All Other-Sport Team

This past weekend, Cartoon Network played the movie Space Jam to the delight of many long-time Toon Squad enthusiasts. I find it very hard to believe that there is anyone out there that cannot find at least one thing he or she enjoys about that movie.

One of the biggest underrated aspects of the film are the myriad of NBA player cameos throughout the movie. I can't imagine in this day and age, seeing so many current NBA players make a cameo in a film. I mean, Ray Allen pulled it off and so did D-Miles, but to get Ewing, Barkley, Bradley, Bogues and LJ (not to mention a sneaky few second cameo from the one and only Vlady-Daddy)? In the words of Martin Lawrence's character Marcus Barnett from Bad Boys, "Shit just got real."

Besides the cameos, which put this kid-classic over the top, Space Jam also delivers by producing a semi-real life plot. Okay, I'm not talking about the aliens but follow with me.

The entire basketball to baseball back to basketball plot? That really happened. The ability of this film to play off the real life career change of Air Jordan right after his dad passed away is just another reason it is so special. Apparently, His Airness was not shy about using the theme of his failed baseball career to inspire a movie.

Anyways, the whole career change thing got me thinking. What if other professional athletes decided to switch sports? Now I'm not talking Deion Sanders or Bo Jackson situations where they played both sports growing up and eventually reached the highest level for both at some point in their professional career, I'm more interested in athletes who excel in one sport and suddenly switch to a sport they have never played in their life before. Just for fun, I wanted to offer some ideas of athletes who could dominate a second field of play. Let's begin:

Lebron James, Wide Receiver: What if the most athletic player in the NBA played the sport where pure athleticism is most rewarded? Imagine King James in the open field!

Tony Parker/Steve Nash, Forward (soccer): Small, crafty and extremely gifted playmakers, these two could really excel on the pitch.

Floyd Mayweather Jr., Center-fielder: The quickest hands in professional sports might come in handy when trying to make contact on a Justin Verlander fastball.

Shaun White, Figure skating: The dude feels more comfortable in the air than on the ground.

Natalie Gulbis, Beach volleyball: Fairly easy on the eyes.

Michael Phelps, Rowing: Because swimmers are not good at any real sports.

Whatcha know about fashion?

I actually know very little about fashion. Unlike some who were gifted with a high fashion IQ, I have always relied on the genius of others to inform my dress and style. Of course I know how to pick out a striking tie or impressive shit...I just mentally borrow ideas from the fashion trailblazers before me.

Despite not being a writer of dress code, I constantly try to gather ideas that may elevate my sense of style. Whether it's a color scheme on a businessman I walk past on the sidewalk or a flawless cut of suit I see in the pages of GQ, I always have an eye out for that showstopping look.

One man I admit to borrowing from is The Sartorialist. This man is a visionary and a genius. Capturing the mundane street life of major cities, the Sartorialist handpicks the best and brightest in the game of dress. Making the individual the focus of his work, the Sartorialist champions the individualist spirit of fashion. Make it your own or borrow from others. If you are the former, you a true fashion genius.

As for me, I'll stick to the JCrew catalog.

Who does that?

One of my favorite phrases is "Who does that?" The perfect timing to use this phrase is when someone does something completely unthinkable that happens to also be completely hilarious. Usually the answer to the who part of the question is a person who just doesn't give a fuck. They're crazy, they're hilarious. We salute them.

2012

 

The year is 2012. Washington, D.C. is mired in political turmoil and the end is no where in sight. America is afflicted with a serious disease called bipolar disorder. The country can no longer think in terms other than us. vs. them, Main Street vs. Wall Street, and one percent vs. the ninety-nine percent. There is one bright spot however. America has finally learned the concept of credit.

Nearly six-thousand miles away, Damascus, Syria faces an entirely different kind of political turmoil. Their unrest borders all-out civil war. With the state of volatility in Syria, civil war could be realized any day now. Russia and China want the other U.N. Security Council members to butt out. Russia on the other hand wants in. Clearly, Russia still wants its part of the Middle East. Russia's long-term survival rests on $125 per barrel oil prices (currently $116). Oil talks.

Iran and Saudi Arabia jockey to influence the developments in Damascus. Iran is closely aligned with Syria's current Assad regime. By extension, Saudi Arabia favors his opposition. Behind the scenes the two sides plot to out maneuver the other if and when the opposite side decides to move. So far, all is quiet. That could all change any day now. There is no love lost between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Their war is still cold...for now.

Israel cannot help but sit on the edge of its seat. For years, the Israelis have flirted with the idea of attacking Iran's nuclear weapon facilities. Iran's leader has not been shy about expressing his plans for Israel and no one in Israel believes this is an empty threat. If Iran plunges into open warfare on the Middle East subcontinent, Israel finally has the opening to attack Iran under pretenses of war. By aligning with Iran's likely enemy, Saudi Arabia, Israel will not paint itself as the aggressor. 

Back in Washington, a financially-strapped government must decide whether to aid its closest allies in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia and Israel. Since the Bush II administration the GOP has steered clear of foreign policy issues. A familiar faction in the Republican party reemerges in the debate over intervention. Back from a near decade-long hiatus, the neoconservatives bring back foreign policy to the GOP's front and center. Norman Podhoretz is still the wise teacher of this movement that demands Obama  put troops back in the Middle East. It's only been a year since Afghanistan and Iraq have been withdrawn.

The stock market is frozen. Commodity prices sky rocket. In Russia, Putin gets his $125 per barrel oil prices and his budgetary concerns are quelled. There's rampant violence in the Middle East. 

The year is 2012.