3/4 of the way through the 2016 NFL season - here's my All-Pro selections:
QB Matt Ryan - Atl Offensive MVP
Tom Brady - NE
RB David Johnson - Ari
Ezekiel Elliott - Dall
Melvin Gordon - SD
WR Mike Evans - TB
Antonio Brown - Pit
Julio Jones - Atl
AJ Green - Cin
TE Greg Olson - Carol
Jordan Reed- Wash
C Matt Paradis - Den
Travis Frederick - Dall
G Zach Martin - Dall
Kelechi Osemele - Oak
David DeCastro - Pit
Kevin Zeitler - Cin
T Joe Thomas - Cle
Andrew Whitworth - Cin
Tyron Smith - Dall
Trent Williams - Wash
DE Khalil Mack - Oak
Cameron Jordan - NO
Jason Pierre-Paul NYG
Brandon Graham - Phi
DT Aaron Donald - LA Defensive MVP
Ndamukong Suh - Mia
Gerald McCoy - TB
OLB Von Miller - Den
Melvin Ingram - SD
Chandler Jones - Ari
Whitney Mercilus - Hou
ILB Luke Kuechly - Car
Bobby Wagner - Sea
KJ Wright - Sea
CB Chris Harris - Den
Malcolm Butler - NE
Aqib Talib - Den
Casey Hayward - SD
S Eric Weddle - Balt
Harrison Smith - Min
Eric Berry - KC
Kam Chancellor - Sea
November, 2016 Athlete of the Month
Sunday, November 27, 2016
October is here.
Ben Zobrist. Runners-up: Andre Ward, Russell Westbrook, Dak Prescott
Only one month left - who will win 2016 Athlete of the Year?
January-Von Miller
February-Lionel Messi
March - Buddy Hield
April-Breanna Stewart
May - Klay Thompson
June - LeBron James
July-Serena Williams
August-Michael Phelps
September - Lamar Jackson
October - Corey Kluber
November - Ben Zobrist
Ben Zobrist. Runners-up: Andre Ward, Russell Westbrook, Dak Prescott
Only one month left - who will win 2016 Athlete of the Year?
January-Von Miller
February-Lionel Messi
March - Buddy Hield
April-Breanna Stewart
May - Klay Thompson
June - LeBron James
July-Serena Williams
August-Michael Phelps
September - Lamar Jackson
October - Corey Kluber
November - Ben Zobrist
My 2017 MLB Hall of Fame Ballot
Friday, November 25, 2016
Barry Bonds
Roger Clemens
Ivan Rodriguez
Jeff Bagwell
Manny Ramirez
Tim Raines
Mike Mussina
Curt Schilling
Edgar Martinez
Larry Walker
Not making the top 10 - but I'd also be inclined to vote for the following in future years
Gary Sheffield
Vladimir Guerrero
Jeff Kent
Jorge Posada
Billy Wagner
Trevor Hoffman
Friday, Nov 25 - NBA Picks
I'm 11-6-2
Bos +3 SA loss
Det +6.5 LAC win
Pho +1.5 Min loss
Sac +3.5 Hou loss
Orl +2 Wash loss
1-4
I'm 12-10-2
Bos +3 SA loss
Det +6.5 LAC win
Pho +1.5 Min loss
Sac +3.5 Hou loss
Orl +2 Wash loss
1-4
I'm 12-10-2
Let's Pick Some College Football Games, Nov 26 2016
Thursday, November 24, 2016
I'm 46-45
ULL +5 Ark St win
Iowa 1.5 Neb win
Bay -5.5 TTech loss
Ariz St -2.5 Ariz loss
WVA -6.5 ISt win
Wake -3.5 BC loss
Geo -4.5 GT loss
UCLA -3.5 Cal loss
Col -9.5 Utah loss
Miss -7.5 Miss St loss
3-9
49-54
ULL +5 Ark St win
Iowa 1.5 Neb win
Bay -5.5 TTech loss
Ariz St -2.5 Ariz loss
WVA -6.5 ISt win
Wake -3.5 BC loss
Geo -4.5 GT loss
UCLA -3.5 Cal loss
Col -9.5 Utah loss
Miss -7.5 Miss St loss
3-9
49-54
Wednesday, Nov 23 - NBA Picks
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
I'm 10-3-1
Char +5 SA push
Philly +6 Mem win
Dall +10 LAC loss
Ind +1 Atl loss
Mia +5 Det loss
1-3-1
11-6-2
Char +5 SA push
Philly +6 Mem win
Dall +10 LAC loss
Ind +1 Atl loss
Mia +5 Det loss
1-3-1
11-6-2
Monday, Nov 21 - NBA Picks
Monday, November 21, 2016
I'm 6-1-1
Minn +1.5 Bos loss
Pho +8.5 Wash win
Sixers +4.5 Mia win
Det +2 Hou loss
Dall +17 SA win
3-2
9-3-1
Minn +1.5 Bos loss
Pho +8.5 Wash win
Sixers +4.5 Mia win
Det +2 Hou loss
Dall +17 SA win
3-2
9-3-1
Tendown, November 20, 2016
Here's 250. This Tendown 251
The Trump hangover continues. Just read a few pieces this week.
1. Read this one.
2. And then this one.
3. And this one.
4. And then this one. Note, this is not a parody.
5.
Bannon, Flynn, Sessions -- Great! Senate must demand that Sessions as AG stop the massive institutional race discrimination against whites!— David Duke (@DrDavidDuke) November 18, 2016
6. This one is good. Read you some this one.
Some media hacks may cover themselves by saying all Trump supporters are racists, comfortably deferring some uncomfortable questions about the situation we face. But the hardcore white nationalists nesting in the Trump camp certainly do not think that to be the case. They fear the day Trump is found out to be a fraud, who will not be bringing any factories back — but by then, they hope the window will have been cracked enough for their beliefs to have slithered into the White House, respectable and airbrushed.
Irrelevant but for their bloated sugar daddy, such white supremacists cannot be willed into non-existence. But they can be isolated and weakened and deprived of importance, their most shameful and terrifying need from the straight world. Trump’s racist followers aren’t the “alt-right,” a marketing appellation coined within that community which the media readily, regrettably adopted. If they must be thought of at all, they are “shitheads,” “anime Nazis,” or simply, “Republicans.”
That's all for this time. I'll be back next time...if there is a next time...
Your pal,
Jim
Friday, Nov 18 - NBA Picks
Friday, November 18, 2016
I'm going to offer some NBA picks. I think for the next 10 days, 10 straight days of picks. If I'm over .500, I'll keep going. If not, I'll stop.
Here's tonight.
NO pick Port win
Den +3.5 Tor win
Sac +8 LAC win
Dall +2.5 Mem loss
3-1
Here's tonight.
NO pick Port win
Den +3.5 Tor win
Sac +8 LAC win
Dall +2.5 Mem loss
3-1
Let's Pick Some College Football Games, Nov 19 2016
Thursday, November 17, 2016
I'm 43-40
Ill +9.5 Iowa loss
Marsh -3 FIU loss
Miss St -1.5 Ark loss
Rice -1.5 UTEP win
TTech -3.5 I St loss
WVA +2.5 OU loss
Wyo +9.5 SD St win
OK St +6 TCU win
3-5
46-45
Ill +9.5 Iowa loss
Marsh -3 FIU loss
Miss St -1.5 Ark loss
Rice -1.5 UTEP win
TTech -3.5 I St loss
WVA +2.5 OU loss
Wyo +9.5 SD St win
OK St +6 TCU win
3-5
46-45
Survivor Series 30 is Sunday (Plus, Every Survivor Series Match of all time Ranked)
Wednesday, November 16, 2016
The Summer Slam preview was here.
