Check out this Editorial cartoon in todays Sacramento Bee.

Swish! Nothing but Net!

"Yo man. Let me get this straight. You work five hours a week and they pay you 50 G’s?"

It wasn’t a rhetorical question. Calvin, who as far I know answers only to "Hot Rod," was expecting an answer, and I wasn’t sure what to say – especially since I was pretty sure that Hot Rod didn’t even know that I don’t teach in the summers.

"Dawg, I’m in the classroom five hours, but I spend a lot more time preparing for class. It’s just like out here, baby (I shove the basketball into the pit of his stomach); I only teach your ass for about an hour, but I spent years perfecting those pretty moves."

Hot Rod chuckles at the lie. I play hard, have a passable jump shot, and am a willing passer, but at 35 my quickness and jumping ability ain’t what they used to be, and they never used to be all that good. As Mister Señor Love Daddy likes to say, "that’s the truth, Ruth," but I’m not complaining – far from it. I get to hoop three or four times per week, which isn’t too bad considering that, my conversation with Hot Rod notwithstanding, teaching is just one of several professional activities that I and other university faculty juggle. But I’m getting ahead of my story.

AP - WASHINGTON - John McCain, acting through surrogates, today withdrew an earlier challenge to Barack Obama to play him in a game of one-on-one basketball on the court of his choice.

"Though it is true that Barack Obama accepted Senator McCain's challenge of last Thursday," said McCain Communications Director Jill Hazelbeck, "he took approximately 15 minutes to do so, during which Senator McCain's calendar filled up with really, really important stuff.  So, it's off.  You snooze, you lose."

OK, short and sweet folks. This appears to be the first AP video report on Obama's trip to Kuwait.

I don't know if something like this is already being planned, but I think it would be great PR if Obama planned a surprise trip to China during the olympics for a USA basketball game.  If he could be shown shooting around with the team and interacting with the players either during a practice or on the court before a game, it would show him doing a sport whwere he would feel comfortable (unlike bowling).

By the time the summer comes, the media (and public) will have campaign fatigue, but as we see with this upcoming trip to Europe and the Middle East, the media will be excited about an obama trip abroad and so he'll get coverage.

Also, story of USA basketball would be a wonderful metaphor for Barack's campaign as this year's team has been about hard work and team work, not just throwing a bunch of stars together and being arrogant thinking that they could win just by showing up.  A recurring theme with the team is also about reclaiming America's standing in the (basketball) world.

It would also be a great way to associate Barack with Patriotism/Pride in America (as dumb as that critique is, it still is out there).

well what do you think?  Is this a good idea?

Over at MSNBC, there's a neat article up about an upcoming trip to the US - Salt Lake City, no less - by the 2007 FIBA Asia Champion, Iran.  I'm sure that wingnuts and other paranoid ninnies will view this as the opening phase of the long awaited 'Islamo-fascist' invasion of the 'Homeland', but I think this is great news and I hope that someone (Hello, NBA?) either broadcasts the games or films them and posts them somewhere.

We need more of this citizen diplomacy, not less.  As a two time exchange student to Japan & the Philippines (thank you Rotary!), I can attest to the effectiveness of citizen diplomacy at improving relations between people, even if their respective governments suck.

What I found even more heartening were the comments posted in response to the story (go over and check them out!)   There are probably 40 comments at the time I'm writing this and they are overwhelmingly positive.  I counted 1 negative (some dumbass compared it to playing against the Nazis before WWII), 1 incoherent response, 1 cautious response and 1 asshole.  Among the positive comments, there were even some comments from Iranians, one of whom pointed out there are at least 12 Americans who play professionally in Iran.

Andrew Sullivan has a video clip on his site of a Fox reporter interviewing Obama.
It's really bizarre.

Here's the link

The journalist had 1minute and 52 seconds with the senator and she did 3 things:

1. She asked him to play a word association game.

2. She asked him who Chicago's first round draft pick will be.

3. She made him commit to playing basket ball with her.

ABC's highly objective blog on Obama's Social Security plan

It is halftime and the Celtics are leading 58-35.  But in three of the previous 4 games, one team has broken to a big lead only to see the other team come back to make a game of it; in game 4 the Celtics ended up coming back from 24 to win.

