I admit it, I have been watching every minute of The 2011 British Open on ESPN.  I must be the only viewer that they have, considering that the telecast begins at 1 A.M. my time everyday and goes on until noon.  The times are quite natural, as it is being broadcast from the British Isles and there is a considerable time difference broadcasting back here to the United States.  So far the weather has been very un-British like, balmy weather in the low 70’s.   Usually the thrill of watching the Royal and Ancient proceedings is in the gale force winds and sheets of rain that pummel the golfers as they walk around courses that resemble the surface of the moon, pot marked with craters and undulating fairways.  It is quite a difference between this kind of golf and the game that we play here in America and, hopefully, the weather will take a nose dive. 

I must also be the only person who is also watching the World Series of Poker final Event, which is being broadcast at night on ESPN, and it is being broadcast live for the first time which adds to the excitement (sic).  I wonder which event is drawing more viewership, the poker or the golf.   I know that many of my readers profess to hating both viewing golf and also to watching poker players play for way too much money on television.  I think that this year’s Open winner will receive about $2.5 million U.S.  I know that this year’s WSOP winner will pocket $8.7 million.  Which event would you rather win?

While I am confessing to what I watch on television, let me please add Pawn Stars, Hardcore Pawn, Man vs. Food Nation, American Pickers, American Restoration, and countless other “reality” programs to my confessions, as if eating a dozen deep fried chicken wings dipped in ghost chili pepper extract (like a billion times hotter than jalapenos) in under 15 minutes has any notion of reality in it.  I just watched Mike and Frank from American Pickers deliver a 1957 Chevrolet 150 to Rick (who stars in Pawn Stars) and charge him a $1750 profit to bring it to him.  Rick then handed the piece-of-crap car to Rick (his name is also Rick and he stars in American Restoration) who in three weeks did a ground up restoration of it for a cost of $70,000.  Rick (the one from Pawn Stars) then presented the beautifully restored Chevy to his dad (the old Man) for dad’s 70^th birthday.  Rick paid $8000 for the car and another $70,000 restoring it.  What is unrealistic about all of this?  It has got to be bull shit.  The restored car is worth at the most $25,000, so viewers beware please.  Rick never pays more than 50 cents on the dollar for anything.

Meanwhile Adam Richman, who is the star of Man vs. Food finally wised up.  After gaining probably 60 pounds over three years eating all kinds of things like 6 pound burritos, 8 pounds of Don Shula steaks, 10 pounds of Chicago deep dish pizza, and a dozen egg omelets with 2 pounds of hash browns on the side, Adam finally came up with a better idea.  Now his show is Man vs. Food Nation, and he does not participate any more.  He just coaches other suckers into doing the eating contests.  Adam is starting to look svelte again.  Bully for him.

I was born in Akron, Ohio, an occurrence that would have little or no significance if not for the fact that this town is also LeBron James’ (also known as LBJ) hometown.   LBJ at one time referred to an American President; LBJ stood for Lyndon Baines Johnson (our nation’s 36^thPresident).  In today’s world the initials are now associated to “King” LeBron James.  I do not wish to get into semantics about who is the rightful owner of the monogram, but when I hear the letters LBJ, only one person comes to mind, and it is our 36^thPresident.  LBJ is not remembered that fondly in the history books, but he had the misfortune of rising to the Presidency as a circumstance of John Fitzgerald Kennedy being assassinated.  JFK’s death had a most profound effect on the young Harvey’s childhood.  In one sordid weekend Camelot was taken from my idyllic life (and that of our whole Nation) and I was forced to grow up from being a naive 16 year old boy to a grizzled adult in only 96 horrific hours.

For that exact reason LBJ will never conger up the image of an overpaid professional athlete to me, especially a self-anointed King for that matter, and you might say that I stubbornly adhere to the old school.   If it were not for dinosaurs like me, there would only be the other extreme (new school), which is no better than my side of the ledger.  Being from Akron, I wanted to see how the fans of Cleveland/Akron would receive their once idolized King, who was making his first appearance since he abdicated the throne some months ago when he walked away from his subjects and his hometown and headed to the glamour and the glitter of Miami Beach.   Sometimes being in the big city turns out to not be what you expect.

