A Comparison of SEC Coaches Salaries for 2010

Another global warming debate is not going to end well, if it’s allowed to happen at all.

That said, if anyone is actually interested in the theory behind anthropogenic global warming rather than just promoting an agenda one way or another,

The video itself takes a skeptical slant but, honestly, if you’re not a skeptic, you’re not much of a scientist.

Completely understand your attitude about the Ivory Tower Elites. I don’t have those leanings at all, just an overactive Amazon account, a library card, and a 7 year (undergrad) degree from UA. I am a bit leftist, but not in any sort of “Democratic Party” kind of way (In fact, I started out a conservative). I worked for a Republican Congressman (Sonny Callahan) and realized that both parties were full of shit, but I’m still passionate about politics and try to spread a different perspective whenever it seems appropriate. And thanks again for your level headed mediation.

I’m glad you broke it down. Only 2% substance? That’s ridiculous. First of all, I wasn’t trying to lay out a thesis and about 50% of it was tongue in cheek. But I can see you’re a little sensitive so let’s look at it: (“statements” may contain more than one sentence)

“Yes, but these guys are supposedly working for universities.”
Statement #1 (TITLE): (exception of the affectation ‘supposedly’) is a fact.

“I know it sounds utterly ridiculous to point this out (yes I’m sounding like Beano Cook) but these are teenage boys playing sports while attending college.”
Statement #2: Beano Cook’s rant on con. expansion presupposed my original irritation. Fact. And yes, they are teenagers and young men playing sports and attending college. Fact.

“The past 50 years has seen everything corporatized (our Government is even run by two corporations); perhaps in ten years state universities will just be athletic brands that happen to hold classes (culturally and financially it seems we’re almost there), even the ‘student athlete’ has become such a commodity that you can’t use that term without snickering.”

Statement #3 (a bit tough bc there’s quite a mix in there). I’m assuming you know enough about the national economy to agree about the sheer post war domination of corporations. Do you want me to link some statistics or can we call this critical commonplace? Of particular importance is with regard to its infusion into Public Space (like State Universities) and the Media (see Telecommunications act of 1996 and FCC ruling of 1999) which now have consolidated public airspace (TV, Radio, Newspapers) under the operation of a handful of companies.
“Perhaps in ten years…”
obviously this is speculation and somewhat sarcastic— fine, I’ll give it to you, this is ‘rhetoric’.

“the ‘student athlete’ is a commodity”

Fact. They are profit earning players. By definition, a commodity. The problem here is that when people become a “means” and are commodified, their interests become stifled. NES sports, Universities, Nike, etc. make millions off these kids and yet they aren’t allowed to have jobs and getting a free laptop (a near academic necessity these days) can get you suspended for a year.

At some point— particularly in a state that ranks anywhere between 45th-48th (depending on the subject and grade) out of 50 states— we might want to put a little less emphasis on the sports and a little more on the learning.

Statement #4: Fact. You can google it like 5 seconds. Very in depth statistical breakdowns. The “we might want to…” is obviously a value charged statement. I believe education is THE fundamental value for a good citizenry. All sorts of things can be fought and instilled in the educational arena (though as it is now, it is in a pretty poor state). Money won’t fix it all, but it sure helps. The key thing though is “emphasis”, recognition of the challenges and benefits.

Ever seen the film Idiocracy?
Statement 5: a bit silly, but a funny movie with a great premise. Rhetoric.

let me speed this up…
“Since most Alabama fans never saw the inside of an Alabama classroom”,

I’ve already retracted this. No way of figuring this out and sounds a bit snooty. Could be fact. Positivists would call this a weak form of factual propositions. It could be proven. But alas, totally Rhetoric.

“maybe this new emphasis (using our ‘student athletes’ as participants and ambassadors of education) would bring knowledge to such staggering levels we would no longer have guys like Tim James or Larry Langford running (or threatening to run) things.”

I’m editorializing here, but do you disagree that our leadership is not evident of people who aren’t so educated (and thus involved) in the political process? Do informed people allow imbeciles achieve the highest ranks of our community? It has nothing to do with party affiliation, this is just a weak spot in our nation to say the least.

“Maybe Tim Tebow would cry and pray about poverty, ignorance— some real existential angst— instead of football games. Hell, we might even stir up enough critical thinking that people would realize their factitious ways and move toward a real participatory Democratic Republic.”
The Tebow thing is another speculation. A good kid, but man this self centered religious crap chaps my hide. We really ought to do more to teach kids theology- is anyone else sick of a kid asserting that GOD told him which college to commit to? Praying for a field goal to go in? Really? Is this what we’ve reduced God to? This is another debate and can get personal so I’ll let it go for now. Rhetoric.
However, realizing how factitious we are would likely lead to a more participatory involvement as citizens instead of consumers of politics. I’m not willing to call this rhetoric. Area for future discussion.

“We could get some smart-ass boosters to fork over for professors like John Searle, Martha Nussbaum, John McWhorter, Noam Chomsky — It would be a REVOLUTION!… Ok, ok, I’m getting carried away. Back to red zone statistics….”

If boosters helped get us the top educators like they do coaches it would be revolutionary. It would indicate an enormous value shift. Our professors could debate the ones from Harvard (by the way UA’s religious studies professor, Russel McCutcheon once TROUNCED the Harvard Divinity Schools top guy in a back and forth debate- if you want a copy, let me know- it’s epic). McWhorter could help us with language and race problem (which is not particular to Alabama at all, but we could use it too), Nussbaum with applying literature to life, and Chomsky, well you know he’d be fighting for the poor guys (and there are a lot of them here, Alabama is 43 of 51, if you count DOC in poverty 2008 statistics).

So I’ve broken it down into about 15 clauses or statements.

So Fact or as you say “Substance”:
5 of 14: 36%

Rhetoric (which includes sarcasm and speculation)
6 of 14: 43%

Somewhere in between (soft propositions that may or may not be true but are provable if information were available)
3 of 14: 21%

A bit better than 2%! Most sports discussion is largely rhetoric and speculation anyway, so this post was really not the “bullshit” you tended to think it was. “Tangential”? Sure. But I didn’t know I was laying out a programmatic; I was just reacting to a post and taking it a bit further. But for you, I’ll be more precise in the future.

I can’t believe I’ve spent and hour and a half on this. Damn you, PeteHoliday!

To tempebamafan: Thanks for the genuine dialogue and I’ll get on that photoshop project. (For the record, that last statement was “rhetoric” and I have no real intentions on completing that elaborate task).

paying them fairly will ensure they remain at the position as long as it is professionally advantagious to do so. thus smart got a raise and didn’t take a horizontal move by accepting the DC job in georgia.

mullen took, aguably, a step back by accepting an HC job at a lower-tier program. notice mcelwain didn’t take this option when offered the san jose state HC position.

strong may have been overdue to leave gainsville, sure. but it’s not doing him or the program any good if he takes the first viable option that pops up (and there’s the whole race issue with his coaching search that makes it even more complicated).

bottom line, you’re putting a hell of a lot of emphasis on a maybe when there are solid numbers that suggest something else may be a factor in these decisions. again, i’ll take the numbers over your hunch.

pseudo-intellectual bullshit or something?