Favre and the Hero Complex

Yes, I hate Brett Favre.
And it has nothing to do with how he plays. Nor I am not a fan of a team he beat in a playoff game. It is simply because of the fact that he is constantly protected by the national media so he can retain his hero status.
But how often can I hear the words, “Gunslinger. Maverick. Passing records. Blue Collar. Fun to watch. Iron Man?”
The one that zings me the most is “Hero.”
I like to include “Interception machine. Selfish. Foolish decisions. Pain killers. Nosier than my mother.”
And after last week’s telephone debacle, I like to include “just plain stupid.”
Now I don’t know Brett Favre. I don’t know if he is cool in the locker room. I don’t know if he tells good jokes while we are out having a beer. And I certainly don’t know if he will pick up to the tab after our steak dinner.
Nor do I want to. But sports announcers (I will not call them journalists) like Peter King and Chris Mortensen want to get into a pissing match of who Brett likes better.
“I hang out with Brett sometimes.”
“Well, he texts me before games.”
“Well, he let me be the first guy to smell his jersey after the game.”
And the fans are not better. You are either a Favre guy or you are not.
The hosts of Pardon the Interruption asked once on a segment, “Why do the fans expect so much from Brett this year?”
I thought Tony Kornheiser was going to nail it. Instead he stated that the reason is that Jets fans have suffered for 40 years and they are desperate for a winner. Not bad, but I don’t buy it. The real reason is the hero complex. Announcers have forced Brett Favre down fans’ throats for so long, how can they not expect the unreachable?
Now I love athletes that lead fourth quarter comebacks and strike out batters in the ninth inning. But football players are not heroes. Sorry to those who think so.
Americans love to have a hero. They love to belief that one man or woman is so far beyond their trivial lives that their hero is an inspiration.
I love to see clips of people on Youtube who say, “I really look up to what Angelina Jolie does. She motivates me to adopt and save lives.”
Okay…
One of my favorites was on in the Bret “Hitman” Hart documentary, Wrestling With Shadows. A woman states that because of Bret, whom she’s never met in her life, she was able to go back to school and get her college degree. Okay…..Did she perform a Russian Leg side sweep on her professor? Did she make him tap out? Did she scream in pain?
Or is she one of the true spirits of Americana who believe pro wrestling is real?
So it goes.
Heroes are a marketing tool. Plain and simple. From Rocky Balboa to Hulk Hogan, from Indiana Jones to Superman, marketers love to make Americans feel that there are people out there who can defy the odds, stand up against odds, make sacrifices that put their own safety in jeopardy, and blah blah.
You’ve read the scripts before and seen the movies. I don’t have to tell you how ridiculous it gets.
So the next time some quarterback throws a touchdown after a play-action pass and the announcer bellows, “That was soooo Brett Favre-like,” will you karate chop the pillows on your couch like I do? Or will you say, “Jeez, that was like Brett Favre! Man, is he great. I should go buy his jersey!”
I don’t know why Americans are so hooked on these “heroes.” But I do know what a real hero is. And No. 4, you are not it. But realize I don’t blame you for this. Its easy for the media to paint that picture of you. It’s an easy story to write, package and sell at 11 p.m. on Sportscenter.
As you can tell, I am always anti-hero. I root for the bad guys in movies, and I have a soft spots for failed athletes. I can relate to them. They are real to me. There isn’t a fake script written about them, because they don’t need one. We all know what it’s like to come so close and then fall flat.
For those people that do that in everyday life, pick their heads up and keep coming back for you, then I salute you. You are the true hero. Remember that the next time the “I can do no wrong” athlete is praised for utter nonsense.



*** For those unfamiliar with Brett Favre’s alleged phone call with the Detroit Lions, i'm glad. Don't give him any more press than he deserves.

Every Vote Counts...Well, Not Really

With the third Presidential debate ending this evening, most people who have any intention by now have surely made their mind up.
And surely they realize that their single vote can sway the election. And surely that their vote matters. Well, not quite.
After the fiasco of the 2000 election, many realize that a candidate does not need to win the popular vote in their country to become Commander in Chief. Yet few realize that of whomever wins the popular vote in the state does not necessarily win that state's electoral votes.
Surely, you can't be serious.
I am serious, and don't call me....(never mind)
I apologize to those that thought their vote actually made a difference (and I apologize to those for the Airplane! reference, but I've watched it about a trillion times this week). It is actually the Electoral College that decides who wins the state's electoral votes. So when you go behind the curtain, you are not really voting. Instead, consider yourself being polled your opinion about who you would like to see as president. Your participation is not only ignored, but actually not needed.
for those that do not understand the Electoral College process, don't fret. Most people do not either. It is a complicated and foolish system that exists for no real reason anymore.

 There are actually 538 elected representatives who decided who the President of the United States is. That's about the same amount of people who attended Quiet Riot concerts in the 90s.

