Friday, April 6, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Things Change - Sometimes
I started reading a book yesterday that I had gotten as a Christmas present when I was a kid. The book, titled Buckeye is about the Ohio State Football Coach at the time, Woody Hayes and the Ohio State Football program. I'm only a few chapters in to the book at this point, but some things struck me.
The first thing I noticed was how much things change. I got book as a Christmas present in 1977 and it had been written a few years before that. It spoke about how important it was to Coach Hayes that his players got their college degrees. He would keep on his players about their grades and would keep hounding his former players who had left the university without a degree. Impressing on them the importance of getting "that sheepskin". It doesn't seem to be that way anymore. College coaches don't seem to be as concerned about making sure that their players get a good education. Maybe that's just from my perspective, but that seems to be secondary nowadays, even though the incentive a University gives a player to come play at their school is to offer them a free education.
Another thing I noticed was how much the cost of football has gone up in the years since this book was written. This came to light in part due to the part about Woody wanting to make sure his players get their degrees. The book spoke of John Brockington who was a former Ohio State football player and was playing professional football for the Green Bay Packers. The author pointed out that he didn't feel it was so important for Brockington to have a degree because he was making over $100,000 as one of the NFL's best running backs. $100,000???? REALLY??? Can you imagine a professional football player, especially one of the best in his position, making $100,000 today? The book also spoke about Coach Hayes' salary. Low, even for those times, for someone as successful has he was at that size school. But far lower than I would have ever imagined. At the time the book was written, Woody Hayes, one of best known coaches in college football at a program whose attendance at games was one of the highest in the country, was making $28,000 a year. Can you imagine that today? $28,000 a year as the head coach of a college football program the size and scope of Ohio State.
Even adjusted for inflation, those numbers are low. John Brockington's $100,000 a year would be equal to just over $485,000 today. Now sit back and think if one of the top running backs in the NFL were making $485,000 a year. I'm thinking the cost of tickets and concessions at NFL stadiums would be much less expensive. And Woody's $28,000 in 1973 would be $135,845 today. Can you imagine the coach of Ohio State football being paid $135,845? And Woody also pulled double duty as a physical education professor during his time at Ohio State. Urban Meyer was hired this year by The Ohio State University for $4,000,000 a year! So, adjusted for inflation, he is being paid nearly 30 times what Woody Hayes was making.
The thing I've noticed about what hasn't changed in 40 years is that the media still writes the story with their own slant to it. Woody Hayes did not like the media. He had been burned by the media a few times and was very suspicious of them. He had learned that the media would twist words and edit comments so that, while technically accurate, conveyed the message the media wanted them to convey instead of what they were actually meant to convey. A good recent example of this is the situation we've been hearing about in Florida. The tragic shooting of 17 year old Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman. I'm not about to defend George Zimmerman, but as time has gone on I've learned that some of what has led to the outrage in this case is the way the media portrayed Zimmerman. They played portions of a 911 call Zimmerman made to police that night, including a comment made by Zimmerman saying, "he looks black". Now most people listening to that assumed that Zimmerman was coming to the conclusion that Martin was up to no good simply because he was black. It was a natural assumption to make, why else would Zimmerman just say, "he looks black" unless we was racist. But the problem was in the editing. The reason Zimmerman said, "he looks black" was because the dispatcher asked Zimmerman, "What's the guy look like? Is he white, black, hispanic..?" to which Zimmerman replied, "he looks black". That puts a whole new twist on the conversation. That doesn't mean that Zimmerman is completely guilty, but because the press called Zimmerman's comments "racially charged" there is an uproar. There is no other reason that we know of that this incident may have been racially motivated other than the misleading editing by the media. Now, any investigation done and any conclusions made from those investigations will be suspect. If Zimmerman is not charged it will be a racial thing. If he is charged, it will be to avoid the appearance of a racial thing. A true, fair investigation is almost impossible.
So even back in 1973 the media was doing less true reporting of the news, and more trying to sensationalize issues for ratings, buyers, etc. I learned that lesson myself about 22 years ago.
The first thing I noticed was how much things change. I got book as a Christmas present in 1977 and it had been written a few years before that. It spoke about how important it was to Coach Hayes that his players got their college degrees. He would keep on his players about their grades and would keep hounding his former players who had left the university without a degree. Impressing on them the importance of getting "that sheepskin". It doesn't seem to be that way anymore. College coaches don't seem to be as concerned about making sure that their players get a good education. Maybe that's just from my perspective, but that seems to be secondary nowadays, even though the incentive a University gives a player to come play at their school is to offer them a free education.
