All Star

Hello children,

After another disappointing basketball weekend, I still contend that the basketball all star game is far more exciting and interesting than any of the other sports all star games. Football's all star game, played after the season's end, also known as the Pro Bowl is an afterthought of the football season, in large part because it comes after the sport has achieved its climax. More importantly, football, which requires a lot more team coordination (with intricate offensive and defensive tactics,) uniting a team with one week of practice is barely serviceable. Despite having great players, and nice throws, catches, runs, and hits, we will not see high quality football. In the basketball all star game, we tend to see great offensive performances with occasional bouts of defense even while there is little fluidity. Ray Allen can still hit a lot of three pointers. LeBron James can still demonstrate complete dominance over all other players, and Chris Paul and Dwight Howard can do just about everything they do in ordinary games despite not having practiced with their teams.

Baseball is another all star game where people can step into any spot in the lineup and still do there thing, but the combination of meaninglessness and lack of basketball caliber highlights make it less enticing than the basketball all star game. With low score tallies, maybe 10 runs, the game is wanting of any serious interest or intrigue. Some people like the hockey North America vs. the World format, but not me. This type of game is irrelevant, except in international competition. I'm not really cheering for the U.S. in a U.S. vs. the world format, unless, they were a real team. But, all star games are the opposite of real teams, but rather a collection of individuals who did not practice together or play together, and are almost exclusively noted for their individual efforts, rather than team sensibilities. The all star game is not international competition, but rather a formulaic individual highlight reel. Of all the sports, basketball, with frequent scoring offenses, and magnificent athleticism, is the ideal for basketball, which is why I always consider it the best, even if it is as meaningless as all the rest.

While I felt the game was a little emptier without Vince Carter and McGrady's two highlight reel dunks each, or Shaq's jovial temperament, it was still the perennial mild disappointment it usually is. The dunk competition itself was not without excitement. The blowing out the birthday cake dunk was excellent, as was the Howard non-dunk superman dunk where he threw the ball down from 5 feet away from the rim. He had some other nice slams too, but overall, the spectacle is not satisfying with so much down time. Though there was obvious creativity with the dunks, the creativity is no longer based on sheer athletic ability like the dunks used to be, which makes the dunks less impressive than the Jordan, Wilkins, Carter jams. The ability and the showmanship are still excellent, but now my interest is rapidly waning. The rest of the All Star Weekend doesn't get much hype, but I always find it interesting how someone like Jason Kapono can hit 20 of 25 3 pointers in 1 minute from all around the three-point line. It's pretty impressive.

Speaking of stars like Jason Kapono, I rewatched Terminator 2 and mega-star Arnold Schwarzenegger reanimate his terminator character, well... a happy go lucky version of his earlier Terminator character. The whole movie from CGI to the intense Hamilton performance was well crafted. It was an enjoyable, provocative movie about what humanity is, whether there is a fate, and the fascinating line between lunacy and brilliance, between madness and intensity, between craziness and supreme organization... you get it. The philosophy behind the movie makes up for where the science lacks. But, then what... What happens after Terminator 2?

Terminator 3 or Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles? Terminator 3 is a movie that is unimpressive in its graphics, mostly for its acting (highlighted by a very unimpressive female terminator), but had incredibly satisfying ending as judgment day occurs. John Connor, the person who was to lead humanity against the machines, was set aside for termination by the machines before he was born, which led to his mother's madness, which led to his preparation. Then, in Terminator 3, the plot is concluded because he had all the preparation required, and now he merely needed the opportunity to lead. At the end of Terminator 3, Connor is taken by the Terminator to a bunker in order to survive Judgment Day, and that bunker "happens to be" the hub of the remaining communication systems. So, this guy with all the preparation is able to commence leading humanity's revival.

The Sarah Connor Chronicles is the opposite of Terminator 3, because it is great in every way that Terminator 3 was bad and bad in the 1 aspect in which the movie was very good. The show is very entertaining with a great realistic, downright frightening terminator good guy (girl). Not only is it entertaining, but the characters are engaging and the show is beautifully crafted. The one pitfall is that the whole premise of the movies is slowly/quickly collapsing. John Connor in the first movie sends Kyle Reese back in time, in part to protect his mother from a terminator, and in part to sire John Connor. Now, that judgment day is delayed (which started in Terminator 2, but is substantially delayed in the TV show,) the timeline is being destroyed. If the machines don't take over for an extra 15 years, then Kyle Reese is much older and other things must have changed in the interim, but what do I know, maybe they didn't change. But, in the latest episode, the very eerie line, "sometimes they go bad" was as creepy as a TV show can get. In the meanwhile, the show is as entertaining as an action movie with some of the thrill of watching a Terminator movie. Of course, there is no Schwarzenegger, but I guess the Terminator series had enough of him and California wants more of him.

But, the political outlook appears increasingly clear as we have two genuinely different options in McCain and Obama. It might not be as civil as I originally anticipated because McCain and Obama apparently had two major spats damaging their relationship in the senate, including one involving immigration, but at least there would be no Clintons or Bushes involved this time. Yet, Obama's February charge continues and it appears as if he will continue into the March 4, Texas/Ohio primaries on a roll. And, I guess, that's how it should be, with Ohio (swing state) and the Republic of Texas deciding the fate of the democratic party. Conventional wisdom seems to indicate that if Obama wins one or the other state, he'll have locked up enough momentum and delegates to force an Obama win on the superdelegates. But, as I've said before, I imagine a knockout is necessary to beat back the Clintons. They are fighting tooth and nail and even accusing Obama of plagiarizing a friend of his. Even if he did it, don't they recycle all of their speeches? Don't they always put two of the same words together in a slightly different order anyway? For politics, how big of a deal is it if two people have the same message? Isn't that even the idea? But, regardless of the size of this stupid scandal, it's clear that the Clintons are going to go nuclear to ensure her victory. So, I stress again the importance of Obama's sweep of those two states and the appearance of a knockout.

Not that he won't do it; in fact, the polls are swinging in his favor. But the polls are deceptive, and they don't account for the hidden anti-Obama vote. So, as in Lost and the Terminator, time will tell. But, as far as I'm concerned there are only two real all stars in this presidential race, and one has his party's nomination all but wrapped up, and the other must defeat a frightening female machine before he could rise to his proper prominence. I had 100 Terminator related quips at the ready, but I used the least offensive one I could find. Jokes suffer when I hold back.

Lesson:

Don't hold back,
ME