Eunice Kennedy Shriver: one woman's legacy
by McKinzie Brantley
Aug 12, 2009
http://apps.detnews.com/apps/blogs/disabilitiesblog/index.php
Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of the late President John F. Kennedy and founder of Special Olympics, died yesterday. It seems to me that her impact can't be underestimated.
Eunice Shriver changed America's culture for the better.
When she started the Special Olympics, there were virtually no organized programs that focused on individuals with disabilities. In fact, people with disabilities weren't a topic of polite conversation. When the topic of mental retardation - as it was called then - was brought up, it was discussed in hushed tones of embarrassment or shame.
For decades, an entire segment of the nation's population was effectively invisible. Shriver changed all that.
I never knew her or met her, but I felt her influence. In the '90s, I worked with people with disabilities in Wyandotte and oversaw a program that participated in Special Olympics. At the time, many disability advocates (including me) had mixed feelings about Special Olympics. We felt people with disabilities should focus more of their energy on entering the workplace. I considered ending our involvement in Special Olympics.
Word must have gotten around. You can't imagine the reaction I got from the community. I received hand-written letters and messages on my answering machine. People with disabilities called me and stopped me on the street. They each told me how important the Special Olympics were to them. Parents relayed how their son or daughter finally found something that they looked forward to, that competing in the Special Olympics gave them a sense of accomplishment and made them feel proud of themselves.
How's that for a legacy?
For each of us, there's been a person in our life who, because of their effort or extra attention, helps shape the person we ultimately become.
The formation of Special Olympics was an important stepping stone in the ongoing participation of people with disabilities into all aspects of every day life. Through her efforts, Shriver helped not only one person, but millions of people with disabilities cross the country become a more active and visible part of their communities.
On behalf of those families in Wyandotte, thank you.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
2009 Baseball Predictions
2009 Predictions
I think this year will be a good one. I can't believe the so-called experts that think Evan Longoria is going to win the MVP award. I think they are smoking something. Tampa Bay had a great year last year but if the 2006 Tigers or 2005 Whitesox taught us anything, it's hard to repeat that breakout success in the following season. Here's my breakdown for the AL and NL.
American League
I see Tampa Bay playing well but losing to Boston in the East. Boston has good starters and a great bullpen which means they won't need to score many runs. However, with Ortiz, Bay, Youkilis, Drew and Pedroia how can they not score runs. I look forward to the New York soap opera unfolding. Sabathia won't be as good as they think. Burnett will get hurt and the rest of the pitching isn't that good. This team is getting old, even with Teixeira. Look at the rest of the lineup, Posado, ARod, Jeter, Matsui, Damon. These guys are old. I think Toronto has the best pitching in the East and could do damage if they score enough runs.
I think the Tigers will score enough runs to be competitive but thier pitching sucks. Cabrera and Granderson will win them some games. The Twins will be good and by picking up Crede they've added Defense and potentially 30 HRs. Liriano could compete for the Cy Young. I like Victor Martinez and Hafner to rebound and make the Indians a playoff team. Interestingly, the Royals will be better and could catch the Whitesox. I think Chicago was awful in the off-season. A couple years ago they had a rotation and now they have a much older Mark Buehrle and John Danks. They unloaded pitching and haven't picked up much. They let Crede go for Josh Fields and they are moving an excellent utility man in Alexei Ramirez to shortstop where he'll be an average defensive player at best. I don't think Jermaine Dye will last the season on the sox, he'll be traded.
I think the AL West is weak this year and the A's could sneak it out if the Angels don't run away with it. The Angels will miss Teixeira a lot but aren't going to miss KRod at all. Brian Fuentes will do just fine as closer. Oakland could make a run if they find enough starters and their bullpen repeats it's performance from last season. Matt Holliday, Jason Giambi and Orlando Cabrera completely change their lineup. Cabrera's defense combined with Mark Ellis makes for a lot of double plays and Giambi and Holliday give them the offense they never had last season. Seattle will continue to struggle. Texas is the same team they've been for 20 years, all offense and no pitching.
I just don't see a better team than Boston but either the Indians or Twins could make a run.
