Failure

 J.K. Rowling’s commencement speech at Harvard titled “The Fringe Benefits Failure” on Ted.com brings so many personal things to mind in reference to failure. J.K. Rowling is the well-known British novelist best known as the author of the Harry Potter series. She was very honored to have been chosen to give the commencement speech, but was very nervous. She injected humor at the beginning about losing weight because she was so nervous and offered up some Harry Potter tidbits. This humor is what relaxed her and allowed her to build trust with the audience. At the beginning of her speech she said something that has stayed with me and we all should remember it. She said don’t blame others for your mistakes and failures, not even your parents; you are responsible for your own life. 

J. K. Rowling said that you will have failures in life and that she feared failure, but failure set her free. I relate to her when she talks about the adversity that she overcame. She had to overcome poverty, unemployment, and single motherhood and divorce 7 years after graduating college. Overcoming this failure is what helped her become such a great novelist. She talks about a significant event in her life before she started writing while working for Amnesty International in London. She worked in the research department and would read letters and watch videos of torture victims, rape victims, executions, missing persons all from totalitarian regimes. This experience taught her to value imagination. Valuing imagination allows us to empathize with humans whose experience we have never shared.

J. K. Rowling ends her speech talking about friends. She says friends from college have been her friends after graduation and for life. These friends are the God Parents of her children and she has used their names in her books. The point she is making is that we should value our friends and keep them close.

This speech means a lot to me personally. I have experienced failures in my life, but I have learned from each one of them. My failures have made me stronger. Like J. K. Rowling I feared failure, but no more. We will have failure in life. Don’t be afraid of failing; take each failure as a learning experience and a new start.

PED's: Performance Enhancing Drugs

Performance Enhancing Drugs, also known as PED’s are substances used by athletes to improve their performances are a popular topic in sports theses days. More and more professional sports leagues have need taking this problem more seriously in the last few years. The attention has brought about more and better testing and more fines and suspensions. Unfortunately the problem is not only in professional sports, but also in college, high school and amateur sports as well. Every 4 years numerous athletes are disqualified from competing for their countries in the Olympics because of PED’s.

 The drug Adderall which main use was for kids with ADHD to help them focus is the new drug of use. College students have used it to help them with their studies. The prescription drug that can sharpen focus and hone impulse control has become popular in NFL locker rooms. At least seven of the players suspended for the 2014 season received their suspensions from the use of Adderall. It appears some NFL players are using and abusing the drug.

 

PED use hasn’t been more rampart than in the NFL and Major League Baseball. Every year, the NFL is cracking down on more players using PED’s and any illegal substances, including drugs such as marijuana. This year is no different; so far the league has already suspended some of the biggest names in the game for the 2014 season. Robert Mathis, outside linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts has been suspended 4 games, which will cost him over $705,000 in salary. Arizona defensive end Daryl Washington is suspended for the entire 2014 season and will loose over $3 million in salary. My hometown and favorite team the Miami Dolphins will loose last years first round draft pick, Dion Jordan for 4 games because of a positive test for PED’s. His suspension will cost him $123,000 in salary.

Substance abuse is also a problem with just as many suspensions as PED use. The majority of substance abuse suspensions come from positive marijuana tests and alcohol abuse and arrests. Cleveland Brown wide receiver Josh Gordon is suspended indefinitely for a third violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy. Gordon led the NFL in receiving with 1,646 yards during the 2013 season after being suspended for two games for a second positive test for marijuana. Josh Gordon has an appeal at the league offices in New York on August 1st. Gordon and his agent Drew Rosenhaus are hoping his suspension gets lowered. As it stands now he will miss the entire 2014 season.

“The Decision Part 2”

It has been 10 days since “The Decision Part 2” has been made and Lebron James is returning home to northeast Ohio. In an essay that was posted on SI.com Lebron addresses the reason why he is returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He says the reason for the essay is that he wanted to tell his side of the story uninterrupted. No press conference this time or a show dedicated to the decision broadcasted from the Boys and Girls Club, just an essay. What do you think about LeBron’s decision, what do you think about the way he did it and how long it took him?

 Of course Miami Heat fans are upset, feel used and dumped like an old girlfriend, but don’t forget what he brought to the City of Miami and the Miami Heat Franchise. The numbers don’t lie, 4 straight Eastern Conference Championships, 4 straight NBA Finals appearances and 2 back-to-back NBA Titles. Some think that Lebron would have left even if the Heat had won another title, me personally I don’t think so. You don’t leave where you’re winning championships. If many of us moved away from home to work in another city, would we go back home if we had a chance, especially if it wouldn’t hurt us financially? You should always be able to go back home and we shouldn’t be upset with LeBron James about that. Now what we can be upset about, and I say we because I am a Miami Heat fan, is the length of time he took to make the decision because that prevented Miami Heat President Pat Riley from possibly going after other free agents. As far as the essay is concern, the only problem I had is that he didn’t thank the Miami Heat fans. The South Florida community welcomed and embraced LeBron James and his family and treated them with love and respect. If he truly wrote that essay or if someone else wrote it, not thanking the Heat fans and South Florida is inexcusable.

