U.S. Military pays pro sports teams to honor troops as a recruiting tactic?

Below are some numbers for how much the United States Department of Defense paid local sports teams in recent years to honor military personnel at their games as part of marketing campaigns:

U.S. senators: Patriots took $700K from Department of Defense to hold patriotic tributes at games. Bruins $280K, Celts $195K, Red Sox $100K

— Michael McDermott (@mikemcdermott76) November 4, 2015

Here's a longer explanation from the Providence Journal, based on this "Tackling Paid Patriotism" report from Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake.  The following quote from its introduction jumps out at me:

"By paying for such heartwarming displays like recognition of wounded warriors, surprise homecomings, and on-field enlistment ceremonies, these displays lost their luster. Unsuspecting audience members became the subjects of paid-marketing campaigns..."

Personally, I care less about the fact that the money comes from taxpayers, and more about how it "betrays the sentiment and trust of fans."  It's offensive to me that I should feel socially obligated to stand and cheer at games for something that is a paid advertisement.


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Adidas designed 'Crown Royal Apple bag' uniforms for the Celtics this Christmas

Earlier this week I wrote a post for CelticsLife about the NBA's Christmas Day uniforms.  Even though they're not playing on December 25, the Celtics got one anyway.  It's pretty cool looking, but it also bears a striking resemblance to a Crown Royal Apple bag.  You be the judge:

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OK Adam Silver, it's time to fine LeBron for ripping his jersey sleeves now

In the past, the NBA has fined players and teams for among other things, wearing non-matching sneakers and shorts that were deemed too long.  Not only that, but the league also has a very strict dress code for players who are on the bench not in uniform.

LeBron James ripping his jersey sleeves apart in the middle of a game is much more egregious than either of the previously aforementioned offenses:

NBA is pushing a product (sleeved jerseys). LeBron, on national TV, basically said product is garbage, destroyed his uniform. Repercussions?

— Mark Vandeusen (@LucidSportsFan) November 5, 2015

League commissioner Adam Silver has now had nearly a full day to mull over how he wants to handle this.  I expect a fine to be coming soon... and maybe a second one for that awful mustache.

NBA has a history of reprimanding players for uniform violations. Should LeBron be fined for ripping his sleeves?

— Mark Vandeusen (@LucidSportsFan) November 5, 2015

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Was I too hard on Twitter's changes yesterday? Polls are awesome...

Right after I posted my blog yesterday ripping Twitter for trying to be like Facebook, I noticed something else different about the tweet machine--a button to add polls (pictured).  I have to say, this cool new feature far outweighs the minor annoyance of red heart icons and pop-up direct messages (which I'm sure I can turn off anyway).

So well done Twitter, you're back in my good graces.

Do you like the new Twitter polls? I think I do.

— Mark Vandeusen (@LucidSportsFan) November 3, 2015

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Twitter is trying to be like Facebook, and that's not good

The other day I got a direct message on Twitter, and it popped up in the bottom right corner of my screen, just like a Facebook instant message (and for the record, I liked Facebook better before it switched its messages to IMs as well).

Today, Twitter changed its yellow star "Favorite" button to a red heart "Like" button:

This is stupid for two reasons: One, Facebook is dying away.  Twitter is different.  People who like Twitter use it because it's different.  And two, when I "Favorite" something it doesn't mean I actually enjoy it, it just means I'm bookmarking it for later.  So now when I "Like" a Celtics reporter's tweet about Avery Bradley's injured hand to use as a reference, to him it looks something like this:

How dumb is that?  Although in the case of this bookmarked tweet, I actually did like it:

Everybody is upset that "favorites" on Twitter are now "likes," instead of calling them "bullshit non-retweets" like we all asked

— MGK (@mightygodking) November 3, 2015

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Is it weird that I'm still mad at the Mets from 1986?

I was happy to watch the Royals win the World Series last night, but not because I have any rooting interest in them--the only reason I was pulling for KC was so the Mets would lose.

Being a bartender, I had several people ask me in the last couple weeks who I was cheering for.  Time and time again I answered, "I'm still mad at the Mets from 1986."  The last thing I wanted to see was those awful orange and blue uniforms jumping up and down in celebration again.

Yes, I realize it's probably crazy for me to say "again" since it was nearly three decades ago, but that's the way my brain works.  Should a 29-year-old sports memory really bother me, especially since the Red Sox have won three championships recently?

Who cares, the Mets suck.


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How is it possible the Bruins have the longest-tenured coach in the NHL?

CSNNE posted the above graphic on the screen during the Celtics-Spurs game today.  Gregg Popovich (pictured) and Bill Belichick make perfect sense.   I wouldn't have come up with Mike Scioscia for MLB, but it doesn't surprise me.  Claude Julien, on the other hand, blows my mind a little bit.

One, I can't believe it's been nine years since Boston hired him.  And two, how has he managed to last that long?  Every other team in the NHL has changed their coach in that time span, yet somehow the Bruins haven't?

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