Ernis

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Date	Title	Body
1 day 4 hours ago	Yessir. Al laid out his	Yessir. Al laid out his philosophy quite nicely, and frankly that part of the interview is some of the meatiest and honest sports commentary I've seen. Al really put himself out there for this interview, even revealing some wrinkles in his decision-making; specifically I'm thinking of the bit in Part 1 where he talked about the tremendous anxiety he used to feel leading up to games. How a man deals with this --and it seems Al has done so admirably-- is a big part of the game, and may have some influence on his management of "turns." But now we're getting speculative.... Anyway, football --any sport really, but especially football-- is a complex system. As much as I enjoy the quantitative analyses featured on this blog and elsewhere, the temptation --really a cognitive imperfection in our "design"-- tends toward a linear concept of causality. One of many aspects of the Self to be overcome.
1 day 4 hours ago	Let me help you with that	"Best thing I've ever read[.]"
1 day 4 hours ago	Like a boss	Borges layin' down the law. Love it. REAL RECOGNIZE REAL
2 days 6 hours ago	Clearly, their neurons fire	Clearly, their neurons fire at a slower rate, resulting in higher speeds being unsafe for Ohio natives. Sad that the rest of us have to sink to their level whilst driving through their state -- which is unpleasant enough on its own. On the other hand, perhaps the state knows that lowering speeds is the only way to get people to stay in Ohio a bit longer.
4 days 2 hours ago	Perhaps he meant Bronn. That	Perhaps he meant Bronn. That would be cool
1 week 2 days ago	Meat Chicken	That has to be the lamest insult-pseudonym I've ever seen for anything. Yes, chickens are made of meat. Furthermore, chicken meat is delicious. How is this not compliment?
1 week 3 days ago	Disappointment	I remember a few years ago, ESPN was doing a fluff bit before a game between M and Ohio, and had some OSU slappy interviewing El Presidente. Talking about the game and what-not. At one point the slappy tried to get El Pres to put on a Ohio hat and that s^$*# got SHOT DOWN! I gave the POTUS some credit for his display of good taste. This is disappointing
1 week 6 days ago	Octopi	The internet has failed to provide footage of an octopus eating a duck... but here is a close proxy: Octopus Eats Seagull I hope you enjoy this experience as much as the octopus did.   GO WINGS WOOOO
2 weeks 1 day ago	Not to mention	The overzealous self-flagellation committed by the school president, only to have further sanctions imposed. If we learn one thing from this, it's that cooperation with the NCAA is no good. Whatever a school self-imposes, they will pile even more on. Fight tooth and nail ala OSU tatgate, get a slap on the wrist. Try to anticipate the level of severity they are expecting and meet it, it's only going to get worse.
2 weeks 1 day ago	$$$	In my reckoning, the real travesty is not in what athletes receive from the schools, but in the restriction of them to profit from their own likeness and ability. Here's an idea: Keep the scholarship/stipend amounts about the same, but throw in the option for students to receive the amount in cash. Then give them a share of video game, tv, jersey, and merchandise revenue, as well as market their own products, promotions, etc. This way players will be able to make money based on their "market value" without forcing the school to justify why they paid -hypothetically- Trey Burke more than Blake McLimans-- a tough conversation to have for institutions that bandy about their pious and egalitarian values.
2 weeks 2 days ago	Cartoon Character	He would be called "Blackface McDingleberry"
2 weeks 3 days ago	In the spirit of disastrous marriages...	Not gonna lie, every time I see Jeyne Westerling I think of Maureen Ponderosa of "Always Sunny"   No real point in sharing this .... other than to make the rest of you suffer this same cursed vision as I!!!  /GRRM'd
2 weeks 4 days ago	Meh	Friedrich Nietzsche: "Never trust a thought that did not come by walking. The muscles must be in celebration with the mind." I think Barwis might agree. I think Barwis and Nietzsche might also agree with my own assessment of your all-too-common sentiment: The ease with which one is distracted is more an inidication of a bad listener than a bad speaker.
3 weeks 2 days ago	Fresh	So, I take it Massengill is going to be the main sponsor?
3 weeks 4 days ago	Hyperbole	You're spot-on. GA is not a bad thing at all, unless you plan on showing up late and want to get top-notch seats despite that. Many are wailing and gnashing their teeth, saying that they will have to arrive 3-6 hours early. Really? What friggin planet are they on? Emotionally-fueled hyperbole -- a classic tactic of petulant children since the dawn of time.
3 weeks 4 days ago	Dx	When you see consistently irrational decisions (e.g. Lions draft picks) and a culture of people covering their asses, punting decisions, etc. that is a classic symptom of micromanagement. Seems to fit the bill from my angle.