We all know the saying, where there’s smoke, there’s fire, and we saw plenty of smoke before LeBron made his decision. The first smoke was the rumor that Cleveland Cavalier owner Dan Gilbert’s plane was in south Florida, which we found out, was true. It was later revealed that LeBron James and Dan Gilbert met at the Rusty Pelican on Key Biscayne. There was a whole lot of smoke when there were moving trucks at his house and he had all his cars shipped back to Ohio. I thank him for 4 good years and 2 championships. Miami-Dade County is now Miami-Wade County again!

Is The Heat Back On?

The Heat is back on in Miami after a cool down period from the NBA Finals. The San Antonio Spurs soundly beat the Miami Heat. It’s time to reload. It started last week with the NBA Draft when Pat Riley selected Connecticut guard Shabazz Napier in the first around after trading up two spots to get him. Many say this was LeBron James’ pick because LeBron said Napier was his favorite college player from the NCAA Finals and in the NBA Draft. What do you think?

The free agent period began at 12:01 a.m. this morning, players can begin meeting and talking with teams, but they cannot sign contracts until the 10^th of July. The spotlight is on Miami because LeBron James can single-handedly change the whole landscape of free agency with his decision to stay with the Heat or go elsewhere. The Big 3, James, Wade and Bosh along with Udonis Haslem have all opted out of their contracts giving Miami roughly $55 million in salary cap space. This is very important because after resigning the Big 3, which will happen, the Heat will need the extra money to bring in other big name free agents. Pat Riley is the master at closing deals and is very good at motivating speeches. There is a 95% chance that Riley and Heat owner Mickey Arison close the deal with any free agent they get in front of.

There are a few interesting free agents on the market, Carmelo Anthony, Toronto’s Kyle Lowry, the Washington Wizards’ Marcin Gortat. The question is will Carmelo leave the bright lights and big money in New York for a chance to win a championship? It is more likely we will end up in Dallas or Chicago than Miami. Toronto is going to throw big money at Lowry for him to stay. Gortat is the big man that the Heat could use, but will Washington let their big man go after making the playoffs with their up and coming young team? Let me know what you think.

Sterling No More: Donald Sterling Is Losing His Shine

The future for Donald Sterling isn’t getting any brighter; he is losing his shine in business and health wise. Ever since his racists’ comments were made public, Donald Sterling’s life has been in a downward tailspin with no recovery in sight. First he was banned for life by the NBA and fined a record $2.5 million. In May two physicians determined he was mentally incapacitated. 

 The latest in the Donald Sterling saga has him being accused of threatening doctors and his wife’s lawyers. Shelly Sterling had her attorney file a petition in court quoting the alleged threatening remarks. The petition alleged Donald Sterling called Dr. Meril Platzer a liar, cheat, a fraud and that he would see that she loses her medical license. He also said he would sue her too. The second doctor that examined Sterling, Dr. James Spar allegedly received a threatening voicemail too. In a trial next month it will be determined if Donald Sterling is mentally incapacitated and if he should be removed as the administrator of the family trust which actually owns the Clippers. There is a pending deal on the table between Shelly Sterling and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to sell the team for $2 billion. This deal is awaiting approval by the NBA Board of Governors. The NBA called off a hearing and a vote to oust Donald Sterling when news of the potential deal came to light.

 Clearly Donald Sterling is mentally ill and losing it. He should not be allowed to run the day-to-day operations of any business or sports franchise. The sale of the Clippers would be the best thing for the Sterling family, fans and the NBA. As Donald Sterling’s mental health problems increase we will continue to see negative actions by him and hear negative and ignorant things come out of his mouth. What do you think? Feel free to comment.

How Much Is Enough?

Are sports salaries getting out of control, how much is enough and is the athlete worth it? If you are a starting quarterback in the NFL today you expect to be the highest paid player on your team. If you’ve won a Super Bowl you might expect to be not only the highest paid quarterback, but the highest paid player in the league. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick signed a record contract extension with the team. It is a six-year $126 million deal, that’s an average of $21 million a year. This makes him not only the highest paid quarterback, but also the highest paid NFL player right now. What’s so unique about this contract is that $61 million of it is guaranteed, that’s an NFL record. No matter what happens this next season or the next six years, Colin Kaepernick has $61 million in the bank.

Kaepernick was a second round pick out of Nevada in the 2011 NFL Draft. He has taken the 49ers to two straight NFC Championship Games, winning one and one Super Bowl appearance. Kaepernick had a decent 2013 season; he threw 21 touchdowns and passed for 3,197 yards and rushed for 524 yards with four touchdowns. This type of contract is going to be the measuring stick for other so called elite quarterbacks that have contracts coming up for renewal, Cam Newton being one of them. Cam Newton hasn’t won or been to a Super Bowl, but he has been to the playoffs and had a record setting rookie year and he was a first round draft pick, the number one pick overall in the same draft as Kaepernick. Is he worth $126 million?

Here are the three questions I have and I’m sure many others will too. Is Colin Kaepernick or any NFL quarterback or player worth $126 million? Can he lead the 49ers to another Super Bowl, and how much money is enough? His coach Jim Harbaugh certainly thinks he is. Jim Harbaugh says his quarterback is ready for a breakout year.