It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

UPDATE - For the sake of expediency I have published these thoughts without having fully edited them to make it "flow" better. I'm still embarking on this whole Christmas/Advent thought process and with Christmas just days away, I wanted to make sure to get this fledged out. I apologize if this appears to be a jumbled mess of writing and preachiness, I tried really hard to not make it that. But as I wrote out my thoughts I started to make sense of some of it and make conclusions. I write this more for me and myself than to appear to being "preachy" to you. I hope you enjoy it and I pray that this will continue to make your days merry and bright as we celebrate the birth of the greatest man who ever lived, the Savior of Mankind. Merry Christmas!!!



Been thinking more about this Christmas story and the fact that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. Last time focused on the shepherds and their comparisons to us. The normal mundane human going about their day-to-day job and yet God brings down his glory to the shepherds, to us. And their response to it compared to what our response is. One comment left by a reader mentioned their “scrooge mood” response to Christmas and how it has changed somewhat as a result of the post. And I feel that is the best comment someone has ever left me. It bums me out that Evangelicals allow the world and its systems to “bum them out.” To let it seep into their very fabric and being and sap the glory of God from their lives. Don’t get me wrong, I’m guilty of it too. But at the expense of advocating CEO Christianity (Christmas and Easter Only) it is at Christmas and Easter that Christians should be at their peak of revelry and fun.

Both are doctrinal tenets of the faith but both are clouded in mystery and mysticism. Incarnate, Infinite God taking on the form of a helpless new born babe, being entrusted to the care and provision of humanity. The same humanity that if they have proven anything, it’s that we screw things up, actually, we screw everything up. Incarnate, Infinite God dying with the weight of the world on his shoulders, only to show His Incarnate and Infinite Godship by rising from the dead. All to rescue our screwed up humanity.

But Easter doesn’t carry the “scrooge” effect with Christians. There isn’t the commercialism and consumerism attached to Easter as there is with Christmas. Easter has been hijacked, but Christmas gets the negative connotation. I’d like to diffuse that. I had to start with myself and begin to embrace Christmas some years ago and everything around it. As well as put a renewd focus on the Christmas story and see where it applies nowadays.

So I have continued this thought with the story of the wise men.

First things first. I know people like to harp on the fact that in the nativity scenes around the world, there are 3 wise men represented for the 3 gifts brought to Jesus. More than likely, it wasn’t 3 individual wise men on their own. It was a massive caravan of hundreds and they probably met up with Jesus and the family as much as a year or two after his birth. These trivial issues behind us, let’s continue.

Most times the focus of the wise men is the gifts. Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The King, the Priest, and the Sacrifice. Or the focus is on the mystical journey these wise men embarked on and how that applies to our life. The fact that there was this spiritual force in play put in action by God to turn the cosmos to get these wise men from afar to follow a moving star to the boondocks of Bethlehem. We feel this sometimes in our own lives. That there is a spiritual force at work and all things are linked together someway, somehow. It’s all been contrived and set in motion to arrive to this one moment. And we are left scratching our head sometimes when we realize it. How did that just happen? Sometimes God will move the whole universe for you to experience him.

But there’s another element to this story I’ve been contemplating.

It seems that everyone wants to talk about the story behind Christmas. To give life to all the central characters and share in the secret they were able to discover. All the big bookstores have displays setup to sell books that speak about Christmas. To give you the meaning behind Christmas. To maybe provide more depth and understanding to the cast of characters. Most of these books are conjecture on the part of the author. Sprinkling in real life with some historical perspective with some just good old fashioned writing. All to entertain you and warm your hearts. Well, I want to explore this secret. A secret that not a lot of people think literally about, but if you think literally about it, it will change your life so dramatically you’ll never be the same. And it’s all based around the story of the wise men. We can still see the bumper stickers that say “Wise men still seek Jesus.” Well, we still have to seek him and it’s interesting where we can find him. To give you a hint, I’d almost call this, “Why I stick with the Church 3” because if you can grasp this you’ll look at people and church differently.

The wise men blazed this path and discovered something about the way God works. They were lead somewhat mystically to “The King of the Jews” but stopped along the way to still ask “Where is the King of the Jews.” A lot of people are asking that even now a days, Where is Jesus? While we can’t discover it in the same way the wise men did we can still discover it and act on it.

Ever seen pictures of Jerusalem? Israel? Bethlehem maybe? How do those compare to Hawaii or Ireland, or Bermuda? Israel is chalky white and cold hard concrete. Not a pretty place. Not very “green.” Why in the world would God show up there? I’ve been to Cancun and Cancun looks a lot better then Israel. Israel looks like the backside of the world. Why not show up in Rome, the capital of the known world?

Jesus comes to this place with no pomp and circumstance. Sure there's the big party in heaven, but what of the earth? His mom was a teenager, who wasn’t married to his earthly dad. Despite the picture, she is probably walking, not on a donkey like the Hallmark card’s show. They were dirty, knocking on everyone’s door looking for a place to stay. Started at the Hampton Inn, then went to the Motel 6, then the Econo Lodge, then the hourly motel and then the truck stop, and then the rest area, and finally someone says, "hey I have an old Chevy in my garage and behind there is a cot if you wanna stay there."

Where’s the pomp? Where’s the circumstance? Instead, it’s the smell of animals and stubble and hay and fleas and birth. All those smells and earth and dust of travel mixed together.

And isn’t that just like God? So humble to hide one of the greatest events of all time.

This is the birth of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and it’s hidden in a shed. We’ve come up with all kinds of King James words to make it grand. He was born in a manger. He was born in a stable. Stable makes it sound permanent. But if we say he was born in a shed, in a barn, next to dung, they laid him in a dog dish that was big enough for all the animals to eat out of is crazy…just crazy.

He was so hidden and tucked away in earthiness, that some of the wisest men in all the world had to stop and ask for directions. These guys were waiting for this. They had put their money where their mouth was. They know it is happening and they go out searching for him, “traveling afar” and he’s so hidden that they have to ask the leader of the Jews where the King of the Jews is and he doesn’t even know. He so doesn’t know that he says to an entourage of hundreds of brilliant people, be sure to look hard for him. He’s hidden. Trying to find a needle in a hay-stack.

But they do find him, lead by divine providence. They see him, leave their precious gifts, depart, and our mystically lead again to not return to Herod. So that is their story.

What is ours?

Where is Jesus?

Is he hidden in the stuff of the earth?

Yes he is.

And you know what stuff he is hidden in?

You and Me!!!

Now, I don’ think we go to each other and fall down and worship each other. But I can be a blessing to Jesus by being a blessing to any one of you. Just as I can persecute Jesus by persecuting anyone of you. Jesus even implicates Paul this way at his conversion.

Here is why I go to church?