Survivor Series 30 is Sunday from Toronto.
The best match in Survivor Series history was Bret Hart defeating Steve Austin at MSG in '96 (full disclosure, I was there; fuller disclosure, I marked out for pretty much everything all night - 2 Cold Scorpio, Furnas & LaFon, Sid winning the title - whatever you got, I was into it).
There hasn't been a 4 star Survivor Series match since. It has not been a good show for awhile.
This year's offering has a show long storyline, the feud between RAW and Smackdown, which have been split after years of unification. Here's the card.
1. Brock Lesnar (w/Heyman) v. Goldberg
-Back from the dead is Bill Goldberg, putting aside the bad taste of his first WWF run to return to the promotion for what, apparently, is a one off match against Lesnar. The storyline has borrowed from what apparently is Goldberg's IRL desire to have his son see him wrestle; the build is...straightforward to the point of being childlike, Goldberg is a superhero and that's what it takes to stop Lesnar. It's been fine - there's a potential challenge in the actual match; Goldberg wasn't that good when he was good, he's now an old man facing Brock, who comes up huge when motivated and less so when not. Even if they add a garbage stip, if this match goes longer than 10 minutes the Canadian crowd may turn on it. I'll say Lesnar goes over; it feels like Sting/HHH; even if they decide to use Goldberg again, they don't put him over here.
(Edit - Nope. Goldberg squashed him. For me, this is a terrible use of resources. If you want to push Goldberg, as apparently they do, you have him go over virtually any other established guy, Lesnar's uniqueness takes a real hit here. Have Goldberg squash HHH, his boost is similar and the promotion doesn't need HHH having an invicible aura. And if what you want is to build someone specifically by killing Lesnar, have it be a guy who is staying. If Nakamura debuted by killing Brock Lesnar you've created a star.)
2. IC: Miz (w/Maryse) v. Sami Zayn
Miz was the champ when last we left (Summer Slam) and held it until last month when dropping in a very good match to Ziggler; they switched back in the go home Smackdown. They lose some workrate here, giving up a Ziggler/Zayn match which would have looked like the top match on the card - in order to get some storyline, Miz is on a good heel run, feuding with Bryan Danielson who has a figurehead leadership role on Smackdown. That's a nice, multi-year story, with Miz representing sports entertainment, a WWE created wrestler - and Danielson, obviously, the pinnacle of someone who spent years having great matches on the independent circuit and forced his way into WWE main events on the force of his wrestling ability and fan reaction to that ability. Zayn, running in place as a RAW babyface, is in that Danielson lineage, but his win would take the IC title away from Danielson's "brand".
I don't know the booking here -- I have the juniors moving to Smackdown in the next match, so even though having the US and IC both on RAW seems excessive I guess they put Zayn over and maybe move the US to Smackdown at the Rumble. A pre-match trade might be fun, Danielson betting that Zayn will win, so he willingly gives up the IC title by sending Miz over to RAW. Ideally, Zayn then goes over.
(Edit - Miz kept in screwy Montreal related finish. 3 1/4)
3. Cruiser: Brian Kendrick v. Kalisto
-Over the summer, WWE held a juniors tournament, the Cruiserweight Classic, featuring some of the best wrestlers from around the world (Ibushi, Tozawa, Sabre, for example) - it was presented almost entirely as pure sport, there were a half dozen 4 star and up matches, it's the best thing the promotion has done in years.
Then they instantly blew it - they brought the juniors which signed full time into the promotion, stuck them in the middle of RAW and they've put on nothing but instantly forgettable matches.
But now - a ray of hope. WWE is launching a juniors only program that will follow Smackdown on Tuesdays, and this match is for control of the entire division; if Kalisto (a Smackdown wrestler) defeats the champ Kendrick (a RAW wrestler) then the juniors move to Smackdown. The new juniors show is likely to be good and a move to Smackdown just makes a bunch of sense. Kalisto wins in a good little match.
(Edit - Kendrick kept in screwy run-in finish. 3 1/2)
Elimination Matches:
4. RAW (Owens/Jericho/Reigns/Rollins/Strowman) v. Smackdown (Styles/Ambrose/Orton/Wyatt/The promoter's son) (w/Ellsworth)
5. RAW (New Day/Cesaro&Sheamus/Anderson&Gallows/Enzo&Cass/Shining Stars) v. Smackdown(Slater&Rhyno/American Alpha/Usos/Breeze&Fandango/Hype Bros)
6. RAW(Charlotte/Bayley/Nia Jax/Alicia Fox/Sasha Banks) v. Smackdown(Nikki Bella/Becky Lynch/Alexa Bliss/Carmella/Naomi) (w/Natalya)
The traditional Survivor Series matches don't have any stakes, there's not really a program between the two teams other than that there are two teams. That's okay, they'll use the matches to develop storylines within each team - an Ellsworth turn might make sense, his joining RAW and screwing the Smackdown crew. He winds up in the Rumble, they get their revenge and that ends his storyline. These elimination matches are generally just okay and that should be the expectation here.
That's it - hopefully Neville, for Counterfactual (that's my wrestling blog) purposes makes a pre-show match. It's a show you can skip.
(Edit, you shouldn't have skipped it. The singles match was 4 stars, the best elimination match in promotion history. The tag match was 3 3/4 stars, the second best elimination match in promotion history. The women's match was just a match. It was a good show, not the equivalent of NXT the night before, but on the high end of all time Survivor Series shows.)
Here's every Survivor Series match in history.
48. Team Cena (John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Erick Rowan and Ryback) defeated Team Authority (Seth Rollins, Kane, Mark Henry, Rusev and Luke Harper) (with Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury and Lana) 43 min 3
69. (13) World: John Cena d. Alberto Del Rio 16 min
70. (01) US/IC Title: Edge d Test 11 min
107. (87) Randy Savage, Ricky Steamboat, Brutus Beefcake, Jake Roberts & Jim Duggan (w/Elizabeth) d. Honky Tonk Man, Ron Bass, Hercules, Danny Davis & Harley Race (w/Jimmy Hart & Bobby Heenan) 24 min
161. (13) Mark Henry d. Ryback 5 min
173. (13) Team Total Divas (Natalya, The Bella Twins , The Funkadactyls (Naomi and Cameron) Eva Marie, & JoJo) d Team "True Divas" (AJ Lee, Tamina Snuka, Kaitlyn, Alicia Fox, Rosa Mendes, Aksana, &Summer Rae) 11:30
177. (98) Women: Sable d. Jackie 3 min
190. (14) Adam Rose and The Bunny defeated Slater Gator (Heath Slater and Titus O'Neil) 2:30
Survivor Series 30 is Sunday from Toronto.
The best match in Survivor Series history was Bret Hart defeating Steve Austin at MSG in '96 (full disclosure, I was there; fuller disclosure, I marked out for pretty much everything all night - 2 Cold Scorpio, Furnas & LaFon, Sid winning the title - whatever you got, I was into it).
