Category Archives: Sports

The Hypocrisy of Sports and Maty Mauk

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maty-maukThere’s big news hitting the sporting world as the oft-suspended quarterback of the Missouri Tiger football team is facing more problems thanks to a video released of him using cocaine.

I think it’s hypocritical and you might find that opinion puzzling considering it’s clearly a serious violation. Maty Mauk is obviously using cocaine in the video. Sure, it could be talcum powder, sure, it could be someone who looks just like Mauk, but let’s take things at face value. It is Mauk and he is using cocaine in the video.

Cocaine is currently illegal in the United States and despite my Libertarian philosophy that all drugs should be legal, his actions are criminal in nature. The team has every right to suspend him, or at least that’s the obvious answer.

So why do I find the entire situation hypocritical?

Mauk was suspended earlier in the season. Why? Because of cocaine use. My buddies who know a lot about the situation told me as much months ago. He then returned to the team only to be suspended again after a drunken fight at a bar.

Again, you might well ask me, why are you so outraged at this latest suspension? He has a history. The video clearly shows him using cocaine.

Here’s the problem. When was the video taken? No one knows. There is no evidence that this is new. The reality is the athletic department knew he was using cocaine and suspended him earlier in the season for that reason. This video could easily be from that time period. Frankly, I’d guess it probably is, but that is pure speculation.

But suddenly, because the public gets to see what the athletic department knew all along, the suspension gets longer? Becomes indefinite? That’s garbage. If you knew he was using cocaine and decided a four game suspension was appropriate, then that’s the decision you made. You should not go back and change that decision because suddenly the public is aware of the situation.

It reminds me of the Ray Rice controversy which I wrote about in September of 2014.

If the team was aware of the allegation and decided on the punishment the court of public opinion should have no meaning. The only reason Missouri is creating this new suspension is to look good. It’s not about the transgressions Mauk made nor about the good of the team or the university. It is simply face saving and it disgusts me.

Believe me, I have no sympathy for Mauk. He made his bed and he can sleep in it. But this suspension is completely out of line with reality.

We should be judged for the crimes we commit at the time we commit them. The court of public opinion should have no say in the matter. If it did where would we all be? Examine your life. We are none of us innocents.

I’m ready to take some heat for this one but I strongly believe Mauk should be cleared to play football unless it turns out this video was taken after the original suspension.

What do you think?

Does the Video make a Difference in Mauk's Suspension?

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Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

The Student Athlete Compared to the Student

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student-athlete-payThere is a profound difference in the nature of a so-called student-athlete and a student and I think many people fail to realize it. Why does this come to mind? Because a fellow named Don Yee, who happens to be the agent of Tom Brady, wrote an opinion piece over the weekend suggesting, among other things, that Clemson and Alabama college football players should refuse to play in the National Championship game.

It’s an interesting piece and talks about the inequality of the financial situation between players and virtually everyone else. I wrote a blog on the same subject back in June of 2013 that echoes a number of the points Yee makes. Yee focuses on race and I largely disagree with his assessments in that regard but it’s not the topic of my blog today.

While reading the passionate comments under Yee’s post I found a common thread. The idea is that the student-athletes should be more than happy with the opportunity to attend college without cost. The students would very much like this arrangement for themselves.

People equate the student and the student-athlete to make this argument. Gosh, lots of kids go way into debt to pay for college is the common thought. The reality is that the two are virtually the opposite of one another in an economic sense.

The student is paying a fee for an education. He or she must get good grades to be allowed into the school and even then pays for the commodity of an education. The school charges this fee and then provides teachers, buildings, cleaning staff, and many other items in return. The student is the consumer and the college is the commodity.

On the other hand, the student-athlete is being paid to play football. The school is the consumer and the player is the commodity. The school’s representative all but begs the athlete to come to that school rather than sell his services to a rival. The player then provides entertainment that generates a large amount of revenue for the school, coaches, and many others. The payment the player gets is an education, exposure for a future career, and various other things.

These are fundamentally different. We cannot compare the student with the student-athlete because they are essentially opposites of one another from an economic perspective.

In the meantime, the student-athlete has noted that coaches are getting paid a lot more than they were twenty years ago. The student-athlete has noted the total amount of revenue generated from the games has gone up by a tremendous amount but their salary remains the same. They want a raise and who are we to tell them they should be “satisfied” with their current rate of pay? That they are “greedy” for wanting more? Would you tell a co-worker those things? Of course not.

Should they get a raise? That’s not my business. It’s between the schools and the student-athletes but I certainly think it’s their absolute right to ask for a raise and not perform if they don’t get. Likewise the school might fire them and give the scholarship to someone else. That’s a labor negotiation which is exactly what is happening.

On a happy note, things are actually moving toward a much more equitable state. The student-athletes in the Power Five conferences now receive a stipend of several hundred dollars a month, access to as much food as they can eat, and their families no longer have to pay out of pocket to attend Bowl Games (trips which can be quite expensive, particularly for low-income households). The horrific system where scholarships were revoked if a player got injured or failed to perform has been abolished.

