Golf Playoffs

http://espn.go.com/golf/masters13/story/_/id/9171606/2013-masters-adam-scott-beats-angel-cabrera-wins-green-jacket

     Everybody was watching as Adam Scott knocked down a 12 foot birdie put on the 10th hole in a playoff to win the Masters. Scott became the first Australian to win one of the most prestigious tournaments in golf marking the end to an eventful weekend. 14 year-old Tianlang Guan of China became the youngest player to ever make the cut at the Masters' (nearly missing it after a one-stroke penalty for slow play on Saturday) and Tiger Woods took a two-stroke penalty after a controversial drop. Above all this rose two players who would compete for the championship: a couple of tournament veterans named Angel Cabrera (seeking his third major championship) and Adam Scott (who has finished in the top 20 at the Masters' every time since 2010, including a second place finish in 2011).  In the end though, Scott just outplayed Cabrera, becoming the first Australian to win the Masters'.
     In light of this playoff, though, many have been wondering if a one hole, sudden death approach to tiebreakers is the best way to determine a champion. Many tournaments, such as the Open Championship and the PGA Championship, use a format in which a few holes are selected to be played and whoever has the better score at the end wins. Other tournaments such as the U.S. Open have another 18-hole round of golf played the next day to decide the champ. I personally see the current Masters' playoff system as flawed because all it is is seeing who has the worse hole first. It doesn't really give you a great idea of who the better player of the tournament is. I like the Multi-hole aggregate format because it can be played on the same day as the final round (won't lose spectators who leave that day, people won't be at work instead of watching so views will stay high) and also will help decide a winner much more accurately by allowing players to come back after a bad hole or have to maintain their consistency after a good one.

A Thousand Dollar Meatballs

http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/24/us/new-york-meatball-theft/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

     This article describes a crime (wink, wink) of a housekeeper at the U.S. Military Academy by the name of Estelle Casimir.  Casimir works in the mess hall at West Point and on January 30th she blatantly crossed a line.  According to the manager of the mess hall, Casimir attempted to sneak a bag of frozen meatballs out of the kitchen claiming that it was garbage.  The manager asked what she was holding and she reluctantly uncovered this frozen bag.  So basically, the manager pressed charges for stealing and this housekeeper (who pleaded not guilty) faces up to two years in jail and a $2,000 fine on two accounts of misdemeanor.  One of these is for stealing property and the other is for possessing stolen property (each is $1,000 and one year in jail).
     In my opinion, this is completely ridiculous.  For starters, if somebody is trying to steal food, especially something like this that they can just take home with them, there is a decent chance that she/her family are in need of food.  Secondly, what is it that she is going to do with this bag of meatballs that the Military Academy wasn't?  There's probably a 50/50 chance this was going to end up in the trash anyways.  Lastly, and most absurdly: The U.S. is now going to spend thousands of dollars in trial and/or incarceration fees over a $5 bag of meatballs. The people pushing this case are the ones that should be prosecuted for wasting tax money. They should have just fired her and moved on if it was that big a deal.
     Personally, I would have just given her a warning and told her not to do it again... Or better yet: just let her have the meatballs.

Heroic

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/08/us/uncommon-valor/index.html?hpt=us_t3

This is a long article but a great read so I highly recommend it if you've got time.

     While I was looking for an interesting story in the wide world of sports like usual, I found a different story.  I found the story of Clint Romesha, a former Army staff sergeant who will be receiving the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during a fierce battle on October 3, 2009 in Afghanistan.  He is only the fourth living person to receive this honor for actions in Afghanistan/Iran.  It'll be tough to summarize this article completely because any short summary I give won't be giving Romesha enough credit, but I'll give it my best shot.  Basically, during a battle known as one of the worst ground attacks during the Afghanistan war that took place on Combat Outpost Keating, Romesha led a small group of men after eight American men on that post had died.  He helped free some men who were trapped in a Humvee and also helped hold the Taliban off until air support came. 