There hasn't been a 4 star Survivor Series match since. It has not been a good show for awhile.
This year's offering has a show long storyline, the feud between RAW and Smackdown, which have been split after years of unification. Here's the card.
1. Brock Lesnar (w/Heyman) v. Goldberg
-Back from the dead is Bill Goldberg, putting aside the bad taste of his first WWF run to return to the promotion for what, apparently, is a one off match against Lesnar. The storyline has borrowed from what apparently is Goldberg's IRL desire to have his son see him wrestle; the build is...straightforward to the point of being childlike, Goldberg is a superhero and that's what it takes to stop Lesnar. It's been fine - there's a potential challenge in the actual match; Goldberg wasn't that good when he was good, he's now an old man facing Brock, who comes up huge when motivated and less so when not. Even if they add a garbage stip, if this match goes longer than 10 minutes the Canadian crowd may turn on it. I'll say Lesnar goes over; it feels like Sting/HHH; even if they decide to use Goldberg again, they don't put him over here.
(Edit - Nope. Goldberg squashed him. For me, this is a terrible use of resources. If you want to push Goldberg, as apparently they do, you have him go over virtually any other established guy, Lesnar's uniqueness takes a real hit here. Have Goldberg squash HHH, his boost is similar and the promotion doesn't need HHH having an invicible aura. And if what you want is to build someone specifically by killing Lesnar, have it be a guy who is staying. If Nakamura debuted by killing Brock Lesnar you've created a star.)
2. IC: Miz (w/Maryse) v. Sami Zayn
Miz was the champ when last we left (Summer Slam) and held it until last month when dropping in a very good match to Ziggler; they switched back in the go home Smackdown. They lose some workrate here, giving up a Ziggler/Zayn match which would have looked like the top match on the card - in order to get some storyline, Miz is on a good heel run, feuding with Bryan Danielson who has a figurehead leadership role on Smackdown. That's a nice, multi-year story, with Miz representing sports entertainment, a WWE created wrestler - and Danielson, obviously, the pinnacle of someone who spent years having great matches on the independent circuit and forced his way into WWE main events on the force of his wrestling ability and fan reaction to that ability. Zayn, running in place as a RAW babyface, is in that Danielson lineage, but his win would take the IC title away from Danielson's "brand".
I don't know the booking here -- I have the juniors moving to Smackdown in the next match, so even though having the US and IC both on RAW seems excessive I guess they put Zayn over and maybe move the US to Smackdown at the Rumble. A pre-match trade might be fun, Danielson betting that Zayn will win, so he willingly gives up the IC title by sending Miz over to RAW. Ideally, Zayn then goes over.
(Edit - Miz kept in screwy Montreal related finish. 3 1/4)
3. Cruiser: Brian Kendrick v. Kalisto
-Over the summer, WWE held a juniors tournament, the Cruiserweight Classic, featuring some of the best wrestlers from around the world (Ibushi, Tozawa, Sabre, for example) - it was presented almost entirely as pure sport, there were a half dozen 4 star and up matches, it's the best thing the promotion has done in years.
Then they instantly blew it - they brought the juniors which signed full time into the promotion, stuck them in the middle of RAW and they've put on nothing but instantly forgettable matches.
But now - a ray of hope. WWE is launching a juniors only program that will follow Smackdown on Tuesdays, and this match is for control of the entire division; if Kalisto (a Smackdown wrestler) defeats the champ Kendrick (a RAW wrestler) then the juniors move to Smackdown. The new juniors show is likely to be good and a move to Smackdown just makes a bunch of sense. Kalisto wins in a good little match.
(Edit - Kendrick kept in screwy run-in finish. 3 1/2)
Elimination Matches:
4. RAW (Owens/Jericho/Reigns/Rollins/Strowman) v. Smackdown (Styles/Ambrose/Orton/Wyatt/The promoter's son) (w/Ellsworth)
5. RAW (New Day/Cesaro&Sheamus/Anderson&Gallows/Enzo&Cass/Shining Stars) v. Smackdown(Slater&Rhyno/American Alpha/Usos/Breeze&Fandango/Hype Bros)
6. RAW(Charlotte/Bayley/Nia Jax/Alicia Fox/Sasha Banks) v. Smackdown(Nikki Bella/Becky Lynch/Alexa Bliss/Carmella/Naomi) (w/Natalya)
The traditional Survivor Series matches don't have any stakes, there's not really a program between the two teams other than that there are two teams. That's okay, they'll use the matches to develop storylines within each team - an Ellsworth turn might make sense, his joining RAW and screwing the Smackdown crew. He winds up in the Rumble, they get their revenge and that ends his storyline. These elimination matches are generally just okay and that should be the expectation here.
That's it - hopefully Neville, for Counterfactual (that's my wrestling blog) purposes makes a pre-show match. It's a show you can skip.
(Edit, you shouldn't have skipped it. The singles match was 4 stars, the best elimination match in promotion history. The tag match was 3 3/4 stars, the second best elimination match in promotion history. The women's match was just a match. It was a good show, not the equivalent of NXT the night before, but on the high end of all time Survivor Series shows.)
Here's every Survivor Series match in history.
The match times are rounded and they are followed by my star ratings for all of the 3 stars and up matches.
1. (96) Bret Hart d. Steve Austin 28:30 4 ¾
2. (92) WWF Title: Bret Hart d. Shawn Michaels 26 min 4 ¼
3. (95) WWF Title Bret Hart d. Diesel 25 min 4
4. (02) Tags: Los Guerreros (Eddie Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero) d, Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit, and Edge and Rey Mysterio 19:30 3 ¾
5. (97) WWF Title Shawn Michaels d. Bret Hart 12;30 3 ¾
6. (96) WWF Title: Sid d. Shawn Michaels 20 min 3 ¾
7. (87) Strike Force/Jim Powers/Paul Roma/British Bulldogs/Rougeaus/Killer Bees d.
Hart Foundation/Demolition/Greg Valentine/Dino Bravo/Islanders/Bolsheviks 30:30 3 ¾
8. (01)Team WWF (The Rock, Chris Jericho, The Undertaker, Kane, and The Big Show) d. Team Alliance (Stone Cold Steve Austin, Rob Van Dam, Kurt Angle, Booker T, and Shane McMahon) 45 min 3 ½
9. (02)World (Elimination Chamber) Shawn Michaels d. Triple H (with Ric Flair), Rob Van Dam, Booker T, Kane, and Chris Jericho 39 min 3 ½
10. (03)Team Bischoff (Chris Jericho, Christian, Randy Orton, Scott Steiner and Mark Henry) d. Team Austin (Shawn Michaels, Rob Van Dam, Booker T, Bubba Ray Dudley, and D-Von Dudley) 27 min. 3 ½
11. (11) WWF Title CM Punk defeated Alberto Del Rio 17 min 3 1/2
12. (96) Doug Furnas/Phil Lafon/Godwinns d. Owen/DaveyBoy/New Rockers 20:30 3 ½
13. (12) Team Ziggler (Dolph Ziggler, Damien Sandow, David Otunga, Wade Barrett, and Alberto Del Rio) (with Ricardo Rodriguez) d. Team Foley (The Miz, Kofi Kingston, Team Hell No (Kane & Daniel Bryan) and Randy Orton) 26 min 3 1/2
14. (94) WWF Title Bob Backlund d. Bret Hart 35 min 3 ½
15. (04)IC Shelton Benjamin d. Christian (with Tyson Tomko) 13:30 3 ½
16. (09) WWF Title: John Cena d. Triple H and Shawn Michaels 21 min 3 ½
17. (05) Triple H d Ric Flair 27 min 3 ½
19. (13) The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns) and The Real Americans (Antonio Cesaro & Jack Swagger) defeated Cody Rhodes and Goldust, The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) & Rey Mysterio 23:30
18. (13) CM Punk and Daniel Bryan d The Wyatt Family (Luke Harper & Erick Rowan) (with Bray Wyatt) 3 ½
19. (13) The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns) and The Real Americans (Antonio Cesaro & Jack Swagger) defeated Cody Rhodes and Goldust, The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) & Rey Mysterio 23:30
20. (95) 123 Kid/Chris Candido/Dr Tom/Louis Spicoli d. Marty Jannetty/Hakushi/Bob Holly/Barry Horowitz 18:30 3 1/2
21. (93) Heavenly Bodies d. Rock N Roll Express 13:30 3 ½
22. (88) Powers of Pain/Rockers/Young Stallions/Hart Foundation/British Bulldogs d.
