers of the DR. BUNSEN HONEYDEW crowd after leading Penn STADLER State to another GONZO bowl game? FOZZIE BEAR that noise. He should have the common DR. TEETH & THE ELECTRIC MAYHEM decency to slink out the back door of the coaching offices in shame like John SAM THE EAGLE Edwards leaving a session of a Federal RIZZO THE RAT Grand Jury.

That moderation expressed in my first update? KERMIT that. If Joe JANIS THE BASS PLAYER Paterno is allowed to coach another ANIMAL football game at Penn RALPH THE DOG State University, every WALDORF fan in the stadium who so much as smiles when their BERT team scores their first ERNIE touchdown can go Suck The Barbed Cock of Satan as far as I’m concerned.

BIG BIRD! Now I’m pissed.

And when you come back with the “look at all he’s done for the community” card, tell me this. How many other kids have been raped since 2002 because JoePa and the other jackasses at Penn State didn’t think it was necessary to get the police involved in this situation? Ten? Five? Even one? Is that a fair trade for all that Joe Paterno has done for his community?

If it’s not quite clear from context, he “replace[d] all but one of my f-bombs in the original draft of the post with the names of Muppet Characters”

November 8, 2011

NFL week 9 results

Filed under: Football — Tags: — Nicholas @ 08:27

This was a bad week to take the home team: most teams lost at home this weekend.

    ∅ @Buffalo 11 New York (NYJ) 27
    ∅ @Dallas 23 Seattle 13
    √ Atlanta 31 @Indianapolis 7
    ∅ @Kansas City 3 Miami 31
    √ @New Orleans 27 Tampa Bay 16
    √ San Francisco 19 @Washington 11
    √ @Houston 30 Cleveland 12
    ∅ @Tennessee 17 Cincinnati 24
    ∅ @Oakland 24 Denver 38
    ∅ @New England 20 New York (NYG) 24
    √ @Arizona 19 St. Louis 13
    √ Green Bay 45 @San Diego 38
    ∅ @Pittsburgh 20 Baltimore 23
    ∅ @Philadelphia 24 Chicago 30

This week 6-8 (7-7 against the spread)
Season to date 80-50

November 7, 2011

Occupy Winter Park!

Filed under: Business, Football, Government, Politics — Tags: , , — Nicholas @ 13:35

Minnesota is blessed with some particularly colourful legislators, but all of them must take second place to State Representative Phyllis Kahn. She has a long history of, shall we say, “imaginative” legislative proposals, and this one is a doozy:

Throw in one more idea for a new Minnesota Vikings stadium: Have the public buy shares in the team, enabling them to own a piece of the Vikings and help finance a stadium.

The community ownership idea has been floated before but Rep. Phyllis Kahn, DFL-Minneapolis, said Monday she would introduce legislation to require Gov. Mark Dayton and the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission to work with the National Football League to make it happen. The commission owns the downtown Minneapolis Metrodome, the team’s home for nearly 30 years.

“Dayton asked for all ideas to be put on the table and that’s exactly what I’m doing here,” said Kahn. “No single idea [for funding a new stadium] has gained enough traction to pass the Legislature.”

The Vikings are hoping to get a new stadium built, and the state legislature has been doing what they can to kick the issue down the road every time it’s come up. I don’t have a say in the matter, as I’m not located in Minnesota and I’d probably still cheer for the team even if it moved elsewhere (though it would be a sad thing to see it move after half a century in Minnesota).

In general, I don’t think governments should build stadiums for professional sports teams, as it’s using tax money to subsidize private profits. If a new stadium is going to generate a profit, the team’s ownership should bear the costs themselves. The fact that they generally don’t — mostly because politicians don’t want to deal with angry sports fans after the team leaves town — doesn’t make it right.

However, Rep. Kahn’s proposal won’t fly because the NFL itself forbids public ownership of teams (the grandfathered-in exception being the Green Bay Packers). What’s even more interesting about her plan is that the proceeds of selling shares in the team would be put directly towards building a new stadium:

The funds from selling stock in the Vikings, said Kahn, could go toward helping the team build a new stadium. She added that, under her plan, Vikings owner Zygi Wilf and his family could retain a 30 percent controlling interest in the team.

