The Appalachian Blog

NEWS: Republicans stooping to new lows

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 01:38:32 +0000

Republican backlash against the recently passed health care reform has reached a new low. In retaliation to the reform, Republicans are using a rule that states committees can only meet with unanimous consent from both sides. Until now, there has been little issue. Rather than distance themselves from the "Party of No" label slapped on them by Democrats earlier in the year, they seem to be embracing it. Because of their inability to move on, important security improvements for our troops are frozen.

"For months, Senate Republicans have resisted efforts to enact important reforms to our health insurance system. But when the dust settles and the emotions are calmed, history will show that President Obama and this Congress responded to a pressing national issue, and proved once again that we can act with the purpose of advancing an important national interest. Sadly, actions like today's objections from Senate Republicans to the consideration of a highly qualified, historic nominee will be viewed as little more than petty, partisan politics."

Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy (D-Vt.)

Without unanimous consent, committees are allowed to meet for two hours following the opening of the Senate session -- which on Wednesday was 9:00 a.m. The committees need consent to continue and consent again to continue after 2:00 p.m, according to huffingtonpost.com.

What Sucked in the Sporting Weekend: March 1

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 21:18:19 +0000

Every Monday, I take a look at the bad parts of the weekend in sports. Well, this weekend, the answer is very obvious. Canada sucks. More specifically, the Canadian National Hockey Team sucks. More specifically than that, Sidney Crosby sucks. It wasn't supposed to end like that. After Team USA scored with just over 20 seconds left in the third period to equalize, they were supposed to have all the momentum. Team USA was the cinderalla story. They were a scrappy bunch of young guys who had destiny on their side. But then stupid Sidney Crosby had to ruin everything in overtime. Team Canada was the bad guys. The bad guys aren't supposed to win. We were watching the plot for a perfect sports movie unfold before our eyes. But unfortunately, real life rarely plays out like the movies. The better team won. And that sucked. So congratulations Team Canada, you were the low point of sports this weekend. Honorable Mention goes to...NASCAR! As long as ESPN keeps wasting valuable SportsCenter time on this retarded half-sport, NASCAR will always be one of the sucky areas of the Sporting Weekend. Hopefully things will die down now that Danica Patrick is gone for a few months.

Mountaineers clinch division

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:27:43 +0000

With a 58-54 win over Elon last night, the Appalachian State men's basketball team clinched the Southern Conference North Division. The Mountaineers last division title was in 2007. The win gives the Apps the No. 1 seed in the SoCon Tournament. Appalachian will open the tournament Saturday, March 6 at 2 p.m.

What Sucked in the Sporting Weekend: Feb. 22

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:42:35 +0000

Every Monday, I take a look at the bad parts of the weekend in sports. This weekend, NBC demonstrated unparalleled suckitude in the sports world. NBC has been heavily criticized for its poor handling of Olympic coverage to this point. They have made it incredibly difficult to watch live coverage of events online. They have shown important events on tape delay. In Canada, the host country, virtually no events are shown as they happen. No events are shown live in the Mountain or Pacific time zones. Dashiell Bennett of deadspin.com made an excellent point that NBC's coverage is geared to the casual sports fan, not the hardcore fans. NBC's worst transgression yet came last night, when they broadcast the widely anticipated USA-Canada hockey game on their cable channel MSNBC. NBC is so inept, they managed to put the most anticipated event of the Games on a channel where less people could see it. And that sucked. Congratulations NBC, you were the low point of sports this weekend.

'Bachelor' star hired as correspondent

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 13:56:37 +0000

Since Feb. 3, Melissa Rycroft has worked as a special correspondent on Entertainment Tonight. Last summer, she was a special contributor for Good Morning America. While at ET, she’s hosted the “Valentine’s Day” premier, interviewed Valerie Bertinelli and Betty White on the set of “Hot in Cleveland” and tried her hand at “Wipeout.” Before then, though, she was a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader and a contestant on “The Bachelor” and “Dancing with the Stars.” I think Rycroft has a great personality, and she’s probably a great person and an incredibly hard worker, and, maybe, amazingly humble. However, I must say, I’m a bit disappointed with ET and GMA. The rest of their line-up sports journalism grads, pros, Diane Sawyer. And they all started at little, hole-in-the-wall news stations and fought their way up. Rycroft may possess natural camera ability. She may bring in good ratings. For current big-time broadcast hopefuls, however, the news probably doesn't come well. For, among the former cheerleader/reality show star's first couple of gigs – a spot alongside Mary Hart. If only Mary Hart knew my name!

For a future post...

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 23:02:19 +0000

The 1930's welcomed Humphrey Bogart's successful start. The 1940's allowed the showcase of Judy Garland's talented vocals and girl-next-door charm. And anyone who reflects on the 1950's can't pass up a laugh, courtesy of "I Love Lucy's" Lucille Ball. In your opinion, who is the among the most talented actor/actress of today? I'd appreciate your thoughts and response!

