Persuasive Article

Donald Sterling's private comments have leaked out to the entire world thanks to his girlfriend. While what he said is horrible, and is the disgusting truth, he did say it in private. This is not the first time that this has happened either (Mel Gibson comes to mind, among others). However the real unfortunate thing is that people only care about Sterling's blatant racist ways now. Sterling has a history of prejudice against minorities, including refusing to rent out apartments to them (something that he was fined over 2.7 million dollars for). The most shocking, and disappointing thing about Sterling is that he was given an award for lifetime body of work by the NAACP. Despite his documented accounts for racism, the NAACP gave him a lifetime award, mainly because he made a large donation to the organization. It is astonishing to see how long Donald Sterling had before people got upset about his ways.

While we can clearly surmise that Donald Sterling is a racist, and in no way should be allowed to own a professional sports team, does that make it okay to force him out based on conversations that he had in private?  Not that it really matters because he is going to have to give up the team, but should personal beliefs have an effect on your job? Apparently the NBA, and the vast majority of people think that it should because the public's response to the recording seems to be unanimously against Sterling. NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, imposed a $2.5 million dollar fine, a lifetime banishment from all NBA events, as well as his intention to force Sterling to sell the Clippers. To Donald Sterling, $2.5 million dollars is nothing, but being forced to sell your professional sports team is significant, especially when you have been the owner for so long. The NBA constitution will allow the league to dispose of Sterling, as long as the vast majority of owners vote in accordance, but it seems that there may be loopholes that Sterling is waiting to use.

While it may seem unfair that words he said in private will cost him an NBA franchise, the words that he used leave the public, and the NBA no choice but to try and remove him. We have all said things that might possibly put your job on the line, but when you own a team in a professional sports league, there is no room for racism. This is especially true when the majority of players in that league are African-American. Also, Doc Rivers, an African-American, is the Head Coach for the Clippers. For these reasons alone, Sterling should be banished. It is sad that it took his conniving mistress to do so, but Donald Sterling's racist views have finally been revealed to the world, and based on what he said, he should be stopped from owning a professional sports team because the, "it was how I was raised" approach simply will not cut it. 

Sports Profile: Tom Brady

After leading the New England Patriots to their third straight AFC championship game, Tom Brady has been the NFL's model of consistent greatness for most of his career. Despite some peoples thought that he is no longer a top 5 QB, he proves them wrong every week, "I'm not a person who defends myself very often. I kind of let my actions speak for me." The most important thing a QB can do in the NFL is win. Winning is everything in the world of the NFL, and it just so happens that he is the winning-est QB in the league since 2001, "I'm a pretty good winner. I'm a terrible loser. And I rub it in pretty good when I win." Brady knows that winning is the only thing that matters, "To me, football is so much about mental toughness, it's digging deep, it's doing whatever you need to do to help a team win and that comes in a lot of shapes  and forms." 

Brady is a three time super bowl champion, but out of five appearances. Even with the best NFL team of all time,(2007) New England could not pull off a win. Tom Brady wants nothing more than to return to the super bowl because he understands how important that is. All the accolades that Brady has acquired over the years really don't matter to him, and that shows that his head, and his actions are in the right space. Brady's relentless winning spirit helped lead a mediocre offense to a very strong record of 12-4. His winning spirit can also be seen in last years comeback games: New Orleans at Foxboro, Cleveland at Foxboro, and especially Denver at Foxboro, when they were down 24-0 in the first have and came back to win the game in overtime. Winning is so important to Brady, "the true competitors though, are the ones that always play to win." Brady's mental toughness, and mindset are the reason that he is not only the best in the league right now, but is the greatest QB in the history of the National Football league.

New England Patriots 2014 Season Preview

Last season, the New England Patriots had reached the AFC championship for the third year straight, and it does not seem like that is going to change next season. With the wide receiving core, headed by Julian Edelman, comes only room to improve next season. Brandon LaFell was a free agent WR for the Carolina Panthers, and will bring good size and and another veteran leader to the team. Also, despite his injury, Rob Gronkowski is still the best Tight End in football, and is healing ahead of schedule. Last years rookie WR's Aaron Dobson, Kembrell Thompkins, and Josh Boyce will all compete for jobs with veterans: Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, and the newly acquired Brandon Lafell. Not to mention the Patriots got a steal in the 7th round of the draft when they selected Jeremy Gallons, a receiver from Michigan.