American League
East
Boston Redsox
Toronto Blue Jays
Tampa Bay Rays
New York Yankees
Baltimore Orioles
Central
Minnesota Twins
Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
Chicago Whitesox
Kansas City Royals
West
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Oakland Athletics
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
Playoffs:
Minnesota over Los Angeles
Boston over Cleveland
Boston over Minnesota
Cy Young Award: Roy Halladay, TOR
MVP: Miguel Cabrera, DET
Rookie of the Year: Nelson Cruz, TEX
Batting Champ: Ichiro Suzuki, SEA
The National League is going to be great to watch. I think this is going to be a great playoff race because there are so many good teams. Everybody is talking about Manny Ramirez making the difference in LA but the truth is, the middle infielders will make the difference. They are getting Furcal back at SS and leading off and it was a steal for them to go out and get Orlando Hudson to hit second and play gold glove defense at 2B. You look at that team and they have a few holes in their bullpen and rotation but I think they will fill them. They shouldn't have let Saito go but Broxton will be a good closer.
The guy the Dodgers will miss the most will be Derek Lowe which is why I think the Braves are going to be good this year. Granted they lost Tim Hudson for most of the season but picking up starting pitching allowed them to silently put the best rotation in MLB together. This will take pressure off Tommy Hansen who will win the Rookie of the Year award. Javier Vazquez back in the NL and Derek Lowe as the number 1 make the Braves tough to beat. Just as the experts are wrong about Longoria, they are wrong about Chipper Jones. For the last 3 years, they've been saying he's washed up, has nothing left in the tank but the guy just goes out and crushes, even if it's in only 110 games.
In the central, I think the Cubs will crush the ball. Unfortunately, teams will crush their pitching. The only way the Cubs make the playoffs is with Rich Harden throwing over 150 innings this year which is questionable. The Cubs defense is bad, really bad. Theriot is a utility man playing short, Fotenot better do the job at second because they let go DeRosa, who I think is very underrated. I don't see Ryan Dempster repeating what he did last year. Carlos Marmol better pitch a lot in the bullpen because I don't have any confidence in the other yahoos they have. Watch the Cubs blow a lot of leads this year. Milwaukee on the other hand did what they needed. Trevor Hoffman gives them more bullpen confidence than they've ever had. Prince Fielder and Corey Hart will play better and Ryan Braun is the real deal and could win the MVP award. He may hit 45 homers. I don't know how the Cardinals do it but it seems like every other year they put it together and make a run. I question their pitching but any team that has Albert Pujols has a chance to win it all. Picking up Khalil Greene was a steal. Don't forget that 2 years ago, this guy hit 20 homers and 40 doubles while competing for a gold glove. He's the shortstop they needed to complete a very good defense. Rick Ankiel is a a powerful bat and could hit 30 homers in a full season. If Ryan Ludwick hits close to what he did last year, they will win the Central division.
In the West, it's going to be a tough battle for LA but the new Giants and Diamondbacks won't have enough. San Diego will lose 100+ games which will allow the winner of the West to win the NL. I like what the Giants are doing with the exception of the Renteria signing. They have loaded up on pitching and are slowly putting together a lineup in the post-Bonds era. I think Arizona has the best chance at beating LA. They have a solid pitching staff and their lineup will be solid. It Eric Byrnes can come back and contribute they will score some runs but I don't think it will be enough to catch LA.
I think the Dodgers are the best team out there because they've added Ramirez full time along with Furcal and Hudson for a full year will make them tough. The young guys like Kemp and Ethier will make their lineup the best in the NL behind the Cubs but unlike the Cubs they will be able to rely on their bullpen and pitchers.
National League
East
Atlanta Braves
Philadelphia Phillies
New York Mets
Florida Marlins
Washington Nationals
Central
St. Louis Cardinals
Milwaukee Brewers
Chicago Cubs
Houston Astros
Cincinnati Reds
Pittsburgh Pirates
West
Los Angeles Trolley Dodgers
Arizona Diamondbacks
San Francisco Giants
Colorado Rockies
San Diego Padres
Playoffs
Los Angeles over Philadelphia
St. Louis over Atlanta
Los Angeles over St. Louis
Cy Young: Johan Santana, NYM
MVP: Albert Pujols, STL
Rookie of the Year: Tommy Hansen, ATL
Batting Champ: Albert Pujols, PHI
World Series
Los Angeles Dodgers over Boston Redsox in 7
MVP: Andre Ethier
I think this year will be a good one. I can't believe the so-called experts that think Evan Longoria is going to win the MVP award. I think they are smoking something. Tampa Bay had a great year last year but if the 2006 Tigers or 2005 Whitesox taught us anything, it's hard to repeat that breakout success in the following season. Here's my breakdown for the AL and NL.
