Spring, the season of new (and misplaced) hope

So I suck at this blogging thing, but may have found the answer. Over the weekend, I had a small electrode implanted at the base of my skull, any more that 3 days without posting will set of a series of small electric shocks at 30 minute intervals until something is posted. This will either lead to regular postings, or chronic incontinence, we shall see.

So much time off leaves too much to cover, so here's a little rapid-fire Love/Hate to bring us back up to speed:

LOVE - Target Field, just the greatest thing to happen to this town in some time, I finally have a reason to look forward to summer, instead of just considering it the boring 3 months before fall returns.

HATE - The NFL draft on Thursday nights, way to wreck what was a great tradtion, waking up a spending a whole day with friends, celebrating the ultimate day of football hope. I know more people watch TV on Thursdays, but does the NFL really think it's going to steal part of the Grey's Anatomy audience by moving the draft? More likely a bunch of guys that would be watching on a Saturday morning are instead being subjected to the Dancing With the Stars semifinals. Plus they cruised through the picks so quickly, those of us who were watching didn't get to savor it much. Trust me on this, if someone is not a draft fan, they're not going to become one simply because you move it to prime time. It is a small (well maybe not so much anymore) but dedicated group of individuals watching, nobody who couldn't make time for it on Saturday is suddenly glued to the TV on Thursday. I fail to see how this benefits anyone, but as many leagues have proven, it doesn't have to be a good idea to get adopted.

HATE - Viking draft picks; nice job moving up to grab the white running back, no way that backfires. On a related note, we really need to agree on a universal font for sarcasm. As Loserville reader Joe Kelm points out, Adrian and Toby sounds like a gay couple that should be hosting a show on the Food Network, we'll see how this pans out.

LOVE - NHL playoffs, and pity the poor fools who don't watch the greatest tournament in all of sports. Both the NHL and NBA improve greatly this time of year, as players give us a glimpse of what the game looks like when played with full out effort and intensity. Unfortunately, that usually translates to teams trading 15-point blowouts in the NBA, where most NHL games are nailbiters. Advantage: Hockey.

LOVE/HATE - Twins fast start/Twins starting pitching. 19 games in seems like an appropriate time to offer the first official impressions, to quote Brett Favre: "We should be pretty good". Unfortunately, I see good and not great things on the horizon for this team, as I still have significant doubts about the ability of their starters to pitch well consistently. Every guy has dazzled at times, but each one has also laid a turd or two, and a good lineup might hack the whole staff to pieces over a 5 or 7-game series. Liriano is the guy who can change all that, but if pinning your hopes to that guy isn't a prospect that makes you nervous, you haven't been paying attention.

UBER HATE - Fighting Sioux nickname resolution. Can it get any worse than being railroaded by the PC Thought Police over the objections of the people they're claiming to defend? I will grant that the University of North Dakota has been fighting (no pun intended) this battle too long and it needs to end, but it should end with a binding vote of the people impacted, not the foot-dragging inaction of a bunch of bureaucrats.

I'm not going to tell you the Sioux tribes should feel honored or offended, in fact I'm not going to tell anyone anything, I'm simply asking for the open and honest accounting that was allegedly the goal of this process. This ridiculous witchhunt by the NCAA started 5 years ago, and rather than chronicle all of the double standards and missteps in the process, I will simply say that I think they got one things right: Asking the opinion of the tribes impacted and abiding by the result.

Unfortunately the Fighting Sioux nickname will not be afforded the same luxury that the Florida State Seminoles, Central Michigan Chippewas and University of Illinois Fighting Illini were given. Instead, with the nickname receiving overwhelming support in the only binding vote to date, the question of a second and final vote will be allowed to wither on the vine. I accepted some time ago that the name and logo would be gone, all I have ever wanted was honesty from those seeking to remove it. Just admit that you are PC do-gooders who care far more about assuaging your own guilt than the feelings of the people represented by the names.

For an organization that purports to represent the values of integrity and fairplay, the NCAA has shown neither in this case. They have constantly tweaked the rules to create double standards, most likely motivated by a desire to make a fake moral stand on an issue that does not jeopardize their pocketbook. Now that their conditions were seemingly about to be met, the powers that be have conspired to pull the rug and leave the whole thing in perpetual limbo, as that is the only way they can avoid looking like the frauds they are. Sure, it's only a nickname, we can get past it, but I don't like the implication that the will of the people should dictate, until it runs afoul of the will of the government.