Thanks, Lawyers

Posted on September 5, 2013 by Tom Garrett

SprintLogoI recall that a continuing legal education (CLE) course I took a few years ago included a discussion of accommodations necessary at baseball games to avoid tort liability.  The attorneys teaching the course were in agreement that a disclaimer on a ticket stub probably wouldn’t be enough in and of itself to protect the organization or stadium from being sued and held liable, even for foreseeable problems.

For example, they said that a fan sitting down the first-base line who was struck by a foul ball might still have a legitimate tort claim against the club, even though the injury was unintentional—and foreseeable by the plaintiff.  They elaborated on this point by suggesting that the club could have expanded the customary netting behind home plate, extending it around the entire stadium to prevent any ball from hitting any spectator who wasn’t paying enough attention to avoid contact.

This is why I don’t particularly care for lawyers, despite the fact that I happen to be one myself.

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By Request

Posted on September 2, 2013 by Tom Garrett

TotalDivasBanner

The fact that I’m doing a Total Divas recap this week comes as much of a surprise to me as the fact that I did one last week for With Leather over at Uproxx.com.  However, I got some good feedback from my discussion of Episode 5 of this thought-provoking series, and people asked if I would continue the recaps here at my own blog.

Ok, two people said they liked it.  And one said I should do it again.  But I can’t think of a better way to decompress after a customarily-nerve-wracking episode of Breaking Bad than to absorb an episode of Total Divas.  This week’s episode: Diva Las Vegas.

Cold Open: Chris Jericho – Matchmaker

I’m not sure when this was shot, but Chris Jericho hadn’t gone on tour yet.  I know this because JoJo consults Y2J in an effort to determine whether Justin Gabriel is single or not.  Note that, were I JoJo, this would have been my third question after the far more obvious “Is he straight?” and “No, seriously—are you sure he’s straight?”

Jericho asks JoJo if he should prepare a note with “DO YOU LIKE JOJO – YES / NO” check boxes and pass it to Gabriel, once again proving why Chris Jericho is probably my favorite pro wrestler of all time.

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The Sampler Platter

Posted on August 30, 2013 by Tom Garrett

One of the many benefits of my decision to disengage from the cumbersome world of prep sportswriting is that I now have a much greater ability to write for other outlets.  It’s nice to present my work for different audiences that might not otherwise see it here, not to mention the fact that I am fortunate enough to write for websites that might not have any reader overlap whatsoever.

A New Voice is a right-leaning commentary site with an emphasis on pop culture and youth-oriented issues.  Although I’m probably less of a “red meat” conservative ideologue (and most assuredly less of a “youth”) than the rest of the writers there, I like providing quick takes on political topics that pop up every two weeks.  With Leather is a broad pop-culture website that runs the gamut from sports to movies to music to television and beyond.  I got to pinch-hit over there earlier this week.  Finally, Cover 32 is a very cool new NFL-themed website that has a clean, professional site design that I love, and a topic that I love even more.  I’ll be writing about the Redskins on a weekly basis there.

With that in mind, here are three pieces I wrote during the past week that published elsewhere, each with very different subject matter:

President ObamaObama’s Tuition Fix (from A New Voice): This piece discusses the president’s speech last week in which he outlined some broad proposals to help keep tuition costs and student debt low.  Although I think some of the components are sound ideas, the overall mindset underlying the effort is problematic: Attending a four-year college isn’t a prerequisite for financial success (increasingly, the opposite is true), and we shouldn’t be promoting it as a universal necessity.  Additionally, the federal government withholding or allocating funds based on its own criteria of how much of a “value” a particular school has creates a new problem rather than solving an old one.

Total Divas Episode 5 Recap (from With Leather): Writing this proved to be much more fun than I had previously anticipated.  Without question, a reality show about WWE Divas is low-hanging fruit that’s scraping the ground, but I reveled in the absurdity of it.  I think the fact that I had never seen this show made recapping it even better.  Having less of an idea of what you’re in for usually helps with this kind of review.

RedskinsLogoEveryone Remain Calm (from Cover32.com): My first piece for the Washington Redskins site on Cover32.com explained why a great preseason should be met with a measured response.  The fact is that preseason football basically doesn’t matter a lick, except insofar as players remain healthy, and in terms of figuring out who the 51st, 52nd, and 53rd guys on the roster will be.