     After reading the story of the battle for COP Keating, I feel a great deal of admiration for Romesha and every other man involved in this battle.  I think that he fully deserves the Medal of Honor and praise for his actions during this battle.  It's a really insightful story because it tells about some of the hardships and trauma of being in a battle.  It's a great story and one that needs to be told during times when all you hear about are the death and destruction that occurs during war.

     There is only one thing though, that bothers me after reading this.  It says in the story that COP Keating is in an indefensible spot.  Romesha was quoted saying that it wasn't a matter of "if" the Taliban would attack, it was a matter of "when" they would attack.  I don't understand why whoever sends the soldiers to different camps/outposts would send anybody to a spot where there will most certainly be death and compromising the safety of the soldiers sent there. ??? If anybody has an answer to this question...

     Other than this though, it's a great story and awesome to hear of somebody so heroic.

Steroids in the MLB

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/49258/baseballs-ped-problem-wont-seem-to-go-away  (of of ESPN.com)

     It started with some of the supposed "greats" such as Sammy Sosa , Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez, and the biggest: Barry Bonds.  It continues today in supposed "great" players such as Alex Rodriguez, Nelson Cruz, Melky Cabrera, Gio Gonzalez, and David Ortiz.  It's the steroid era in the MLB.  A time in which players all around the MLB are trying to gain an (unfair) advantage. 
     This article talks about four players who have received steroids from a clinic in Florida and how they feel about their decisions and defending themselves.
     The question that I would like to discuss is this: Should Major League Baseball legalize some steroids so that some players don't have the unfair advantage and put everyone on equal playing ground?  The actual number of players doing steroids is unknown.  If it's something that "every player is doing," then it's beyond the point where players are gaining an unfair advantage, and to the point where the players who aren't doing roids are getting gypped.  If only a select few are doing steroids (which is what I'd like to believe but see as unlikely), then the MLB needs to crack down and start doing some serious mid-season drug testing. The second seems like it would be more effective because even if the MLB legalizes some steroids, then some players will seek out stronger ones and the cycle will never stop.  But if Major League Baseball ends up suspending a bunch of players (especially today's stars) then ratings will continue to fall for an already dying sport.  Even though it's a no-win situation, I'd like to see the latter as baseball has always been one of my favorite sports and it's a shame to see players who won't just play for the love of the game.

C-Days after Snow Days

     It's morning-time on a school day.  You wake up, and it's snowing outside.  The wind is howling and thoughts of a snow day flash through your head.  You turn on the TV to check the weather/school announcements and as the schools flash by on the bottom line, you nervously anticipate the O's for Omaha Catholic Schools.  Finally, it appears at the bottom of the screen.  You are overjoyed!  Sleeping in, TV, video games, no homework...  Then you turn on the computer only to find a voice message left by Mr. Ryberg.  You hit play cautiously and about halfway through the announcement he mentions that the next day is going to be a C-Day!  Mutiny!  Your mind races, you can no longer sleep as you are sent into a fit of fury. You must start preparing for all of your classes the upcoming day.  The snow day is ruined!  You are too unhappy to play video games and too unfocused to watch TV... all you can think about is the upcoming C-Day.

And this is basically why I think that when we have a snow day on an A-Day, they should just give us the next day off too to balance out the schedule.

Head Injuries in the NFL (BEST one)

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/23/sport/nfl-seau-lawsuit/index.html?htp=us_mid

-Junior Seau is a former NFL linebacker who committed suicide last year.  When his family claimed that the reason behind this suicide was brain disease, he was examined and the cause was found to be chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).  This disease is caused by repeated blows to the head and its symptoms are depression, withdrawal, and forgetfullness.  In turn, Seau's family filed a lawsuit against the NFL and Riddell (helmet maker) who are "confident in the integrity of our products and our ability to successfully defend our products against challenges."
-As a football player, I find the fact that Seau's family filed a lawsuit on the NFL completely ridiculous.  I don't like the NFL (the business, not the games) and what they stand for: greed, but these players are taking a risk every single time that they step onto the field.  If they are truly concerned about themselves, then they should quit football.  As a linebacker, Seau made a choice every time he lowered his helmet and collided with the running back.  If he had a concussion or head injury in his career (which he said he didn't) then he could have sat out.  Junior got paid to do what he did and when he accepted that money, he accepted the consequences that came with it.  I DO believe though, that a) the NFL needs to start giving better medical insurance to retired players in the case of injury, and b) college and high school football players need to start receiving better education upon brain injuries and the risks that they are imposing upon themselves.
-What do you think?  Is the NFL wrong and do serious changes need to be made?  Or are the players at fault for playing football despite the risk that comes with it?

