The world lost two of its truly brilliant pupils today. Gone are the great
and gifted Ingmar Bergman, one of the most influential filmmakers
of all-time and the venerable Bill Walsh, arguably the most
prolific coach of the modern era.

We should, each and every one of us, strive to bring to our
lives and our craft, the endless pursuit of excellence and perfection
that defined both of these men. They enter pantheons that
most of us could only pray to be part of.

'Persona' is one of my favorite films off all time and I've been
a rabid 49er's fan nearly twenty-five years.

This one will sting for awhile.

Raise a glass when you can.

JC

It's possible, if Vick has to deal with pressure like this all year...he'll
never stay in the pocket.

That's assuming he ever gets out of the courtroom.

This JPEG from none of than Chris (Beanie) Holley. This is what he does all day.
Send me sh*t like this that normally I just laugh about privately. Given our subject
the other day, I felt compelled to share.

Enjoy,

JC

Guys:

As I am want to do, I now stray from the cinematic and into the news topical:

Michael Vick.

Now I'm a big football fan. I'm a giant sports fan in general but
since I remember watching Monday Night Football as a wee lad of five, that
sport occupies specific emotional real estate for me. It's very close to my heart.
So when news broke last week that Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick was
involved in an illegal dog-fighting racket and had what amounted to a mass
grave dump in his backyard, I was a both flumoxed and f*cking heartbroken.

What?

You're making 110 million dollars on a multi-year contract and THIS is how you
spend that loot? THIS is what gets you off?

I'm hoping that there will be some sweeping revelatory, yet-to-be-revealed
piece of evidence that exonerates him completely but the documentation against
him is at the point of being measured in tonnage. If it's true and he winds up being
convicted by a court of law, then he should be booted out of the game, like his ass was
coming off of Adam Vinatieri's right foot. An immediate ban. F*ck off. See you
as a shamed, Atlantic City Casino greeter in the not-too-distant future. But if
by some strange twist, he's found innocent, then canine crusaders across the
world owe this guy a massive mea culpa.

I just don't see the latter happening. The case against him seems too damning and far
reaching. They haven't even finished the filing yet, so that tells you the scope and
strength of what the prosecution is about to bring to bear.

The thing that pisses me off in this whole affair though, is watching dog-lovers
(and I'm not saying it's wrong) rush in with a hue and cry that they wouldn't
sound for most human beings. That's my biggest problem with our society. We seem
to care more for our four-legged friends (and I love dogs, don't get me wrong) than
we do for our bipedal brothers and sisters. I would just be nice to make that a bit
more equitable. I'm not excusing ANYTHING that the pieces of s*it involved in the
Michael Vick affair perpetrated. They should suffer the exact same fates as the ones
they doled out to those dogs.

I'd just like to see that same tireless, fearless devotion and advocacy on a more human
level.

And as all rants must end...with regards--

--JC