Another Mike Barer

Up in the "Great White North" there is another Mike Barer. He is the bass player for the Edmonton, Alberta based group, Grassroot Deviation. Grassroot Deviation is described as playing a "diverse spectrum of Roots, Rock, and Funk." They have a myspace page and Mike has a group page on facebook. I do not know whether nor how he is related.

This Commercial Is So Funny

Cardinals Close The Curtain On The Seahawks

If the Seattle Seahawks proved one thing today, it was that even at it's best, it cannot keep up with an Arizona Cardinal team playing at it's worst. The 'Hawks blew a 14-0 lead in a 31 to 20 loss to the division leader. The one bright spot was second year Seahawk running back, Justin Forsett. Forsett had 123 rushing yards and a touchdown. In spite of a series of Arizona penalties and some big plays by Matt Hasselbeck, the Seahawks could not muster a single touchdown in the second half. Cardinal quarterback Kurt Warner (above) threw for 320 yards and 2 touchdowns. Beanie Wells had also rushed for two touchdowns.

Another Rainy Day

Rusty, in a classic pose in our kitchen the other day.

The AFL And ABA Challenge Established Sports Leagues

My brother, Steve wrote in his blog about the now defunct USFL which started as a Summer supplement to the NFL and then grew a little big for it's britches and finally challenged the Iconic league. It reminded me of the two upstart leagues of the 60s and 70s, the American Football League (AFL) and the American Basketball Association (ABA). The goals of both of these leagues was not nescessarily to destroy the established NFL and NBA, but to competed beside them like the American League and the older National League in Major League Baseball.

There is not much written to compare and contrast the AFL with the ABA, but there are so many similarities and yet so many differences.

The AFL no longer exists, but really it does. All of the original teams, plus the two expansion teams ( the Miami Dolphins and the Cincinnati Bengals), still exist, although the Houston Oilers are now the Tennessee Titans, the Oakland Raiders are again the Oakland Raiders, after a decade of so in Los Angeles. They exist in what became the American Football Conference (AFC). Three teams (Baltimore-Indianapolis Colts the original Cleveland Browns, now the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers), joined the AFL teams after the merger. The AFL was able to get a TV contract with NBC. It was easy for fans to watch their favorite NFL team on one channel and their favorite AFL team on the other. The AFL was established by oil baron Lamar Hunt, after the NFL stopped his bid to buy the Chicago Cardinals. Hunt owned the AFC's Dallas Texans. The Texans then moved to Kansas City and renamed themselves the "Chiefs". I think it was Hunt's money and the quality of ownership that he brought in that helped advance the AFL. Great AFL stars were Len Dawson, Joe Namath, Gino Cappeletti, and Daryl Lamonica.

Only four of the ABA teams joined the NBA. They are scattered in the league with no ties within. The ABA had no television agreement so it could not get either the exposure needed nor the money to lure the quality stars that the AFL could get. I remember an ABA all star game being played on "Wide World Of Sports" There was no common draft nor any direct competitive game with the NBA. The ABA was able to get some great stars though, Julius Erving, Connie Hawkins, and Rick Barry come to mind. It played with a Red, White, and Blue Basketball. It had the original three point line and many players had long hair and huge afro style haircuts. It was the flashier league.

The similarities are that they both brought changes to the older leagues, while the NBA does not play with Red, White, and Blue Basketballs, it adopted the "three point line" and the San Antonio Spurs (from the ABA) have won the league several times. The AFL brought the "two point conversion" , more colorful jerseys, the scoreboard keeping official gametime, player's names on jerseys, and of course the Super Bowl.

This year, the eight original AFL teams are having legacy weekends to celebrate 50 years since the founding of the league.

It's Mayor Mike McGinn

Former Sierra Club president Mike McGinn has won the Seattle mayoral race according to the Seattle Times. Joe Mallahan conceded today in a new conference. Mallahan was favored by most of the Democratic establishment. McGinn had over 300 volunteers. Neither candidate had either held an elective office in the area or had much outside name recognition before the race began.

Seahawks Bag The Lions

What started as a dismal day for the Seattle Seahawks down 17-0 at home facing the lowly Detroit Lions turned into a victory. The Seahawks offense started with an interception and a lost fumble on it's first two plays from scrimmage. Both times leading two Lion touchdowns.
Matt Hasselbeck, however stayed with the pass hitting 39 out 51 attempts f0r 329 yards.
Hasselbeck ended the day with the team record for career completions. The Seahawk defense had five interceptions, two from David Hawthorne, one from Marcus Trufant, one from Deon Grant and a final one by Josh Wilson that was run in for a touchdown to seal the deal.

Maple Valley Elects 2 New Council Members

Bill Allison and Erin Weaver were elected to the Maple Valley City Council for the first time. Current Councilwoman Victoria Jonas easily won reelection.

Seattle's Tight Race For Mayor

Ever since my Uncle Arny's law school buddy Wes Uhlman was elected to be mayor of Seattle in the late 60s, I've paid close attention that city's mayoral race. It takes a special type to be able to lead a growing, cutting edge city that has seen it's share of peaks and valleys. This year's race is especially compelling. It pits a former T-Mobile executive, Joe Mallahan against a former Sierra Club president, Mike McGinn.
Both candidates ran because of their dissatisfaction with current mayor Greg Nickles. They were both able to get past the incumbent, who was considered invincible.
Joe Mallahan is touting his corporate experience. He has spent heavily to put professionals on his campaign staff. He has a smooth style. Mike McGinn is hard edged, and has a staff of mostly volunteers.
At this writing, only 500 some votes separate the two candidates.

Dow Is New County Executive

The Seatle Times has declared Dow Constantine the winner of the King County Executive race. Constantine, a King County Councilman, was open and upfront on every issue. His opponent, Susan Hutchison, was considered the early favorite.