Sports

[daftbeaker]

I'm not sure if DB appreciates the amount of money that is tied up in a college football programme: the NFL does not have youth development like we have for proper football, they are fed young players from the college leagues, and the money that they generate from selling those players is income for the college.

Shopping the coach = upsetting the apple cart. If Penn State loses its reputation as a football school, it loses a -load of money into the bargain. Not an excuse, but a potential explanation.

Sounds an awful lot like the catholic excuse for not reporting their rapists either, it would damage the reputation of the church.

Apparently DB and the Penn State student body do not see eye-to-eye: Penn State students riot in protest of Paterno firing.

Obviously not. I'm pretty glad of it actually, I'd be offended if you said I was in agreement with rioters that support child rape enablers.

[Roy Hunter]

Sounds an awful lot like the catholic excuse for not reporting their rapists either, it would damage the reputation of the church.

Yes. Exactly. An explanation, but not an excuse. But at the bottom of it all (if you'll pardon the pun) it's about money. Same with the Catholic Church: they rely on their reputation to keep the tithes flowing in. They talk about reputation, about probity, tradition, the unique place that the institution holds in society; but at the root of it all it's about money.

[PKMKII]

Well, the scales are different. This scandal was restricted to a few people in one department of one school, with one incident (it appears that the other abuses did not occur on campus). To be at the same scale, it would have to be a pattern of abuse across a large number of colleges, with the head of the NCAA implicated in covering them up.

[Qwertyuiopasd]

CNN article about the same comparison.

Church experts say Penn State’s decision to fire its president and its football coach reflect more of a top-down approach to personnel than in the Catholic Church, where issues are expected to be resolved locally, at the diocesan level.[/quote"Dan Gilgoff"]

Really? More top-down than the Catholic Church? I find that kind of funny.

“When we idolize any institution or individual, it’s unhealthy,” says Clohessy. “We almost invite them to act like they're above the law.”

[PKMKII]

“When we idolize any institution or individual, it’s unhealthy,” says Clohessy. “We almost invite them to act like they're above the law.”

Which explains the student riot reaction.

[PKMKII]

[Rainswept]

I think we've learned PMKII's secret identity. Only Mitt Romney could flipflop like he just did on the Penn State issue

[Qwertyuiopasd]

Because suspecting more corruption in the institution at higher levels based on curious reactions from those higher ups means sympathizing with Paterno?

[PKMKII]

Because suspecting more corruption in the institution at higher levels based on curious reactions from those higher ups means sympathizing with Paterno?

Yes, I must sympathize with Paterno because I had a reaction more complex than "I HATE CHILD ABUSER!"

[PKMKII]

Looks like the 2011-12 NBA season won't happen.

NBA players rejected the league's latest offer Monday and began disbanding the union, likely jeopardizing the season.

"We're prepared to file this antitrust action against the NBA," union executive director Billy Hunter said of the union's potential legal strategy. "That's the best situation where players can get their due process."

[black bart]

What's going on...first England beat Spain who've been busy telling everyone they're the best team in the World. Next England beat Sweden for the first time in 43 years.

[daftbeaker]

Martin Johnson has quit as England rugby coach. So now we'll get another coach with 3 years to get the team in shape who'll be sacked after the next tournament. Much more sensible than keeping Johnson for another 4 years now that he's had experience of this team in the World Cup

[black bart]

Martin Johnson has quit as England rugby coach. So now we'll get another coach with 3 years to get the team in shape who'll be sacked after the next tournament. Much more sensible than keeping Johnson for another 4 years now that he's had experience of this team in the World Cup

Roll on the 6 Nations.

[PKMKII]

NFL shakeups: Jacksonville Jaguars fire head Coach Del Rio, sell team to Illinois businessman and Pakistani immigrant Shahid Khan.

The problem with Jacksonville is that Florida is an over-saturated football market. Three teams for a population of 18.8 million? When the only other states with three teams have populations of 37.2 million (California) and 19.3 million (New York, and for the two NYC teams you've got to count another 2-4 million people in northern New Jersey and western Connecticut as being in their markets)? That's not sustainable.

Indianapolis Colts fire their defensive coordinator, switch starting quarterback. Quarterback switch is too little, too late. They should've made a plan and stuck to it when it became obvious that Manning wasn't going to be playing this season. Instead they spent the entire pre-season and season in panic mode.

D-coordinator, that had to happen. As much as people put the bulk of the responsibility for this lousy season on the absence of Manning and his offensive production, truth be told it's just as much on the D. They've only held opposing offensives to under 20 points once this season.

[PKMKII]

Big Trouble in Little Havana: SEC Investigating Finances concerning new Florida Marlins Stadium.

The Security and Exchange Commission on Thursday launched guided warheads at the Marlins, requesting the team’s financial records, communications with MLB officials including commissioner Bud Selig, minutes of meetings with local government leaders and political campaign-contribution information, according to a report in the Miami Herald.