The Diamond Collar … Certainly yous remember Marathon Man … well, Friday night from 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. on the Oprah channel, it’s The Diamond Collar Marathon … that’s right, James and Lena and Dr. Sal and Irene and Primo are back!
Animal Lovers of the World Unite!!!!
The Diamond Collar … tomorrow, Friday, March 28 … from 8:00 – 11:00 p.m.
It’s a Marathon!
Something Happened … by Joseph Heller … Bob Slocum isn’t happy. He’s not happy with his wife or his kids or his job. He’s unhappy in pretty much all the relationships in his life except those he can control upon reflection (which require his going through them out of control first). Upon further American review, Bob should be happy. He’s a surviving veteran of World War II, he’s got a nice home, a good job (he’s about to become an executive), he can screw around on his wife whenever he wants, he scan screw his wife whenever he wants (she suspects he fools around but seems to be as unhappy as he is and she’ll still put out) … even with a daughter going through her teenage angst and a son, much like Bob was when he was young, who is afraid of everything (including being afraid of being afraid) … Bob Slocum’s life is an American success story … except he’s unhappy. Does success = happiness? Not necessarily, as Bob Slocum experiences.
Bob has another child, a handicapped son that Bob (and the rest of the family) wishes he/they didn’t have to contend with—Derek, the retard (as Bob too often refers to him). Was Derek part of his penance for being successful? Was Derek an aberration? Was Derek, perhaps, the ONLY happy Slocum?
Throughout this too long novel (and it is a bit too long), Bob delivers his special way with words. It is a brutally honest and politically incorrect way with words, but it is spoken in Bob’s stream of consciousness (the voice the novel is told in) … and except for a few arguments within his household, Bob thinks things that he’d dare never say aloud (things many of us might think and dare never say aloud).
Something Happened is a funny, poignant, and ultimately a devastating novel. If Bob expresses closeness with anyone, it’s his very afraid of everything son. He fears his very afraid son will not make it (much the way he always feared he wouldn’t make it) … and when tragedy strikes, we learn it is far more possible than comfortable that Bob can make it ... and somehow Bob Slocum becomes what he’s been so unhappy observing all his life … and he steps to as if given his marching orders after all.
Highly recommended reading … a very, very good novel and peak into our American psyche.
Unions in the NCAA!!!!! … Huzzah, MF’ers … that’s all we have to say … it’s about friggin’ time. Never mind the fact that the unionized NFL gets to protect its players by restricting the amount of contact players engage in during the week (for the sake of saving their brain damaged heads) … the NCAA has NO SUCH RESTRICTIONS (they leave it up to the individual programs/coaches) …
So, let’s hear the usual arguments posed against unionizing athlete-students (or student/athletes, if you require self-deception).
1. Most of those kids playing at the big schools don’t even have the grades for college.
A: Maybe so, so why did the schools recruit them? (for the money they bring).
2. They’re students. Why should students get paid?
A: Why shouldn’t the players see their fair share? Why shouldn't they get paid?
3. It’s always been this way. Why should it change now?
A: Yes, and so was slavery always that way (for 400 years) ... just because something has always been (exploitation of workers), why shouldn’t it change and change right now?
I can go on, but yous get the picture. Don’t kid yourselves, amici, this is a beautiful thing. Although I’m sure it’ll meet strong resistance (maybe even get overturned) in the upcoming years, it’s a start … it’s a spark for an explosion for workers’ rights everywhere!
Viva la revolución!
—Knucks
As regards the NCAA and unions …
Pay that man his money.
Full scene