So, there you have it.  Take your pick, or enjoy all three.  Amazingly, the Total Divas recap is longer than the other two combined, which probably tells you a lot about my odd sensibilities.

Bon appetit!

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Closing the Book

Posted on August 23, 2013 by Tom Garrett

ParryMcCluerFieldMost people who know me in “real life” are aware that I’ve covered high school sports for VirginiaPreps.com since I was in college (back before VirginiaPreps was a Rivals.com affiliate).  I decided last winter that I would step away from the day-to-day operations of the site and move into an emeritus role after 15 years of writing, editing, and covering events.  I did so in part because I believed that this site had evolved into a fully-formed outlet for my writing—something that could “scratch the itch” previously reserved for my sportswriting work.

Today, Gary Hess and Gary Criswell over at Sportsradio 910 had me on their preseason show one final time to discuss my departure and to reflect back on some of the memories and moments of the past 15 years.  I appreciate them giving me the opportunity to be on today, and I also appreciate their kind words.  Here’s the interview:

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The “W” vs. The “E” – SummerSlam 2013

Posted on August 17, 2013 by Tom Garrett

It’s impossible to convince Attitude Era die-hards that we’re living in the Golden Age of professional wrestling, but I think it’s true—from a writing standpoint.

Take, for instance, the main event of this year’s SummerSlam.  For two straight weeks, we’ve heard Daniel Bryan and John Cena engage in verbal jousting in which each has put forth a solid case for his perspective being the one that’s best for the business itself.

SS2013Daniel Bryan’s view is that he is a real wrestler, while Cena is merely a “parody” of a wrestler.  He’s also fighting as an underdog, knowing he doesn’t have Cena’s respect.  Cena, by contrast, points out that Bryan is another in a long list of challengers who have taken issue with Cena’s in-ring performance or persona, only to find themselves ultimately defeated.

What makes this so well-executed is how the writers are able to have two characters—both “good guys”—who each have a distinctive, mutually-exclusive point of view.  Even 15 years ago, this would have been a tall order creatively.  A face vs. face feud would have involved a paint-by-numbers show of mutual respect right up until the end, when the two wrestlers would finally put their good feelings aside as their competitive nature overwhelmed their admiration.

This, however, is different.  Here, we’re getting a genuine clash of worldviews—the “wrestling” part of “WWE” versus the “entertainment” portion—a difference of opinion as to what it means to be a professional wrestler.  And, as I said, both guys are able to make valid arguments without drifting into heel territory.  Bryan touts his passion for the business and his ability between the ropes, while Cena says that anything besides the spotlight and grand stage of the WWE isn’t worth discussing.

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The Ballad of “Old Cottonmouth”

Posted on August 15, 2013 by Mike Austin

One of my favorite pieces of Revolutionary War lore revolves around the Green Mountain Boys.  This band of Vermont militiamen played an important role in the war, and their ranks once included Colonel Benedict Arnold.  They also unsuccessfully attempted to capture Montreal, in an effort often referred to, somewhat charitably, as “bungled.”

But perhaps my favorite factoid about Ethan Allen’s boys was that one of his top lieutenants had a delightful nickname.  Namely, Jabez Bleeker was known by the distinctive moniker “Old Cottonmouth” to his fellow militiamen.  This has always delighted me.

But the Green Mountain boys were deeply involved in the northern portion of the war.  As Wikipedia explains:

With several hundred members, the Green Mountain Boys effectively controlled the area where New Hampshire grants had been issued . . . By the 1770s, the Green Mountain Boys had become an armed military force and de facto government, which was also a militia, that prevented New York from exercising its authority in the northeast portion of the Province of New York.

Remember that, at the time, the colonies, upon declaring independence, were each sovereign nations.  Ethan Allen, Jabez “Old Cottonmouth” Bleeker, and the rest of the Green Mountain Boys were part of the origin story of the independent spirit that persists in Vermont to this day.

 

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Anti-Bullying Intent, Anti-Free-Speech Result?