The NCAA and the colleges seem to have recognized the inequities that the system engendered and are working to fix them without going to a purely professional system wherein each player is negotiated with separately.  These are good things. A reasonable pay increase for the players without destroying the nature of the system. A win/win.

It makes an old cynic proud.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

 

And Three Say No to Ken Griffey Jr

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ken-griffey-jrThere’s an ugly tradition in baseball regarding the Hall of Fame and I’m hardly the first person to write about it but here I go anyway, please forgive me.

No player has ever been elected into the Hall of Fame by a unanimous vote of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. The very first inductees in the Hall of Fame were Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson. Since then the likes of Stan Musial, Willie Mays, Tom Seaver, and others have joined them. Men who were elite among the elites. Giants of the game.

There is no question these players deserved the vote of every writer but tradition says no. And thus the greatest player I ever saw, Ken Griffey Jr., was supported by only 437 of the 440 writers voting.

The first vote back in 1936 was a special situation. Voters were only allowed to put ten names on the ballot and there was quite a backlog of worthy players. Nap Lajoie, Tris Speaker, Rogers Hornsby, Micky Cochrane, and George Sisler didn’t make it that first year although later joined.

Writers who left off Ruth or Cobb were instead voting for Speaker or Hornsby. I’m willing to give them a reluctant shrug of the shoulders. That first list did have ten players fairly close in skills to that top five. It’s possible that someone could argue Ruth was the 11st best player on that list. Unlikely, I’m not buying it, but it’s not a completely unreasonable position.

The backlog continued for a while but eventually there were fewer than ten deserving candidates each year.

There are some members of the voting block who think because Cobb and the others were not unanimous, to elect anyone with 100% of the vote is insulting to those five, it somehow diminishes those five. They often submit a ballot with no names at all.

This is injustice. This is unfair. It is against the traditions of our nation.

Let’s imagine a world in which voters do not cast their ballot for the person they think best represents the qualities needed for the position. I know it is difficult to fathom but try to conjure a world in which people vote for or against a candidate not because of their abilities but because of their perceived chances of winning or losing. Imagine a nation in which people have so long voted for inferior candidates that qualified people have no desire to run for office, where the only choices are bad and worse.

Cast your important ballot for a person based upon their record. Vote for them because they are the candidate that most closely represents your views. Vote for them because it is the right thing to do. Vote for that candidate no matter their chances of winning or losing. When we vote for the most worthy candidate regardless of other factors, we make the nation strong. Anything else is a betrayal of your obligation as a voter. It destroys our country one election at a time.

Yes, I’ve finally gotten to the point. I’ve tricked you and I feel shame. Vote for Gary Johnson.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

What Paige Spiranac tells us about a Meritocracy

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Paige-spiranacMost of you probably haven’t heard the name Paige Spiranac before but I think her story is interesting enough to discuss for a moment. Spiranac was an accomplished golfer at San Diego State University and has aspirations of joining the Ladies Professional Golfer Association tour.

Her attempt to accomplish this and the success she has attained, and failed to attain, demonstrates some of the ideas behind what is called a Meritocracy. In short, a society that is a Meritocracy vests power with those who prove most competent.

Now onto Spiranac. The normal route to joining the LPGA tour is through Qualifying School where the best golfers battle it out and the top finishers gain access to the LPGA the following season. Once on tour performance dictates how long they stay. Women who finish at the top of the leaderboard and win tournaments are given access to events for a period of time.

Spiranac chose a different path. She is an attractive young woman and leveraged her Instagram account into getting a sponsor’s exemption into a tournament in Dubai.

If you visit the website of the event there is a banner across the top that shows images of the tournament. Spiranac is in three of them while the winner of the tournament, Feng Shanshan, is nowhere to found despite absolutely dominating. Spiranac missed the cut and finished tied for 107th of the 111 total players.

In my opinion there are two lessons to be learned from this series of events.

Spiranac used her attractiveness to gain entry into a tournament that her golfing skills alone did not qualify her to enter. The tournament directors gave her the sponsor’s exemption because people are interested in looking at her and this boosted ratings for the event. The officers of the LPGA tour are likely rooting for Spiranac to improve her golf game enough to join the tour full time. She will undoubtedly gain future exemptions because her looks bring viewers and thus advertising revenue.

There is nothing wrong with any of this. Good for Spiranac. Good for the tournament.

The second lesson is that no matter how greatly people want to see Spiranac make it as a full time LPGA player, it cannot happen unless she improves at golf and starts making cuts and contending for titles.

This is also good. No matter how many people want her to do well, it should be only her actual golfing skill that keeps her on the tour.

I guess what I’m saying is her undeniable physical appeal and her golfing skills are both part of the meritorious equation. If she had neither we would not be talking about her. If she excels at both she will become a star and make a lot of money for both herself and the tour. If she is only attractive but not so great at golf then she will go onto other endeavors and likely do well.

We all have certain things going for us. Our looks, our skills, our minds, our writing ability, or anything else. If we leverage these things we make our lives and the world a better place. If we fail to do so then we leave behind a life and a world that could have been more.