Demoliton/Bolsheviks/Brainbusters/Conquistadors/Rougeaus 42 min 3 ½
23. (09) Team Miz (The Miz, Drew McIntyre, Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, and Jack Swagger) d Team Morrison (John Morrison, Matt Hardy, Evan Bourne, Shelton Benjamin, and Finlay) 21 min 3 ¼
24 (09) Team Kingston (Kofi Kingston, Montel Vontavious Porter, Mark Henry, R-Truth, and Christian) d Team Orton (Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, CM Punk, and William Regal) 21 min 3 ¼
25 (98) Mankind d. Steve Austin 10:30 3 ¼
26. (05) Booker T (with Sharmell) d Chris Benoit 14:30 3 ¼
27. (05)WWF Champ John Cena (c) defeated Kurt Angle 14 min 3 ¼
28. (91) Ted Dibiase, The Mountie, The Warlord & Ric Flair d. Bret Hart, Roddy Piper, The British Bulldog & Virgil. 3 ¼ 21:30
29. (92) Randy Savage/Mr. Perfect d. Ric Flair/Razor Ramon 3 ¼ 16:30
30. (07) WWF Title Randy Orton (c) defeated Shawn Michaels 18 min 3 ¼
31. (14) Bray Wyatt d. Dean Ambrose (DQ) 23 min 3 1/4
32. (99) Hollys/Too Cool d. Edge/Christian/Hardys 14:30 3 ¼
32. (99) Hollys/Too Cool d. Edge/Christian/Hardys 14:30 3 ¼
33. (12) Team Clay (Brodus Clay, Justin Gabriel, Tyson Kidd, Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio) (with Cameron and Naomi) d Team Tensai (Tensai, Primo, Epico and The Prime Time Players (Darren Young and Titus O'Neil) 18:30 3 ¼
34. (04) Jr. Title: Spike Dudley d Billy Kidman, Chavo Guerrero, and Rey Mysterio 9 min 3
35. (04) Tables: The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and Spike) and Jeff Hardy d 3-Minute Warning (Rosey and Jamal) and Rico 14 min 3
36. (10) US: Daniel Bryan d Ted DiBiase 10 min 3
37. (96) Undertaker d. Mankind 15 min. 3
38. (08) World Title: John Cena d Chris Jericho 21 min 3
39. (97) Doug Furnas/Phil LaFon/Davey Boy/Anvil d. Marc Mero/Steve Blackman/Vader/Goldust 17 min 3
40. (04) Team Orton (Randy Orton, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, and Maven) d Team Triple H (Triple H, Edge, Batista, and Snitsky) (with Ric Flair) 24 min 3
41. (94) British Bulldog/Razor Ramon/Fatu/Barbarian/123Kid d. HBK/Diesel/Owen Hart/Anvil/Jeff Jarrett 22 min 3
42. (07) Team Triple H (Triple H, Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio and Kane) defeated Team Umaga (Umaga, Mr. Kennedy, Montel Vontavious Porter, Finlay and Big Daddy V) 22min 3
43. (11) Dolph Ziggler d. John Morrison 10:30 3
44. (10) John Morrison d Sheamus 11 min 3
45. (99) IC: Chyna d. Chris Jericho 13:30 3
46. (07) World (Cell) Batista (c) defeated The Undertaker 21 min 3
47. (93) Randy Savage/Razor Ramon/123 Kid/Marty Jannetty d. Diesel/Adam Bomb/IRS/Rick Martel 36 min. 3
48. Team Cena (John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Erick Rowan and Ryback) defeated Team Authority (Seth Rollins, Kane, Mark Henry, Rusev and Luke Harper) (with Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury and Lana) 43 min 3
49. (89) Rick Rude/Curt Hennig/Rougeaus d. Roddy Piper/Bushwackers/Jimmy Snuka 21:30 3
50. (05) Team SmackDown (Batista, Rey Mysterio, John Bradshaw Layfield, Bobby Lashley and Randy Orton) (with Bob Orton and Jillian Hall) defeated Team Raw (Shawn Michaels, Kane, The Big Show, Carlito and Chris Masters) 24 min 3
51. (05) US Title: Chris Benoit (c) defeated Chavo Guerrero (with Vickie Guerrero) by submission 8:30
52. (10) Dolph Ziggler (with Vickie Guerrero) defeated Kaval 9:30 3
53. (15) Dean Ambrose d. Kevin Owens 11 3
54 (15) Roman Reigns d. Alberto del Rio 13:30 3
53. (15) Dean Ambrose d. Kevin Owens 11 3
54 (15) Roman Reigns d. Alberto del Rio 13:30 3
55. (11) The Rock and John Cena defeated Awesome Truth (The Miz and R-Truth) 21:30 3
56. (90) Ted Dibiase/Undertaker /Honky Tonk Man /Greg Valentine d. Hart Foundation/DustyRhodes/Koko B Ware 14 min 3
57. (00) WWF Title: Kurt Angle d. Undertaker 3 16 min
58. (15) WWF Title: Roman Reigns d. Dean Ambrose 9 min
58. (15) WWF Title: Roman Reigns d. Dean Ambrose 9 min
59. (12) World: Sheamus d The Big Show 14:30
60. (01) Tags (Cage): The Dudley Boyz (with Stacy Keibler) d The Hardy Boyz 15:30
61. (00) The Radicalz (Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, Eddie Guerrero and Perry Saturn) (with Terri) d D-Generation X (Road Dogg, K-Kwik, Billy Gunn and Chyna) 12:30
62. (12) WWF Title CM Punk d. Ryback and John Cena 18 min
63. (03) Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit, John Cena, Hardcore Holly, and Bradshaw) d Team Lesnar (Brock Lesnar, The Big Show, Matt Morgan, Nathan Jones and A-Train) 13:30
64. (04) Team Guerrero (Eddie Guerrero, The Big Show, Rob Van Dam, and John Cena) defeated Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Carlito, Luther Reigns and Mark Jindrak) 12:30
65. (08) Team HBK (Shawn Michaels, Rey Mysterio, Cryme Tyme (Shad Gaspard and JTG), and The Great Khali) d. Team JBL (John Bradshaw Layfield, Kane, MVP, John Morrison and The Miz) 18 min