Manti Te'o: A Victim or a Liar?

Manti Te’o: A Victim or a Liar?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/19/sport/manti-teo-controversy/index.html?hpt=us_c2

            A Victim or a Liar? Everybody who has heard the story about the star Notre Dame linebacker’s supposed girlfriend who died in September of leukemia, only to have been found out to not exist, are asking themselves this very question.  For those who haven’t heard the story, here’s a quick background: Manti Te’o, a Heisman trophy finalist in college football, claims to have had an online relationship with a girl from Stanford. Then, on the same day his grandmother died, this girl also died from leukemia.  Shortly after Notre Dame lost the national championship game to Alabama, the story broke that this girlfriend never really existed and Te’o got scammed.  Since then, the biggest question, and really one of the last ones that remain: Is Manti Te’o a victim of some scam artists or was this whole scheme planned out and Te’o even one of the conspirators?

The article above is named “Manti Te'o denies he was part of girlfriend hoax.” Recently, Manti Te’o spoke publicly about the hoax for the first time and the answers and information that he gave is basically put together in this article.  The gist of his story is that he is completely innocent and that he had no idea of the hoax while it was occurring.

My opinion?  Te’o is a complete and utter liar and this whole hoax is nothing more than a sick publicity stunt.  Nothing in this story adds up and many facts seem very fishy.  The first one is the fact that this whole relationship was over the internet.  A scam artist would have to be very, very dedicated to have time to sit down and talk to Te’o over the phone every single night for six months.  On the other hand, if Te’o knew about the hoax then he could say they talked, or even met (which he did say, then admitted he lied about it).  Next is the timing of the events in the story.  The supposed death of the girlfriend was within a few hours of the death of Manti Teo’s grandmother’s.  Add this to the fact that there was no previous mention of her having leukemia and you either get a very ignorant Manti Te’o, or you get a conspirator.  The other timing issue is the timing of when the “non-existent girlfriend” story broke.  It was within a couple weeks after the end of the national championship game.  Coincidence?  Of course not, Te’o’s college career is over and waiting to make the story public was nothing more than another publicity stunt ending his senior year, and making his NFL draft stock that much more intriguing (Te’o first told the story to Notre Dame officials around Christmastime).  The last confusing part of this story is the lack of apparent motive by the perpetrators.  If Te’o truly is innocent, then why?  Why go to all this trouble just to mess with a college football player?

These questions and (lack of) answers have me convinced that this so-called hoax is nothing more than a publicity stunt, with Manti Te’o as a (co-)conspirator.  What do you think?  Is Te’o a Victim or a Liar?

About Me

My name is Alex McHugh.  I am 16 years old, a sophomore in high school, and live in Omaha, Nebraska.  I have three younger brothers: Grant, Jack, and Max, who are 12, 8, and 5.  My parents’ names are Keith and Gail.  I was born in St. Cloud, Minnesota on December 29, 1996.  Right before preschool my family and I moved to Monticello, Minnesota.  We stayed there for 4 years or so before we moved to St. Michael, Minnesota.  During my fifth grade year in St. Michael I moved to Carroll, Iowa, where I lived for three years.  Finally, right before eighth grade year, my family moved here to Omaha where we joined the Mary Our Queen parish.  I attended school there for my eighth grade year then decided to go to high school at Creighton Prep.  I really enjoy sports and at Prep, I play baseball and football. Outside of school though, I also play basketball and golf.