3 weeks 4 days ago	Good point, but I disagree	As a team, the Lions would certainly afford him greater opportunity for success than Jacksonville. Also, I'm not sure the pressures would be greater in MI than there. Yes, M fans could have raised expectations somewhat, but I think most of us are pretty grounded regarding his ceiling in the pros. Local media will hype him wherever he goes, so that's a wash. My big concern actually is all the social pressures he'll face going home. When someone from an underprivileged area hits it big, there are all sorts of hangers-on, parasites, or even just bitter old friends who will try to drag him down. Being so close to home will only make it easier for these leeches to get access to him. Denard is a nice enough guy, as well, that he may find himself caught up in that garbage out of the best intentions. Here's to hoping he keeps his wits about him and avoids the pitfalls.
3 weeks 5 days ago	Interesting angle	I don't doubt the potential. Considering the students' ability to pack themselves into the lower rows like sardines, this could work even if they underestimate attendance on occasion. There would be a safety concern, as well as damage to the bleachers. In 2005 during the OSU game, on the last two enemy possessions, my group was screaming and jumping so vehemently that the bleachers collapsed under our feet. Not sure if they have been made stronger since, or what. Also, fire code concern, etc. You may be on to something though. In general, i am with you that the logistics of filling and emptying the stadium and grounds of their patrons is a major issue that needs to be fixed.
3 weeks 5 days ago	Probably true	But I'm not sure shrinking the student section will significantly reduce the ratio of late arrivals, or even no shows. There will still be people whose parents buy them season tix, or have money to burn on season tix to only attend a few games, or other irrational purchase decisions. As the university increasingly courts the more wealthy and privileged prospective students, this aloofness will likely continue. No doubt: as with the validation stickers, this price increase and possible reduction in student seats is a petty cash grab.
3 weeks 5 days ago	Preference	GA > Assigned seats When going to see Bruce Springsteen do you want to sit in an assigned seat or get GA tickets and stand where you like -- proximity to the stage/field and size of group are much more flexible. There is nothing second class about it-- it's better.
3 weeks 5 days ago	Demand	I expect GA tickets will be more in demand than student tickets of yore, from a non-student perspective. Serious fans have an opportunity to get great seats in the most fun sections. If Brandon is serious about attendance, he definitely has to abandon the validation stickers, or at least make them easier to get (on game day for example) to leverage this demand increase.
3 weeks 5 days ago	Agreed that at times we're	Agreed that at times we're beating a dead horse but the students have really been slipping up. Attendance issues are well documented; also remember that they have been screwing up the wave for years. Something needs to light the fire under their asses.
3 weeks 6 days ago	Non sequitur	I'm a man! I'm forty!
3 weeks 6 days ago	Wooooo	friends getting married! Going up north! Also i had homemade chicken nuggets for lunch. Chopped up a breast, marinated in soy sauce and savory, pan fried in butter, and bathed in a mix of horsey sauce, buffalo sauce, and ground red pepper before pulling out of the pan- so it would bind with the chicken chunks. Mmmmmm
3 weeks 6 days ago	Vagina.	Yes, they don't like hearing it and find it difficult to say whereas without batting an eye an MGoBlogger will refer to his dick or his rod or his Johnson.
4 weeks 1 hour ago	Sad but true	The email itself is a caricature of typical interactions within a dysfunctional group. But the greater implication is that she is a completely ineffective leader. Why has she resorted to damage control? Has she lost touch with her sisters? Do her events suck? Is this email exemplary of a typical interaction with her? I don't think this email is evil... pretty funny in fact... but it is a textbook example of ineffective communication from an ineffective person, who has achieved their position through self-serving behavior. OK a bit of an inductive leap with that last one, but I'm willing to bet on it... the pattern is common and pretty obvious
4 weeks 2 hours ago	OMFG	Don't you understand that when you say she's a babe, you are perpetuating the stereotype about lackluster Michigan women and the diminished standards of Michigan males? ONLY UGLY PEOPLE WILL WANT TO HANG OUT WITH US
4 weeks 2 hours ago	No problem	Just learn the Lithuanian language and it won't happen again It's easy. Once you master all eight grammatical cases you're good to go
4 weeks 5 hours ago	Booing Santa	Must be from Philadelphia
4 weeks 1 day ago	Empty Spaces	I can foresee this mitigating the empty spaces somewhat. Not a total fix, but consider... I prefer student tix, even as an alumnus i seek them out. Getting the validation sticker (a rotten scam, to be sure) is incredibly inconvenient since you can't get them day-of, but well worth it IMO. Howeva, i have often been deterred because finding enough tix in a good section can be difficult, and end up sitting with gray hairs to have a better angle on the field. GA fixes this issue. I foresee only getting student tix in the future, as long as this policy holds, because the quality of seat is a function of my own actions. I imagine there are other consumers with similar priorities as mine. Long story short: i think consumer demand for student tix will increase, allowing disinterested students to unload their tix with greater ease to people like me who JUST CAN'T LET GO Thoughts?

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