66. (10) Team Mysterio (Rey Mysterio, Kofi Kingston, Chris Masters, Big Show, and MVP) d. Team Del Rio (Alberto Del Rio, Tyler Reks, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger, and Cody Rhodes) 18 min
67. (11) Team Barrett (Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Hunico, and Dolph Ziggler) d. Team Orton (Randy Orton, Sheamus, Mason Ryan, Kofi Kingston, and Sin Cara) 22 min
68. (15) Ryback/Usos/Lucha Dragons d. New Day/Sheamus/Barrett 17 min 30 sec
68. (15) Ryback/Usos/Lucha Dragons d. New Day/Sheamus/Barrett 17 min 30 sec
69. (13) World: John Cena d. Alberto Del Rio 16 min
70. (01) US/IC Title: Edge d Test 11 min
71. (00) The Rock d Rikishi 11:30
72. (95) Bertha Faye, Aja Kong, Tomoko Watanabe & Lioness Asuka vs. Alundra Blaze, Sakie Hasegawa, Kyoko Inoue, & Chapparita Asari. 10 min
73. (08) Team Orton (Randy Orton, Shelton Benjamin, William Regal, Cody Rhodes, and Mark Henry) (with Layla, Manu and Tony Atlas) d Team Batista (Batista, CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, Matt Hardy, and R-Truth) 16:30
74. (03) Tags: Basham Brothers d. Los Guerreros (Eddie and Chavo) 7 min
75. (07)Tags: Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch d Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes 7 min
76. (95) Shawn Michaels, Ahmed Johnson, The British Bulldog & Sid (w/Ted Dibiase & Jim Cornette) d. Yokozuna, Owen Hart, Razor Ramon & Dean Douglas (w/Mr. Fuji) 27:30
77. (97) The Road Warriors (Hawk and Animal), Ahmed Johnson and Ken Shamrock d The Nation of Domination (The Rock, Faarooq, Kama Mustafa and D'Lo Brown) 20:30
78. (87) The Jumping Bomb Angels, Velvet MacIntyre, Rockin’ Robin & The Fabulous Moolah d. Judy Martin, Leilani Kai, Dawn Marie, Donna Christanello & Sherri Martell 20:15
79. (07) ECW Title: CM Punk d. John Morrison and The Miz 8 min
80. (10) WWF Title: Randy Orton d. Wade Barrett 15 min
81. (01) Euro Title: Christian defeated Al Snow 6:30
82. (02) Jr Title: Billy Kidman defeated Jamie Noble 7:30
83. (06) Team DX (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, CM Punk and the Hardy Boyz) d Team Rated-RKO (Edge, Randy Orton, Johnny Nitro, Mike Knox and Gregory Helms) 11:30
84. (09) WorldTitle: Undertaker d Chris Jericho and The Big Show 13:30
85. (12) Antonio Cesaro d R-Truth 7 min
86. (02)Women: Victoria d Trish Stratus 7 min
87. (88) Andre the Giant, Dino Bravo w/Frenchie Martin, Ravishing Rick Rude w/ Bobby Heenan, Harley Race & Mr. Perfect d. Jake Roberts, Jim Duggan, Ken Patera, Tito Santana & Scott Casey 30:30
88. (00) Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von) and Hardy Boyz (Matt and Jeff) d Edge and Christian and Right to Censor (Bull Buchanan and The Goodfather) 10 min
89. (89) Ultimate Warrior, Jim Neidhart, Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty d. Bobby Heenan, Arn Anderson, Haku & Andre the Giant. 21:30
90. (98) XPac draw Steve Regal 8 min
91. (04) WWF Title: John Bradshaw Layfield d. Booker T 15 min
92. (00)Steve Austin NC HHH 25 min
93. (98) WWF Title: The Rock d. Mankind 17 min
94. (00) Kane d Chris Jericho 12:30
95. (10) World: Kane d. Edge 13 min
96. (03) World Title: Goldberg d Triple H (with Ric Flair) 12 min
97. (99) WWF Title: Big Show d. HHH/Rock 16 min
98. (00) Euro: William Regal d. Hardcore Holly. 5:30
99. (01)William Regal d Tajiri 3 min
100. (99) Tags: New Age Outlaws d.. Mankind & Al Snow 14 min
101. (03) Kane d Shane McMahon 13:30 min
102. (99) Kurt Angle d. Shawn Stasiak. 6 min
103. (06) Mr. Kennedy d The Undertaker 9 min
104. (96) The Stalker, Jake Roberts & Rocky Maivia d. Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Jerry Lawler, Crush & Goldust (w/Marlena) 23:30
105. (94) Tatanka, Bam Bam Bigelow, King Kong Bundy, Tom Pritchard & Jimmy Del Ray (w/Ted Dibiase) d. Lex Luger, Adam Bomb, Mabel, Billy Gunn & Bart Gunn (w/Oscar) 23:30
106. (89) Dusty Rhodes, The Red Rooster, Tito Santana & Brutus Beefcake d. Big Bossman, Bad News Brown, Rick Martel & Honky Tonk Man (w/Slick & Jimmy Hart) 22 min
107. (87) Randy Savage, Ricky Steamboat, Brutus Beefcake, Jake Roberts & Jim Duggan (w/Elizabeth) d. Honky Tonk Man, Ron Bass, Hercules, Danny Davis & Harley Race (w/Jimmy Hart & Bobby Heenan) 24 min
108. (06)Team Cena (John Cena, Kane, Bobby Lashley, Sabu and Rob Van Dam) d Team Big Show (The Big Show, Test, Montel Vontavious Porter, Finlay (with Hornswoggle) and Umaga 12:30
109. (09)Batista defeated Rey Mysterio 7 min
110 (15) Tyler Breeze d. Dolph Ziggler 6:30
110 (15) Tyler Breeze d. Dolph Ziggler 6:30
111. (99) The Godfather, D-Lo Brown & Headbangers d. Acolytes & Dudleys 9:30
112. (99) Van Venis, Mark Henry, Gangrel & Steve Blackman d.. The British Bulldog & Mean St Posse 9 min
113. (98) Rock d. Ken Shamrock 8:30
114. (98) Ken Shamrock d. Goldust 6 min
115. (97) Kane d. Mankind 9 min
116. (06)World Title: Batista defeated King Booker 14 min
117. (15) Women: Charlotte d. Paige 14 min
117. (15) Women: Charlotte d. Paige 14 min
118. (03)Women: Molly Holly (c) defeated Lita 7 min