Best of luck to you, Paige. I suspect you’ll never be good enough to make it on tour. Prove me wrong!

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Let’s Get Ready to Rumble Announcers – Yawn

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ready-to-rumbleI’m a huge sports fan and love both going to the games and watching events on television. I’m here to tell you today about a pet peeve of mine. You may disagree.

The Michael Buffer effect I call it. Let’s get ready to ruuuuuuuuumble!!!!

The long, drawn out name during introductions with emphasis everywhere it doesn’t belong. It’s all part of an attempt to work the fans into a frenzy and I’m guessing most people like it, but it annoys me.

Yes, I’m a party-pooper. Why all the fireworks? The light shows. The screaming announcers? The pounding music. It’s marketing I suppose.

It seems to me that in the old days fans knew when to cheer on their own. Frankly, I find it a both a bit insulting and counterproductive. I know when to cheer but I find increasingly that most fans do not, they wait for the music or announcer to tell them it’s time to yell. Half the time it’s not even appropriate and yet the fans start to scream like Pavlov’s dogs at the first sign of music.

So, either I’m right or I’m a grumpy old man yelling at those durned kids. Which is it?

Which am I?

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Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Tuscaloosa Police Dept Pays $500,000 in Overtime to Police Alabama Football Games

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alabama-police-footballThere’s an interesting story out of college football involving the Alabama Crimson Tide and the fact that the local Tuscaloosa police department pays the salaries of officers providing security at football games with no reimbursement from the University of Alabama.

On game days in Tuscaloosa the crowd in the stadium is larger than the entire town and the police department works with local Campus Police to provide security. According to records produced by the city this amounted to over half a million dollars in overtime expenses this past season.

On the whole I don’t think it makes much difference in practicality. The reason I think this is if the University pays for the service some arrangement will be made to return that revenue through tax breaks or other means.

Nevertheless, I have a strong opinion this subject.

The city is providing a service for the university for which they would otherwise have to pay. The University of Alabama would have to bolster campus police forces on game days or simply hire the police force to do the job.

The reason the city of Tuscaloosa likely provides this service is that they get far more than half a million dollars in revenue from the 100,000 people that descend on the town those seven days a year. They do it simply as a courtesy.

This situation reminds of strongly of a story in Atlas Shrugged where John Galt insists on paying Midas Mulligan a dime for the loan of his car for the day. The dime is a trivial amount and Mulligan might easily loan the car as a favor. Galt insists on the payment and I think the University of Alabama should do so as well.

The police department is providing a useful service to the university. This service comes at an expense and paying for it is an homage to capitalism.

Maybe it doesn’t make a difference in actual finances but I do think it’s an important statement to make as far as capitalism is concerned. There is nothing necessarily wrong with doing favors for friends but when somebody provides you a valuable service, pay for it. It could be as simple as buying them lunch. Doing so sets a good example for everyone.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Steve Sarkisian Claims Being a Drunk Means He can’t be Fired

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steve-sarkisian-alcoholNon sports fans will be unaware that a fellow named Steve Sarkisian was fired from the job of head football coach at the University of Southern California earlier this year. Several drunken incidents led the athletic director of the school to the decision to fire Sarkisian.

He is now suing USC for $30 million because alcoholism is considered a disability and the Americans with Disabilities Act has rules about protecting disabled people.

To begin with the ADA doesn’t protect people with disabilities if their disability interferes with them doing their job. In the specific case of alcoholism this is spelled out quite clearly. The law states that an employer can discipline, discharge, or deny employment to an alcoholic whose drinking effects their performance. The case appears without merit from a legal standpoint. Sarkisian was sent home from at least one practice for being too drunk and there are rumors of many other incidents.

While that part is true and to my, non-lawyer, mind conclusive, it is not why Sarkisian’s lawsuit so nauseates me. This lawsuit is a slap in the face to all people with disabilities who are protected by ADA. It’s an insult to veterans who lost limbs, babies born with disabilities who must make their way through a difficult life, and anyone else who is truly disabled.

It’s as disgusting as someone faking a disability to gain the advantages laid out by ADA.

Normally I wouldn’t even be taking on a topic like this because I think almost everyone will agree with my opinions on the subject. Judging by the comments on the stories I’ve read this appears largely true.

The reason I’m writing this blog is because drug addiction is a terrible thing and can happen to anyone. Sarkisian deserves help. He needs treatment. People can and should be sympathetic to his plight. In this day and age there are precious few of us who have not been touched in some way by drug addiction. It’s a huge problem that needs to be discussed. Addicts need to be treated rather than ostracized. They should be given new opportunities if they overcome their addictions.

Sarkisian has my sympathy and to his credit has gone through treatment. I would encourage football teams to consider him for a coaching position and include monitoring for relapse behavior along with ongoing therapy.

That being said, he deserves nothing from USC. He hid his problem. He denied his problem. He let his problem adversely effect his job performance. He deserved to be fired. He should be ashamed for even filing the lawsuit.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

 

New York Outlaws Daily Fantasy Sports

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daily-fantasy-sports-new-york-lawDaily Fantasy Sports is a quickly growing industry wherein people pick athletes in an attempt to win cash. They are an offshoot of Rotisserie or Fantasy Sports leagues which have been around for quite some time.