So the Wilfs will be allowed to retain a minority share, but wouldn’t be compensated for the proportion of the stock that was being sold? Isn’t that just expropriation? I didn’t realize the DFL was a modern-day successor to Mussolini’s Fascist Party.

November 6, 2011

NFL week 9 predictions

Filed under: Football — Tags: — Nicholas @ 12:07

My team is enjoying a bye this week, so I’m not passionately interested in the outcomes of today’s games except for my NFL pool. I like the favourites in almost all the games this week (danger sign number 1) except for Seattle (danger sign number 2), and that’s mainly because I don’t think Dallas will beat the spread.

    @Buffalo vs New York (NYJ) (2.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @Dallas vs Seattle (11.5) Sun 1:00pm
    Atlanta vs @Indianapolis (7.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @Kansas City vs Miami (4.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @New Orleans vs Tampa Bay (8.0) Sun 1:00pm
    San Francisco vs @Washington (3.5) Sun 1:00pm
    @Houston vs Cleveland (11.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @Tennessee vs Cincinnati (3.0) Sun 4:05pm
    @Oakland vs Denver (8.0) Sun 4:05pm
    @New England vs New York (NYG) (9.0) Sun 4:15pm
    @Arizona vs St. Louis (2.5) Sun 4:15pm
    Green Bay vs @San Diego (5.5) Sun 4:15pm
    @Pittsburgh vs Baltimore (3.0) Sun 8:20pm
    @Philadelphia vs Chicago (7.5) Mon 8:30pm

Last week 10-3 (8-5 against the spread)
Season to date 74-42

November 1, 2011

NFL week 8 results

Filed under: Football — Tags: — Nicholas @ 08:12

I’m much happier with my results this week, although it only helps me regain some of the ground I’d lost over the previous two weeks. I’m now sharing a three-way tie for tenth spot in the AoSHQ pool (six points behind the leader, but only two points out of second place).

    √ @Tennessee 27 Indianapolis 10
    ∅ New Orleans 21 @St. Louis 31
    √ @New York (NYG) 20 Miami 17
    √ @Carolina 21 Minnesota 24
    √ @Baltimore 30 Arizona 27
    √ @Houston 24 Jacksonville 14
    √ @Buffalo 23 Washington 0
    √ Detroit 45 @Denver 10
    √ New England 17 @Pittsburgh 25
    √ @San Francisco 20 Cleveland 10
    √ Cincinnati 34 @Seattle 12
    ∅ @Philadelphia 34 Dallas 7
    ∅ San Diego 20 @Kansas City 23

This week 10-3 (8-5 against the spread)
Season to date 74-42

October 31, 2011

Vikings hang on to defeat Panthers at home, 24-21

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:34

For what was billed as a team that couldn’t stop the run, Carolina certainly kept Adrian Peterson bottled up for much of the day — at least on the ground. Peterson didn’t break 100 yards of rushing, but he made up for that in receiving yards with 162 yards in total. Cam Newton did awful things to the Vikings’ secondary including a big completion on fourth-and-fourteen that kept the Panthers’ final drive alive. Christian Ponder put in a good performance at quarterback for the Vikings, making no serious mistakes and keeping the chains moving on third down, especially in the second half.

Carolina looked snake-bit early in the game, with several ugly plays that the Vikings failed to fully capitalize on. Their first possession lasted exactly one play as a strip-sack handed the ball over to the Vikings deep in Panther territory. Middle linebacker E.J. Henderson hit Newton forcing the ball out, and Jared Allen came up with the loose ball. Allen also had a sack later in the half, which also forced Newton to fumble. Allen set a new team record with a sack in ten consecutive games.

Percy Harvin, on the other hand, had a much more up-and-down game. He scored a rushing touchdown, but was also stripped of the ball deep in Panthers’ territory, and also drew a 15-yard penalty for what looked like a fistfight with Carolina’s Captain Munnerlyn well off the playing field (actually at the Panthers’ bench).

