Posted on December 12th, 2014
Could you be King?
If the world needed you, would the kids eat or starve because they trusted you?
If the mothers and daughters depended on you, put their faith in you, said they’d never ever stray from you?
Could you be King?
If the sons tossed hollow points for you, would you steer them through, tell them they didn’t have to torch for you?
Could you be King?
Would you make every second, moment, hour or day your last, build up from your past?
Would you show them which shadow to cast, as they play in the sun and wait patiently for your Kingdom to come?
Can you be King?
Will you settle for anything, fake talk about wings and rings, or will you “Lift Every Voice and Sing?”
Can you be King?
The answer is yours my friend. Will you rise again or continue to feed poison to the massses as they live in sin?
WILL YOU BE KING?
— Warren Jay Lowe
A native of Lackawanna, N.Y., outside of Buffalo, Lowe is a former public school teacher who was forced into retirement due to injuries sustained on the job during a student’s blindside attack. Now a freelance writer, he’s battling life-threatening heart failure while waiting for a transplant. Those who wish to assist – either monetarily or with encouraging words – may visit his page on Help HOPE Live. He can be reached at wllowe@yahoo.com.
Posted on December 11th, 2014
By DERON SNYDER
A series of recent public service announcements about domestic violence and sexual assault features celebrities as well as current and former NFL players.
Other athletes and celebrities – such as Lance Armstrong, Drew Brees and Jim Kelly – have been outspoken advocates for funding and research in the fight against chronic diseases.
I don’t recall any complaints about stars using their platforms for those causes.
But that’s not the case when players raise their hands in “Don’t Shoot” fashion or wear T-shirts that read “I Can’t Breathe.” In those instances, critics argue that athletes should shut up and play.
Let me get this straight: It’s perfectly fine for players to take stands on certain issues and illnesses, as long it’s not the issue and illness of racism?
Sorry, but that reasoning fails the sniff test. Thankfully, some athletes are no longer willing to hold their nose and look away.
Nearly a half-century has passed since U.S. sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised black-gloved fists on the medal stand during the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. The gesture was dubbed a Black Power salute, but the men said it was a call for human rights reform everywhere.
They were suspended from the U.S. team, banned from the Olympic Village and roundly criticized.
Few black athletes since then have been willing to speak out on rights – human and/or civil – with notable exceptions such as Jim Brown, Muhammad Ali and Arthur Ashe. But there’s been a shift lately and here’s hoping its permanent.
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Posted on December 9th, 2014
By DERON SNYDER
It takes a lot to make grown men cry.
Like losing their college football team.
On Sunday, teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision awaited the announcement of postseason pairings. But fans, coaches and players at the University of Alabama-Birmingham remained in mourning over their recently-departed program, killed last week by school president Ray Watts.
One final indignity was ahead: Bowl-eligible for the first time in a decade, the Blazers were left at home, going 0-for-38 in possible invites. The team has played its last game, compiling a 6-6 record in its 19th and final season.
Watts claims he had his reasons – 20 million of them. But there’s also cause to question UAB’s suitability as a case study for mid-majors weighing football’s costs.
UAB and the University of Alabama share a board of trustees, and that governing body leans heavily toward the Crimson Tide’s interests. Alabama has made life miserable for its little sibling ever since the latter decided to start a football program. One trustee in particular, Paul “Little Bear” Bryant Jr., son of the legendary coach, is thought to carry a grudge that his father had against UAB.
The board in 2011 killed UAB’s proposal for a 30,000-seat, on-campus stadium. Five years earlier, trustees nixed a deal for UAB to hire Jimbo Fisher, who’s currently shooting for back-to-back national titles with Florida State.
So it’s understandable why the Alabama Media Group wrote in an editorial, “We don’t trust the process that ended UAB football.” Making a call on the decision is too difficult given the circumstances and a lack of transparency from Watts.
However, regardless of the route UAB took, the destination undoubtedly will be considered by other schools facing financial challenges.
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Posted on December 7th, 2014
By DERON SNYDER
Jay Gruden faced a gargantuan task when he accepted the job as head coach of Washington’s NFL team in January.
The franchise has been mired in less-than-mediocrity for the better part of two decades and changing such a culture isn’t a snap. The undertaking has been more difficult that Gruden imagined.
We don’t know yet if it’s too much for him to handle. But we know he has firsthand experience with organizations that consistently fielded the type of atrocious football that is commonplace in Washington.
The latest example of D.C.’s ineptitude might be the most thorough yet, Sunday’s 24-0 spanking courtesy of the St. Louis Rams, dropping Gruden to 3-10 in his rookie season as an NFL head coach.
“Obviously, before the season started we had high hopes,” Gruden said after his team’s fifth consecutive loss. “Things happened to us and now we are where we are.”
Destined for its 14th non-winning record in 18 years, Washington is where Cincinnati used to reside. The Bengals posted 14 consecutive non-winning seasons between 1991-2004. But they turned things around under coach Marvin Lewis, who has led them to winning records in five of the last six seasons.
Gruden caught the tail end of that resurgence, serving as Lewis’ offensive coordinator for three years – making the playoffs each time – before accepting Dan Snyder’s offer.
That’s not even the best example of fortuitous timing on Gruden’s part.
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Posted on December 5th, 2014
Engulfed in my madness
While keeping a straight face
No jurisdiction, over this occupied space
Through the comfort of chaos
I continue to win
Hollow victories on the outside
Mass destruction within
My good friend dysfunction, steady by my side
The truth, a constant reject, by my bodyguard, PRIDE
With each erratic moment, comfort builds and stocks supplies
Surviving constant nightmares, the sources of new lies
As I evolve in the chaos, my comfort grows stronger
But chaos is chaos, and the days just get longer
I see the exit door, just ahead to the right
But chaos is comfort, so I alter my sight
I see the exit door, just ahead to the right
But through this chaos is comfort so I gracefully accept my plight…
NOT, to be continued!
— Warren Jay Lowe
A native of Lackawanna, N.Y., outside of Buffalo, Lowe is a former public school teacher who was forced into retirement due to injuries sustained on the job during a student’s blindside attack. Now a freelance writer, he’s battling life-threatening heart failure while waiting for a transplant. Those who wish to assist – either monetarily or with encouraging words – may visit his page on Help HOPE Live. He can be reached at wllowe@yahoo.com.
Posted on December 3rd, 2014
By DERON SNYDER
Benching Robert Griffin III didn’t work, at least not in terms of beating Indianapolis.
Can Jay Gruden bench the entire secondary? Can he demote defensive coordinator Jim Haslett and promote any assistant not named Raheem Morris? Hired for his know-how on offense, can Gruden find anyone to play or coach competently on the other side of the ball?
If he’s counting on help from the front office, it’s unlikely to arrive. But he has enough to worry about as is.
President and general manager Bruce Allen has gotten very little right in Washington; who’s to say he didn’t whiff on Gruden hire, too?
Like a jalopy that should be junked but remains on the road, different parts of this team keep breaking down. Changing the starter might’ve led to a smooth ride against Indy if not for the massive leaks that sprung up and allowed Andrew Luck to disassemble the secondary in a 49-27 rout.
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A native of Lackawanna, N.Y., outside of Buffalo, Lowe is a former public school teacher who was forced into retirement due to injuries sustained on the job during a student’s blindside attack. Now a freelance writer, he’s battling life-threatening heart failure while waiting for a transplant. Those who wish to assist – either monetarily or with encouraging words – may visit his page on Help HOPE Live. He can be reached at wllowe@yahoo.com.
