The View From Wisconsin
Just a random set of rants from a Sports Fan from Wisconsin.
Friday, December 28, 2012
Random Year End Ranting
It's not like this was a horrible year, but there were a lot moments that I'd really like to just scream about. As in, what in the WORLD were you thinking???
Let's go backwards.
Let's go backwards.
- Obviously, the one thing that has made me feel like my heart has been ripped out for the last three and a half months has been the NHL lockout. I'm still rather adamant that the NHL has never actually considered "bargaining" with the PA (of course, that might be colored by one of the other topics on this list). The most recent offer is, in my not so humble opinion, a PR move that intends to make it look like the league is trying to negotiate - where the truth is that they're just moving the cards around on the table, three card monte style. I'm convinced that I'll get a raise before the NHL plays another game.
- Oh, yeah, that raise thing - in case you didn't hear, the GOP is back and in control of the Wisconsin State Legislature. I look forward into 2013 with trepidation, as I openly wonder what they're going to do to make my continued employment in service to the people of the state of Wisconsin more difficult. (A side note: I usually refer to the current state governor as "my boss", but I realized that I really don't work for the governor. I work for the people of the state of Wisconsin; the governor is just the current CEO assigned the position by stockholders. It's not my fault, entirely, that the current CEO is an idiot.)
- Speaking of which - how is it that a state that sent someone like Tammy Baldwin to Washington to represent the state in the US Senate manage to give the GOP control of the legislature - and basically ensure that Mr. Walker remains in office for his entire four year term (and, at the rate the Dems are going, longer than that)?
- That lawsuit thing is still hanging over the state in regards to Act 10. The various unions essentially won on a lot of things - except mandatory dues withdrawal. I saw that one coming from a long ways off, but I'm still frustrated as to why WSEU has seemingly sat around and done nothing to try to get back into the business of representing state employees under the new rules. I have seen opinions on what should be bargained for in the public sector (great article here on a Federal union member's POV on the state's labor issues), and I agree that money is something that is essentially out of our control. But work conditions, management relations, non-monetary benefits? We need to talk, Scotty. Whether you like it or not.
- Should the Seattle Seahawks somehow vault ahead of the Packers in the playoff seeding - which would only happen if the Packers lose, Seattle wins and the 49ers lose - you would hear a howl across the state of Wisconsin that hasn't been heard since that little row that happened last year in the Supreme Court chambers. The NFL wrongly states that the Packers have four losses on the year and Seattle has 10 wins. If it would mean that the Seahawks would end up hosting a playoff game - against the Green Bay Packers - I'm pretty sure the entire state of Wisconsin would want to lynch Roger Goodell.
- Speaking of Seattle - the guys who do UA draws on pro athletes for mandated random drug testing have really taken a beating this year. First, it was Brewers LF and reigning NL MVP Ryan Braun; now it's the Seahawks DB. You get this vision of the same cops who did the sample-taking and crime scene analysis at the Simpson murder investigation.
- I won't pile on about the whole Ryan Suter/Zach Parise contract thing, as I suspect Mr. Tightwad Johnson-in-law will do everything in his power to keep from actually having to pay those two the contracts that he signed, but I honestly suspect Suter never had any intention at all to re-sign with Nashville. That may very well have affected his play down the stretch - which is somewhat sad, as that would be even worse than anything the Black Sox could have pulled off 100 years ago.
- Scandals in sports - I remember vividly where I was when the Freeh report was released. Hearing all the stuff that was mentioned and realizing this was Penn State we were talking about, it just hit me hard. Now, I don't mind the free berth into the Big Ten title game, but to think that some sicko was using the PSU facilities to commit child sex abuse makes me wanna wretch (and that's more than just because of where I work).
Copyright © 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, Joseph Houk. All rights reserved.