The New York attorney general has now said they are illegal within that state. Eric Schneiderman draws a distinction between more traditional Fantasy Sports leagues because, in his legal opinion, the daily games are ones of chance whereas the others are games of skill. There are any number of state regulations against games of chance.

What I want to talk about today is Schneiderman’s distinction between the two as a reason to make the law. I don’t want to discuss the fact that gambling remains illegal in many places in the country.

The reason Schneiderman believes the daily games are gambling is because the average player of such games is not aware of the scope of professional involvement. Advertisements promise riches but the reality is an elite group of professional gamblers, making up about 1% of all players, wins almost all of the money involved. They do this by submitting thousands of entries into the daily game basically covering a huge number of possibilities. This means the other 99% of players who submit one or two picks for each game have virtually no chance of winning unless they are extraordinarily lucky.

Should the 99% of players realize they have no chance to win they would stop playing thus reducing the profit of the 1% which would drive them from the game.

Meanwhile, traditional Fantasy Sports take place over the course of many months and are not nearly as profitable for professional gamblers who do not dominate them in the same fashion.

I largely agree with Schneiderman’s logic. The traditional fantasy games require less luck to win than the daily games. Professionals completely dominate the daily games and the average player has almost no chance of winning.

Yet I totally disagree with Schneiderman’s position. The information about the chances of winning in the daily games is readily available. Anyone who plays the daily game and claims ignorance as to their chances of recouping money is either lazy or stupid. It’s not the state of New York’s job to protect people from being lazy and/or stupid, much though they would like it to be.

This is a classic example of what Libertarians call the Nanny state.

The bottom line is that the more the state protects the lazy and stupid, the less freedom is available to the smart and hardworking.

Thus I am opposed.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Cheerleaders Distracting Misleading Headline

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Cheerleaders-distractingTwo of my favorite things, misleading headlines and sports, came together the other day and that makes me happy.

In a football game between Toledo and Central Michigan the referee felt the need to admonish the Central Michigan cheerleaders for distracting the Toledo team as they neared the Central Michigan end zone.

Both the headline and the article hope to heap ridicule on the referee for his declaration. Isn’t it the job of cheerleaders to be loud?

On its face the headline and article by Sam Cooper of the Dr. Saturday sports Yahoo blog seem to have a point. That is until you learn the facts of the situation.

The Central Michigan cheerleaders were chanting snap-counts loudly and in the direction of the field in order to simulate the quarterback’s calls. This is, in fact, against the rules. You can cheer loudly all you want but you’re not allowed to simulate the calls of the quarterback.

The referee was fully justified in the announcement and, in my opinion, could have assessed a penalty. He was kind enough to give them a warning first.

Not only was the referee correct, but I’m of the opinion that the Central Michigan cheerleaders were engaged in bad sportsmanship. Shame on them. Good for the referee.

Congratulations, Sam and Dr. Saturday, you win the misleading headline of the week contest!

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Miami v. Duke football Game Ends with Game Changing Call

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knee-down-miami-dukeThere was an interesting football game this weekend between the University of Miami, The U, and Duke. The final play of the game was a multiple lateral affair where the Miami players threw it back again and again and eventually scored a touchdown.

Upon reviewing that final play it was noted one Miami player touched the ground with his knee and should have been ruled down. This happened after the clock reached zero. This might have been noticed by the officials during the play but should assuredly have been noticed by replay officials after the play. Neither noticed it and Miami was declared the victor.

There was also a missed penalty on Miami for an illegal block and Miami players ran onto the field before the play was over. Penalties cannot be reviewed and even if penalized for being on the field early, the touchdown would have counted with the penalty being assessed after the play. So neither of those two things rise to the level of the first issue, the knee being down.

As rules now stand, you cannot overrule events after they have been officially declared. Let’s say the Miami player’s knee was down with one second still on the clock, who is to say that Miami wouldn’t have scored on the next play. Therefore I think it’s generally perfectly correct to refuse to overturn a bad call the next day. This was a very unusual situation in that if the call is made correctly, the Miami player is down, the game is over, and Duke wins. There is no further chance for Miami because there is no time on the clock.

The NCAA has suspended both the referees and the replay officials for two future games but they will not award Duke the victory.

I’m of the opinion the circumstances in this case are enough to overturn the win. The player’s knee was down and that would have ended the game with no chance for Miami to score.

I see the other point of view as well in that overturning a game after the fact is fairly drastic. I just don’t think doing it this time would set much of a precedent for doing it frequently. It’s such a rare thing for a game to absolutely end on a bad call. Therefore if I was King of the World, Duke would be declared the winner.

What do you think?

Should Duke be declared the winner of the game?