I get to see Jesus. He dresses up like Jeff and like Matt and like Corey. And he is visible in the eyes of every person there. He hid himself in you and me. I see him in Jeff, I see him in Matt, I see him in Corey. And he likes looking at himself. And that is why he put himself in both Corey and me. So now when the 2 of us look at each other, Jesus, goes “man I’m good looking.” And he’s not ego-maniacal because he is God and he’d be idolatrous if he didn’t think that.

This is the Christian ethic for loving one another. It’s why Mother Theresa could take care of dying people and orphans in Calcutta. I think she was looking for Jesus in each and everyone of them. Ministering to them like they were Jesus.

Christmas and the magi path is a wonderful story and I think if we’re wise we are still going to seek him. And one of the ways we discover him is in the lives of each other. The way I treat any of you is the way I am treating Jesus. This is the reason for us to go to church. Maybe I get there first so Jesus can walk on a snow free path to church. Then maybe Corey gets their early and he’s playing some drums getting ready because he’s going to play to Jesus who’s out in the congregation getting ready to worship Jesus. I’m not trying to take this to a tripped-out new age level and saying were all divine. But the logical conclusion of Jesus being in you and me is that we get to love Jesus by loving each other, and if we seek him through this mystical journey and find Jesus in one another, the world wouldn’t know what to do with us.

We should be ministering to each other. Bring gifts to Jesus by bringing gifts to each other. Being a blessing to each other to be a blessing to Jesus in each of us. Respond to the Savior inside of us, not to what comes out of our mouths. And allow yourself to be real and transparent enough for them to see Jesus in you and to allow others to be a blessing to you. Let people minister to you and be a blessing to you. Our own pride or fear can get in the way and we run away from help. But let it be done for you.

I hear all the time from people, “Why does everyone give me a present for Christmas, it’s Jesus birthday anyway?”

Well you know why I give presents?

Because it’s Jesus birthday and you’re his body and so I’m going to give you the ugly tie with the lit up palm tree, because I want to. I love you and I love Jesus inside of you.

M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S

Sick

The whole household. Seth has an ear and eye infection. Michele got a bit of the flu and I seemed to have gotten the middle ground. A high fever (101.3) and the aches and pains but at least I could keep food down. But talk about feeling helpless. I'm trying to be this big tough guy dad male macho and I'm watching my family travail in sickness and unable to do anything. I could barely pick Seth up and carry him to Michele when he needed to eat. But I'd feel 100% guilty if Michele went to get him herself, never knowing when she'd need to run down the hall to....well you know.

So that is why I was MIA Tuesday and Wednesday.

So here is a quick run down.

I lost this week in Fantasy Football, so I am playing for 3rd place. Which still results in winning money.

And no Last 5 this week and there will be none until after the new year.

Matter of fact, things will be very light around here until after the New Year. I have some posts already done and just waiting for me to hit "publish" so you'll get those and I'll let you know very quickly what happen this weekend to my fantasy team, but that's about all you'll get from me after Friday.

What Really Matters

Liberty is Brewing

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

"In the air, there's a feeling of Christmas"

Kind of makes you wonder what all the hub-bub is about.

Yesterday I made my annual pilgrimage out to the local malls and shops to do some Christmas shopping. And try not to laugh, but I actually like shopping at Christmas time. At no other time of the year can Michele even come close to getting me excited to want to go shopping. But, come Christmas time, I go with her when I need to and I always make one trip on my own.

As I said, last night I ended up not getting home until nearly 10 after shopping 2 malls, a couple other strip mall locations, and a Meijer. And I enjoyed it...all of it. As I wrote the same thing this time last year, I love everything about Christmas. And I thing it has something to do with the fact that Christmas never changes. Same decorations, same songs, same story, etc. But I got to thinking yesterday about all of this.....

What's the big deal?

Trees all over the world, wreaths on doors, whole neighborhoods full off lights.

What’s the deal? It’s just a birthday right?

Christmas is more than just a day that Santa supposedly comes and it’s more than the day we max out our credit cards. It’s a day set aside each year to celebrate the birth of our King and Messiah Jesus Christ. We celebrate him because he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the greatest man that has ever been and still is the greatest man that has ever been. In fact he is so powerful that he was born of a virgin and lived a perfect and sinless life, teaching of his Kingdom, using stories to explain that Kingdom and how it works. And then he did the ultimate thing. He was beaten and flogged for us. Nailed to a cross, gasping for breath and of a broken heart, breathed his last breath and died for our sins. And of course, 3 days later, rose from the dead declaring himself both Savior and God for all of eternity. Because of that he is available to us today. The Bible says whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

That’s why there are wreaths hanging around. That’s why we have Christmas trees. That’s why we have carols. That’s what the hub-bub is about.

And when you compare our hub-bub nowadays to this miracle, how does it measure up? How does all the pomp and circumstance and energy exerted nowadays compare to the same of the original day? Specifically, to the Sheppards response on the actual day?

Of all the people in the Christmas story, the sheppards are probably the most like us. Normal blue-collar people who we know very little about. We don’t know their names or where they are from or even exactly what it was they were doing in the field (watching over their flocks…what does that mean). Kind of like us.

But God interrupts all that normal and mundane. A heavenly host, the glory of the Lord all around in the middle of the night. The deep, dark midnight sky fully bright and fully alive with the same glory that Moses had to hide his face from.

BOOM!!!!

There it is.

What did they do with it?

They were told all this truth, but did not sit around in the field and just talk about and converse about these deep spiritual truths that the angels told them. And that happens a lot at Christmas. The theology is extremely important in the Christmas season. 100% God and 100% man and both are necessary for salvation. But we can talk about Christmas in such deep ways that we don’t really experience it too much. We get too wrapped in the teaching about.

Just the same we can make it too much of a pageant. Dress up in costumes and turn on all kinds of twinkling lights. But the Sheppard’s didn’t really pull out some wreaths and garland in celebration. One Sheppard didn’t reach down, pull of his sock and tell everyone his crazy idea of hanging that sock from a fireplace and having some fat old elf stuff it full of toys. That’s not what they did.

What they did, is get up from where they were and went to the party of Jesus birth. Quite the invitation!!

They got up and went and saw it with their own eyes. And the Bible says when they saw it, they went out telling EVERYBODY what they saw. We have carols that we sing to tell everyone about the fact that the sheppards went and told everyone what they saw at the party. Wouldn’t it be cool if we could have gone to the party? Wouldn't it be cool if we told EVERYBODY about the invitation we've all been given?

And?

Who cares?

Does it even matter anymore?

40 years ago a highly anticipated report was released that was supposed to put to the rest the controversy and questions surrounding the assignation of the President of the United States. 40 years later, no one knows anything. The Warren Commission report was supposed to put to the rest the assassination of JFK. Instead it left it wide open.