American League
I see Tampa Bay playing well but losing to Boston in the East. Boston has good starters and a great bullpen which means they won't need to score many runs. However, with Ortiz, Bay, Youkilis, Drew and Pedroia how can they not score runs. I look forward to the New York soap opera unfolding. Sabathia won't be as good as they think. Burnett will get hurt and the rest of the pitching isn't that good. This team is getting old, even with Teixeira. Look at the rest of the lineup, Posado, ARod, Jeter, Matsui, Damon. These guys are old. I think Toronto has the best pitching in the East and could do damage if they score enough runs.
I think the Tigers will score enough runs to be competitive but thier pitching sucks. Cabrera and Granderson will win them some games. The Twins will be good and by picking up Crede they've added Defense and potentially 30 HRs. Liriano could compete for the Cy Young. I like Victor Martinez and Hafner to rebound and make the Indians a playoff team. Interestingly, the Royals will be better and could catch the Whitesox. I think Chicago was awful in the off-season. A couple years ago they had a rotation and now they have a much older Mark Buehrle and John Danks. They unloaded pitching and haven't picked up much. They let Crede go for Josh Fields and they are moving an excellent utility man in Alexei Ramirez to shortstop where he'll be an average defensive player at best. I don't think Jermaine Dye will last the season on the sox, he'll be traded.
I think the AL West is weak this year and the A's could sneak it out if the Angels don't run away with it. The Angels will miss Teixeira a lot but aren't going to miss KRod at all. Brian Fuentes will do just fine as closer. Oakland could make a run if they find enough starters and their bullpen repeats it's performance from last season. Matt Holliday, Jason Giambi and Orlando Cabrera completely change their lineup. Cabrera's defense combined with Mark Ellis makes for a lot of double plays and Giambi and Holliday give them the offense they never had last season. Seattle will continue to struggle. Texas is the same team they've been for 20 years, all offense and no pitching.
I just don't see a better team than Boston but either the Indians or Twins could make a run.
American League
East
Boston Redsox
Toronto Blue Jays
Tampa Bay Rays
New York Yankees
Baltimore Orioles
Central
Minnesota Twins
Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
Chicago Whitesox
Kansas City Royals
West
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Oakland Athletics
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
Playoffs:
Minnesota over Los Angeles
Boston over Cleveland
Boston over Minnesota
Cy Young Award: Roy Halladay, TOR
MVP: Miguel Cabrera, DET
Rookie of the Year: Nelson Cruz, TEX
Batting Champ: Ichiro Suzuki, SEA
The National League is going to be great to watch. I think this is going to be a great playoff race because there are so many good teams. Everybody is talking about Manny Ramirez making the difference in LA but the truth is, the middle infielders will make the difference. They are getting Furcal back at SS and leading off and it was a steal for them to go out and get Orlando Hudson to hit second and play gold glove defense at 2B. You look at that team and they have a few holes in their bullpen and rotation but I think they will fill them. They shouldn't have let Saito go but Broxton will be a good closer.
The guy the Dodgers will miss the most will be Derek Lowe which is why I think the Braves are going to be good this year. Granted they lost Tim Hudson for most of the season but picking up starting pitching allowed them to silently put the best rotation in MLB together. This will take pressure off Tommy Hansen who will win the Rookie of the Year award. Javier Vazquez back in the NL and Derek Lowe as the number 1 make the Braves tough to beat. Just as the experts are wrong about Longoria, they are wrong about Chipper Jones. For the last 3 years, they've been saying he's washed up, has nothing left in the tank but the guy just goes out and crushes, even if it's in only 110 games.
In the central, I think the Cubs will crush the ball. Unfortunately, teams will crush their pitching. The only way the Cubs make the playoffs is with Rich Harden throwing over 150 innings this year which is questionable. The Cubs defense is bad, really bad. Theriot is a utility man playing short, Fotenot better do the job at second because they let go DeRosa, who I think is very underrated. I don't see Ryan Dempster repeating what he did last year. Carlos Marmol better pitch a lot in the bullpen because I don't have any confidence in the other yahoos they have. Watch the Cubs blow a lot of leads this year. Milwaukee on the other hand did what they needed. Trevor Hoffman gives them more bullpen confidence than they've ever had. Prince Fielder and Corey Hart will play better and Ryan Braun is the real deal and could win the MVP award. He may hit 45 homers. I don't know how the Cardinals do it but it seems like every other year they put it together and make a run. I question their pitching but any team that has Albert Pujols has a chance to win it all. Picking up Khalil Greene was a steal. Don't forget that 2 years ago, this guy hit 20 homers and 40 doubles while competing for a gold glove. He's the shortstop they needed to complete a very good defense. Rick Ankiel is a a powerful bat and could hit 30 homers in a full season. If Ryan Ludwick hits close to what he did last year, they will win the Central division.
