The Super Bowl Conversation
by Jesse J. Lewis, Sr.
The conversation today is whether or not the coach, Pete Carroll, of the Seattle Seahawks, made the right decision to pass the ball on the third down for one yard. According to all the surveys done on the Internet, 80 percent believe he made the wrong decision. Legendary Coach Paul Bryant of the University of Alabama stated on many occasions that bad things happen when the ball is in the air – you don’t know where it will come down or whose hands it will fall into. I am in the minority on this issue, I happen to think the coach made the right call.
Everybody expected the coach would run the ball. The thought process was if they passed, there was a chance for a touchdown. In the worst scenario it would be an incompletion and the clock would stop, giving them a chance to run the ball on the fourth down. But worse than that happened. The ball was intercepted. Those of you who saw the play are well aware of the fact that the pass that was thrown went through the receiver’s hands and should have been caught. Had the ball been caught, the coach of the Seattle Sea Hawks would be a hero today.
Instead, the intended receiver was pushed by Bryant of the New England Patriots, the interceptor, which should have been a penalty, which would have given the Seahawks a first and 10.
Here’s what they are saying
We can never stop talking about politics. Every week I will write an article about one of the Republicans lining up to run for president and give their comments. Here’s what Mike Huckabee is talking about:
People can be my friends who have lifestyles that are not necessarily my lifestyle. I don’t shut people out to my circle, out of my life because they have a different point of view,” Huckabee told a CNN reporter. He was supposed to be answering a question about whether he believes being gay is a choice. ” I don’t drink alcohol, but gosh – a lot of my friends, maybe most of them, do. You know, I don’t use profanity, but believe me, I’ve got a lot of friends who do. Some people really like classical music and ballet and opera – it’s not my cup of tea.”
He also offered a nod to legislation that some conservatives have advocated on the national and state levels protecting businesses from discrimination claims for adhering to their owner’s religious views.
“I’d like to think that there’s room in America for people who have different points of view without screaming and shouting and wanting to shut their businesses down,” he said. “What worries me in this new environment we’re in, it’s not just that someone might disagree, they don’t want to argue with me, even take a different point of view. They want to close someone’s business down.”
Huckabee pointed to President Barack Obama’s 2008 opposition to same-sex marriage, but said there’s no chance he’ll ever drop his opposition to gay marriage.
“This is not a political issue. It’s a biblical issue. And as a biblical issue – unless I get a new version of the Scriptures, it’s really not my place to say, OK, I’m just going to evolve. It’s like asking someone who’s Jewish to start serving bacon-wrapped shrimp in their deli. We don’t want to do that – I mean, we’re not going to do that. Or like asking a Muslim to serve up something that is offensive to him or to have dogs in his backyard. We’re so sensitive to make sure we don’t offend certain religions, but then we act like Christians can’t have the convictions that they’ve had for 2,000 years.”
How many people do you suppose he managed to alienate from the Republican Party with these statements?
There’s an old saying that goes like this: Heap sees, few knows, heaps start, but few goes. This means there are a lot of Republicans who will try to run for president. There are only two actually running at the present time: Jeb Bush, who came in 5th in the polls in Iowa, which does not mean anything, and Scott Walker.
Those who presently serve in the Senate who say they will run are not running: Ron Paul, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. Because if they run for President they would have to give up their senate seats. They will get in the race to raise money and then get out.
email: jjlewis@birminghamtimes.com
