Author Archive
Just Saying, Is All… | Brett Favre’s Worst Nightmare
Posted: 12th November 2009 by Ryan Alberti in NFL
It takes a grown man to make a graceful exit.
Brett Favre is a living legend. HeÆs also a dying hero. After a tumultuous offseason, the born-again Viking seems to have made a fresh start in Minnesotaùwhich would be better news if that fresh start made the bitter end any less inevitable.
Glory means defying the sands of Father Time.
Greatness, on the other hand, means embracing the dust of Mother Earth.
IÆm not ...
Just Saying, Is All… | The Untold Story of the 2009 World Series
Posted: 29th October 2009 by Ryan Alberti in MLB
Old glory never diesùit just repeats itself into oblivion.
The World Series isnÆt what it was. ItÆs also, thankfully, still what it is. As America limps its way out of the Great Recession, thereÆs reason to doubt whether We the People will ever regain our position of global preeminenceùwhich would be worse news if we couldnÆt at least find peace in the praxis of our national pastime.
Habit is what you do ...
Just Saying, Is All… | Michael Vick’s Darkest Secret
Posted: 1st October 2009 by Ryan Alberti in NFL
How much insight is too much insight?
Michael Vick is an infamous quarterback. HeÆs also a popular talking point. In the wake of VickÆs return with the Philadelphia Eagles, the blogosphere is brimming with polemics and apologiesùwhich would be happier news if quantity were even loosely correlated to quality.
Curiosity means learning as much as you can.
Intelligence, on the other hand, means learning as much as you should.
IÆm not suggesting that the ...
Just Saying, Is All… | The Problem with Kobe Bryant Fans
Posted: 24th September 2009 by Ryan Alberti in NBA
It’s never easy to get the one thing you ever asked for.
Kobe Bryant fans are obsessively loyal. They were also, until very recently, habitually disappointed. After half a decade of frustration, Kobe finally won an NBA title without Shaquille O’Neal in 2009—which would be better news if it didn’t cast so much doubt on his most faithful supporters.
Celebration means reveling in the moment.
Satisfaction, on the other hand, means living with ...
Just Saying, Is All… | Joe Torre’s California Dream
Posted: 17th September 2009 by Ryan Alberti in MLB
Everybody wins under blue skies.
Los Angeles baseball fans are notoriously apathetic. They’re also blissfully tolerant. As the regular season winds down, Joe Torre and the Dodgers are widely expected to make a run at the World Series—which might entail some serious pressure if Southern California were as stormy as New York City.
Passion is the burden of those who thrive on their own heat.
Passivity, on other hand, is the blessing of ...