(more…)

October 30, 2011

NFL week 8 predictions

Filed under: Football — Tags: — Nicholas @ 11:03

After a strong start in the prediction business, my picks have been regressing to the mean over the last few weeks. Here’s hoping that this week will put me back in contention:

    @Tennessee vs Indianapolis (8.5) Sun 1:00
    New Orleans vs @St. Louis (13.5) Sun 1:00
    @New York (NYG) vs Miami (10.0) Sun 1:00
    @Carolina vs Minnesota (3.5) Sun 1:00
    @Baltimore vs Arizona (13.0) Sun 1:00
    @Houston vs Jacksonville (9.5) Sun 1:00
    @Buffalo vs Washington (6.0) Sun 4:05
    Detroit vs @Denver (3.0) Sun 4:05
    New England vs @Pittsburgh (3.0) Sun 4:15
    @San Francisco vs Cleveland (8.5) Sun 4:15
    Cincinnati vs @Seattle (3.0) Sun 4:15
    @Philadelphia vs Dallas (3.5) Sun 8:20
    San Diego vs @Kansas City (3.5) Mon 8:30

Last week 5-8 (5-8 against the spread)
Season to date 64-39

Rookie QB matchup

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , — Nicholas @ 10:52

This is one of those games that could attract a lot more attention than the (respectively) 1-6 and 2-5 teams would normally be able to get. The biggest reason is the head-to-head matchup of two rookie quarterbacks, the Vikings’ Christian Ponder and the Panthers’ Cam Newton. Jim Souhan points out a few parallels between the two rookies:

When Cam Newton scores a touchdown, which is often, he rips open an imaginary shirt, imitating Superman.

When Christian Ponder threw his first NFL touchdown on Sunday, he ran down the field firing imaginary guns like the Shooter McGavin character from “Happy Gilmore.”

While one channels a hero and the other embraces a parody, Newton and Ponder, two rookie quarterbacks who will meet today in Charlotte, share an intriguing set of connections and similarities.

They worked out together this summer with St. Paul native and former Florida State star Chris Weinke. They were both selected in the first round of the 2011 draft. Their fathers tried out for the Dallas Cowboys in 1983. They might have the four best legs this side of Secretariat.

What might be most interesting about them is that they have the athletic ability to alter the way the quarterback position is played, yet seem determined to prove they can win games with their arms.

October 26, 2011

Mis-perception of relative risks

Filed under: Football, Health, Randomness — Tags: , , , — Nicholas @ 00:03

Gregg Easterbrook provides a good example of how difficult people often find to discern the relative weight of risks:

The first consideration is that both absolute numbers of football deaths and rates of death compared to participants are in long-term decline — mirroring the decline in many forms of risk in society. Age-adjusted rates of all deaths in the United States have declined for 10 consecutive years. Auto fatalities have been declining for more than a generation. Winning the War on War, an important new book by Joshua Goldstein [. . .] shows that despite the impression created by cable news, exposure to violence is in decline both in the United States and worldwide.

[. . .]

Data from the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research reflects a steady decline in deaths caused by football. Table 1 of the center’s most recent report shows that in the past decade, 34 high school, three pro and two college football players have died as the direct result of games or practices, with the primary cause of deaths being heat stroke. That is entirely awful — but much lower than the rate of a generation ago. In 1968 alone, 26 high school players died as a direct result of football; last year, the number was two. Table 3 of the report shows the direct fatality rate from high school football peaked at 2.6 deaths per 100,000 players in 1969 and declined steadily to 0.13 deaths per 100,000 in 2010. That means a 1968 high school football player was 20 times more likely to die than a 2010 player. (The main reason for declining deaths was that football helmets were improved to eliminate skull fractures.)

[. . .]

