Blog finally unlocked!

Finally, after 21 days my blog finally got unlocked after being mistaken by Blogger for a spam blog.  Spam Blogs or Splogs are a real problem scraping content of pages like mine and then putting Google Adwords on them to make money.

Anyways, I commend Blogger for going after them.  But their methods may be a little bit faulty.  In any case this blog was a casualty of this war against spam.

My new site is morristsai.com a non Blogger hosted site.  Hope to see you over there!

New Air Jordans

From TMZ.com: The New Air Jordan -- No, Really It's Green

And it's really, really ugly.  It's the unholy offspring of a sweater and a gym shoe.

More info from SI.com: Nike set to release 23rd Air Jordan

Ron Paul= Snakes on a Plane?

LATimes.com: Ron Paul, loser again

New Hampshire was a huge blow to the Ron Paul campaign. A small state with a large group of independent voters, Ron Paul supporters were hoping to prove the polls wrong and have a strong showing in the state. But, the results are in and another 5th place finish with single digit support. About what the polls had predicted.

Ron Paul looks like a non-factor in this race, even with the amount of money that he has raised so far. The internet excitement and fundraising so far has not translated into votes at the polls. Ron Paul's rabid supporters may be a double edged sword for him- they lift him beyond from being a totally obscure candidate like Kucinich or Hunter, but keep him pressed down in the high single digits as voters avoid him as a creation of the internet. Can you take a candidate seriously with supporters who scribble his name in chalk all over sidewalks? Spamming online surveys just doesn't lend credibility to a candidate.

I like the idea of a Ron Paul running for President. It brings new ideas and topics that are seldom discussed in the political arena. But, I'm afraid that the general public is not interested or sophisticated enough to study the issues carefully and come to their own decision when voting. Otherwise, commercials and 30 second sound bites wouldn't be necessary or even work. In an environment like this, a candidate like Ron Paul will always remain on the fringe.

Is HD-DVD Dead?

From TimesOnline: Blu-Ray takes inside edge in war with HD-DVD

Paramount yesterday emerged as the latest major Hollywood studio poised to switch allegiances.

Despite the huge armies of technology companies ranged against each other in the format showdown, Paramount has turned out to be a pivotal figure. Its decision in August to give exclusive backing to HD-DVD was seen as a potentially devastating blow to the prospects of Blu-Ray, and to the strategy of Sony’s president, Sir Howard Stringer.

Finally! It seems like this is the final nail in the coffin for HD-DVD. I really didn't care who won, just that someone won. Now, Blu-Ray will get critical mass and we'll start seeing prices for players start to drop.

EDIT- From Wired.com: Paramount Denies Rumors It's Switching to Blu-ray

Do you believe athletes in regards to drug use?

From CNNSI.com: Hingis banned for two years
From ESPN.com: We're not buying it, Roger

Do you even believe an athlete any more when they deny using a performance enhancing or recreational drug?

It's the same pattern when an athlete is linked to drug use.
1. Deny
2. Attack the messenger or the drug test
3. Claim that it was unknowingly used, someone else put it into their system
4. Claim that they thought it was something benign like B12
5. If they get caught with overwhelming evidence, admit the truth

If you believe what the athletes say, no one has ever used a drug.

Roger Clemens says that we haven't given him the benefit of doubt. But, we've given him a pass for all these years even though at 46 he's still throwing the ball 90+ miles an hour. How many guys can do that?

Lance Armstrong's story is an amazing one for what he has accomplished and what he's gone through, but have we given him a pass in not examining his performance more? To be clear, Lance Armstrong has never failed a drug test, but neither did Marion Jones.

Logic would say that if Lance Armstrong won the 7 Tour de France races cleanly then it has to rank as one of the greatest accomplishments ever since his victories came over so many others who were cheating.

This is a sad affair in sports where we are forced to question every achievement and accomplishment not knowing whether the athletes are clean or not.