119. (87) Andre the Giant, King Kong Bundy, The One Man Gang, Butch Reed & Rick Rude (w/Slick & Bobby Heenan) d. Hulk Hogan, Paul Orndorff, Bam Bam Bigelow, Ken Patera & Don Muraco (w/Oliver Humperdink) 23 min
120. (89) Hulk Hogan, Jake Roberts & Demolition d Ted Dibiase, Zeus & The Powers of Pain (w/Mr. Fuji & Virgil). 26:30
121. (97) The Truth Commission (The Jackyl, The Interrogator, Sniper, and Recon) d. The Disciples of Apocalypse (Crush, Chainz, 8-Ball, and Skull) 10 min
122. (06) Team WWE Legends (Ric Flair, Sgt. Slaughter, Dusty Rhodes and Ron Simmons) (with Arn Anderson) d Team Spirit Squad (Kenny, Johnny, Nicky and Mikey) (with Mitch) 10 min
123. (98) Mankind d. Al Snow 4 min
124. (98) Rock d. Undertaker 8:30
125. (13) IC: Big E Langston d. Curtis Axel 6 min
125. (13) IC: Big E Langston d. Curtis Axel 6 min
126. (98) Undertaker d. Kane 7 min
127. (04)The Undertaker d Heidenreich (with Paul Heyman) 16 min
128. (90) Hulk Hogan, Jim Duggan, Tugboat & the Big Bossman d. Dino Bravo, the Earthquake, Haku & the Barbarian (w/Jimmy Hart & Bobby Heenan). 16 min
129. (90) Rick Martel, Warlord, Power and Glory (with Slick) d. Jake Roberts, Jimmy Snuka, Rockers 18 min
130. (93) Lex Luger, Rick Steiner, Scott Steiner, The Undertaker d. Ludvig Borga, Jacques Rougeau, Crush, Yokozuna 28 min
131 (97) The New Age Outlaws (Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) and The Godwinns (Henry and Phineas) d. The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) and The New Blackjacks (Blackjack Windham and Blackjack Bradshaw) 15:30
132. (14) Tags: Miz and Mizdow d. Usos, Goldust and Stardust and Los Matadores 15:30
132. (14) Tags: Miz and Mizdow d. Usos, Goldust and Stardust and Los Matadores 15:30
133. (93) Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Bruce Hart and Keith Hart v. Shawn Michaels, the Black Knight, the Red Knight and the Blue Knight. 31 min
134. (02) WWF Title: Big Show d Brock Lesnar 4 min
135. (00)Steve Blackman, Crash Holly and Molly Holly defeated T & A (Test and Albert) and Trish Stratus 5 min
136. (96) Faarooq, Vader, Fake Diesel & Fake Razor (w/Clarence Mason, PG-13 & Jim Cornette) NC Flash Funk, Savio Vega, Yokozuna & Jimmy Snuka 9:30
137. (10) Tags: The Nexus (Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater) (c) (with David Otunga, Michael McGillicutty, and Husky Harris) defeated Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov 5 min
138. (01)Battle Royal 7:30
139. (92) The Nasty Boys & the Natural Disasters d. The Beverly Brothers & Money Inc 16 min
140. (95) The Undertaker, Henry Godwinn, Fatu & Savio Vega v. King Mabel, Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Isaac Yankem & Jerry Lawler 14:30
141. (88) The Ultimate Warrior, Brutus Beefcake, Sam Houston, the Blue Blazer & Jim Brunzell d. The Honky Tonk Man, Dangerous Danny Davis, Outlaw Ron Bass, Greg Valentine & Bad News Brown (w/Jimmy Hart). 18 min
142. (90) The Ultimate Warrior, Texas Tornado & The Road Warriors d. Mr. Perfect & Demolition (w/Mr. Fuji & Bobby Heenan). 14 min
143. (88) Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Hillbilly Jim, Hercules & Koko B. Ware (w/Elizabeth) d. The Big Bossman, Akeem, King Haku, the Red Rooster & Ted Dibiase (w/Slick, Virgil & Bobby Heenan) 29 min
144. (91) The Beverly Brothers & The Nasty Boys d. The Rockers & The Bushwhackers 23 min
145. (89) Randy Savage, Dino Bravo, Greg Valentine & Earthquake d. Jim Duggan, Ronnie Garvin, Bret Hart & Hercules. 23:30
146 (15) Undertaker/Kane d. Bray Wyatt/Luke Harper 10:30
146 (15) Undertaker/Kane d. Bray Wyatt/Luke Harper 10:30
147. (08) The Undertaker d The Big Show 13 min
148. (91) WWF Title: Undertaker d. Hulk Hogan 12:30
149. WWF Title: Randy Orton d. Big Show 11 min
149. WWF Title: Randy Orton d. Big Show 11 min
150. (11) World Title: Big Show defeated Mark Henry 13 min
151. (92) Headshrinkers d. High Energy 7:30
152. (92) Tatanka d. Rick Martel 11:30
153. (95) Goldust vs. Bam Bam Bigelow 8:30
154. (90) The Ultimate Warrior, Hulk Hogan & Tito Santana d. Ted Dibiase, Rick Martel, the Warlord, and Power & Glory (w/Slick & Virgil) 9 min
155. (98) Al Snow d. Jeff Jarrett 3:30
156. (99) Kane d. XPac 4 min
157. (06) Women: Mickie James defeated Lita 8:30
158. (99) The Big Show d. Albert, Viscera, Mideon & Big Bossman 1:30
159. (98) Steve Austin d. Big Boss Man 3:30
160. (97) IC: Steve Austin d. Owen Hart 4 min
161. (13) Mark Henry d. Ryback 5 min
162. (11) Beth Phoenix d Eve Torres 4 min
163. (10) Women: Natalya d Lay-Cool (Layla and Michelle McCool) 3:30
164. (01)Women: Trish Stratus d Lita, Jacqueline, Mighty Molly, Jazz, and Ivory 4:30
165. (04)Women Trish Stratus d Lita 1:30
166 (15) WWF Title: Sheamus d. Roman Reigns :30
166 (15) WWF Title: Sheamus d. Roman Reigns :30
167. (98) Mankind d. Dwayne Gill :30
168. (98) Rock d. Boss Man :30
169. (14) Women: Nikki Bella (with Brie Bella) d. AJ Lee 30 sec.
169. (14) Women: Nikki Bella (with Brie Bella) d. AJ Lee 30 sec.
