Fine, Mike, I'll play along. the MVP is given for the player's performance on the court. Exceptional individual play as well as the better performance of players around him. If you would've seen Kobe and the Lakers play you'd agree that while you dislike his character you can't deny his talent and the effect he's had on his teammates.

As for how as you put it "he perfers getting the 60" then you can tell me how many 60 point games he had this season. His scoring average is down this year while he leads the Lakers in assists...again. If you're basing his team player-value on triple-doubles then you have a lot to learn. There's more to team ball than triple doubles, especially if you're not a point guard. One dimensional players will always be marginalized in the league but Kobe isn't one of them. Rarely will they be the focal point of a team's defensive plan. Kobe is versatile enough to be a play maker, a scorer or a shut-down defender. An occasional 60 point or even a historic 81 point game isn't the end of the world as long as the outcome results in a win. When you have that kind of talent an opportunity will arise once in a while to take over a game especially if the team is struggling and time is running out.

Does Kobe have some character flaws and has been immature at times? Sure, no one is perfect and I don't hold my sports heroes to an unreasonable standard. You mention how he rolled over on Shaq. Now if that is true then I don't condone it or think it was right but I understand why. He's lived a privileged life, here and abroad as the son of a professional basketball player. You could even say he's been spoiled and never developed any street sense because of it. Then he puts himself in a serious and irresposible position that brings him in front of police interrogators and undoubtly panicked and was reaching for a way out.

Let's face it he and Shaq weren't the best of friends so why not throw him under the bus, especially if what he said was true. At that point, he had seen Shaq skate, on the job and apparently in life too. Shaq was getting away with so much that it irked him to no end. Kobe was busting his arse during the season and in the off-season only to see the Big Ingrate put off surgery,get out of shape, curse out the owner, and be the adoring, funny, soundbite-dispensing figure that the local media just fawned over (and protected). I think resentment might be an understatement.

Finally, you mention the summer of his discontent. Now as a Laker fan I was frustrated with the lack of trades and drafting of capable players up to that point. I mean I don't know how many times I cursed the names of Kwame, Smush, Devean, Cook, Sasha, Slava, Luke, etc. Can you imagine playing with them for 82 games? Especially if you were told that you would be surrounded with championship-caliber players. Now try being optimistic year after year after yet another first round playoff loss. At some point you are going to blow up. Kobe finally did. He didn't handle it in the best manner but nothing brings public scrutiny and pressure to management like a good old on-air meltdown. As it turned out things got better, players improved and trades were made that fortified the team for years to come. No one could've predicted that. Especially last summer when in spite of Kobe's demands or because of it, Laker fans have plenty to cheer about.

It's too bad your hate makes you ignorant. You're going to miss one hell of a playoff run.

So much has been said by so many on these boards in defense of Kobe's rightful place among past MVP's that it may all be a moot point. As eloquently and as earnestly as we've tried to convey the facts and the blatant disregard of a player so dynamic that such a debate should even take place is ludicrous.

I can't remember a Los Angeles sports superstar, yes a true superstar, that has been so maligned for so long and for what. We all recognize the effort, the desire, the unyielding spirit to be the best that has endeared us all and yet for some his best isn't good enough. He came to us as a child and we've witnessed his growth, from his early days as a raw and impetuous rookie, through the glorious triumphs of three NBA championships and also through the dark days of Colorado. He is a son to us all and a sports icon of Los Angeles like Magic, Kareem, Jerry West, Fernando Valenzuela, Tommy Lasorda, and others before him.

Despite the chants of M-V-P and the constant debate that occurs on these boards and undoubtedly in the media rooms across the sports world, Kobe may never be truly recognized for his efforts in the manner others have and will in the future. What have we done to our sports champions that they've been deconstructed and downgraded to fit the bias in our heads. Fans, true and honest fans of the team they've followed since childhood will always know that we were lucky to witness greatness. A greatness that embodied a competitive fire and a sheer determination to win even if his methods were unpopular. As long as the outcome, the end result, the accumulation of all the slings and arrows that came his way results in a joyous parade down Figueroa then we can say it was all worth the fight.