So this time: the Celtic defense is smothering; Garnett has 17 points and Pierce has 10 points and 9 assists.

Kobe Bryant started out hot with 11 early points and has 14 right now.

Obama is seeping right down to the very base of the grassroots.

I stopped by a public park today, right in the heart of downtown Seattle (well, the Cascade area, for those of you who know the place) to get a little workout shooting hoops.

Homeless people hang out in the park, mainly because it has a public bathroom.

It's not unusual for guys to ask if they can shoot with me, so when the middle-aged man shuffled over, I tossed him the ball. The guy had some skills and we knocked down a few together.

We talked about professional basketball, focusing mostly on the NBA championship series. When he started talking about Michael Jordan and the Bulls, I asked if he was from Illinois. When he answered "yes", I said "Obama country."

I was playing basketball over the weekend and one of the funniest moments in trash talk history happened. We were playing pick up ball at a park in LA. A guy drove into the lane and got his shit swatted ("his shot was blocked" for the basketball illiterate). He called a foul.

This happens often in pickup ball when someone gets their shit sent (again, when their shot is rejected). They feel embarrassed and insist on calling a non-existent foul, as if they wouldn't have been sent so badly if they weren't fouled at the same time.

Now, this was a little unusual because even his own team didn't have his back. Everyone on the court pretty much agreed that he was not fouled. But nonetheless he insisted. Then someone came up with a line bound for the trash talking hall of fame, "This guy is pulling a Hillary."

In today’s Washington Post, Ellen Malcolm (Emily’s List, IBM heiress) weighs in on why Hillary should not quit "Quitters Never Win"

She is passionate about why women are voting for Hillary and makes points about the economic precipice all of us are on. On that point she is correct.

But her conclusion is wrong.

Indiana Congressman Baron Hill officially endorsed Senator Barack Obama for President of the United States on Wednesday.

GAME DAY: DONKEY-STYLE!

BOB:  Hello sports fans, and welcome to today’s basketball grudge match between the Light-hawks of Team Clinton and the Tidal Wave of Team Obama.  The winner of this game goes on to the national finals to face John McCain and his team, the Warmongers, who defeated the Huckabee-led Fundies.  What did you think of that match, Jim?

JIM:  Well, it was a game that someone had to win.  The Warmongers did just about everything wrong, and the lightly-regarded Fundies tried to make a contest out of it, but they were basically spent after the first quarter.  From then on it was unopposed, creaky layups and granny shots for team McCain.  

BOB:  And what about the teams we’ll be watching today?

JIM:  Team Clinton had been around for a while, to say the least, and many wonder if the game has passed them by.  But they definitely carry the sense of entitlement about this contest – they feel like they own this game, and they have little patience for anyone who dares to step in their way.  Today they face a team led by one of the nation’s rising stars, Barack Obama.  But Team Obama has brought aboard some seasoned players too, like Dodd and Richardson.  

I saw something, a sort of trivial aside in today's New York Times story on Obama's Indiana strategy that got me thinking. Here it is:

For the last year, advisers had been reluctant to highlight him playing basketball, thinking it could raise racial stereotypes or make him look less serious. But in Indiana, where basketball is sacrosanct, Mr. Obama scored four baskets and his team won the 20-minute game, a far better showing than his much-derided bowling outing in Pennsylvania.

Basketball was Barack Obama’s first love.

It’s the game that taught him many of life’s lessons.

Unfortunately, it seems like Obama has forgotten one of the biggest lessons the game has to offer: Don’t sit on a lead.

Obama ought to know better. How many times have we seen basketball teams go up by a huge margin, only to squander the lead by trying to slow the game down?

It’s the same in every sport, every time you pull the reins in, you lose momentum. Once momentum goes, it’s awfully hard to retrieve.

I've written a number of diaries on Obama and basketball. It's his first love, after all. He is wisely using his love of basketball in Indiana, a basketball-crazed state, holding a 3-on-3 game tonight. The game below the jump.

Hillary Clinton is touting that she has the "most votes" by "her" count. Her lies have been debunked...But, I wanted to put it in simple terms that every American can understand.

Analogy after the break!