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Tom Garrett

StocktonFreeSpeechProtestLast week, over at A New Voice, I tackled the inevitable collision of anti-bullying efforts and the free speech rights of students.  An expanded version of that piece is below:

A broad new social media policy recently implemented by California’s Lodi Unified School District has sparked protests by students who say the rules go too far and infringe on speech protected by the First Amendment.

The policy requires students to sign a social media “contract” as a condition of participating in any sport or other extracurricular activity.  The agreement enforces a policy intended to curb cyberbullying.  Among other things, the policy states that students may not author demeaning statements about anyone, make “inappropriate” remarks, or otherwise cyberbully through social media websites or messageboards.  Notably, this policy extends to the students’ personal social media accounts, even when posts or comments are created off-campus and outside of school hours.

A first-time violation of the policy could result in suspension from a game or club event.  A second violation can result in outright dismissal from the team or club.  A refusal to sign the contract in the first place would bar the student from extracurricular participation altogether.

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An Incomplete List of Things That Are Not Bullying

Posted on August 8, 2013 by Tom Garrett
BullyingGoogleTrend

Graph showing the trend of news stories about “bullying.”

A non-exhaustive recitation of items that aren’t bullying:

– Your doctor telling you that you need to lose weight to avoid negative health consequences.

– A baseball player who has agreed to abide by union and MLB rules being punished under those rules.

– A cable company refusing to carry a channel during a contentious dispute over a business arrangement.

– Using rules of procedure to close off a line of questioning that may expose a weakness of your political party’s position.

– A boss giving an employee a hefty workload or not responding to every communication by a subordinate.

– Political maneuvering, such as imposing significant taxation, designed to open talks over shared sovereignty of an island.

– And, of course, a random e-mailer pointing out the possible obesity of a local news anchor who covers health issues.

We’ve reached a threshold, here, folks.  One that should worry us.

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Box Office Belies Dying Industry

Posted on August 2, 2013 by Tom Garrett

It’s been a memorable summer at the box office, and not in a good way.

Pictured: Bomb

Pictured: Bomb

The list of 2013 movie flops is a sad roll call of would-be blockbusters.  In the last month alone, five films that cost more than $100 million to produce have opened at a figure equal to less than one-fourth of their budget.  This unenviable quintet includes R.I.P.D. (opened at $12.6 million), Turbo ($21.3 million), White House Down ($24.8 million), and The Lone Ranger ($29.2 million with a whopping $225 million budget).

Superhero movies—or, more properly, Iron Man 3 and Man of Steel—continue to do well, as do animated features like Despicable Me 2 and Monsters University.  These films, coupled with a group of mild surprises like The Heat and the over-performing World War Z, have led some to contend that maybe things aren’t quite as bad as they seem.  After all, this summer’s overall domestic gross is still slightly higher than last year’s (although foreign markets are down by a sizable 13 percent).  Not only that, but, with The Wolverine, Smurfs 2, and Occupy-porn Elysium predicted to do well, the hand-wringing over the weak returns may be premature.

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15 Things I Learned from the “G. I. Joe: The Movie” Commentary Track

Posted on July 31, 2013 by Tom Garrett

Even at age 9, I didn’t know quite what to make of G. I. Joe: The Movie.

GIJoeLogoIt seemed at the time like I had been a G. I. Joe fan all my life, but the truth was that I was really only into the Joe toys, show, and comic for about three years: 1985 through 1987.  When the movie debuted as a special event on the same stations that ran the series, I (and many of my friends) were . . . well . . . puzzled by the plot.

G. I. Joe: The Movie overhauled the relatively straightforward[1] premise of a special unit of the United States military (“G. I. Joe”) doing battle with a terrorist organization (“Cobra”).

Instead, it turned out that Cobra was a front for a not-exactly-human-but-close civilization called “Cobra-La.”  This culture—based on using organic matter and life forms as tools, shelter, transportation, and everything else in its society—had been forced into hiding due to its inability to adapt to the Ice Age.  Cobra Commander was formerly a scientist and nobleman in this civilization, and was chosen by its leaders to take over the world and pave the way for Cobra-La’s reinstatement as rulers of the planet.

It was all a bit much for a child to absorb.

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