170. (06)Women: Trish Stratus d Melina 6:30
171. (09) Team Mickie (Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Melina, Gail Kim, and Eve Torres) d Team Michelle (Michelle McCool, Jillian Hall, Beth Phoenix, Layla, and Alicia Fox) 10:30
172. (08) Team Raw (Beth Phoenix, Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Candice Michelle, and Jillian Hall) (with Santino Marella) d Team SmackDown (Michelle McCool, Victoria, Maria, Maryse, and Natalya) 9:30
173. (13) Team Total Divas (Natalya, The Bella Twins , The Funkadactyls (Naomi and Cameron) Eva Marie, & JoJo) d Team "True Divas" (AJ Lee, Tamina Snuka, Kaitlyn, Alicia Fox, Rosa Mendes, Aksana, &Summer Rae) 11:30
174. Team Fox (Alicia Fox, Emma, Naomi and Natalya) (with Tyson Kidd) d. Team Paige (Paige, Cameron and The Slayers (Layla and Summer Rae) 14:30
175. (00)Women: Ivory d Lita 5 min
175. (00)Women: Ivory d Lita 5 min
176. (12) Women Eve Torres (c) defeated Kaitlyn 7 min
177. (98) Women: Sable d. Jackie 3 min
178. (92) Big Boss Man d. Nailz 6 min
179. (92) Yokozuna d. Virgil 4 min
180. (91) The Big Bossman & The Legion of Doom d. Irwin R. Shyster & The Natural Disasters (w/Jimmy Hart) 15:30
181. (91) The Texas Tornado, Tito Santana, Hacksaw Jim Duggan & Sergeant Slaughter d. Colonel Mustafa, the Berserker, Skinner & Hercules 14 min
182. (90) Nikolai Volkoff, Tito Santana & the Bushwhackers d.. Sgt. Slaughter, Boris Zhukov & the Orient Express (w/Gen. Adnan & Mr. Fuji) 10:30
183. (98) Tags: The New Age Outlaws d. Mark Henry & D-Lo Brown and The Headbangers 10:30
184. (93) The Bushwhackers & Men on a Mission (w/Oscar) d. Bam Bam Bigelow, Bastion Booger & The Headshrinkers (w/Luna Vachon & Afa) 11 min
185. (02)Vince McMahon d The Undertaker 12 min
186. (08) WWF Title: Edge d Triple H and Vladimir Kozlov 14 min
187. (92) Casket Match: The Undertaker d Kamala (w/Kim Chee & Harvey Whippleman) 7 min
188. (07) Mickie James, Maria, Torrie Wilson, Michelle McCool and Kelly Kelly d. Beth Phoenix, Jillian Hall, Melina, Victoria and Layla 5 min
189. (99) Tori, Debra, Mae Young & Moolah d. Jacqueline, Luna Vachon, Ivory & Terri Runnels 2 min
190. (14) Adam Rose and The Bunny defeated Slater Gator (Heath Slater and Titus O'Neil) 2:30
191. (05) Theodore Long (with Palmer Cannon) d Eric Bischoff 5:30
192. (07) The Great Khali d Hornswoggle 3 min
193. (94) Casket Match: The Undertaker d Yokozuna (w/Mr. Fuji & Jim Cornette). 15:30
194 (94) Jerry Lawler, Sleazy, Cheesy & Queasy vs. Doink, Dink, Wink & Pink 16 min
Tendown, November 13, 2016
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Here's 249. This is Tendown 250.
Normally, what I do when I get through another 50 of these is provide links to the full record. Plan was to do that here as well, probably with whatever was the best Clinton picture from Tuesday.
Instead of that, Nazis.
Given that, I just wanted to give you stuff I find indespensible about what happened to us Tuesday.
Things I was wrong about.
-I didn't think decent people would vote for Trump. You wouldn't cast Trump as President in a movie. No studio would ever do that - he so obviously presents as a grifter, even before the reinvention as head of the white supremacists. Not everyone who voted for Trump is decent; many millions are just creepy, dumb, evil little deplorables. But there aren't enough of those people to win a general election.
-I thought Latinos would storm the polls for Clinton.
Things I was right about:
-Clinton was the wrong candidate for this election. Much of this country is a hallowed out husk; the reason is 30+ years of tax cuts/austerity/privatization/worship of the "free market". That's contestable, I recognize, but I've got the better end of the argument. When Trump's message is "things are terrible, I'll make them better" and Clinton's message is "things are already great" it makes it easy to vote for the first guy when you've lost your house to foreclosure or live paycheck to paycheck or wonder if you lose your job what could possibly ever replace it. Sure, repealing the estate tax won't make things better, but that's not the point (sure, some people in that category also are creeped out by transgenders or are otherwise unsympathetic plaintiffs from my standpoint; otherwise they'd all be Democrats)
-Clinton was the wrong candidate for this election. She stinks of the 90s. Stinks of it. Women, understandably so, are eager for their turn, but WokeHill never rang true, despite liberals telling you it did and that if it didn't for you, it was misogyny, even if you were also a woman. Every leaked email, every "I've got a public position and a private position" was just crap you left behind in the previous century. We watched that show; even people who liked it at the time aren't pulling out their old DVDs any more. The only show from the 90s people still want to see is Friends.
-Clinton ran a dumb campaign. Since the convention appearance of Bloomberg and Generals and Leon Panetta the attempt to get GOP votes instead of heading left to get your base to turn out was a terrible idea. The focus on Russia was never going to get out liberal votes; "lets talk about the Cold War" was just part and parcel of that 90s Clinton mindset to always move center. Old guys like me hated that mindset, hated what the Democrats became, and when Gore signaled he was going to continue, even carry that further by choosing a DINO like Joe Lieberman as VP, we voted with our feet in the general. Know what a good campaign is:
Do you have a pre-existing condition? Trump's promising to repeal Obamacare. Go ahead, ask him.
Who do you think will insure you if you lose your job? You want to talk about freedom? Freedom can't mean "I have to take whatever my boss dishes out forever or I go uninsured."
Don't talk to me about how Mitt Romney's voting.
-I'll tell you the one moment I bet Clinton wishes she could do over again. That second debate, right after the Access Hollywood tape - when there was such hot scrutiny on every move Trump made and he brought the WJC accusers. Remember the moment he was behind Clinton, right behind her - it was palpable that he was in her space? She needed to turn around and tell him to back down. She should have spoken sharply. She should have looked him in the eye and actually been the feminist hero her supporters tried to turn her into. You have to know the moment - and whatever the instinct is for a woman politician not to show too much strength needed to give way to understanding there was blood in the water and she should have been the shark. It's a small thing - she still is Hillary Clinton who talked about superpredators trying to reinvent herself, and admittedly this is just my pet theory, but at the time, as someone who used to make a living speaking in front of groups - at that moment I felt it, I felt the absolute right thing to do was bring fire and make him back down, make him cower (which he either would have done or he would have not done which would have been just as good). If it was a prizefight, Trump was in deep trouble in that round, came out swinging and exposed his chin - Clinton, normally a defensive fighter, remained defensive, lost the round and then the fight.
-Sanders wins. Sanders wins easily. It seems self evident that Sanders wins easily.
-And yes, I voted for Clinton.
1.
2. Greenwald
THE PARALLELS BETWEEN the U.K.’s shocking approval of the Brexit referendum in June and the U.S.’ even more shocking election of Donald Trump as president last night are overwhelming. Elites (outside of populist right-wing circles) aggressively unified across ideological lines in opposition to both. Supporters of Brexit and Trump were continually maligned by the dominant media narrative (validly or otherwise) as primitive, stupid, racist, xenophobic, and irrational. In each case, journalists who spend all day chatting with one another on Twitter and congregating in exclusive social circles in national capitals — constantly re-affirming their own wisdom in an endless feedback loop — were certain of victory. Afterward, the elites whose entitlement to prevail was crushed devoted their energies to blaming everyone they could find except for themselves, while doubling down on their unbridled contempt for those who defied them, steadfastly refusing to examine what drove their insubordination.
3. Lund - pre-election
This one had everything: nativism, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, misogyny, sexual assault allegations aplenty, and a final annihilation of all sense of shared history and foundational fact. And, on the other side, a compromised candidate whose organization trammeled the most economically promising working-class campaign in generations to deliver what is by now the Democratic Party’s sweetest platform: sheer, uncompromising terror at the alternative.
4. I've Been Making This Point Since the Late 90s.
In facilitating the election of Trump, the Electoral College has effectively disenfranchised racial minorities once again. The Electoral College underrepresented Clinton’s diverse, urban-centered coalition, and overrepresented Trump’s coalition, which is based around rural and suburban white people. Trump’s white nationalist demagoguery was unable to secure a plurality, let alone a majority, in a racially diverse country—but he didn’t need one.
5.
6.