The downloading of songs and albums off the internet has exploded over the last ten years. Sites like Apple's iTunes, Napster, and Rhapsody has made purchasing music simple and inexpensive. However there is the dark side of music downloads. The unofficial and unsantioned file-sharing sites that allow users to download music for free from other users has caused the music industry to cry foul and report the loss of millions because of it. As a result the music industry from executives to performers have aggresively pursued legal action to recoup money from downloaders. What I've realized from downloading music myself and what the industry has overlooked is that most new music sucks.

The RIAA, or Recording Industry Association of America, is the trade group that represents the U.S. recording industry. They claim piracy has been responsible for the loss of millions and millions of revenue because people are illegally downloading music instead of buying physical CDs. This is the same industry that fought the emergance of the new technology because it took consumers out of the record stores  and allowed them to buy single songs and albums online. Instead of embracing this new avenue for music they tried to crush the growth by adding restrictions on the new format so people couldn't download and use the music in more than one player or for only a limited time. Needless to say, the industry wasn't ready to evolve but consumers were more than ready to have more control and options in their music buying.

The industry continued to try and sue every illegal downloading site and downloaders, even an 11-year girl for thousands of dollars in one instance. According to the industry it was the pirates that were taking money out of the pockets of artists and everyone involved in making the music. Now that is true to a certain extent. Many people who were enthralled with this new method of acquiring music dowloaded thousands of songs and albums and some made copies to sell and well you can see the problem. But for most people the question was "Why buy an album with only two or three good songs when I can buy just the songs I want or the entire album for free?"

Before downloading, you'd have to buy the album, buy whatever singles were available, or record off the radio on cassette. I remember making a tape of favorites songs for myself plenty of times and that was okay. Of course the quality wasn't great but good enough. I also remember buying albums that only had a few good songs but the industry got my money anyway regardless of the quality of the product. That is where the problem lies. If the quality of artists and their music were better then you'd have more consumers willing to pony up $15-18 for a physical CD.

CD sales have been on the decline for years even in the infancy of downloading sites. Illegal downloading was a convenient scapegoat. It was the unscrupulous pirates out there stealing music that were damaging the marvelous industry of music professionals. They ignored the lack of quality music and artists and the emerging new market that the internet provided. I have downloaded legally and illegally a lot of music. I won't say exactly how much but I've ended up deleting most of the stuff that I got for free. I was more willing to try an artist, an album, a different genre that I'm used to perhaps, because it was available at no cost to me. Sure you can now sample an albums songs before buying but that is too time consuming. I realized that most new music in different genres were just mediocre and consisted again of only a few songs of worth.

There are certain artists whose albums I buy without hesitation or listening prior to. They are artists that have a history of quality albums and are usually the bigger names in the industry. Red Hot Chili Peppers, U2, Ludacris, Kanye West, Linkin Park, Outkast, etc., all put out a very good product, well worth shelling out money for. Of course there are always artists that are diamonds in the rough. You can occasionally find an indie artist but the majority of music isn't worth a single much less an album.

Slowly but surely the industry is realizing the profitbility of internet sales. Downloads recently surpassed CD sales revenue. The light finally went on in the industry that downloads were not going away. The restrictions that consumers hate has been eased and more freedom to use the music you buy the way you want. The quality still isnt great but at least buyers have more power to choose. The pressure remains on the industry to churn out better music.

I wasn't a big fan of Heath Ledger. I knew he had done some solid work, yes even in Brokeback Mountain, for which he was nominated for an Oscar, but wasn't an actor I'd purposely go out and see. Then he was picked to be the Joker in the new Batman film and as a Batman geek I was very skeptical. He didn't look like any Joker from the comic books. The Joker was suppose to be tall, gaunt, with an angular face. Ledger had none of that. What he did have apparently was acting talent that enabled him to impress co-stars, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine. That's high praise. All i've read and seen so far leads me to believe that he made the role his own and through a darker interpretation than Jack Nicholson's turn in Batman in '89 has perhaps saved his best performance for last. 

As a fan of Batman in all forms I of course put Ledger's Joker photo as my profile picture in anticipation for the newest Batman film, "The Dark Knight," coming this summer. Just another geeky move for a geeky blogger. Then reality set in with the announcement of Ledger's death yesterday. He was found naked, face down in his bed with sleeping pills near by. As of this writing there's no conclusive determination of his death. In a matter of moments the goofy placement of Joker on my profile took on an eerie and jarring realization that the picture I placed was that of a dead man.