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Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Lessons from Royals v. Blue Jays

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incredible-catchAs most of my dedicated readers will know, I’m in a period of mourning over the defeat of my beloved St. Louis Cardinals in the playoffs this year. In an attempt to forget my sorrow for a short time, I walked to a local pub to imbibe a Beefeater and Tonic, enjoy the company of some intelligent and attractive women, and watch the sixth game of the Kansas City Royal v. Toronto Blue Jays playoffs.

And what a game it was.

As I watched scintillating defense, prodigious hitting, superb pitching, daring base running, and essentially, sport at its finest, I found myself imagining a world in which merit was always rewarded. A world where the people who gained promotion were those whose performance earned it. A world where elected officials were those most dedicated to their nation and only wanted the best for it.

There may be no crying in baseball but more importantly there is little room for incompetence. I do no pretend that sport is a perfect meritocracy. There will always be aging veterans and high priced rookies who are given more opportunities than they probably deserve. That being said, there is a limit to failure in sport. A pitcher who can’t get a batter out will soon be dismissed whereas a politician who fails to make the country a better place might well continue on eternally in a gerrymandered district.

At this time only 90 of the 435 House of Representative districts in the United States are considered competitive.

What do we get in the absence of competition? The answer is obvious. Mediocrity and worse, incompetence. People on both sides of the political divide agree that competition is good. The Royals and Blue Jays prove as much. Yet both side gerrymander their districts into noncompetitive elections in order to “win”. And therein lies the problem.

If the Royals promoted players not because of their skill, dedication, hard work, and determination but upon who management wanted to succeed, the Royals would finish in last place every year. Sport is a hard crucible. You do not succeed with incompetence in sport and your failure is quickly and painfully manifested. Fans demand change and they demand it right now.

Politics? Not so much.

And we wonder what’s wrong with this country.

Vote not for the candidate who is from your party but for the candidate who is best qualified to run this country.

Vote well or your nation will finish in last place.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Kasparov and the Problem with Moral Codes

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Kasparov-banned-fideThere’s an interesting story in the world of chess that I think illustrates one of the problems with so called Ethical Codes.

Former chess champion Gary Kasparov has been forbidden to hold office in the chess federation, FIDE, for two years because of an accusation of attempted bribery during his recent campaign to become president of that organization.

Ethical Codes are created by organizations as a way to prevent behavior that they considered unethical. If an employee violates this code they are subject to punishment up to and including termination. The modern use of such codes in business is often related to justifying punishment rather than preventing unwanted behavior.

I’m not completely opposed to such codes. I think an organization has every right to create their own rules. I recently wrote about how the U.S. Soccer Federation should prevent Hope Solo from participating in the Olympics because of her troubling off-field activities. Likewise I spoke about the NFL’s sanctioning of Ray Rice for similar transgressions.

The problem in this case is that the FIDE is absolutely and totally corrupt. It is run by a man who routinely uses bribery to implement policy. To have such an organization stipulate ethical violations against a member for doing exactly what they themselves do is a rather tough pill to swallow.

When a code is applied unfairly it’s not really a code at all. It’s just a cudgel used to keep those who disagree in line and punish enemies.

What is to be done?

I’m opposed to removing such codes because I think any organization has the right to create their own rules. I’m also against a higher agency coming in and dictating how an organization applies it codes because this just means corruption moves up to that higher agency. The problem is not solved at all, despite the illusion of improvement, and in many ways made worse because the higher the agency the more people it has control over.

The only real solution is for members of the organization to see through the facade and elect better representatives or form their own group.

It’s not easy to convince those currently in power that misapplication of rules in a way that benefits them is, in the long run, bad for them. It is. If one person can misapply rules to gain advantages then soon enough someone will come to power who is not your ally and will use the same methods against you. It is far better to apply rules fairly and evenly and allow the best to succeed within the confines of your structure.

While that philosophy is comforting, the pragmatist in me realizes that reality is not. Kasparov is banned. The FIDE is corrupt. No solution appears imminent. Those in power and those who support them seem perfectly happy with the arrangement as it is. They have enormous bankrolls and there is no shortage of people willing to do anything for money. The Libertarian ideal is but a dream.

What can I do about it? I’ll write another book and hope the leaders at FIDE read it, understand it, and apply the principles of freedom to their organization. What else can I do?

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Why are Strippers a Problem at Louisville?

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louisville-strippersThere’s an ongoing story involving strippers and prostitution at the University of Louisville in which the evidence strongly suggests an assistant coach paid for women to dance naked and perform sex acts with basketball recruits and players.

At this point no criminal charges in the incidents have been filed and there is some doubt as if a crime has been committed. The head coach of the basketball team, Rick Pitino, has emphatically declared that he knew nothing of the parties at Billy Minardi Hall.

There are a couple of issues on point here for me.

The first question I ask is why anyone is in any trouble at all? From reading the various accounts of the incidents the recruits, the assistant coach who paid for the parties, and the women were all adults and engaged in the various activities without coercion.

My second issue is Pitino’s denial of any knowledge of the events. I argue that if someone wants to pay consenting adults to dance and potentially have sex with them then that’s a private contract between those individuals. However, I despise the “I didn’t know about it” argument. If you didn’t know about it, you should have known about it. You’re the head coach! What goes on during your watch is ultimately your responsibility.