 The number of each state's electoral votes are determined by the number of Representatives and Senators it has in Congress. Some argue (I'm still unclear as to how or why they do it with a straight face) that this system makes the votes of the smaller states count more than a popular vote. Interesting. I'll remember that when I run for President. Shall i campaign in California (55 electoral votes) and Texas (34) electoral votes, OR should i travel to Montana or Wyoming? Those three votes each are crucial!

 So what's the big deal, you might be saying. So the electors actually cast the vote for the President, based on who the people vote for in the polls. True...to a point. Only half of the states require electors to vote for whom they originally pledged allegiance to, or they can become a "faithless voter."  Confused yet?

 It gets worse. But I'm not here to bore you with the intricasies of our political structure. I simply call for its banishment. The system was created in 1787 for fear of collusion between an elite few to choose a president, and the inability to adequately count the popular vote. 

Under this system, voter turnout is not important, except in swing states. Theoretically, a candidate has to only win the 11 largest states to win the presidential election. And he (or she) can win in the them at the public's polls by the slimmest of margins, and lose every other state, and still win the Presidency. 

 This logic of voting also excludes an independent party from having any shot of truly winning an election. The last time an independent candidate made any noise in an election was 1968, when George Wallace won some of the Southern states based on his platform of segregation, which is archaic and ridiculous. Sort of like the Electoral College.

 Technology clearly has changed. We can shoot a missile from one side of the planet to the other. We can suck fat out of people's bodies. Thousands get Lasik eye surgery every day. But we are told that our country would not be able to count votes in a timely manner. Sadly, we accept that.

 In the 60s and 70s, a bill was brought light. Several shouted for a reversal of policy. It died in the Senate. 

  Don't think for a second I'm against the act of voting. I think everyone should get out to the polls on Election Day. But more for the symbolism of freedom and honoring the sacrifies have made for you. Others' sacrifices have allowed you to vote. Don't let them down. 

- MAP

and don't tell me that you haven't ever seen Airplane! Surely, you must have seen it.

 OK, you have seen, and stop calling me ...(OK, I'll let it die)

And for you metal heads out there, don't take the Quiet Riot remark to heart. Mental Health was a groundbreaking album (the first Metal album to top the charts!) If you do not own the album, I hope you don't consider yourself a music fan. But when I caught a glimpse of their venue (or lack of) a few years ago in what looked like a VFW, it was comical.

 The death of lead singer Kevin DuBrow in November of 2007 surprisingly hit me hard. He was one of those guys that I always remembered seeing on television during the golden age of MTV. I won't go as far to say "an icon," but certainly a staple of the 80s. I hated to see him go. Rest In Peace, KD.



 

 

 

 

  

Mad As Hell

So after reading my front page intro, hopefully most of you got my reference to 1976 film, "The Network," a movie which always ranks on "critics" top 100 lists. 

 When Peter Finch screams "I'm mad as Hell and I'm not gonna take this anymore," I'm sure so many of us want to get up and follow him. Sadly, we don't.  Whether it is because of a lack of venue or a lack of courage, some of us just choose to sink deeper. The more we take the garbage that his shoveled to us, the wider our moves get forced and the heavier the load is. 

  I'm sick of swallowing. It's time to spit it out. And here is our forum.

  So when Finch, playing the washed up TV anchor Howard Beale, decides to tell the country on-air that all of our lives "are simply bullshit," we all can relate. Who can't relate the frustration of a man who is disgusted by the problems around him but is not afraid to admit that he has no idea how to solve them.

 If you've never seen the tirade that earned him the Best Lead Actor award, light up a cigarette and enjoy. Mad As Hell

 And after his fiery outbursts prevented a billion dollar merger, the president of the company lectures Beale on how America really works. Ned Beatty, as the chairman of the board, tells Beale that he has "...meddled with the primal forces of nature, and I won't have it!"

 In this diatribe, we found out about the elite view us individuals - non-existent and unimportant. As replaceable as factory parts on an assembly line. Individuals no longer exist. We are unimportant. All that matters is that we play by the system and their rules. 

 But for who's benefit? Well, there is a way that you can let the 'powers that be' know that you are still alive and far from dead. You can let them hear your voice. Realize that they are here to you, not the other way around. You are the consumer, and you control where you spend your money - and at anytime if we are not satisfied with their standards, we can walk away. 

 Americans are fortunate. We are not allowed options, we are entitled to them. Silence is the language of cowards. Let all those chairman of the boards who take $400,000 massage getaways know that we will no longer stand for it. Not on our watch. We've seen what they can do while in control of America. It's time to make them accountable.

  There is no need to feel bullied. They can't do anything to you. For it is you who can hurt them where it counts - in their deep pockets. 

  We should not appreciate our individuality, we should dam well demand it.

  Uncertain about how Corporate America feels about you? Watch Beatty's scene. The Death Of the Individual. 

  Paddy Chayefsky could not have written his script any without any more ounces of truth to it. There's no room left. It is sadly overflowing with reality. I'm sure he never had a clue how on the money this story was, more now so than ever.

 Over thirty years later and it seems that we haven't learned a dam thing. 

 - MAP