It’s getting tough out there to be rich these days. Not that I would know what that feels like, as one might gather from my name. Just look around: There’s a growing number of folks calling themselves the “99 Percent” and occupying just about every place in town with a Port-o-Potty or public restroom within […]
THE BLEACHER BUM
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles Vol. XVIII
What happened in Vegas stayed in Vegas, and is Raider Nation for real?
Call it a sucker punch. Call it what you will. Floyd Mayweather, Jr., saw an opportunity, and he went for it. That’s how I felt after the brawny, brazen welterweight celebrated yet another victorious outing in the ring at the MGM Grand along with his sizable entourage. For what it’s worth, Mayweather’s knockout of Ventura’s […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles Vol. XVII
‘The Times They Are A-Changin” or ‘You Never Know What You’ve Got Until It’s Back’
I was sitting in a greasy spoon in downtown San Francisco last weekend, digging into my order of fish and chips, when I noticed a Dallas Cowboys-Denver Broncos game on the diner’s flat screen television. As Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo jogged onto the field to take a few requisite snaps, my brain did a somersault. […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles Vol. XVI
Would an athlete by any other name smell as sweet?
When Los Angeles Lakers’ forward Ron Artest announced in June he had filed a petition in L.A. Superior Court to legally change his name to “Metta World Peace,” basketball fans everywhere snickered. Wasn’t this the same guy who leaped into the stands to beat a Detroit Pistons’ fan who’d thrown a cup of soda at […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles Vol. XV
The Man Who Fell to Earth, and a Texas-sized celebration
Well, it’s official: God hates the Miami Heat. No, I don’t really believe that, but apparently LeBron James does, if his Twitter feed is to be trusted. Just moments after the Heat lost the sixth and deciding game of the 2011 NBA Finals to the Dallas Mavericks at home, James tweeted: “The Greater Man upstairs […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles XIV
To cheat is human, to expose it divine
It’s an old, tired saying that cheaters never prosper. As we all know, that’s not entirely true. Cheaters can prosper, at least until they get caught. Just ask Barry Bonds, Bernie Madoff, or anyone from Enron or Goldman Sachs. Wait, Goldman Sachs did get away with it. Scratch that one. It may not be the […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles XIII
An NFL lockout threatens the football season, or ‘It’s the End of the World as We Know It’
Maybe it’s the radiation in our milk supply short-circuiting our indignation switches, or it could just be a chronic case of American Idol-ness, but there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot that gets people riled up these days. Government shutdown? We’re better off without those clowns. Chaos in the Middle East? Wake me up […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles XI
With the season’s midpoint drenched in L.A. glitter, the NBA knows drama
It’s official. We’ve reached the halfway point of the NBA season. And what have we learned so far? For starters, on an L.A.-saturated All-Star Weekend, Justin Bieber can upstage real basketball players. The vertically challenged Ken doll continued his path to world dominance (without messing up his ’do) by scoring eight points in the weekend’s […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles, Vol. X
Requiem for a light heavyweight, or Old Icemen don’t die, they just melt away
The end for “The Iceman” finally came on a winter’s eve in Las Vegas. After months of rumors and speculation, and just days after celebrating his 41st birthday, Chuck Liddell officially pronounced his professional mixed martial arts career over at a press conference for Ultimate Fighting Championship 125 on Dec. 29. Since he’s recently engaged, […]
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The Bleacher Bum’s 2010 Holiday Gift Guide
Truly tacky gifts for today’s tactless times
Warm up that hot-buttered rum, break out the Bing Crosby records, and get ready to max out your MasterCard; it’s time again for the gift guide that makes all other gift guides about as relevant as the Democrats in a lame duck session of Congress. Meant for white elephants or office Secret Santas, these tacky […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles Vol. IX
Wild happenings at the ‘Weed Series’ and a Giant-sized surprise
Nobody could have predicted this—not even Paul the Psychic Octopus, the famed World Cup prognosticator, may Neptune rest his slippery soul. Like a lot of people, my reaction to the Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants facing off in the World Series went something like, “Whaaaaaaaat?” For the Giants, their last sip of champagne came […]
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The Bleacher Bum Chronicles VI
It’s good to be the King; let the fans eat cake
Recession? What recession? July 4 may have been Independence Day in America, but the real independence day for professional basketball players came on July 8, the first day NBA free agents could sign new contracts. And man, did they get paid. Carlos Boozer bid adios to Utah for (my kind of town) Chicago, reportedly raking […]