NEWS: Plane crashes into Austin IRS building

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 20:36:23 +0000

A plane crash into an Austin IRS building has been deemed an intentional act by officials. The pilot was identified as Joseph A. Stack, 53. The Austin resident set his house on fire before proceeding to crash a small plane into the building, which employs 200 workers. A message left on a Web site registered to Stack appears to be a suicide note, according to cnn.com.

"If you're reading this, you're no doubt asking yourself, 'Why did this have to happen?' " the message says. "The simple truth is that it is complicated and has been coming for a long time." In the lengthy, rambling message, the writer rails against the government and, particularly, the IRS.

The six page note laments the job market in Austin, blaming the government and corrupt unions for economic woes. Two people were injured in the attack and one is missing. Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell said the incident is isolated, and the people of Austin and the United States are not in danger.

SPORTS: This Week in Horrendous Officiating: Feb. 17

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:56:38 +0000

Every Wednesday, I take a look at the worst officiating from the previous week. This week, the R. William Jones Award for Horrendous Officiating goes to...Mike Eades, Bob Donato and Tim Kelly! Let's give them a hand! Eades, Donato and Kelly were the officials on the court for the Wake Forest-Virginia Tech game last night. Why do they deserve the award? The three called 28 fouls on the Demon Deacons, resulting in 47 VT free throws. The Hokies shot 20 more free throws than the Deacs. The crew also called a very questionable technical foul on Chas McFarland. McFarland was probably called for the foul because of his reputation, not an action that occured on the court last night. They gave Malcolm Delaney a 3-pointer when his foot was clearly on the line. Now, usually, this kind of home-court bias when it comes to officiating only occurs at Duke in the ACC. Why did it happen at Va. Tech? The Hokies were a clear NCAA Tournament bubble team before last night's game. They lacked a signature win that would validate their resume and put them clearly in the tournament. A win over Wake would nearly assure the Hokies of dancing in March. The ACC loves to see the max amount of teams make the NCAAs. Would they go so far as to rig a game to ensure an outcome they wanted? Could there be a conspiracy? I'm not saying...I'm just saying. Honorable mention goes to the refs who worked the Kentucky-Mississippi State-Kentucky game last night. Their horrible calls late in the game and during the overtime (especially the goaltend that wasn't called on John Wall) ensured that the Wildcats would win and stay in the running for a No. 1 seed. Those refs got what they deserved when the MSU crowd bombarded the court with water bottles and other debris.

SPORTS: What Sucked in the Sporting Weekend: Feb. 15

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:17:03 +0000

Every Monday, I will be taking a look at the bad parts of the weekend in sports. This weekend, the answer is obvious: NASCAR. I hate NASCAR. There is nothing I enjoy about it. It combines the over-the-top personalities of professional wrestling with all the excitement of watching old people play chess. Last week, I was bomarded with advertisements by ESPN for the Nationwide Series race that featured Danica Patrick's first NASCAR race. By Saturday I was ready to stick my head in an oven. I was filled with joy when Patrick was in a wreck that ended her race. I laughed my head off at ESPN. They had invested so much money into pumping the race up, and then Patrick crashed and no one cared to watch anymore. Classic! Then came Sunday and the Daytona 500. I loathe the Daytona 500 Sunday every year. It always comes right after the Super Bowl, so I am already depressed that football is over till August. Then I get more depressed because NASCAR coverage hijacks sports news for a day. I was subjected to watching three rednecks talk about the race (and a stupid pothole) for the first 10 minutes of SportsCenter last night. I had to wait to watch highlights of the awesome Louisville-Syracuse and Georgetown-Rutgers games because of dudes with southern accents making left turns. And that sucked. So congratualations NASCAR, you were the low point of sports this weekend.

SPORTS: End of the road for Portsmouth FC?

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 16:32:15 +0000

I consider myself a casual follower of the English Premier League. I am an Arsenal fan: I read about them on a regular basis and watch their matches whenever I can find them on TV (which isn't that often since I don't have Fox Soccer Channel). I don't follow the rest of the EPL that closely. That's probably why this story caught me so off guard. Portsmouth FC, which has been in existence for 112 years (including 33 seasons in the top division of British soccer), is on the verge of being shut down by the British government for massive financial problems. Portsmouth is $94 million in debt. They have failed to pay their players on time on four occasions this season. They are on their fourth owner this season! Fourth! How does that even happen? But what really has the Blues in trouble is back taxes. Portsmouth owes Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (the British IRS) £7.5 million (12 million dollars) in taxes. Earlier today, the two sides met in a London court to decide the fate of the club. Portsmouth received a stay of execution and the trial was delayed a week. If HMRC gets its way in court, Portsmouth FC will cease to exist. The club and all its assets will be liquidated. Wow.