How to compare the slight risk of a terrible football outcome to other common risks experienced by the young? Consider the risk of being in a car. About 3,000 teens die each year in car crashes. There are about 21.3 million Americans between 15 and 19 years of age. Teens average about 146 miles driven per week, roughly 150 hours per year of driving. These figures yield a roughly one in 1 million chance that a teen will die in an hour of driving. The National Federation of State High School Associations reports that 1.1 million boys (and a few girls) played high school football last academic year. A typical high school football season would include, in games and practice, perhaps 75 hours of exposure to contact. That’s about 80 million total hours of exposure to contact on the part of high school football players. The National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research reports a recent average of three deaths per year directly caused by high school football. That’s a roughly one in 27 million chance of a high school player dying from an hour of football contact.

These are all rough estimates. Taking them together, a teenager has a one in 1 million chance of dying in an hour behind the wheel, compared to a one in 27 million chance of dying in an hour of football contact. Being in pads on a football field is less deadly than driving to high school for class. Many contemporary parents, especially moms, might say, “I don’t want you playing football because it’s so dangerous, but it’s fine for you to drive to the mall.” As regards mortality, this misperceives the risks.

October 25, 2011

NFL week 7 results

Filed under: Football — Tags: — Nicholas @ 08:35

You’d have had a good week if you’d just inverted my predictions. I’ve now dropped down to a 5-way tie for 13th spot in the AoSHQ pool.

    √ @Cleveland 6 Seattle 3
    ∅ @Detroit 16 Atlanta 23
    √ @Tennessee 7 Houston 41
    ∅ @Miami 15 Denver 18
    ∅ San Diego 21 @New York (NYJ) 27
    ∅ Chicago 24 @Tampa Bay 18
    ∅ @Carolina 33 Washington 20
    ∅ @Oakland 0 Kansas City 28
    √ Pittsburgh 32 @Arizona 20
    √ @Dallas 34 St. Louis 7
    ∅ Green Bay 33 @Minnesota 27
    √ @New Orleans 62 Indianapolis 7
    ∅ Baltimore 7 @Jacksonville 12

This week 5-8 (5-8 against the spread)
Season to date 64-39

October 24, 2011

Vikings lose entertainingly to Packers, 33-27

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , — Nicholas @ 08:48

Although the final numbers don’t show it (13 of 32 for 219 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INT), Christian Ponder had a pretty good game in his first NFL start. Rookies will make mistakes early on (and some players never stop making rookie mistakes), so coming out of the game with two touchdown passes and two interceptions is a good outing for a rookie quarterback. If nothing else, he provided a jolt of energy to a team that (in Jim Souhan’s wording) “the previous week played with all of the enthusiasm of guys in orange jumpsuits picking up roadside trash”.

Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, however, didn’t make any mistakes worth mentioning. As the TV commentators put it, he was putting on a clinic during the first half, yet the scoreboard didn’t reflect how good he was, as the Packers were behind the Vikings at halftime 17-13.

Clint Starks at The Viking Age:

The Vikings secondary was without Chris Cook (incarcerated) and Antoine Winfield (injury) and many thought this unit would struggle against the high powered passing Packers offense and they did not disappoint. In typical Vikings fashion they also racked up their share of penalties. Purple were penalized 9 times for 91 yards. All of that said, the Vikings did make it close at the end with a couple defensive stops and decent play from Ponder. In the end, the Packers passing game gave way to their serviceable running game to ice the game.

Of course the big news from the Vikings standpoint was Christian Ponder getting his first career start and for the most part he looked decent. I have spent much energy criticizing Bill Musgrave but I must admit that he called a good game and put Ponder in some good positions to make some plays. Ponder did throw two picks (to Charles Woodson), which was to be expected, we knew there would be some growing pains with the rookie play caller. For the most part, this is a good start to Ponder’s career and there is much to build off of.

Dan Wiederer, Star Tribune:

The moment felt so hopeful, the play unfolding better than Christian Ponder could have ever envisioned. On the Vikings’ first snap Sunday, there was the rookie quarterback, in play action, shuffling left into open space.

Up the sideline, receiver Michael Jenkins froze Green Bay cornerback Tramon Williams with a devastating out-and-up move. So here came this pass — a perfect spiral to a wide-open target — pumping adrenaline into a downtrodden fan base.