Similarly, the Mitchell report will be released today and its purpose is to put to the rest the issue of Steroids within MLB.

Well whoopdee do.

Does anyone even care by now?

People are more curious about the “80 players” that will be named in the report. It’s a curiosity thing more than it is a caring thing.

Alex Rodriguez?

Pudge Rodriguez?

Gary Sheffield?

Roger Clemens?

Randy Johnson?

If those names appear what’s going to happen to the sport of baseball?

Nothing.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m going to be sure to be at my computer at 2pm today when the report drops on the public. I want to see all the names too. But this isn’t like the Black Sox scandal of 1919. This isn’t guys “throwing a game” This isn’t Pete Rose betting on a game he is competing and/or managing. I know, I know, Pete Rose admits to gambling on baseball, admits to gambling on the Reds, but he never gambled against the Reds, or so he says. The integrity of the game has been tarnished, but none of us go to a baseball game and are suspicious the outcome has been “fixed.” We just expect to see a home run every inning.

Big Deal….right?

I’ve said it here before, so I won’t waste anymore of your time except to say this is a glorified book report. The issue of steroids is a bummer to baseball fans, no doubt about it. I don't like it. Bonds is an a-hole, that’s why he gets beat up the most. But he’ll make the Hall of Fame. McGwire? Probably won’t make it. But steroids aren’t a moral issue like the media wants to make it.

What we have is a great Oliver Stone script. Just as Oliver spent 3 hours presenting every freakin nuance of the JFK assassination, he has all the makings of a great 3 hour extravaganza making a mockery of a National Pastime.

Think about what this whole story has. Drugs? Check. Good guys? Check. Bad Guys? Check. A shady gray area between the Good guys and Bad guys? Check. A suspect leader? Check. We have speculation, conspiracy, back door shenanigans, and cover-ups. We have old pictures as possible evidence. We have interviews and taped testimony. We have (unfortunately) death and deceit. We have a massive investigation. We have a hyped media. We have one person who is the sole “patsy” of the witch hunt, and we have a slew of characters that have a shade of suspicion around them. And now we have a book report. A year and a half in the making that the public is waiting with bated breath to view. And all it will do is confirm what we all already knew……

Which is what?

The Last 5....(12.12.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (the I cannot believe no one left any comments from the last The Last 5 that had all the hilarious You Tube clips)

.... Songs played in shuffle mode on my MP3 Player

• The Doors - L.A. Woman
• The Who - Pinball Wizard
• U2 - Vertigo
• Third Eye Blind - Semi-Charmed Life
• The Wallflowers - One Headlight

.... Blog entries I read

• Agent Zero (I kind of find Gil entertaining)
• Always good to get a player's perspective, especially when it is articulated very well
• Way to go "Florida Quarterback!"
• Just a way to keep up on some of the Big 10 stuff going on.
• Not really a blog, but you can go this website everyday and get new and exciting information.

.... Videos from You Tube

I think you forget how much we actually domintaed the Lakers in Game 5 of the Finals in 2004


these next two are pretty sweet




40 years ago, people were concerned about the "consumerism" of Christmas, and so some people made a cartoon about it.....priceless



So if that is the meaning, watch the movie. This is one of the few movies actually worth your time. Check out the trailer if you haven't seen the movie.

Fantasy Football Playoffs Round 1 Update

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

Nothing serious, I had a bye week, of course my team blew up for over 160 points(Favre, Grant, Lendale, Addai, Jags Defense....no way was I going to play the Pitt D against New England) and I have to play against freaking Tom Brady and the Patriots D for a 3rd time this year.

UGH!!!

Now, I have beaten that team twice already by a combined 13.5 points too. So, I know he can be beat, but it is really hard to beat a team 3 times, especially when they have Tom Brady.

Is there any doubt that Brady will have 5 td passes in the 1st half alone?

None the less, I anticpate a good game from my squad and plan on playing for all the marbles next week.

Anyone going to try and Do the Opposite next year?


Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

Conservative Christian - A Prologue

UPDATE: This is a prologue to the series of posts I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I have been composing on Christianity and the Conservative movement. I have really been thinking about this whole "Conservative Christian" moniker people like to throw around. And the more I wrote this prologue and wrote the next 3 posts in the series, the more I am finding it harder and harder to see the connection. Why is the prologue and why do the next 3 posts seem so different? Maybe you the reader will see something, but as I wrote the prologue and the subsequent follow-ups, I took a turn somewhere. None the less, know that I am going to publish the whole series (on Mondays) just as I have written them.



There are many conservatives who would like to return to the era of frequent public executions, even hangings. In fact, conservatives are generally united in strong support for the death penalty, a fact the liberal media enjoys equating with the election of George W. Bush as President, since as Governor of Texas, Bush presided over record numbers of executions. It is anecdotally said that Bush faced opposition to the death penalty from his mother, wife and daughters, but never flinched, even in the case of Karla Faye Tucker, an obviously rehabilitated evangelical Christian.

I support the death penalty. People like Ted Bundy and Timothy McVeigh deserved nothing less. As a Christian, I believe it is taught in scripture and I have no doubt that Jesus would have supported it. If I served on a jury, I would express my support for the death penalty without embarrassment.

Having said all that, I am uneasy with the current conservative posture on the death penalty. Not with the position, but with the posture; with our approach to the application of the issue. But it isn’t just the death penalty, it’s a lot of things that our “posture” is a problem within the “Conservative Christian” movement. The death penalty premise is an easier subject to express posture versus position. I know we are talking about human life, but the death penalty isn’t a “sticky” subject. At least I think it isn’t in relative terms to Immigration, Iraq war, Abortion, Homosexual Rights, Healthcare, etc.

Let me be clear about one thing. I do not believe we should question the death penalty as a way of making conservatism or Christianity "kinder" or "compassionate." If someone thinks that conservatism is cruel, they don't understand liberalism, which is tyranny masquerading as compassion. The Biblical admonitions that support capital punishment are presented as a way of properly valuing and respecting the fact that human beings are made in the image of God. It's not presented as a way to torture the guilty, but to remind the rest of us that people aren't like anything else in creation. I don't expect liberals to appreciate that, since they reject the Judeo-Christian worldview and its emphasis on the sacredness of human life. Note how liberals can't see why we oppose abortion yet support capital punishment.

No, my reconsideration is based on two factors: my enthusiastic belief in limited government, and my commitment to the idea of genuine, objective truth. Sad to say, I believe conservative enthusiasm for particular issues is obscuring the importance of these two principles. And we must be a principled movement, or our positions mean nothing.

