Fan commentary on the Philadelphia Eagles and other Philly sports happenings. "Our capacity for hurt is matched only by our capacity for loyalty." -- Bill Lyon.
Random thoughts from the first half:
Peaceful protesters at UC Davis get pepper-sprayed in what law enforcement calls "standard procedure" for non-resistant individuals.
Per Huffington Post:
a law enforcement official who watched the clip called the use of force "fairly standard police procedure." ...Charles J. Kelly, a former Baltimore Police Department lieutenant who wrote the department's use of force guidelines, said pepper spray is a "compliance tool" that can be used on subjects who do not resist, and is preferable to simply lifting protesters.
After reviewing the video, Kelly said he observed at least two cases of "active resistance" from protesters. In one instance, a woman pulls her arm back from an officer. In the second instance, a protester curls into a ball. Each of those actions could have warranted more force, including baton strikes and pressure-point techniques.
"What I'm looking at is fairly standard police procedure," Kelly said.
ESPN's bias for the BCS plays out in a number and often subtle ways.
I gotta say I agree with Jesse Jackson
In his familiar, incantatory style, Jackson said that if Rocky, a fighter that existed only on the movie screen, deserved a statue in downtown Philadelphia, so did Frazier, a somewhat forgotten figure whose former gym in north Philadelphia is now a store that sells furniture and mattresses.
Michael A. Nutter, Philadelphia's mayor, has said he was working with the Frazier family to build a memorial, an idea that seemed to gain momentum with the rhythm of Jackson's eulogy.
"Rocky is fictitious; Joe was reality," Jackson said. "Rocky's fists are frozen in stone. Joe's fists were smokin'. Rocky never faced Ali or Holmes or Norton or Foreman. Rocky never tasted his own blood. Champions are made in the ring, not in the movies."
Sorry, but I don't think Frazier ever got the recognition he deserved as a Philadelphia icon.
As Ali began to tire from all the energy he had expended in the searing heat, Frazier turned up his own offense and began punishing Ali to the body and the head with his trademark hooks. By the sixth round, Frazier had staggered him in turn and seemed to be gaining control of the bout. At the beginning of the seventh round, Ali reportedly whispered in Frazier's ear, "Joe, they told me you was all washed up" Frazier growled back, "They told you wrong, pretty boy."[4]
In round 14, Frazier was almost blind as he stepped in, and was met once more with punishing blows from Ali. With the punishment from Ali closing his right eye, Frazier was effectively fighting blind in the last rounds of the fight. By the 14th round Frazier was virtually helpless, and although Ali was desperately tired and hurting, he was able to summon the energy once again to give Frazier a fierce beating, and once again Frazier was staggered and nearly knocked down before the bell ended the round.
Seeing the results of round 14, Eddie Futch decided to stop the fight between rounds rather than risk a similar or worse fate for Frazier in the 15th. Frazier protested stopping the fight, shouting "I want him boss," and trying to get Futch to change his mind. Futch simply replied, "It's all over. No one will forget what you did here today", and signaled to referee Carlos Padilla to end the bout. Unknown to Frazier's corner, Ali had walked back to his own corner after the 14th and instructed Dundee to cut his gloves off. Ali later said that "Frazier quit just before I did. I didn't think I could fight any more."[5]
Jeremy Schapp's Frazier tribute glossed over the Ali taunting, phrasing it as "called him a loser...and worse" - while at the same time Frazier loaned Ali money as he was broke after refusing to be drafted.
RIP Smokin' Joe Frazier. Was there anyone who epitomized Philadelphia - both in personality and in professional career - more than Frazier?
USA Today expose on the dark influence ESPN has on college athletics, and particularly the dismantling of the Big East.