Why I dislike him so was at first a conundrum to me, had I not also left my relatives and my hometown for the glamour and glitter of another vacation paradise (Phoenix)?  The answer to that question is an emphatic no.  I was a minor when I left home and a part of a family unit whose monarch (father) was a military man and whose occupation took him away from Akron.  I had no say in that circumstance.  LeBron had freewill and he chose to leave home.  When he took his services to Miami, he went from being an idolized athlete to being abhorred by sporting fans in both Ohio and also nationwide in a New York minute. The Cavaliers lost the battle last evening, but they showed LeBron that he is no longer the prodigal son.  I hope that the fine city of Cleveland wins the war someday and earns an NBA title and that LeBron is forever denied one …end of story.

On a much more pleasant note, a much better game was simultaneously running on ESPN last evening as TNT was broadcasting the Cleveland/Miami NBA massacre, and I hope that you changed the channel.  That game showing on ESPN would be The Duel in the Desert, the annual contest between Arizona State and Arizona for the bragging rights for the next year in cactus country.    Thankfully for ASU fans (such as me), the Sun Devils beat the Wildcats in double overtime 30-29, when they blocked an extra point attempt (their second blocked extra point of the game).  My readers might be surprised to know that the winner of the game each year takes possession of The Territorial Cup, which dates back to 1899, making it the oldest Trophy in college football, actually predating even The Little Brown Jug (Michigan and Minnesota) by four years.

There are times that I feel bad that HBO is a premium cable channel.  Not that it costs money to get it (I do subscribe), but that so much of the country does not and therefore is denied the viewing of some phenomenal television.  “The Sopranos” was an example of a great television series that so many of us never saw just because it was not shown on the basic cable or satellite channels.  There is another series that is running right now that many of us are not privy to because of the same reason.  That series is “Boardwalk Empire”, and the last show of the 12 episode first season is showing Sunday evening.  It is “must see” TV.   “Boardwalk Empire” takes place in 1920 Atlantic City and is about the life of Nucky Thompson, who was equal parts politician and gangster.   It features an all-star cast that includes Steve Buscemi, Michael Pitt, and Kelly Macdonald.  The show and its actors are sure to clean up at the Emmys next year.  As soon as the series is available on DVD, I will buy it for my friends and relatives to enjoy.  It is awesome television.  Are any of you watching it?

Justin Bieber just won the American Music Academy’s “Entertainer of the Year” Award.  Coincidentally he also just won the Harvey Dakota talentless “Twit of the Year” Award.  Where is music going to when boorish acts such as Bieber, the Jonas Brothers, and Amy Winehouse are becoming legends of the music industry?  No wonder sales of music are down to record lows, so much of the “new school” music just blows.  It kind of makes you want to drink a few shots of Cuervo Gold, the fine Columbian, and listen to only “old school” stuff:

'nuff said
 

It may be the opening of a bright NFL season but what we're really seeing is the closing of the NFL as we now know and occasionally love it. We all know the expression, “Wait 'Til Next Year”. It might be better to restate that as “Dread Next Year.” for that's probably what we should be doing. It's been widely discussed, gossip, rumoured, unsubstantiated stories have been floated about it but the consensus is that next year the NFL is going to have some form of work stoppage. Whether it's a lockout by the owners or players who don't play it all adds up to the same thing; No football for some or all of 2011. And, at base, it's all over 10%. Were I a carnival barker way back when I'd address the crowds of suckers like this, “Ten cents, ladies and gents, just ten little pennies. Less than a bottle of milk and a loaf of bread for this wonder of the world. Think about it, your kids want it, you want it and for just ten cents, almost the smallest part of a dollar it can be yours. So step right up and part with your dime, for what you're getting you'll thank me, want me to take more.....”. And that is exactly what the hoorah about next year is about, ten cents, ten pennies, one American dime. And who gets it.

The base issue is about money, who gets it, who has it and how it will be divided but that's the over arching issue that covers a variety of smaller skirmishes that obscure the main battle. For one, both sides, the FNL and the NFLPA realize that this probably the last best chance for the next several decades to solve this problem. It might be possible to nit pick some of it over a year or two but that doesn't eliminate the problem, it just postpones it and, in fact, hardens both sides in their demands. But what now? For one thing, the basic issue has passed the point on the fulcrum where it can be brought back and still save face for everyone involved. Too many postures have already been taken, too many comments have been made for this to end up with everyone coming to Jesus and kissing and making up. That will not happen.