Let's start with my second objection (what I believe to be the lesser of my thought out arguments, meaning you’ll probably find a lot of holes in this point, oh well): the importance of genuine, objective truth. Conservatives may not entirely agree on the nature of truth or the means for discovering it, but generally, they have refused the postmodern spirit and insisted that judgments, policies and personal choices be evaluated on their coherence to an objective standard of truth. Whether Christians or not, conservatives have said "You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

What does this have to do with the death penalty? Plenty. In making a judgment about guilt and punishment, conservatives need to take into consideration all the truth in a given situation. Frankly, this seems to be quite the opposite of what many conservatives want to do. For example, the truth of mental status applies in the case of Andrea Yates, the Houston mother who drowned her kids. Yes, it did result in dueling expert psychologists explaining her mental state, but we aren't acting on principle if we ignore that aspect of the case, even with the clear outrage of the death of five children. We should say that no punishment is appropriate until we know if this mother was rational, insane or some mixture of the two.

Every couple weeks or months, the news magazines like 20/20 or the big news channels CNN and Fox News run a special report where a convicted murderer was released because DNA evidence proved they could not have committed the crimes for which they were convicted. Conservatives say little about this, and I'd go so far as to say I suspect some are not happy at the development. The fact is, this is the triumph of truth, and conservatives should rejoice. It is liberals and postmodernists who want us to believe that truth is political and imaginary, shaped only by the agenda of the powerful (government and religious entities). As conservatives, we believe truth is a force that brings down tyrants and rights wrongs. We don't believe it is a commodity to be ignored or manipulated.

As the debate continues, it seems there is a fear, not entirely irrational, that we should be swift and quick in the use of capital punishment to insure that the culture of excuses, with all its various prophets of irresponsibility, doesn't turn the entire justice system into the O.J. Simpson trial. I sympathize and largely support that notion, but we will not achieve that end by reducing the "truth factors" considered in a particular case. The Houston mom was eventually ruled to be insane by a reasonable definition, as such she must be dealt with differently than McVeigh, and conservatives should be quick to say it. We should strongly support the distinction between children and adults, and be against the kind of sentencing that sees them as the same, because it is the truth that they are not the same. We should welcome the evidence of science in any form that gets us closer to what really happened. Truth is always our friend and ally.

When we love the truth, we are all more free. And freedom is a core conservative principle. Quick justice and swift punishment are not the legacies of our system of government, but the legacies of lynchings and tyranny. Conservatives may not like judicial activism, the ACLU, the trial lawyers lobby and the like, but let's not forget that the truthful use of the justice system is a precious benefit of our continuing American revolution. On any given day, it may be the only protection any one of us has, and perhaps our only hope of publishing the truth.

So, we go to my other consideration (the one I hold to dearly and is the crux of a lot of my belief), the principle of limited government. And here, I am bitterly disappointed with many of my conservative counterparts. We will applaud the limitation of government on taxes and regulations. We applaud the limitation of government in taking over the private sector. We applaud the limitation of government in forcing the liberal agenda on our families. But can't we see that limited government is important when it comes to the issues of our agenda as well?

Conservatives are attempting to preserve the ideas of the American revolution, particularly the idea that unlimited central government inevitably leads to abuse. It’s actually something I was taught relentlessly while sitting under the tutelage of school administrators. Any study of history will quickly reveal that one of the primary abuses of government in history has been the application of capital punishment. Christian scripture clearly says that government has the power to bear the sword, but that same scripture shows the execution of Jesus by the state as an evil act. The founding fathers of this nation were good candidates for swift execution by the British government. All dictatorial empires have used capital punishment to eliminate opposition and intimidate the public. To listen to some conservatives talk, you'd think that captial punishment, like Christmas, can only do us good. Read Foxe's Book of Martyrs. All those burning Protestants were fried up.........legally.

When we allow the government to execute McVeigh, we should be reluctantly yielding such power. When we see the incarceration of thousands of Americans for crimes like personal drug use or tax evasion, we should be uneasy. It is quite possible that capital punishment is abused by state governments and it is quite appropriate that conservatives be the loudest voices urging caution in the use of the ultimate punishment. Not because it is wrong, but because government is sinful and awkward, usually acting in the interests of the powerful, and not to be trusted completely in any situation. Even when implementing our agenda.

As I see it, conservatives are somewhat seduced by their desire for justice and order. While these values are important, even crucial, they cannot be purchased at the price of making government more powerful. Freedom, not order, is our primary value. Justice must include the possibility that government can be unjust, and frequently finds ways to punish those who are innocent of anything other than deviation from the norm.

So I would prefer that our attitude towards capital punishment be seasoned with a bit less enthusiasm, since we are, after all, giving to government the right to kill us all for whatever reasons it deems acceptable. That makes patriots nervous. So where are the patriots?

I don't expect many conservatives to join me in these reconsiderations, but I think they are important. Conservatives are showing a dangerous tendency to be willing to give up their freedoms to purchase more order in society. If we are reduced to such a choice, all of us will have difficulty choosing, but consider one option. If we empower tyrants with more power and less truth, how will freedom loving people rise up to oppose such a government and restore true justice?

Next I tackle myself.

Everything is Spiritual

"Everything we do we do as an integrated being. 100% physical, 100% spiritual. These first Christians latched onto this right away.

'Whatever you do whether in word or deed do it in the name of Jesus Christ.'

What were they saying?

Every act is a spirtual act. It is, whether or not you are aware of the implications of what you are doing."

This is still one of the best speeches, lectures, sermons whatever you want to call it, I have ever heard.

Cannot wait to get my copy in the mail and pop it in the DVD player.

Well worth the $20 plus S&H.

Here's a morsel.

My Perception 101 - It's All About Him, Me, You

It is with a heavy heart I go back into the annals of My Perception to bring a post written, what now seems to be, a very short 8 months ago.

Many of us know by now of the ghastly events that took place in a Nebraska mall yesterday afternoon. And as the details unfold and the news media outlets search for connections and string together a framework to answer "why?" I still believe the problem is all of us.

And it isn't just mass shootings at malls or from clock towers, it is most of our "problems." We fail to get over ourselves. It just takes something as schocking as a high-school shooting to put the spotlight on something as personal as say a lack of commitment or communication barriers.

Read: - It's All About Him, Me, You

The Last 5....(12.05.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (the WHAT A MONSTER TRADE by the Detroit Tigers Edition, instant World Series Contenders, if not favorites)

.... Songs played in shuffle mode on my MP3 Players

• Audioslave - Original Fire (you knew it was only a matter of time before that song popped back up)
• The Cure - Just Like Heaven
• Beattles - All You Need is Love
• Stevie Wonder - Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours
• U2 - Beautiful Day

.....According to Forbes, Poorest Perforimg Cars of 2007 (good thing my company has the Chrysler contract..yippee)

• Chrysler Sebring
• Dodge Nitro
• Jeep Liberty
• Dodge Caliber
• Dodge Magnum

....Christmas Traditions I wonder if I could give them up (meaning I think I'd never be able too...make sense?), in no particular order

• Snow
• Christmas Lights (white only)
• Shopping for Christmas Gifts
• Christmas Music
• Egg Nog

....You Tube Videos I watched (you are going to want to check all of these out, guaranteed to make you laugh out loud, loudly!!)

