Time for a Change

Most things that I bother to post here are merely for my own amusement, or in some cases, just for the purposes of expressing some random thought on my mind. And while I don’t blog very often, I still consider this site a safe space to use for those very reasons. Whenever the urge to write strikes, the blog is here.

Keeping that in mind, this particular post may seem a bit silly, random, and out of place…but here it is anyway.

Ever since my introduction to the blogosphere, I’ve been known as Shooter-B. Why I picked that particular moniker is beyond me. At the time, I was just getting into online poker…and was mainly looking for a name that fit. To set the right attitude, I imagined a gambler in the old west…and somehow Shooter-B was born. Even then I realized I could have easily thought of something better. Bully the Kid. Riot Earp. General Cusser. Dusty Rhodes. But instead, I chose Shooter.

The name didn’t really make a whole lot of sense in the blogosphere, but I kept in anyway. From there, it only made sense that I refer to my blog as “Straight Shooting”. Unoriginal as the title may be.

So I kept blogging, never giving the name or title a second thought. Or at least not until last week, when I saw this:

There it was, a picture of a Rush Limbaugh billboard from Tucson…featuring the words “Straight Shooter” and a bunch of bullet holes. Yikes! I cringe at the thought of being associated with Rush Limbaugh in any way, shape, or form.

And not only that, but it made me realize that for years…I have casually used a reference to gun violence in my blog title and name. Though I’ve never purposely used any violent rhetoric, it made me stop and think about how such references are completely engrained into our culture. It may sound silly, but it really caught me off guard.

Ever since the terrible shooting tragedy in Tucson, I’ve been trying to think of a way to express my thoughts…but was unable to make any sense of them. Sure, there was the usual distracting noise of the shameless media blame game. But there were others that delivered a simple message that hit home. We all need to be more responsible for our behavior, and also our words.

There were several politicians and pundits that became very defensive about that message (see Sarah Palin). But the message wasn’t about playing the blame game, it was about taking the opportunity for much-needed self-reflection…which inevitably reveals that we can all be better. We are better than this!

There is a vast majority of reasonable people in this country who understand that the tragedy in Tucson can’t merely be blamed on political rhetoric. And like me, these people also understand the political climate in this nation is a complete mess than needs to be improved. For years, mainstream media has capitalized on selling extremes in the interest of ratings or profit.

Even before this incident, I’ve often wondered why our nation so easily gravitates towards extremism. All the dehumanizing, fear-mongering, fact-twisting hate speech we hear every day leaves us more and more polarized. It isn’t necessary, and it impedes the progress of our society.

I don’t have any illusions that a new blog title will make much of a difference, but nevertheless…I’ve decided that it is time for a change. For my own reasons, it is just my way of saying that I hope we can all engage in a little self-reflection…in the interest of improving the world we live in.

Besides, my momma didn’t name me Shooter anyway. And I imagine that the 3 readers I have can adjust to the change. Call me what you will, just don’t call me late for dinner.

p.s. - Though I’ll try not to make a habit of it, I may end up changing the blog name again if I ever think of anything better or get bored with this one. Serious & sarcastic suggestions are always welcome.

Wildcard Weekend - Quick Picks

Last season, I did a test-run against Vegas odds on NFL picks. Luckily, I decided to do so without wagering real money...as the results were not pretty. I finished well under the 50% break-even barrier, despite putting a fair amount of research and analysis into the cause.

So this year I took the opposite approach, basically going to the quick-click-pick technique. Again I decided not to put down any real money. Only this time, I finished 13 games over the break-even point (about 53%). Not exactly cash city, but at least I can say that I would have beat Vegas. Kinda.

And I’d venture to say that would probably even beat the “experts” on the Fox pre-game show…who don’t usually fare too well on their picks even without using Vegas odds. That’s right, Bradshaw…I’m calling you out.

So keeping with the trend, I’ll continue the quick picks for the playoffs. Wildcard weekend, here we go:

New Orleans (-10.5) @ Seattle

The Seahawks lost their way into the playoffs, dropping 3 of their last 4 before taking out St. Louis in the final week. Seattle hasn’t seen a loser like this since Shawn Kemp was in a Sonics uniform.

My pick: New Orleans to cover the spread, and then some

New York Jets @ Indianapolis (-2.5)

I’ve been brainwashed to think you can’t pick against Peyton Manning on home turf, so I’ll just go with that. Plus, I’m just tired of the season-long hype over the Jets.

