Phil Ivey: Poker's Phenomenon

I'll admit I was originally sucked into the world series of poker wave that swept the nation a few years ago and I enjoy watching it. Suck at playing it but do enjoy watching it. I recently read an article on Phil Ivey, arguably the best poker player in the world, ini ESPN the Magazine. Phil is black and it did get me thinking about how in the events televised on TV, very few are black. They do have an influx of minorities, including Asians, Latinos, and women if you want to look at them as minorities in a predominanlty male sports domain. (I don't agree they should be looked at as minorities but one could make the case that women are.) But there is a glaring lack of African-Americans in these WSOP events. IS it just a lack of "good enough"black players? What is the disconnect here?

NBA and Diversity

I was watching an NBA preseason game and was interested at the diversity. The vast majority of players are black yet there never seems to be many black coaches. It's interesting to me because I came across this article when I started to look around and research this issue.

http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2009/01/22/nba_leads_this_race/

Maybe it's me but I just don't see the diversity in positions of power in the NBA. There are few black General Managers and there has been 1 black owner in the league's history- and he is trying to sell his share in the team.

I think there is still a lot of room for improvement in the NBA.

Rush, Part 2

Now the story will not end. Rush Limbaugh has now come out with his full conspiracy theory. He released statements on his radio show that DeMaurice Smith, the head of the NFL Players Union, threatened to "take this all the way to the White house" if necessary. Limbaugh went on to say that he had no trouble believing one of Obama's "cronies" would look to blackball him from the league. He said that we as Americans have no idea how much trouble we are in with Obama as president. At what point does his spewing off become just annoying? Look, I'm a liberal. But I would be interested in hearing anyone on the opposing sides' opinion on him. Is he someone who many right-leaning conservatives support? Or is he just a radical similar to Al Sharpton in that he seems much more interested in causing problems than finding solutions?

Rush Limbaugh

Ok, I'm a huge sports fan so I had to comment on Limbaugh and his futile attempt to buy a minority stake in the St. Louis Rams of the NFL. The man is an unrepentant racist. I don't care about politics, left-leaning right-leaning. Really doesn't matter. You cannot say things like this if you are not a racist:

" I mean, let’s face it, we didn’t have slavery in this country for over 100 years because it was a bad thing. Quite the opposite: slavery built the South. I’m not saying we should bring it back; I’m just saying it had its merits. For one thing, the streets were safer after dark."

"You know who deserves a posthumous Medal of Honor? James Earl Ray [the confessed assassin of Martin Luther King]. We miss you, James. Godspeed. "

And this one is the kicker for me:

"Look, let me put it to you this way: the NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There, I said it."

The racism aside, this one is the kicker for me. You insult, criticize, demean, whatever you wanna call it, the ORGANIZATION YOU ARE TRYING TO JOIN. I mean seriously Rush. You have your right to your opinion, however sickening. But don't blame you not receiving the bid on "Obama's America" as you did. Put it on you for putting your on foot in your mouth. And I have the sources for anyone if they are questioning or unsure of the veracity of any of these quotes, just as a sidenote.

Stereotypes Continued

Continuing on with the discussion regarding racial stereotypes, there is the issue of Latin America and soccer. Somehow there is a stereotype that all Latin Americans are savages about soccer. Yes, it clearly is a passion in the vast majority of these countries. And there are certainly some who go to far. But anytime you see an image of soccer and Latin America on TV, there is the issue of fans rioting and deaths and killings. Yet, in the movie Green Street Hooligans, a film about rabid soccer fans in England, the English are portrayed as passionate yet somehow still civilized about it. Stereotypes- how exactly is a common Latin American supposed to dispel the myth that everyone of them are savage beasts?

NFL and Jackie Robinson

In a recent piece on ESPN as well as an article in Sports Illustrated, Jackie Robinson was discussed. Almost everyone can name Jackie Robinson as the first black player in Major League Baseball. But how many of us can name the player who broke the National Football League's color barrier? The article shows how we somehow get focused in on one idea or concept and forget about the other history that has happened as well. It got me thinking again how African-Americans have become synonymous with "minority." How many of us know who the first Latino to play in MLB or the NFL? It was interesting to look at. And for the record the first African-American to play in the NFL was Kenny Washington in 1946. Ironically, he was Jackie Robinson's teammate at UCLA.

Obama & Nobel Peace

Sometimes we all get frustrated with what we perceive is a lack of progress. We all suffer from it, and I am certainly guilty of it. But then we have little reminders that there is still hope. 25 years ago how many people would have predicted that our black president would have been selected to receive the Nobel Peace Prize? Or 10 years ago? We are impatient for the change we want to see. But when stories like these come out, it is a chance to celebrate our collective success. Honestly, it really shouldn't matter whether your liberal or Rush Limbaugh. Will it? yeah probably. But this is such a momentous occasion for us as a people we should all take pride in it.

The West Wing

One of my favorite shows for a long time was the West Wing. It was one of the great political shows that gave viewers a unique view on what it is really like to be in the White House. Towards the end of the series, Jimmy Smits becomes a major character in the show as a candidate for the vacant President spot. It was definitely groundbreaking because how often has a major network selected a minority for its star of a show like this? He eventually wins. I just think it was really groundbreaking.

Chicano vs. Latino

After thinking about Noriega and the readings some, a random thought crossed my mind: which term is more acceptable: Chicano or Latino? I guess I'm not sure what is politically correct here and maybe that's half the problem: we are all so worried about being PC? Why is there such an emphasis on this? I understand not offending people but now someone is offended no matter what the term we use now. Where is the endgame in this?

The Cycle Continues

I'm in a mentoring program on campus. They are all sophomores at Brockton High that I mentor. They are talking a little bit about the Jamie Foxx movie and how at least we know "the black dude ain' gonna die first." All 3 of my specific mentees happen to be black. I was walking to the bus with them today and an older, white couple walks up to me. Pretty harmless and they seemed to be enjoying their evening. The lady then asks "Are you all right?" I'm taken back by the question. I say "yes ma'am, why wouldn't I be?" Her response, "well you know..." and she glances to each of the 15 year old boys I'm with. To their credit they said nothing that could have made the situation worse. But it's like What the Hell? Seriously, I don't understand. These boys did nothing. They were laughing and talking and were quite content. You can see it in their eyes though: it has happened before and it wears on you. Sometimes people just suck.

Immortal Technique

Me and a couple of my friends were talking about musicians who have appeared on TV. I have no idea how we got on the subject but somehow we did. Then that turned into the ever-popular who is the most overrated/underrated debate. And Immortal Technique came up. Now, there is no debate that he is very controversial. His song, Dance with the Devil is just messed up in a lot of ways. But he also has stayed true to his beliefs. It made me think about him vs. Kanye. Not the run-up-on-the-stage-because-I-need-attention Kanye. The one who used to rap angry about racism and inequality. It was a stark contrast to see two people who used to be very similar in completely different directions. And yet going mainstream and maybe compromising your beliefs for money works. Show of hands: how many of you have listened to a Kanye song? (everyone). How many have listened to Immortal Technique? The defense rests your honor.