If it were not for the NCAA I don’t think there would be any problem with the events as they apparently occurred. Certainly the NCAA can have whatever rules they want for their organization as long as they don’t run afoul of the Constitution. Therein lies my third issue, my favorite whipping boy, the NCAA.

Why do they have these rules?

The argument is that without restrictions preventing schools from offering favors to recruits, the richest schools would offer the biggest rewards. I’ve got news for you, NCAA. They already do. They build enormous stadiums, weight rooms, luxurious dormitories, lush cafeterias, fancy game-day uniforms, and other benefits in order to lure the athletes. Television exposure is a powerful incentive to a student who hopes to go onto a professional career and even just a kid who wants to be seen. Rules to prevent a coach from buying a bagel with spread on it are trying to close the barn door when there isn’t even a barn door to close. It’s wide open.

So a school has sex parties to entice recruits. I have no more problem with that than I do with a school housing them in special dormitories. It’s a salacious story and people like that, but let’s look at the root of the issue. The schools are making money from the games and want the best players. The players are workers, like it or not, and just like you and me, should be compensated for their work. They get a scholarship, true, but they have a right to any compensation their employer wants to give them. Is your salary capped by an organization? Do you make exactly the same as all the other workers?

Unfair playing field for wealthy schools? Life is an unfair playing field, get over it.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

It’s Difficult to be Gracious in Defeat when it’s the Cubs

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cardinals-cubs-rivalryIt’s rarely easy to be a passionate sports fan. Your team will lose, no matter how successful they are, far more often than they will emerge victorious. My beloved St. Louis Cardinals have not won the World Series since 2006 despite making the playoffs five times in the ensuing nine years. That’s five years of losing the last game of the season and being eliminated from the playoffs.

This year we lost to our long downtrodden rival the Chicago Cubs. Circumstances were not in our favor this year as the Cubs were playing arguably the best baseball in the league near the end of the season while injuries slowed down my Redbirds. Hopes were raised briefly by a Game 1 win but the Cubs went on to defeat us in the next three hard-fought but losing efforts.

There is that moment when the final out is made and disappointment can bubble into rage at the victors and I cannot imagine anyone who has not felt as much over the years.

That being said I think it is becoming more important than ever to be gracious in defeat because as our political climate becomes more infantile in its paroxysm of fear and hate; sports fans, players, coaches, management, and ownership groups are becoming better and truer role-models for how to act in life.

Does not a Cubs fan love baseball as do I? Does not a Cubs fan understand defeat and disappointment and perhaps far better than I? Does a Cubs fan not revel in the joy of victory as do I? Are we not but twins caste to different islands by the circumstance of our birth? Do we not have far more in common than in differences?

By nodding my head and putting out my hand in congratulations to their hard-earned and deserved victory do I not make the world a better place? Do I not set an example for my fellow Cardinals fans and also those who bleed Cubbie blue?

It hurts, that I do not deny. I steel my jaw knowing that next season awaits and the Cardinals shall soon fly again.

Well done Cubbies but we’ll get you next year, just you wait and see.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Legally Prevented from Holding a Job – Leonard Fournette

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Leonard-FournetteI regularly rail against the NCAA and their exploitation of athletes, er pardon me, student-athletes, for financial gain but today I move up the chain to the NFL which has a rule preventing a fellow named Leonard Fournette from getting a job.

It works like this. The National Football League refuses to allow any player who has used less than three years of college football eligibility to enter the NFL draft or join a team. Technically Fournette could simply play one game of college football, sit out the remainder of that year, two more years, and then be drafted. Many people are urging him to simply sit out the remainder of his college eligibility and then get drafted. It is fairly certain he would be one of the top picks in the draft which comes with it a salary of approximately $15 million over four years.

If he continues to play he doesn’t increase his potential salary, as he is already at the apex, but he does risk reducing the compensation either through poor play or catastrophic injury.

Every other student in the college, including those on various scholarships, can leave at any time for a professional career. There are no restrictions on any of them. None.

There are any number of reasons for the rule as it exists. The NCAA makes huge amounts of money on the athletes, er pardon me, student-athletes and serves as a free farm system for the NFL. The current rule ensures the NCAA that its best players must stay and perform for the price of an education that is a fraction of the salary Fournette would get if he left.

There are also many arguments as to why the rule is “good for the student-athletes”. One reasonable argument suggests that they might be tempted to leave school before they are ready for the NFL and thus not get the financial remuneration they expected. Another argument suggests that they are being “paid” for their services via the scholarship. I’m sure other people can come up with more arguments but I find them all lacking.

The bottom line is simple for this Libertarian. Fournette has a talent. He should be able to sell that to anyone who wants to bid on it at any time. He should be able to leave school today and join an NFL team that wants to pay him. Any restrictions to his freedom is a restriction to my freedom.

I’ll take it even further. I find the entire draft system as used by sports teams to be repugnant. Restricting a person to negotiating with one company because they “drafted” you? Ridiculous.