In the West, it's going to be a tough battle for LA but the new Giants and Diamondbacks won't have enough. San Diego will lose 100+ games which will allow the winner of the West to win the NL. I like what the Giants are doing with the exception of the Renteria signing. They have loaded up on pitching and are slowly putting together a lineup in the post-Bonds era. I think Arizona has the best chance at beating LA. They have a solid pitching staff and their lineup will be solid. It Eric Byrnes can come back and contribute they will score some runs but I don't think it will be enough to catch LA.
I think the Dodgers are the best team out there because they've added Ramirez full time along with Furcal and Hudson for a full year will make them tough. The young guys like Kemp and Ethier will make their lineup the best in the NL behind the Cubs but unlike the Cubs they will be able to rely on their bullpen and pitchers.
National League
East
Atlanta Braves
Philadelphia Phillies
New York Mets
Florida Marlins
Washington Nationals
Central
St. Louis Cardinals
Milwaukee Brewers
Chicago Cubs
Houston Astros
Cincinnati Reds
Pittsburgh Pirates
West
Los Angeles Trolley Dodgers
Arizona Diamondbacks
San Francisco Giants
Colorado Rockies
San Diego Padres
Playoffs
Los Angeles over Philadelphia
St. Louis over Atlanta
Los Angeles over St. Louis
Cy Young: Johan Santana, NYM
MVP: Albert Pujols, STL
Rookie of the Year: Tommy Hansen, ATL
Batting Champ: Albert Pujols, PHI
World Series
Los Angeles Dodgers over Boston Redsox in 7
MVP: Andre Ethier
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
10th Anniversary of the flawed BCS
This year is the 10th year of the BCS (1998-2008 seasons). Even for all of it's flaws, the BCS has had some good games. Here are my top 5.
#1
Monday, January 1, 2007 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl:
Boise State (12–0, BCS #8, automatic) 43
Oklahoma (11-2, Big 12 champion) 42(OT)
#2
Friday, January 3, 2003 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (National Championship):
Ohio State (13-0, BCS #2, Big Ten champion) 31
Miami (FL) (BCS #1, Big East champion) 24 (2 OT)
#3
Wednesday, January 4, 2006 - Rose Bowl (National Championship):
Texas (12–0, BCS #2, Big 12 champion) 41
Southern California (12-0, BCS #1, Pac-10 champion) 38
#4
Tuesday, January 3, 2006 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
Penn State (10-1, Big Ten champion) 26
Florida State (ACC champion) 23 (3 OT)
#5
Saturday, January 1, 2000 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
Michigan (at-large) 35
Alabama (SEC champion) 34 (OT)
Honorable Mention:
Saturday, January 1, 2005 - Rose Bowl:
Texas (11-1, at-large) 38
Michigan (Big Ten champion) 37
Best Nokia Sugar Bowl:
Monday, January 2, 2006
West Virginia (10-1, Big East champion) 38
Georgia (10-2, SEC champion) 35
#1
Monday, January 1, 2007 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl:
Boise State (12–0, BCS #8, automatic) 43
Oklahoma (11-2, Big 12 champion) 42(OT)
#2
Friday, January 3, 2003 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (National Championship):
Ohio State (13-0, BCS #2, Big Ten champion) 31
Miami (FL) (BCS #1, Big East champion) 24 (2 OT)
#3
Wednesday, January 4, 2006 - Rose Bowl (National Championship):
Texas (12–0, BCS #2, Big 12 champion) 41
Southern California (12-0, BCS #1, Pac-10 champion) 38
#4
Tuesday, January 3, 2006 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
Penn State (10-1, Big Ten champion) 26
Florida State (ACC champion) 23 (3 OT)
#5
Saturday, January 1, 2000 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
Michigan (at-large) 35
Alabama (SEC champion) 34 (OT)
Honorable Mention:
Saturday, January 1, 2005 - Rose Bowl:
Texas (11-1, at-large) 38
Michigan (Big Ten champion) 37
Best Nokia Sugar Bowl:
Monday, January 2, 2006
West Virginia (10-1, Big East champion) 38
Georgia (10-2, SEC champion) 35
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