Another thing I noticed was how much the cost of football has gone up in the years since this book was written. This came to light in part due to the part about Woody wanting to make sure his players get their degrees. The book spoke of John Brockington who was a former Ohio State football player and was playing professional football for the Green Bay Packers. The author pointed out that he didn't feel it was so important for Brockington to have a degree because he was making over $100,000 as one of the NFL's best running backs. $100,000???? REALLY??? Can you imagine a professional football player, especially one of the best in his position, making $100,000 today? The book also spoke about Coach Hayes' salary. Low, even for those times, for someone as successful has he was at that size school. But far lower than I would have ever imagined. At the time the book was written, Woody Hayes, one of best known coaches in college football at a program whose attendance at games was one of the highest in the country, was making $28,000 a year. Can you imagine that today? $28,000 a year as the head coach of a college football program the size and scope of Ohio State.
Even adjusted for inflation, those numbers are low. John Brockington's $100,000 a year would be equal to just over $485,000 today. Now sit back and think if one of the top running backs in the NFL were making $485,000 a year. I'm thinking the cost of tickets and concessions at NFL stadiums would be much less expensive. And Woody's $28,000 in 1973 would be $135,845 today. Can you imagine the coach of Ohio State football being paid $135,845? And Woody also pulled double duty as a physical education professor during his time at Ohio State. Urban Meyer was hired this year by The Ohio State University for $4,000,000 a year! So, adjusted for inflation, he is being paid nearly 30 times what Woody Hayes was making.
The thing I've noticed about what hasn't changed in 40 years is that the media still writes the story with their own slant to it. Woody Hayes did not like the media. He had been burned by the media a few times and was very suspicious of them. He had learned that the media would twist words and edit comments so that, while technically accurate, conveyed the message the media wanted them to convey instead of what they were actually meant to convey. A good recent example of this is the situation we've been hearing about in Florida. The tragic shooting of 17 year old Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman. I'm not about to defend George Zimmerman, but as time has gone on I've learned that some of what has led to the outrage in this case is the way the media portrayed Zimmerman. They played portions of a 911 call Zimmerman made to police that night, including a comment made by Zimmerman saying, "he looks black". Now most people listening to that assumed that Zimmerman was coming to the conclusion that Martin was up to no good simply because he was black. It was a natural assumption to make, why else would Zimmerman just say, "he looks black" unless we was racist. But the problem was in the editing. The reason Zimmerman said, "he looks black" was because the dispatcher asked Zimmerman, "What's the guy look like? Is he white, black, hispanic..?" to which Zimmerman replied, "he looks black". That puts a whole new twist on the conversation. That doesn't mean that Zimmerman is completely guilty, but because the press called Zimmerman's comments "racially charged" there is an uproar. There is no other reason that we know of that this incident may have been racially motivated other than the misleading editing by the media. Now, any investigation done and any conclusions made from those investigations will be suspect. If Zimmerman is not charged it will be a racial thing. If he is charged, it will be to avoid the appearance of a racial thing. A true, fair investigation is almost impossible.
So even back in 1973 the media was doing less true reporting of the news, and more trying to sensationalize issues for ratings, buyers, etc. I learned that lesson myself about 22 years ago.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Mork, Mindy, and Memories
Last night I was flipping through the channels on TV and came across the TV show Mork & Mindy. But it wasn't just ANY episode, it was the PILOT episode of the show. For those old enough to remember, Mork & Mindy was a spin off of Happy Days starring a young, relatively unknown comedian by the name of Robin Williams.
For those of you who are asking, "What is Happy Days?"...stop reading now...I don't like you very much...LOL
Have fun watching
For those of you who are asking, "What is Happy Days?"...stop reading now...I don't like you very much...LOL
Have fun watching
Mark 11: 22-25
22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
Monday, April 2, 2012
Mark 11:12-19
O n the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see whether perhaps he would find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard it. Then they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling and those who were buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves; and he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. He was teaching and saying, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers." And when the chief priests and the scribes heard it, they kept looking for a way to kill him; for they were afraid of him, because the whole crowd was spellbound by his teaching. And when evening came, Jesus and his disciples went out of the city. In the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. Then Peter remembered and said to him, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered." Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God."
Mark 11:1-11
W hen they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' just say this, 'The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately.'" They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, some of the bystanders said to them, "What are you doing, untying the colt?" They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!" Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)