The Patriots also did a good job in bolstering the offensive line in the the 2014 NFL draft. Newly acquired Center, Bryan Stork will bring depth, and possibly compete to start day one. Tackle Cameron Fleming will also bring depth as veteran tackle Sebastian Vollmer recovers from his torn ACL. Jon Halapio was also picked up for depth at the guard spot. Also the Patriots have truly upgraded the defense, which now bolsters a top-5 secondary with new acquisitions: Darrelle Revis, and Brandon Browner. Browner (6'4, 235lbs) is one of the biggest and most physical corners in the game of football. With new rookies Dominique Easley and Zach Moore, and the return of Vince Wilfork (Achilles), and Jerod Mayo, the new Patriots defense is stacking up to be one of the best in the league. This is especially true when they coped well with the loss of key players last season. DE Chandler Jones is quickly turning into a premier defensive end, and second year player Jamie Collins is likely to step up big in the upcoming season. 

Finally, it would be blasphemous to not mention the best duo in NFL history: Bill Bellichick, and Tom Brady. People say that Brady is on a downhill turn, but that could not be further from the truth. Brady managed to get the Patriots to the AFC Championship game for the third year in a row, with a decimated offensive line, and very little help from his receiving core.The Pats receiving core was less than mediocre last season, but despite this, he had no problem scoring with the football. He also played the majority of the season without the assistance of the best Tight End in football. Gronkowski's value is often underestimated because of his setbacks, but he can cause match up problems getting other receivers open, as well as the fact that he is the best blocking TE in the league. Led by the best coach in football, the New England Patriots look like they will have their best season in years, and they are very likely to hoist the Lombardi trophy for the fourth time since 2001.

The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was one of the very first professional sports leagues created for women in the United States. While it is unfortunate the women don't have as many true professional sports leagues as men do, this does not show any signs of changing in the near future. Basketball, and soccer are the two main women professional sports, while other athletes such as volleyball players, will have to strive for the Olympics to get national recognition. Even these two main sports leagues are nowhere near the popularity of their male counterpart leagues. The only way to keep a league going is through a fan base, and that is why basketball, and soccer have stayed afloat. other sports simply are not popular enough to survive and that's why there is only two main leagues today. The reason for the male-female difference in sports is most likely linked to the fact that on average, men watch sports more than women in the United States. Not that there aren't any female sports fans, its just that there are far more men, and men are more likely to watch men play as oppose to women. Basketball, and soccer are very popular, and that is why they have remained successful throughout the years. Hopefully, female sports leagues can take off in the future, but unfortunately that doesn't seem likely any time soon.

1) As long as she follows the rules, and regulations set in the MMA, the MMA should not treat her any differently.
2)They do have an advantage, but if they have undergone surgery and hormone treatment, the advantage isn't as extreme as people believe, especially if they are small.
3)I think that they should be told before the fight, and it would probably scare me because the stereotype that men are significantly more powerful than women.
4)I think that as long as they follow the rules of the MMA, and tell opponents beforehand, things should continue on as normal.

Matt Whittington

5/1/14

Sports R + W

            The definition of a sport is often a subject of controversy. This is especially true for cheerleading, where “real” sports players say that it is not a real sport. Cheerleaders obviously defend their activity saying that it is, but this is a heated debate.

            To find out if say, cheerleading is indeed a sport we should know what a “sport” is. Google defines a sport as: “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.” Going by this definition the cheerleading performed at other sporting events is not a sport, as they do not compete against anyone. However competitive cheerleading is absolutely a sport, as they compete against other teams.

This shows that as long as it is a physical activity, and also involves competition, it is indeed a sport.

NBA Playoff Picture

The 2014 NBA playoffs are almost upon us, and it is time for everyone to make their predictions. The Miami Heat, led by LeBron James are the obvious favorite for the NBA's bandwagon fans, but their chances may not be quite as good as in previous years. Dwayne Wade's health may be the deciding factor in their bout, as they will desperately need him to advance to the NBA finals. It also does not help that they fell 93-114 to the Washington Wizards, causing them to relinquish the number 1 seed in the east to the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers are my favorite for the east because of the disintegrating health of the Miami Heat. The west is more competitive this year with the Clippers on the rise. Also the Spurs have clinched the number one seed in the west, with Oklahoma City coming in second. I see the Thunder coming out of the west to challenge the Pacers in the 2014 NBA Finals. With a good Finals ending in 7 games, I believe that the Thunder led by Kevin Durant, and Russell Westbrook will beat the Pacer to become the 2014 NBA champions.