Further yet? Sure. The rookie compensation formula is clearly illegal. It removes the ability of the player to negotiate fair compensation for their services. The player is simply “slotted” into a particular salary based upon where they were drafted.

There are reasons for the draft and the slotting system. There are reasons for the NFL to restrict players from leaving the NCAA. I hear all those reasons. I acknowledge them. I understand they are helpful in many ways. Without them organizing a professional sports league is difficult. Yet, they are wrong. They should all be abolished. Free market, fair compensation.

Any legal and mentally competent adult, athlete or no, should be able to pursue the career of their choice at the time of their choice.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Competitive Gaming is Cool – No Matter what Colin Cowherd Says

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colin-cowherdI’m sure a great number of people are not aware that something called Competitive Gaming, or eSports, is becoming a major sporting industry.

In a recent interview an ESPN commentator named Colin Cowherd said some fairly nasty things about people who participate in eSports, and by association those who watch them.

The rise of eSports can be seen on outlets like Twitch and competitive events have prize pools in the tens of millions of dollars. The sport is played on a highly competitive level by incredibly skilled eAthletes.

What I want to talk about today is not necessarily eSports or Cowherd but simply the idea that people who share an interest can get together and enjoy what they love at a level unprecedented in human history. Because people can thus freely associate the ability to monetize their interest through capitalism becomes a reality. This is important.

Why is this so important?

The phenomenon of people of like interests freely associating across all geopolitical boundaries signals the first stages of the end of the nation state. I’m a Libertarian and I have friends who are anarchists although I’m not one myself. We share many ideas and one of them is that people should be able to associate based on their interests, not on the happenstance of their geographic and political positions.

Until recently humans were only able to associate with those in close proximity to their geographic location. With the advent of faster methods of travel people were able to travel further to associate freely although the limits of political borders placed a heavy restraint upon that travel. With the creation of the internet those borders are quickly vanishing.

I love chess and I play games almost every day with people from places like Russia, Iran, Iraq, Latvia, Armenia, Texas, England, and many more. They likely have all sorts of opposed political ideologies. They almost certainly disagree about quite a number of things but they love chess. They gather at various websites to freely associate with others who love the game. Their desire to come together has spawned websites that make money from their association either by advertisements or by membership dues. The chess players willingly pay a price in order to be able to gather with those who enjoy the same thing.

I want you to imagine a world where you can associate with people who enjoy the same things as you. That you are not bound by a nation that herds you into a pen. You are not bound by political ideology and kept from those who love what you love. What would such a world look like?

Would people with political differences be less likely to engage in war with those they associate with on other levels? I think so.

Would the nation state be able to demonize other nations when the citizens of their nation freely associate with those across the border? I don’t think so, not as easily at least.

Can the nation state withstand the onslaught of free association regardless of borders or ideology? I think, I hope, no.

When people are free to do what they love regardless of borders why would they care about arbitrary lines drawn on a map? There are no borders on the internet, would that the world would soon follow. As travel becomes easier and faster we gain the ability to go where we want, when we want, with whom we want.

The end of the nation state? A pipe dream or a fast approaching reality. You tell me.

Oh, and, Colin Cowherd, you’re an idiot. If you don’t like something then don’t do it. Lots of people don’t like football but don’t feel the need to insult you because you do. Take note.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Marshawn Lynch’s Mother and Play Calling

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Marshawn-Lynch-MomI’m a Rams fan and last Sunday we played yet another fantastically entertaining game with the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks seem to bring out the best in the Rams and I can only hope they treat every game hereafter as if it’s the Seahawks.

My post today is about comments made by Marshawn Lynch’s mother about the last play in the game. She was upset with the final call in which her son was asked to gain a yard on fourth down into the heart of the Rams defense. She suspects it was called because in a similar, although far more important, situation in the Super Bowl, Marshawn was not asked to run but a pass play was used with disastrous results.

I do not begrudge Mrs. Lynch the right to criticize any decision made on the field by a coach or player. I’ve done plenty of that on my own in the past. It’s part and parcel of being a sports fan to second guess on-field decisions. That being said I think her criticism analogous to an ideology that is hurting the United States these days.

It seems to me that people eagerly look for a scapegoat rather than trying to find real solutions. In this case Mrs. Lynch blames the offensive coordinator of the Seahawks for the issues.

It’s my opinion that in both cases she cites, there really isn’t a scapegoat but instead a hero. In the Super Bowl Malcom Butler made an exceptionally good play and stopped what would likely have been a touchdown most of the time. In the Rams game Michael Brockers drove the offensive lineman into the backfield forcing Lynch to adjust his path and allowing Aaron Donald to stop Lynch short of the first down. Again, in my opinion, the play call was quite reasonable and would have resulted in success a fairly high percentage of the time.

I find Mrs. Lynch’s search for a scapegoat to be a microcosm of attitudes in the United States. There is a much higher emphasis on finding someone to be at fault rather than admitting that some things are quite difficult. Forces arise that thwart even the best laid plans. It largely seems as if finding blame is much more important than finding solutions.