 While there is always a media circus when a celebrity passes especially under the circumstances that were involved in Ledger's death certain things gets lost among the paparazzi photos and so-called entertainment "news" reports. Heath Ledger, like many that die everyday, was a man and a father. He leaves behind a two-year old daughter. As a father of a two-year old daughter myself it is heartbreaking to think of not existing to see her everyday and to see her grow up. There is an energy that generates within me that comes directly from her and her smile, her laugh, her hug, and her voice. I could not fathom a life without that. I'd hate to reason that Ledger chose to end his own life when the alternative was so much more enriching and enlightening. 

The basic reason for this blog was to shed some light behind the picture that was inspired by the now deceased Heath Ledger and now will remain as a tribute to his work. Unlike a certain radio host who celebrates death I'd rather celebrate a life. I think we take for granted that there will be a tomorrow and ignore what stands before us today. We just need to make every moment every waking hour count on some level before our time is up.

The Steroid Era Certified

The George Mitchell Report on rampant steroid use in Major League Baseball has been an example of what desperate measures desperate men will take to gain an advantage at the cost of the integrity of not only baseball but of sports in general. In an age where different sporting leagues vie for the same sports enthusiast dollar, an entire league chose to look the other way at the illegal steroid use that helped revive and prolong careers of their most talented players and generated millions of dollars in return. Now the naming of eighty players doesn’t provide a sweeping portrait of the drug culture of the league but merely a snapshot of an attitude that clearly states the ends justify the means. Baseball’s legacy will be forever be tainted with twenty years of alleged and confirmed drug use that will resonate for some but will be recognized by all.

After the baseball strike of 1994, owners and players had to have noticed the backlash of the work stoppage. Fans didn’t return in the same numbers and were rightfully bitter after the strike that put a halt to some interesting events that were unfolding that year. The hapless Montreal Expos had a six-game lead and in first place, Tony Gwynn was on pace to hit .400, Matt Williams was contending to surpass Roger Maris’ 61 homeruns before Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, and Barry Bonds.

Then gradually the record books began to be threatened over the next thirteen years to the delight and financial windfall of baseball owners and players. In 1998, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa provided a two-man race to break the same Maris record that Williams was not allowed to challenge. In 2004, Eric Gagne ended a record 84 save streak. In 2001, Barry Bonds broke the single season homerun record that Mark McGwire had set with 73 and in 2007 broke all-time career homerun record. While all of these accomplishments were significant and exciting to fans that came out in droves they also came under suspicion by those in the media and the public at large. Articles were written concerning rumors and speculation about perhaps it was steroids that were responsible for the surge in record breaking feats and spikes in averages of players who had previously underperformed. Baseball commissioner, Bud Selig tried to implement, though not aggressively, drug testing that the mighty player’s union would not agree to, in their words to “protect the privacy of the players.”

Apparently the privacy the union was trying to preserve was the unofficial tolerance of sports-enhancing drugs. Steroids and human growth hormone became rampant and so entrenched in the training routine for big leaguers that it became part of the scouting report. The Mitchell Report provided the names of roughly eighty players and trainers that used or provided the illegal drugs. Most are out of baseball and those that are active are nearing the end of their careers. Are there others that weren’t mentioned but still actively using steroids? Surely there are others that couldn’t be verified despite suspicions and even after the investigation it will continue underground for those desperate individuals that will use it as a method to maintain a competitive edge.

As George Mitchell reported, there is plenty of blame to go around. The players, the union, owners, commissioner, agents, trainers, scouts, GMs, everyone is responsible for the tarnished image of a sport that holds their records so hallowed and their legends with such esteem. The arrogance and reckless abandoned by so many to use the super-human performance on the field to line their pockets with money and the public’s confidence has just set the league back once again. Perhaps the disdain will not translate in attendance numbers. Fans will once again return to the game they cherish with their children. Some will not care for what’s happened and consider cheating par for the course. The only real losers will be the legacies of Hank Aaron and Roger Maris. The records that they achieved with pure talent and hard work now cast aside by chemically enhanced opportunists in a time when baseball said it was okay to cheat.