The "Zorn Face," and On Temporarily Bad vs. Perpetually Bad

Great article by Czabe today about the "Zorn Face," and the troubles of his hometown Redskins. It almost - and I stress "almost" - makes me feel better about the demise of the Giants this season.

While it's true that, as Bill Parcells used to say, you are what your record says you are, I believe there are different levels of bad in the NFL. Both the Giants and the Redskins have lost 4 games in a row and are spiraling downward. I hope I'm wrong, but I think the Giants' season is lost. But the Giants are a solid, sound organization and they have what it takes to be back in the mix soon, even if 2009 is a wash.

The Redskins on the other hand, have so many issues that it will take several years to rebuild, and that will only be possible with a change in the way things are done in management. (You then have a 4 or 5 team grouping below the Redskins, that are in such disarray it might take a decade or more to clean up, but they are not the focus of this post.)

World Champs!

It is wonderful to see the Yankees win the championship - their 27th - and their first in nine years. It seemed fitting that Pettitte started the game, Rivera came on in relief, and Jeter and Posada played prominent roles, just as it went for many playoff games as this version of the Yankees' dynasty began some 13 years ago.

It was a great series and the Phillies were worthy adversaries, but it was clear that the Yankees were the dominant team. Maybe this team will turn into another branch of the Yankee dynasty, and maybe it won't, but either way I will sure enjoy this one on its own merits.

Regarding the series itself, it is easy to second-guess a manager for decisions or moves that did not work out, but rarely do you hear praise for moves that do. So, a job well done by Joe Girardi on the Yanks' 3-man rotation working out perfectly for the duration of the playoffs.

Also, a tip of the cap to Fox for their excellent coverage. Particularly the isolation on each Yankee player with a different camera, for the final out. I thought that was a really neat touch.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to listening to We Are The Champions on a loop...what was the name of the band who recorded that song again?

In bad economy, too much hubris a major turn-off

It's amazing how some businesses have the moxie to continue to charge draconian prices, or even raise them, in this economic climate. And when I say economic climate, I don't mean the one that's portrayed in the media (super-horrible worst thing ever), but the realistic one (kinda bad; not terrible, but certainly not helped by aforementioned media sensationalism).

I feel cable companies are the best example. It seems they are just begging people to yank it out of their homes. I've said this before about movie theater prices ($10 per person in this era where you could buy the DVD and watch it in high-definition forever for about that much), and it's almost stunning the amount of hubris it takes to price yourself out of a market and assume no one will leave you because they simply MUST have cable. Well not me. I recently bought a house and for the first time in over 5 years, was faced with the decision of whether or not to pay the current rate of over $50 a month for cable. I said no.

I know where technology is going. So much is online now - ABC, Fox, CBS, and NBC upload most of their prime time shows, and even some of my favorite cable shows like South Park, Rescue Me and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, are also available. Not to mention everything people put on Youtube. And there's Netflix. In fact, I think the only thing on cable these days that can't be worked around, is a live, cable-televised sporting event. And for that, I submit just any bar or restaurant.

One of my friends has canceled his cable service in the past few months. I have 9 friends so sure it's a small sample size, but hey, counting myself that's 20% of people I know that have said no to cable lately.

I think the backlash is delayed a bit, but in the not too distant future we're going to see record numbers of people cut down on this entertainment expense, from companies that either simply don't understand their market, or have the heap of arrogance it takes to ignore it.