Week 13 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

Well, I lost 108.3 to 145.6 to finish at 8-5. But, I did win the divison on tie-breakers and the number 1 seed in the playoffs (I am the New England Patriots....ha) and have earned a much needed bye week for next week. Favre hurt, Roy Williams hurt and probably out for the year, LenDale White also hurt with a dislocated finger, and Braylon is nursing a hamstring injury. The Pitt defense will be facing New England in Week 14 as well. So, what a perfect time to not have to worry about anything except my WR depth is hurt now. I do have Patrick Crayton and Anthony Gonzalez, so things aren't too bad.

I do wonder if I could have won this week's game if Favre and Roy hadn't gotten hurt and played less than half the game. Maybe not, but I did lose out on $45 by not winning the most points scored in the whole league. I finished second just 16.1 points behind the leader. That's a bummer, but Fantasy Football thrives on the coulda, woulda, shoulda dilema

I did kind of back into the divison championship, sort of. I started the season 0-2, then got to 1-3. before going 7-2 down the stretch and so taking the divison isn't "backing into it" necessarily. I know the Championship isn't won, but I've done a pretty good job proving that if you can't get your hands on the top 2 or 3 rb in all the land (even though S-Jax and LJ have burned many teams this year) you DO NOT need to draft a RB in the first 3 rounds to have legitmate fantasy football success.

So, there really won't be much of an update for week 14.

My top 3 - Braylon for 30.8, Ryan Grant with 21.8, and the Pitt D with 17 to total 69.6

His top 3 - Romo with 42.9, Mcgahee went for 30.7, and Andre Johnson with 24.2 for a total of 97.8.

Recap. I lost this week, but still won the divison, took the number one seed in the playoffs and all this from a team that drafted no RB until the 4th round (Thomas Jones), started 0-2, and had an average of 133.49 points scored against every week. Matter of fact, only one other team had over 1700 points scored him he finished with 1,770 and I had 1,735 scored against.

I still feel there are some doubters so hopefully I win this whole thing and can prove it.

Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

Two Words....

Chuck.

Norris.

My Perception - "Lite"

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.



You are use to this:

Religion
Global Warming
SCHIP
Healthcare
The Church
State Level Politics

Lately, all you've been getting is this:

Fantasy Football
The Last 5


I know, I know. It has been v-e-r-y boring here at My Perception lately. Fantasy Football and random lists of stuff is all I've done in the last month or so.

"Brian, you didn't even give us a Happy Thanksgiving!"

August, September and October were like gang busters for me. Something to say or type almost everyday. I produced a total of 59 posts those months. Take the rest of the year combined, including November and this post and it totals...59. I was on a roll. But lately, it's been MP - Lite (and I hate Lite Beer, literally hate it, "Tastes Great!" "Less Filling!" BLEH!!!). It's been MP - Lite and I know it. I've almost done it purposely.

But there's a reason behind it all.

Myself.

My perception has changed. Not the blog, but my actual perception of things (notice the small p not the Big P). I've really felt the movement of the Spirit in me in terms of what I have been focusing my time and efforts on lately. And basically, it hasn't been the Spirit. It's hasn't been Jesus, the Gospel, or his Church. It's been on my perception.

I'm not trying to get cathartic all of sudden, or confessional, or make a proclamation the blog is getting shutdown, or I'm moving it or changing it's name or anything like that. No, I'm not going to make a "private" blog where only select people will receive an email from me to join it. I'm just saying things are going to change right here at MP. And I'm not even sure how sudden or drastic that change will be. I'll still provide the sports (fantasy and real) and still eat up 15 minutes of your day you'll never get back every Wednesday with my Self-Award Winning "The Last 5 Posts." I'll still rant and rave and appear to be a stubborn, bull-headed, confrontational person hiding behind a laptop computer. But things may change, no, they will change.

I've already begun work on it. And so far, I'm up to a 3 part series on politics and my affiliation with them. I've also began work on another series called "Detach and Attach" which has stemmed from the politics one and from some other discussions over time bewteen me and all you readers here at MP and at other blogs listed to your right. I'm not really sure when I am going to start roling all of these out. Tomorrow? Today? Next week? Next Month?

I'm not sure.

I also have 4 or 5 other ideas and posts rolling around on the Blogger Dashboard and in my head. Some I have mentioned before (Happiness, Why Pro-Life matters, etc.) others just because (Aliens and The Mothman, New Religions, etc.) and others will look all too familiar (the farce that is global warming, just this side of Libertarian fiscal policies and attitude on the government, and quit being a baby about Church) but I am just waiting for the "appropriate" time to roll them out. Who knows when that will be.

Regardless of all this banter and meandering, MP-Lite will be ending soon. And while the posts will probably get a little farther apart and come out in made for TV format or as a "series" I think you'll see somewhat of a subject matter change but the content should be a lot more deeper than just Fantasy Football.

So stay tuned, please.


Paid for by the committee to do away with My Perception - Lite

The Last 5....(11.28.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (It's Jake's birthday everybody!!! Happy Birthday little bro)



....Songs played in Shuffle mode on my MP3 Player

• Andy Williams - The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
• Do They Know Its Christmas - Band Aid
• The White World of Winter - Bing Crosby
• God Rest Ye Merry, Gentleman - London Philharmonic
• Joy to the World - London Symphony Orchestra

.....People UofM should want as their Head Coach

• Les Miles - Have you seen all the talent at LSU? have you seen what he has done with that talent? If not for a 4th down conversion and a crazy fumble, that's a 4 loss team!!!
• Ron English - They guy's been a Coordinator for 2 years, lost all of his good players and promptly turned in a horrible job.
• Frank DeBord - You thought Lloyd carr was a horrible play caller, have you ever seen DeBord play call? I have, for 3 years at CMU. Hor-ib-le
• John L. Smith - The Kids are playing their tail off and the coaches are screwing it up.
• Me - I hate UofM, maybe they should hire one of the above guys (they will, it will Les Miles)

....."Odd News" from the AP

• Who cares abount the "Benji's"
• Kill Em' All
• Target Practice?
• $54,000, just sitting in a trash bag along the side of a road. Only in America?
• What else sits in a trash bag along the side of a road in America? I am warning you not for the faint of heart!