My pick: Colts

Baltimore (-3) @ Kansas City

Nobody beats Charlie Weis after a home-cooked meal. Nuff said.

My pick: Chiefs in a close one

Green Bay @ Philadelphia (-2.5)

I hope I’m wrong about this one, but I think the Eagles are in trouble here. Just like last year, Philly had a chance to wrap up a first-round bye…but couldn’t get it done. The Eagles have had plenty of problems in the secondary as of late, and it won’t get any easier with Aaron Rodgers coming to town.

My pick: Green Bay wins, Philly fans boo

And that brings me to my final point, the Eagles are who we thought they were (cue Dennis Green rant).

The perception around the league is that Michael Vick has single-handedly revamped the Eagles, and the controversial move to ship McNabb out of town was sheer Andy Reid genius. Granted, Vick has rejuvenated his career (and life) with an incredible season…while Donovan pretty much stunk up with the Skins. Point taken.

But the reality is that the Eagles were 11-5 last year with McNabb, and 10-6 this year with Vick. As they say, one player doesn’t make a team…especially in football.

Not that stats tell the whole story, but here is something worth noting:

Donovan McNabb (2009-10): 14 games, 3553 passing yards, 22 TD’s, QB rating of 92.9

Mike Vick (2010-11): 12 games, 3018 passing yards, 21 TD’s, QB rating of 100.2

Obviously that doesn’t factor in Vick’s running ability, but the end results are strikingly similar. Surround a capable quarterback with top-tier talent, and you get positive results. Send a capable quarterback to Washington, and you get a Mike Shanahan shit-sandwich.

There is no question that Mike Vick has been a great fit in Philly, though as an Eagles’ fan and Vickweed critic…that’s tough for me to admit. All year long I’ve watched quietly as Vick took over the team…happy to watch them win, but unable to root for him 100%. He’s improved as a passer, a player, and a person. Good for him, but that still doesn’t make him my hero.

And as dangerous as the Eagles are, they are still somewhat flawed. They can strike quick on offense, but struggle to sustain long drives and control the clock. Their defense is even more problematic, with an underwhelming group of linebackers and an underachieving secondary. And all things considered, that leaves them in the roughly the same place they were a year ago.

But then again, I’ve been wrong before. Quite often, actually. We’ll see how wildcard weekend goes…

Only in the Southwest - Nipple Ripper Edition

Yeye cat fight!

As a disclaimer, this isn’t exactly the sexy Hollywood kind of cat fight I’m talking about. Instead of bikini-clad college co-eds going at it in a pool of peanut butter…this story is more like tube-top in a truck-stop hard core reality. Be warned…

And here it is, a headline simply too intriguing to ignore:


Woman rips off daughter-in-law’s nipple in drunken brawl

I know there is a lot of family-induced stress around the holidays, but what the fuck?

“When the victim began arguing with her 44-year-old mother-in-law, the older woman allegedly "grabbed (the victim's) right breast and began to squeeze and pull on her nipple."”

Did I mention this wasn’t really going to be the sexy-kind of catfight?

“…she felt fluid on her breast and realized there was blood on her shirt. When she untucked her tank top, her nipple fell on the floor, she told police.”

Oh look, there’s my nipple. I was wondering where that went.

Excuse me! How in the hell can you not even realize that your nipple has been ripped off? I guess “alcohol” would be the only acceptable answer there. Nothing like a Natty Light on a cold winter night…

“The victim put the nipple in a bag and, after several hours, decided she should go to the emergency room.”

I guess after several hours, she finally realized that super glue or a staple gun probably wasn’t the way to go. Good thinking. Who says excessive drinking impairs judgment?

So we’ll see how the police investigation turns out, though I can’t imagine a lot of officers are volunteering for that assignment. Hope the sketch-artist doesn’t have a sensitive stomach.

Zip that sweater up tight, the Nip Ripper may be out there tonight.

Shootin' the Bull

And here it is, your “America First” political quote of the week. Brought to you by Teapublican Senator Mitch McConnell:

“The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”

Interesting. I wonder what the rest of that priority list looks like. Do you think “fixing the economy” was in there somewhere? Or since that would actually help Obama’s chances for reelection, I guess it probably didn’t make the cut.

On the other hand, it is refreshing to hear a politician be honest for once.

The runner-up quote of the week comes to you from President Barack Obama himself:

“I couldn’t get the kind of cooperation from Republicans that I had hoped for…”

Wow, imagine that!

Who else is pumped for progress?