7. Inside NFL Locker Rooms
8. But, what else could the Democrats Have Possibly Done?
Normally, what I do when I get through another 50 of these is provide links to the full record. Plan was to do that here as well, probably with whatever was the best Clinton picture from Tuesday.
Instead of that, Nazis.
Given that, I just wanted to give you stuff I find indespensible about what happened to us Tuesday.
Things I was wrong about.
-I didn't think decent people would vote for Trump. You wouldn't cast Trump as President in a movie. No studio would ever do that - he so obviously presents as a grifter, even before the reinvention as head of the white supremacists. Not everyone who voted for Trump is decent; many millions are just creepy, dumb, evil little deplorables. But there aren't enough of those people to win a general election.
-I thought Latinos would storm the polls for Clinton.
Things I was right about:
-Clinton was the wrong candidate for this election. Much of this country is a hallowed out husk; the reason is 30+ years of tax cuts/austerity/privatization/worship of the "free market". That's contestable, I recognize, but I've got the better end of the argument. When Trump's message is "things are terrible, I'll make them better" and Clinton's message is "things are already great" it makes it easy to vote for the first guy when you've lost your house to foreclosure or live paycheck to paycheck or wonder if you lose your job what could possibly ever replace it. Sure, repealing the estate tax won't make things better, but that's not the point (sure, some people in that category also are creeped out by transgenders or are otherwise unsympathetic plaintiffs from my standpoint; otherwise they'd all be Democrats)
-Clinton was the wrong candidate for this election. She stinks of the 90s. Stinks of it. Women, understandably so, are eager for their turn, but WokeHill never rang true, despite liberals telling you it did and that if it didn't for you, it was misogyny, even if you were also a woman. Every leaked email, every "I've got a public position and a private position" was just crap you left behind in the previous century. We watched that show; even people who liked it at the time aren't pulling out their old DVDs any more. The only show from the 90s people still want to see is Friends.
-Clinton ran a dumb campaign. Since the convention appearance of Bloomberg and Generals and Leon Panetta the attempt to get GOP votes instead of heading left to get your base to turn out was a terrible idea. The focus on Russia was never going to get out liberal votes; "lets talk about the Cold War" was just part and parcel of that 90s Clinton mindset to always move center. Old guys like me hated that mindset, hated what the Democrats became, and when Gore signaled he was going to continue, even carry that further by choosing a DINO like Joe Lieberman as VP, we voted with our feet in the general. Know what a good campaign is:
Do you have a pre-existing condition? Trump's promising to repeal Obamacare. Go ahead, ask him.
Who do you think will insure you if you lose your job? You want to talk about freedom? Freedom can't mean "I have to take whatever my boss dishes out forever or I go uninsured."
Don't talk to me about how Mitt Romney's voting.
-I'll tell you the one moment I bet Clinton wishes she could do over again. That second debate, right after the Access Hollywood tape - when there was such hot scrutiny on every move Trump made and he brought the WJC accusers. Remember the moment he was behind Clinton, right behind her - it was palpable that he was in her space? She needed to turn around and tell him to back down. She should have spoken sharply. She should have looked him in the eye and actually been the feminist hero her supporters tried to turn her into. You have to know the moment - and whatever the instinct is for a woman politician not to show too much strength needed to give way to understanding there was blood in the water and she should have been the shark. It's a small thing - she still is Hillary Clinton who talked about superpredators trying to reinvent herself, and admittedly this is just my pet theory, but at the time, as someone who used to make a living speaking in front of groups - at that moment I felt it, I felt the absolute right thing to do was bring fire and make him back down, make him cower (which he either would have done or he would have not done which would have been just as good). If it was a prizefight, Trump was in deep trouble in that round, came out swinging and exposed his chin - Clinton, normally a defensive fighter, remained defensive, lost the round and then the fight.
-Sanders wins. Sanders wins easily. It seems self evident that Sanders wins easily.
-And yes, I voted for Clinton.
1.
Sanders campaign statement, per CNN: "We have nothing polite to say right now."— David Freddoso (@freddoso) November 9, 2016
2. Greenwald
THE PARALLELS BETWEEN the U.K.’s shocking approval of the Brexit referendum in June and the U.S.’ even more shocking election of Donald Trump as president last night are overwhelming. Elites (outside of populist right-wing circles) aggressively unified across ideological lines in opposition to both. Supporters of Brexit and Trump were continually maligned by the dominant media narrative (validly or otherwise) as primitive, stupid, racist, xenophobic, and irrational. In each case, journalists who spend all day chatting with one another on Twitter and congregating in exclusive social circles in national capitals — constantly re-affirming their own wisdom in an endless feedback loop — were certain of victory. Afterward, the elites whose entitlement to prevail was crushed devoted their energies to blaming everyone they could find except for themselves, while doubling down on their unbridled contempt for those who defied them, steadfastly refusing to examine what drove their insubordination.
3. Lund - pre-election
This one had everything: nativism, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, misogyny, sexual assault allegations aplenty, and a final annihilation of all sense of shared history and foundational fact. And, on the other side, a compromised candidate whose organization trammeled the most economically promising working-class campaign in generations to deliver what is by now the Democratic Party’s sweetest platform: sheer, uncompromising terror at the alternative.
4. I've Been Making This Point Since the Late 90s.
In facilitating the election of Trump, the Electoral College has effectively disenfranchised racial minorities once again. The Electoral College underrepresented Clinton’s diverse, urban-centered coalition, and overrepresented Trump’s coalition, which is based around rural and suburban white people. Trump’s white nationalist demagoguery was unable to secure a plurality, let alone a majority, in a racially diverse country—but he didn’t need one.
5.
Updated poll numbers— Josh Nelson (@SSS_joshnelson) November 9, 2016
231,556,622 eligible voters
46.9% didn't vote
25.6% voted for Clinton
25.5% voted for Trump
1.7% voted for Johnson
6.
7. Inside NFL Locker Rooms
8. But, what else could the Democrats Have Possibly Done?
Hillary Clinton is a deeply unpopular politician. She won a hotly contested primary victory against a uniquely popular candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders. In her place, could he have beaten Trump?
That Clinton has unusually high unfavorables has been true for decades. Indeed, it has been a steady fact of her political life. She has annually ranked among the least-liked politicians on the national stage since she was the first lady. In recent years, her low favorability rating was matched only by that of her opponent, animated hate Muppet Donald Trump. In contrast, Sanders enjoys very high popularity, ranking as the most popular senator for two years in a row. Nationally, his favorability rating is more than 10 points higher than Clinton’s, and his unfavorability rating is more than 15 points lower. This popularity would have been a real asset on the campaign trail.
9.
10. Zach. Killing it.
And one more...
That's all for this time. I'll be back next time...if there is a next time
Your pal,
Jim
Let's Pick Some College Football Games, Nov 12 2016
Thursday, November 10, 2016
I'm 39-38
ULL +6.5 Geo So win
Penn St -6.5 IU win
AForce -5.5 Col St loss
Wash -8.5 USC loss
WVA +1.5 Tex win
LSU -7 Ark win
4-2
43-40
ULL +6.5 Geo So win
Penn St -6.5 IU win
AForce -5.5 Col St loss
Wash -8.5 USC loss
WVA +1.5 Tex win
LSU -7 Ark win
4-2
43-40
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