.....NFL Teams in the most current rendition of ESPN.com "Power Rankings"

• San Francisco 49ers
• St. Louis Rams
• Atlanta Falcons
• New York Jets
• Miami Dolphins

....NFL Teams in the PRESEASON ESPN.com "Power Rankings" (see why "preseason rankings" do not matter in the NFL or College Football?)

• Washington Redskins
• Houston Texans
• Detroit Lions
• Cleveland Browns
• Oakland Raiders

Paid for by the committee to bore your life with a list of the Last 5 whatever I want to put there.

Week 12 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.


Squeaking it out again? Kind of. I played against the guy who has Tom Brady and the Patriots D. Problem is he doesn't have much after that. Except he had Kolby Smith this week and started him, but the better team won (in my opinion...ha!).

144.8 to 139.8 and it really all came down to Thanksgiving, Sunday Night, and last night's Monday Night game. Brett Favre, Ryan Grant, and Joe Addai on T-day. The Patriots on Sunday night, and Pittsburgh on Monday night.

I was down 35 points heading into last night's game. I had Heath Miller and Pitt's D going, he had Najeh Davenport (told you he had nothing, his 2 starting RB's were Kolby Smith and Najeh Davenport). Heath Miller got me nothing, but the Steelers D pitched a shutout in a monsoon and got me 40 points!!!!

My top 3 - Favre with 45.1, Steelers D with 40, and Ryan Grant with 24.3 for 109.4
His top 3 - Kolby Freakin Smith with 37.2, Tom Brady at 35.6, and Patriots D getting 19 to combine for 91.8

So, I am 8-4, still sitting in first place with the number 1 overall seed. I did lose the overall points lead to the first place team in the other divison who is 7-5. If I win next week, I'll carry the number 1 seed and a bye week into the playoffs. If I lose next week, I can still win the divison based on some tie-breaker situations and what others do, etc., etc., etc. But bottom line, I am in the playoffs.

What a roller coaster of a ride Fantasy Football can be.

Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

The Last 5....(11.21.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (20th Anniversary Edition in conjunction with the Did You Know Edition)

.....Songs played in shuffle mode on my mp3 Player (Did you know that yesterday was the 20th Anniversary of U2's release of The Joshua Tree?)

• U2 - Where the Streets Have No Name

• U2 - With or Without You

• Pearl Jam - Worldwide Suicide

• U2 - Bullet the Blue Sky

• Bright Eyes - First Day of My Life

.....Actual Dates in November that Thanksgiving has fallen on (did you know that Thanksgiving will only fall on 6 specific days in November, the 5 below and the 22nd like this year and in 2001?)

• 23rd (2006)
• 24th (2005)
• 25th (2004)
• 27th (2003)
• 28nd (2002)

.....Year's Worst Performing Cars according to Yahoo Auto's and Forbes (did you know that I work for a company, Insight Network Logistics, who is the sole 3PL provider to make sure all Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep product make it to the dealership?)

• Chrysler Sebring
• Dodge Nitro
• Jeep Liberty
• Dodge Caliber
• Dodge Magnum

.....Players to Win the NL MVP in Baseball (Did you know that since the turn of the millenium only 5 players in the National League have won it?)

• Jimmy Rollins - SS Philadelphia Phillies (2007)
• Ryan Howard - 1b Philadelphia Phillies (2006)
• Albert Pujols - 1b St. Louis Cardinals (2005)
• Barry Bonds******************************************************* - OF San Francisco Giants (2004, 2003, 2002, 2001)
• Jeff Kent - 2b San Francisco Giants (2000)

Paid for by the committee to bore your life with a list of the Last 5 whatever I want to put there and to provide trivia and to show you how big of a cheater Barry Bonds is, he got indicted this week...haha

Week 11 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.


Squeaking it out again.

Not the way I want to do this thing. But a win is a win. I also beat the divison leader in the other divison. So I keep the number 1 seed, sitting at 7-4 with the most points scored, 2nd most scored against and seem to have locked up a playoff spot no matter what.

110.2 to 106.25.

WHEW!!!!!

As I said last week, my team has been completely overhauled. I pulled down 3 trades in 24 hours last week and for one week, things look good. Peyton, MB3, and the Titans D looked horrible. Meanwhile Addai stayed strong, Favre threw 3 td's and Roy Williams showed up for the second week in a row.

My top 3 - Favre - 28.9, Addai - 16.6, and Roy Will 16.2 for a total of 61.7
His top 3 - DJ Hackett - 28.2, Colts DST - 22, Santonio Holmes - 13.5 for a total of 63.7

I have 2 weeks to go and they are against (this week) the guy who has Tom Brady and the Pats D. Then the last week of the season is against the other guy in my division who is 7-4 and is only 39 points behind me for most scored in the league. If we both win this week, then me and him would play for division, number 1 seed in the playoffs, and most points scored in the league. Winning the division and the most points scored would win me about $100 and with the $40 I already won (highest score for 2 weeks) I'd end up paying for my entry fee this year.

I've already beat both these teams earlier in the year so I know I can do it. But it will be tough.


Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

Fantasy Football Update

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.



It'd be too confusing to lay it all out for everyone, but in the last 24 hours, I have cut 3 trades.

3 trades!!!

Gotta love the trade deadline.

Anyway, here is the new squad.

QB - Favre
WR - Braylon Edwards
WR - Roy Williams
RB - Joseph Addai
RB - Ryan Grant
RB - LenDale White
TE - Heath Miller
K - Gostowski
DST - Pittsburgh

Bench

Eli Manning
Kenton Keith
Patrick Crayton
DeShaun Foster
Mason Crosby
Greg Olsen
Viking DST

Waivers in our league run tonight and I am hoping to drop Crosby and Olsen for Chris Henry (LenDale's back up at Tenn.) and Kevin Faulk.

We'll see how that goes.

Honestly, it's going to be hard to prove my Do the Opposite strategy going forward. But I'll still keep you updated and show you how I am going to ride a QB and 2 RB's that no one wanted before the 7th or 8th rounds or didn't even draft can still lead you to Fantasy Football Success.

Also, Roy Williams, Braylon Edwards, Gostowski, and Foster are the only 4 people remaining that I actually drafted. The rest are all gone.

Crazy, never traded like this before, but I couldn't pass up some of the moves.


Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

The Last 5....(11.14.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5

.....Songs played in shuffle mode on my mp3 Player

• David Crowder Band - Here is Our King
• The Ataris - The Boys of Summer (Hate to say it, but way better than The Eagles Original)
• Lit - My Own Worst Enemy
• John Mayer - Daughters
• Miles Davis - Round Midnight

.....Scores in the UM/OSU Football game

• 2006 - OSU 42, UM 39
• 2005 - OSU 25, UM 21
• 2004 - OSU 32, UM 21
• 2003 - UM 35, OSU 21
• 2002 - OSU 14, UM 9

....."Odd News" Stories from the AP

• Rabid Raccoon vs. Nail gun Toting teacher - Who ya got?!
• Well, whoopdee do!!!
• Silly, silly 54-year old woman. So silly.....
• ..........................................
• Those clever Utahites? Utahians? Utahganders? Anyone know?

