Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Wondering Where in the Hell I've Been?

The answer is here. And here. And here. Aaaaaaaand here.

Taking on the PRSA-YP blog and Twitter account was a great move that's been a lot of fun, but the DL has gotten sacrificed in the process. A number of random things have happened as well. Here is a small sampling.
  • Coaching
  • Mobile World Congress
  • USC Alumni Game
  • Visit from Marisa
  • Ash Wednesday (hey, that's today!)
  • Drinking in preparation for Ash Wednesday (hey, that's over!)
Yes, it is now Lent. Yes, I have given up alcohol...again. I realize that this coincides with the beginning of high school baseball season, and there is another trade show (CTIA) and a bachelor party staring me in the face. Furthermore, both are in Vegas. It's gonna be rough, but it is what it is.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Article of the Day - Washington Post on Tebow Ad Controversy

This article gives some rare, lucid commentary on this "controversy," but suffice it to say, this is a macro level example of a micro level problem. People can't get over themselves. No one likes to admit that he or she is wrong. The point, in this context, is that people are so neurotic about being right that they can't process any viewpoint other than their own. I'm right, so everyone else must be wrong.

This controversy isn't about pro-life vs. pro-choice. Roe v. Wade was a groundbreaking piece of legislation that exists and is probably not going away any time soon. Whether you like it or not, that is the fact of the matter. It exists regardless of your beliefs.

So does the first amendment.

I'm as sick of the media fawning over Tim Tebow as anyone else. It's actually made me dislike an otherwise perfectly likable individual who has given his life and his passion to living his faith while competing at the highest level of intercollegiate athletics. My issue here is not with Tebow. It's with the media sycophants constantly kissing his ass and giving him a pass that other players didn't get. It's sickening, but now that they've put him on that pedestal, why is it a problem that he uses that to stand up for what he believes in? Isn't that what this country is all about?

People are trying to shut his ad down before it's even aired. Why? Because you don't like him? Because you can't relate to him? Because he's Mr. Perfect, and he makes you hate yourself a little? Maybe all of the above to an extent, but I think the real issue is that people can't climb out of their own little egocentric viewpoints long enough to realize that the truth only comes from multiple perspectives.

It's called freedom of speech, and it's one of the things that makes this country great. Tim Tebow can say whatever the hell he wants, and the fact that women's rights groups want to shut him down on the grounds of his statements being intolerant is nothing short of hypocritical.

Oh, by the way, it's also illegal.

Per the decision in another landmark supreme court case, Near v. Minnesota, prior restraint is unconstitutional. This commercial hasn't run, therefore tabling it before it does, is a no-no. Bitch and moan all you want, women's groups, but you have no legal basis to do so. You don't like it? Fork out some cash and air your own ad. It's the American way.

This is one post on which I would be very interested to see some comments. I know it's not as much fun as fortune cookies or one of my many bitterness-fueled rants.

Tebow's Super Bowl ad isn't intolerant; its critics are


Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 2, 2010

I'll spit this out quick, before the armies of feminism try to gag me and strap electrodes to my forehead: Tim Tebow is one of the better things to happen to young women in some time. I realize this stance won't endear me to the "Dwindling Organizations of Ladies in Lockstep," otherwise known as DOLL, but I'll try to pick up the shards of my shattered feminist credentials and go on. (more)