If we are nation that spends its energies trying to find blame rather than solution; a nation that elects politicians who are successful at blaming someone else without offering realistic solutions, what is our future?

If we instantly want to punish the perceived wrongdoer rather than find a way to prevent the wrong are we not doomed to endless wrongs?

I find the self-righteousness of what appears to me to be the average citizen of the United States nauseating. As if we are not humans who make mistakes. Just because you make a plan doesn’t mean it will work. I’ve failed. I’ve miscalculated. I’ve simply been defeated by the better person. It happens.

Do I think my shortcomings will suddenly be solved if I punish someone else? No. I try to do better next time. I learn from the mistake. I accept that someone else just beat me. The end result of that is that I become a better, stronger person. Would that we could become a better, stronger nation. Right now I see us becoming weaker and worse.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

Evian Championship Stupid Comment

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Results-Evian-Stupid-CommentIn the second installment of my Stupid Comment of the week our winner is TXH1138 (reference to the 1971 George Lucas film) who complains that AFP is to blame for him or her seeing the results of the 2015 Evian Championship.

The event is a major on the women’s golf tour and was won by a young New Zealand professional named Lydia Ko.

Apparently it is the job of AFP and Yahoo, who redistributed the story, to wait for good old TXH1138 to make it known that he or she has seen the results of the event before publishing their articles.

Good luck with that.

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn

 

John Jay High Football Referee Blindsided

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Ref BlindsidedThere’s a pretty interesting story in the news about a pair of football players from John Jay High School in San Antonio who slammed into a referee during the course of a game.

The video is brutal and the comment sections were filled with hate, as one might expect. Many wanted the two boys to be put in jail for the rest of their lives and things of this nature. Some even advocated the death penalty. I wrote a comment about the incident in which I expressed the idea that the two boys were likely frustrated by a referee that was either plain awful or was actively cheating. That while I thought expulsion from the team and some community service time along with a fine for the school was in order, I didn’t think it needed to go further than that.

My opinion was not popular.

More information is coming in about the incident. The boys unit coach told them: “this guy needs to pay for cheating us” for his calls in the game. At this point it is admitted that the referee ejected the wrong player from John Jay earlier in the game and there are multiple reports he used racial slurs against the players. The assistant has been suspended.

Just as I suggested restraint on punishing the boys I also suggest holding off vilifying the referee and coach until more facts are available.

I can tell you from my own experience in playing sports that referees do cheat. They don’t like certain teams and certain coaches. The first time it happened to me was in little league baseball when an umpire called me out on a third strike that was, literally, over my head. I had looked back at him when he called the second strike on a ball that was pretty low. He didn’t like that and he sure showed me. He showed me that refs cheat.

I wrote an entire post about this subject a while back. It’s a subject that I’m passionate about. Cheating anyone is a perversion of the system. It prevents the person or team who is best prepared and plays better from winning. That undermines capitalism, it undermines truth, it undermines society. When you work so hard to achieve something and have it taken from you by someone you think is cheating, the rage you feel is difficult to express.

I stand by my original assessment of what should happen the players. I think suspending the coach for making the revenge statement is appropriate. If what the referee is accused of doing is supported then that person should be removed and never allowed to referee again.

The people who know the truth about this situation are the fellow referees. They know all about it. In this situation what we see all too often is the people with integrity refusing to turn over the person among them who doesn’t have it. Their rational is that if people knew about the cheating, it tarnishes all referees. I disagree. What tarnishes any referee is cheating. When those who are aware of it don’t report the cheating, that’s what destroys their credibility. When they allow cheaters to operate openly they only encourage more cheating and further disrespect by coaches, players, and fans.

I’m certainly not saying the boys and the coach don’t deserve punishment. I am saying that if the referee was cheating and using racial slurs, if his fellow referees were aware of it and said nothing; then it’s only a matter of time until someone gets frustrated and enraged enough to do what the boys did.

Believe me, I’ve been there. I never punched a referee but I wasn’t far away from doing it on a number of occasions.

 

Cardinals “Allow” Pirates to Gain Headline

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Cards Allow Pirates HeadlineI just read a headline that I think qualifies for my Misleading Headline of the Week although it’s not so much misleading as it is stupid.

Cards allow Pirates to gain in race with loss reads the headline.

A little background about the story. The St. Louis Cardinals are having an outstanding season. They have the best record in baseball. They are looking fairly certain to return to the playoffs although there are still a few games to play. The team immediately behind them in the National League Central Division is the Pittsburgh Pirates.

I was at the game last night. The Pirates handed it to us 9 – 3. J. A. Happ pitched brilliantly keeping the team off balance all night. Those darn lefties! The Pirates have some excellent players including Andrew McCutchen who might well be the best player in the game. While the Pirates are second to the Cardinals in the division race they also happen to have the third best record in all of baseball and the second best in the National League.

So as to my point in all of this?

We didn’t “allow” the Pirates to gain on us. They hammered us because they are a good team. That happens.

The Cardinals came back today and beat the Pirates 4 – 1 behind stellar pitching from Jaime Garcia. Those darn lefties!!

Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Next Release: The Gray Horn