.....Videos I watched on You Tube embedded here for your enjoyment (at least watch the 1st three)

Paid for by the committee to bore your life with a list of the Last 5 whatever I want to put theree

Week 10 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

Oh boy, OH BOY. I may be in a little bit of trouble.

I'm sure everyone knows about the Adrian Peterson injury that could cost him anywhere from 3 weeks to the end of the season. It's a huge hit!! I just lost the number 1 or number 2 running back in the whole NFL.

Besides that, Peyton decided to go Tony Romo and throw 6 interceptions (4 in the first quarter). So I was kind of doomed from about 3:30 on on Sunday.

83.6 to 133.55

Gone is the 5 game winning streak and 1st place! Bummer. But every team lays at least one egg during the season, better to lay mine now than in the playoffs. But the AP injury is the real problem here.

I still have the most points scored in the league at 1,412.8 (which makes me the only team over 1,400 points scored). I also have the highest points scored against me at 1,344.2.

So, I have a little bit of work to do this week to see what I can possibly do to shore some running backs.

My roster currently is this:

QB - Peyton and Derek Anderson
WR - Roy Will, Braylon, Isaac Bruce, and Patrick Crayton
RB - Thomas Jones, Marion Barber 3, LenDale White, DeShaun Foster, and AP
TE - Greg Olson
K - Gostowski, Mason Crosby
DST - Titans and Vikings

With the bye weeks gone, now is the time to dump off of the extra DST, K, and TE. So they're all going to be gone for sure.

I'm hoping to take one of my QB's and one of my DST's and trade to get a more consistent rb.

We'll see. Man is Fantasy Football fickle.

My top 3 - Peyton Manning (24.8), Roy Williams (16.5), and Mason Crosby (10) for 51.3

His top 3 - Donovan McNabb (39.25), Selvin Young (24.8), and Cowboys DST (21) for 85.05.

Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

F R E E D O M ! ! ! ! ! ! !

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.



There sits Simon,
so foolishly wise
proudly he's tending his nets
Then Jesus calls,
and the boats drift away
all that he owns he forgets

More than the nets
he abandoned that day,
he found that his pride was soon drifting away
It's hard to imagine the freedom we find
from the things we leave behind

Matthew was mindful
of taking the tax,
pressing the people to pay
Hearing the call,
he responded in faith
followed the Light and the Way

Leaving the people
so puzzled he found,
the greed in his heart
was no longer around and
it's hard to imagine
the freedom we find
from the things
we leave behind

Every heart needs to be set free,
from posessions
that hold it so tight
'Cause freedom's not found in the things that we own,
It's the power
to do what is right
Jesus, our only posession,
giving becomes our delight
We can't imagine the freedom we find
from the things we leave behind

We show a love for the world in our lives
by worshipping goods we posess
Jesus has laid all our treasures aside
"love God above all the rest"'
Cause when we say 'no'
to the things of the world
we open our hearts
to the love of the Lord and
its hard to imagine
the freedom we find
from the things we leave behind

Oh, and it's hard to imagine
the freedom we find
from the things
we leave behind

- Michael Card "The Things We Leave Behind"





Paid for by the committee to spread the power and grace that is Jesus!!!!

The Last 5....(11.07.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5

.....Songs played in shuffle mode on mp3 player

• Original Fire (You guessed it right?) A song hasn't done this much to me in a long time. Just watch the video below if you haven't already..
• Bright Eyes - First Day of My Life
• Pearl Jam - Love, Reign O'er Me
• Israel Kamakawiwo'ole - Somehwhere Over the Rainbow What a Wonderful World
• Miles Davis and John Coltrane - So What

.....Teams in the BCS Top 10 Standings

• 6 - Missouri Tigers
• 7 - West Virginia Mountaineers
• 8 - Boston College Golden Eagles
• 9 - Arizona State Sun Devils
• 10 - Georgia Bulldogs

.....AP "News of the Weird" Stories

• He Wasn't Calling to Say His Prayers
• Maine Mayor re-elected as a write-in
• At the Police Station? Are you serious!
• See the story directly above? All to similar and stupid
• And to think some guys say using a gun makes you a MAN!

.....Current "front runners" in the Presidential Race I'd vote for in no particular order (right now....and remember this is "The Last 5")

• Hillary Clinton
• Rudy Giuliani
• Barack Obama
• John Edwards
• Dennis Kucinich

.....Blog Entries I read

• Ticket price raises and Zumaya's injury
• I share in Gary's surprisement (maybe for different reasons), and am glad to finally read "perfect" in reference to the subject matter.
• Now that I am the 'Champion" or "Chairman" or "Chairperson" if you will of the Advertising and Marketing Team of my church, this site is a daily "hit" for me.
• I've heard a lot about this book, may have to check it out one day.
• I'm into self-promotion - this is what was going on roughly one year ago. Which has led me to think I need to provide some more updates!!!

Paid for by the committee to bore your life with a list of the Last 5 whatever I want to put theree

Week 9 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

Great googly-moogly.

215.95 to 166.95

Adrian Peterson got me 92.7 points on his own. 92 points!!!

Unreal.

AP is the number one running back in fantasy football right now and may be for years to come. LT better watch out.

Anyway, I am the first place team at 6-3. Tied with another team but I have the first tie breaker (points). I'm the only team with over 1300 points (1329.2) and only one of two teams with over 1200 points scored against me.

My top 3 - AP with 92.7, Titans DST went for 45, and Peyton with 20.35 to equal 158.05

His top 3 - Brees for 64.45, T.O. for 35.8, and Kellen Winslow with 20 to equal 120.25

Our game was a barn burner to start off. With Brees already at 300+ passing yards in the 1st half. But, except for a dynamite blow up by T.O. (which kind of happened) and Kevin Curtis (which didn't happen at all....whew) in Sunday night's 8 o'clock game, I was just hoping MB3 would get me some points to put me over 200.

In trade updates - I didn't land Joe Addai, not that I expect the guy to just dump him off for no reason. But that team is in last place at 3-6. I know other teams are making a run for Addai and I need to try and beat all of them to the punch (if they are able to pull it off.)

Man 215+ points, the highest scoring team in the league and doing it all by Doing the Opposite.

Should I continue to track why "You must grab a rb in the first two rounds or you have no chance" is overrated and just not true?

Yes sir, all the way to the championship.

Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

The Last 5....(10.31.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5

.....Songs played in shuffle mode on my MP3 player

• Matchbox 20 - Damn
• Audioslave - Original Fire (I cannot escape this song!!!)
• Bocephus - Family Tradition
• The Cure - Just Like Heaven
• Jason Aldean - Johnny Cash

.....News Articles from the AP: Strange News

• Woman claims pet-sitter made her pig fat
• Gross, not for the faint of heart or people grossed out by necrophiliacs
• Imagine if this truck had been involved in a roll-over accident
• Man, I hate government
• 200 feet, that's all!!! How lame

.....You Tube Videos I watched, embedded here for your enjoyment

Week 8 Fantasy Football

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.


Well, well, well. Look who is the number one team in Fantasy Football right now.

TEAM KOOL-AID!!!!

147.15 - 115.35

1st most points scored in the league gives me the tie breaker over the other 3 teams that are 5-3 in the league, 2nd most points scored against too. Good thing my team is high scoring or I'd be in some trouble this year. So we have 4 teams at 5-3, 3 teams at 4-4, 2 teams at 3-5, and one team at 2-6.

As I told you all on Friday, I made a huge trade Friday and then a smaller one after that. I traded away Holt, Welker, and Jags DST for MB3, LenDale, and Jennings. Traded away Jennings and Fred Taylor for Isaac Bruce and Patrick Crayton.

I have a lot more consistency at RB now and real good depth at WR and RB too.

Funny thing to is that I played against the team I traded Holt, Welker, and the Jags too, but still pulled it out.

My top 3: Titans DST - 31, Braylon - 30.4, and Peyton - 24.75 for 86.15

His top 3: Holt - 23, Jags DST - 21, and Carson Palmer - 16.45 for 60.45.

Since it has been awhile let's recap the first round draft picks in my league and their total points scored for the year.

LT - 154.7
S-Jax - 44.5 (missed extensive time to injury)
LJ - 96.9
Addai - 136.7
Peyton - 181.2
Gore - 73.0 (hurt now, what'll happen)
Alexander - 74.0 (washed up?)
Rudi - 40.5 (missed extensive time to injury)
Parker - 126.9
Maroney - 44.8 (missed extensive time to injury)

Peyton is the highest scoring pick out of the first round.

Now, the obvious pink elephant in the room is Tom Brady.

Those that say you can get a qb in the late rounds and it doesn't matter have a point. But what Tom Brady is doing is ridiculous. Think back to the first couple of weeks when he was only getting 30 points.

The problem, is that in our league, the guy who took him also took Shaun Alexnader and Travis Henry in the first and second rounds. So, the weeks that Brady has put up 300+ yards and 5 or 6 TDs he wins because of Brady alone. When Brady is like Brady for real, he loses. Brady has scored just over 30% of this teams total points. Compared to the rest of the league where only 18% of a team's total points is coming from it's highest scorer.

Basically, Brady is the exception (this year) to every possible Fantasy Football rule there may ever be.

This week I'm going to look to make a move for Addai. The team at 2-6 has Addai and has some depth issues, obviously. I'm thinking I can offer any 2 of my rb's and a wr if I have to to land Addai. Thinking a MB3, Thomas Jones, Patrick Crayton for Joe Addai (and Kenton Keith, gotta get that backup) to start with and see what he wants from there. Maybe even throw in Derek Anderson (Kitna is his starter....yikes).

Stay tuned, you never know.

Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

Monster Fantasy Football Update

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.




Another benefit of Doing the Opposite?

Preying on weaker teams in the league who are in a dire sitauation with their bye weeks.

Case in point.

I just traded Torry Holt, Wes Welker, and Jags Defense

for

Marion Barber III, LenDale White, and Gregg Jennings.

I then turned around and traded

Gregg Jennings and Fred Taylor

for

Patrick Crayton and Isaac Bruce.

I will tell you, the team I play against this week is the team I traded Holt, Welker, and Jags too. So, we'll see right away on the outcome of that trade. He's playing all 3 of them this week.

Now here is the roster

QB - Manning and Derek Anderson
RB - MB3, Adrian Peterson, Thomas Jones, LenDale White, DeShaun Foster, Ladell Betts
WR - Braylon, Roy Will, Patrick Crayton, and Issac Bruce
TE - Owen Daniels
K - Gostokski
DST - Vikings (picked them up off of waivers this week....which is why I could part with the Jags D), and Titans

This week MB3 is on the bye but after that I have a solid starting lineup and great depth to go with now.

QB - Peyton
RB - AP
RB - MB3
WR - Braylon
WR - Roy Will
Flex - Play the matchups between T. Jones, LenDale, and Crayton
K - Gostowski
DST - Vikes most weeks


WHAT A SQUAD!!!!

Paid for by the committee to get you to Do the Opposite at your next Fantasy Football Draft.

Tigers 2007 Review Part 2

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.


Read part 1 here, but part 2 is only going to be a couple links.

Why?

Because the Tigers picked up the $13 million option on a washed up catcher in Pudge Rodriguez.

Plus, the newspaper article I am referencing re-hash most of the same stuff I would have minus my glaring critique of one Brandon Inge in addition to Pudge.

The Tigers actually do have a lot of issues to address in the offseason for a team that has done so well in the last couple of years. It should be interesting and (hopefully) kind of fun.

So here you go.

The Heat is On

Who's Your Next Tiger





Paid for by the committee to talk about my beloved Detroit Tigers.

The Last 5....(10.24.07)

I'm Brian A. Maloney and I approve this message.

The Last 5 (world series edition)

Songs played in shuffle mode on my mp3 player:

• Collective Soul - Precious Declaration
• Temple of the Dog - Hunger Strike
• Audioslave - Original Fire
• Counting Crows - Long December
• Taproot - Poem

World Series Winners

• St. Louis Cardinals (Still not over this one)
• Chicago White Sox
• Boston Red Sox
• Florida Marlins
• Anaheim Angels

Teams to lose the World Series

• Detroit Tigers (Still not over this one)
• Houston Astros
• St. Louis Cardinals
• New York Tankees
• San Francisco Giants

World Series MVPs

• David Eckstein (Still not over this one)
• Jermaine Dye
• Manny Ramirez (Just Manny being Manny...I love this guy)
• Josh Beckett
• Troy Glaus

Teams in the Top 25 of the BCS

• California Golden Bears
• Auburn Tigers
• Connecticut Huskies
• Alabama Crimson Tide
• Penn State Nittany Lions

News Columnists I have read

• I love when I read stuff like this (Especially from an eyewitness)
• So is it Bush or Conservatives?
• It's true, they never go away, just hide out for awhile
• Apocalypse Now - Great movie, horrible fearmongering agenda
• Not quite a news article but who doesn't like to play Match Game

Paid for by the committee to bore your life with a list of the Last 5 whatever I want to put theree