LESAProject

There are times when we realize how important the lessons we learn in sports are as they relate to the real world.  Case in point, take a look at the recent actions of the Huntingdon Valley Club. For those of us who have been out of the loop lately, the Huntingdon Valley Club is a private swim club in a gated, bucolic setting located in a predominantly white suburb of Philadelphia. On June 29, a day camp called Creative Steps, which is made up of 65 mostly Hispanic and African-American kids under the age of 18, had arranged with HVC to swim at the ...

There are times when we realize how important the lessons we learn in sports are as they relate to the real world.  Case in point, take a look at the recent actions of the Huntingdon Valley Club. For those of us who have been out of the loop lately, the Huntingdon Valley Club is a private swim club in a gated, bucolic setting located in a predominantly white suburb of Philadelphia. On June 29, a day camp called Creative Steps, which is made up of 65 mostly Hispanic and African-American kids under the age of 18, had arranged with HVC to swim at the ...

In a lot of ways, UFC 100 was like a big neighborhood block party. People of all types stopped by and a lot of familiar friends had a great time catching up and enjoying the culmination of the build for the largest-pushed, largest-promoted, and most-written-about MMA event we've ever seen.But then, those people from a couple streets away dropped by as they had heard about our parties before and wanted to see what the commotion was all about. Ultimately, though, most of them decided that our street and its inhabitants weren't up to their standards and left, acting snooty and ...

In a lot of ways, UFC 100 was like a big neighborhood block party. People of all types stopped by and a lot of familiar friends had a great time catching up and enjoying the culmination of the build for the largest-pushed, largest-promoted, and most-written-about MMA event we've ever seen.But then, those people from a couple streets away dropped by as they had heard about our parties before and wanted to see what the commotion was all about. Ultimately, though, most of them decided that our street and its inhabitants weren't up to their standards and left, acting snooty and ...

Why do athletes seem to always get a pass when regular people don’t?  I am not talking about autographs getting them out of speeding tickets or pictures to get a free meal in a restaurant. I am talking about hair styles. Do you think anyone but Dennis Rodman could get a job let alone a raise? No, not unless it’s for a carnival.  How about Johnny Damon during his caveman days? Well, maybe he could get hired for Geico commercials. Life is not fair, so why should the way we wear our hair not matter? Nick Swisher is sporting a Mohawk. What do ...

Why do athletes seem to always get a pass when regular people don’t?  I am not talking about autographs getting them out of speeding tickets or pictures to get a free meal in a restaurant. I am talking about hair styles. Do you think anyone but Dennis Rodman could get a job let alone a raise? No, not unless it’s for a carnival.  How about Johnny Damon during his caveman days? Well, maybe he could get hired for Geico commercials. Life is not fair, so why should the way we wear our hair not matter? Nick Swisher is sporting a Mohawk. What do ...

Bleacher Report has allowed me to meet some of the most unique individuals—and supremely talented writers—I have ever come across.   Young, old, male, female, American, International. . . the diversity is absolutely astounding.   There’s Rob York, way over in Korea, my favorite author and a native of Paris, TN, less than 90 miles from my own hometown. He does things with words that I can only dream of.   Mary Jo Buchanan, the Queen of NASCAR writers here in the Bleachers, and a gracious soul who befriended me almost from Day One. It’s like going to your favorite aunt’s house for cookies and ice ...

Bleacher Report has allowed me to meet some of the most unique individuals—and supremely talented writers—I have ever come across.   Young, old, male, female, American, International. . . the diversity is absolutely astounding.   There’s Rob York, way over in Korea, my favorite author and a native of Paris, TN, less than 90 miles from my own hometown. He does things with words that I can only dream of.   Mary Jo Buchanan, the Queen of NASCAR writers here in the Bleachers, and a gracious soul who befriended me almost from Day One. It’s like going to your favorite aunt’s house for cookies and ice ...

Follow me on this...   Fear has been around since the dawn of time.  The Bible teaches to fear God and love thy neighbor.  The mentally disturbed or socially destitute have also been around as long and longer as horses have been lowered onto royalty.  Fear of each other though is what drives schisms between communities.   Why do people commit disturbing behavior, which sometimes escalates to violence?  The answer to that riddle may lie in one of the earliest acts of violent yet romanticized psychosis: John Wilkes Booth.   A nationally famous actor in his day once named “Handsomest Man in America” which was then ...

Donald Fehr did his job, whether you like it or not.  That is because Fehr's job was to protect players in contract negotiations. The fact is that the juicers made big money thus that is where many of the big contracts went.  Thus, that money and those contract negotiations affected all players, regardless of whether they juiced. The reality is that the players are not solely to blame.  You cannot call the players greedy without saying the same thing about the owners and Bud Selig.  They were equally greedy, but as I see it, the owners initiated the problems that became the steroid problem when ...