This one completion, netting 72 yards and setting up a 2-yard touchdown toss from Ponder to Visanthe Shiancoe, felt incredibly significant.

Suddenly, the worries that existed about giving Ponder his first NFL start against the defending Super Bowl champions were obliterated by a roar that rippled the Teflon roof covering Mall of America Field.

Just like that, the Vikings’ advertisements of Ponder as their confident leader of the future seemed valid.

Update: Tom Pelissero and Judd Zulgad of 1500ESPN:

October 23, 2011

NFL week 7 predictions

Filed under: Football — Tags: — Nicholas @ 11:08

As usual, no guarantee of accuracy is included with my semi-random guesses. With all the injuries (and an arrest) in the Vikings secondary, I’m clearly insane to be picking them to win against the unbeaten Green Bay Packers. But if when they win, I’ll look like a genius! (Or double your money back)

    @Cleveland vs Seattle (3.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @Detroit vs Atlanta (3.5) Sun 1:00pm
    @Tennessee vs Houston (3.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @Miami vs Denver (2.0) Sun 1:00pm
    San Diego vs @New York (NYJ) (2.0) Sun 1:00pm
    Chicago vs @Tampa Bay (1.0) Sun 1:00pm
    @Carolina vs Washington (2.5) Sun 1:00pm
    @Oakland vs Kansas City (4.5) Sun 4:05pm
    Pittsburgh vs @Arizona (3.5) Sun 4:05pm
    @Dallas vs St. Louis (13.0) Sun 4:15pm
    Green Bay vs @Minnesota (9.0) Sun 4:15pm
    @New Orleans vs Indianapolis (14.0) Sun 8:20pm
    Baltimore vs @Jacksonville (8.0) Mon 8:30pm

Last week 8-5 (7-6 against the spread)
Season to date 59-31

October 22, 2011

Yet another bit of bad news for Vikings fans

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , — Nicholas @ 11:13

The Vikings were already hurting in the secondary, with cornerback Antoine Winfield probably out with a neck injury that’s been bothering him for the last two weeks, and safety Jamarca Sanford out with a concussion. Now, Tom Pelissero reports that the Vikings will be even weaker at cornerback tomorrow, as Chris Cook (who had been starting in place of Winfield) has been arrested on domestic assault charges:

The Minnesota Vikings’ second-year cornerback was being held without bail at Hennepin County Jail early Saturday morning on two domestic assault charges, according to jail records. A source confirmed it is the Vikings’ cornerback.

Cook, 24, was booked into the jail at 4:06 a.m. Saturday on two misdemeanor domestic assault charges. His first court appearance is scheduled for 8:15 a.m. Monday.

Early indications were that means Cook would remain in jail while the Vikings play the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon.

And here is the most recent bit of doom-and-gloom from the ESPN1500 team (recorded before Cook’s arrest):

October 19, 2011

Vikings finally hand the keys to Christian Ponder

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , — Nicholas @ 09:31

Most of the reaction to yesterday’s announcement that Christian Ponder will start the Vikings’ next game against the Green Bay Packers follows the same line: it’s about time. Ponder comes in with the team sitting at 1-5 and out of playoff contention. Green Bay, defending Super Bowl champs, are unbeaten this season. It’s a tall order for a rookie, but he clearly showed enough of a spark in last weekend’s disastrous outing against Chicago to get the nod to replace Donovan McNabb.

Dan Wiederer at the Star Tribune:

Truthfully, it was becoming awfully hard to find a risk-reward scenario that didn’t lead to Ponder replacing McNabb. As quarterback controversies go, this one sure seems clear-cut. For a Vikings squad whose 2011 season is going down in flames, the chance to develop a promising young quarterback far outweighs the value of possibly scratching out an extra two or three wins with an aging veteran whose contract will be up at season’s end.

It was quickly becoming a foregone conclusion that Ponder would start at some point this season. Frazier said as much Monday. So why delay the inevitable?

The Vikings head coach might say Wednesday he believes Ponder gives the Vikings the best chance to win now — this week and for the rest of 2011. But really, this is a prudent move designed to build toward a more promising future.

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