Like it or not, and we'll get to what “it” is (keep remembering that 10%), this has also become a racial issue. When Gene Upshaw died it surprized some people that he was not replaced with another retired player but someone within the Union recognized that they didn't a player, they would need an attorney and one with some legitimate credentials (No one from the Sharpton/Jackson/Wrangel school of thought) which led to the selection of DeMaurice Smith, formerly a Federal Prosecutor to head the Union. Consider that 75% of the NFLPA members are black while 100% of the team owners are white. Also remember that the majority of the black players come from what is delicately termed a “disadvantaged background”. Read that as street smart and with loyalties more to their own group(s) than to any owner or coach. They know that without them, the NFL ceases to exist. They also know that they're part of a culture that has evolved in the past twenty or thirty years to exclude white people. As Eugene Robinson, Pulitzer Prize winning editorial writer for the Washington Post said, “African Americans have developed a speech that intentionally excludes white America. It's relative to the street and the thug/”gangsta” culture that is anti white, pro black and supportive of gangs.”(Mr. Robinson is an African-American) He further adds that this applies only to the lower social-economic groups of blacks that, coincidentally, produces the greatest number of black players. These are the roots of most-not all-of the players. You will recall when there was much conversation, little of it pleasant, about the dearth of black quarterbacks. So we got black quarterbacks. Then came the issue of black coaches and, increasingly, there are black coaches. Leaving only one more step up and that's black ownership of one (or more) team(s). They're stymied here because to date no black person or group has come forward expressing a genuine interest in buying a team. Even if such a person or group did exist, no NFL team is for sale. And that brings up another difficulty: Expansion.

One of the less discussed but more intriguing ideas is that if the NFL were to expand, there would be a guarantee that a person of colour would own at least one team. It's hard to understand how it might be possible to mandate to any place that wanted a franchise just who would own it and what colour they might be. Still, the thought has crossed several minds although the reality of it is hardly credible. And right there the NFLPA has another gripe. What couldn't a black person own a franchise? What we see here is that everything becomes a negative depending on who says it and how it's said. Consider. If the NFLPA suggested that as part of expansion a team be guaranteed a minority owner, then it's fine but the NFL-having logic on their side-will disagree. Things and times change. Fifty years ago no one of any colour could envision a black President.

But now to the other side of the field. The NFL functions, as is little known, as a licensed benevolent, tax exempt entity that operates as such under IRS rules. This does not limit them and what they can do, it just means that, if they make money, it's tax free. The operant theory is that the NFL serves as the watchdog to see that owners, players, media, etc. all function in a fashion that promotes football. That's the theoretical function, the actuality is rather different and here is an area where the NFLPA would like to run interference.

The NFL decreed that no team may be corporately owned (save Green Bay) and that at least one member of any group owning a franchise must own at least 30%. In 1920 when the NFL was put together, there was a fear of monopolies such as Standard Oil or Armour Meats. By demanding multiple owners, it was thought that a more cooperative league would be the result. At that time there were only 11 teams, no NFLPA and football as such was not the dominant sport it is today. The ownership restrictions changed which is why Jerry Jones can own the Cowboys(although another entity does own the mandatory 30%). Those ninety years since 1920 have seen an uptick in their fortunes that could not have been anticipated. Prior to the depression, a good fan turn out was about 25,000 people and, remember, no radio, no television just the newspapers. At the field there was some little advertising but the revenue from that-which was mainly what was charged to hang a banner where the crowd might see it-was minimal not the gushing torrent of money it is today. Now the average crowd is 65, 000 all of whom have paid anywhere from ten to two hundred times the amount paid by a fan in 1920. Certainly the cost of everything has gone up but the entry fee isn't the only expense to the fan. Food, beverages, parking are all possible costs and none of them are small.

Which takes us to another underlying problem and that's the gush of money from advertising. As of now, other than product endorsements-and only those products sanctioned for endorsement by the NFL-all the revenue goes directly to the team which then pays the salaries of the players and staff. Some see this differently, that the reality should be that players could contract with advertisers as part of their contract with the team but receive separate monies. It's an idea whose time will probably never come but it points up the absolute necessity of advertising to not only the team, but the networks themselves. It's what creates the income stream that is the single largest contributor to the NFL. It's also the most fragile. Unlike many kinds of contracts, ad placement may be for a few as one or two games and only on one network. Obviously the various networks that now broadcast professional football (CBS, NBC, Fox, ESPN and the NFL network) are in close competition for the ad dollar. To attract that they have to have “the numbers” to back up the rates they charge and the “numbers” are how many persons are projected to watch a particular game. However, the networks cannot cherry pick each week which games they will broadcast, that's somewhat dictated by the NFL (although CBS and Fox each get one conference, be it the AFC or NFC) who, contractually, guarantees each team a certain amount of “exposure”. With that many networks that shouldn't be difficult but it is. Only CBS, Fox and NBC are available to anyone who has a set. The others are reliant on viewers who have access to cable or it's equivalent. You can see the problem immediately. Advertisers are less than willing to give money to those entities showing games with far fewer viewers. Even if it's the game of the year, only those with access to paid for television can watch and the fewer who watch the less product or service that's sold. More problems in that the NFL has a vested interest in getting as many viewers as possible not just for the ad dollar but to satisfy the teams.

It gets even more complicated but lets go back to that dime I mentioned earlier.

The underlying issue between the NFL and the NFLPA is that as it stands now the NFL gets 60% of the revenue and the players get 40%. (That is the team initially gets all the money but must disperse at least 40% to the players in the form of salary, bonuses, or however else they may choose to compensate them.) What the players now want is a 50/50 split. It's that simple. 10% more to one group, 10% less to another. It's actually possible that if that were the only issue with none of the underlying problems some settlement might be possible but we've passed that point as everyone has said too much about everything. As of now the average salary for a player is 1.8 million dollars a year and there are 1, 800 players. That, however, the players argue is an insignificant amount based on the time spent plus the time, trouble and danger to which they expose themselves.

Interestingly that much reviled group, OSHA (Occupational Safety and Hazard Agency) disagrees. Indeed professional sports of all sorts don't even come near the top 100 in terms of per capita death by occupation. (The leading two are farm work and mining.) They have a slightly stronger case if they suggest that their chances for long term health difficulties are greater than most but even that's a hard sell based on facts. What is not hard is that the NFLPA has done a wretched job of caring for players that have health issues that are sports related or just the sort of things that occur as we age. (It's galling to many players that O.J. Simpson gets $25, 000 per month to languish in prison. That's far more than some of them with medical disabilities get.) For what the NFLPA charges its members they should have Cadillac policies after their careers are over but that's not the case.

On the other side the owners point out that they pay for everything and the players don't even have to wash their own socks. Players receive a per diem allowance in addition to their salaries which makes little sense for when they're on the road with the team, the team is already picking up 100% of their costs. Beyond that, they also pay for the facility, insurance, grounds upkeep, transportation etc. But like the players point about the danger to which they're exposed, this point has some weaknesses. Someone will have to pay for the cost of the stadium. If the team or a school that might happen to own it or whomever, there are bills to be met. If you're going to have a team and move it from place to place it makes little sense to have them pay for their own freight when without the team there would be no reason to go.

Yet there's one group that has no say and is the bearer of the financial burden for all this and that's the fan. The person who watches at home or at the venue, buys the trinkets and promotional material sold by the NFL and the products advertised during the game. Most particularly the products advertised for at base, that's the reason anyone bothers to sponsor the game. It's the reason the teams exist and that's to sell products and services to the fans. Only in extreme circumstances is the “Fan” brought up and that's when one group or other wants to seem benevolent, inclusive of everyone. But then it's only lip service rather like “Fan Appreciation” day. It's meaningless for the people who are sponsoring it, care only that their numbers are met and if they have to debase themselves and acknowledge the fan, then they will. They won't like it as it's just another cost over ride, but they'll do it.

So where are we and where are we going? We have two groups who are divided by grounds that vary from financial to racial trying to get the upper hand which is to say the largest share. It's really hard to see how this can be settled but settled it must be. As was said earlier, this is the last chance to settle it with only modest damage to everyone. If it cannot be settled then it falls to the courts to make a decision and that could easily be one even less popular than whatever might be agreed to. Neither group wants to have an imposed settlement, but that's wht they might get. Clearly this situation, however it's resolved, will satisfy very few and the arguments will go on. It's said that you cannot have too much of a good thing but the NFL and the NFLPA are apparently attempting to prove that you can.