04/18/24
May 19, 2010
SportsFilter: The Wednesday Huddle:
A place to discuss the sports stories that aren't making news, share links that aren't quite front-page material, and diagram plays on your hand. Remember to count to five Mississippi before commenting in anger.
Guardiola must think defense will be optional and he might be right with this attack force; my projected Barca XI next season:
Villa - Ibra/Torres (!) - Messi
Iniesta - Xavi - Fabregas
Abidal (*) - Puyol - Pique - Alves
Valdes
! Torres is rumored to be heading south (though please I hope not)
* maybe they buy a new left back, that's the rumor I read.
posted by billsaysthis at 12:00 PM on May 19, 2010
Ex-NBA player Dudley wins GOP governor nod in Ore.
Not really clear to me on how being a baller, consultant on executive benefits and a wealth adviser make someone qualified to be governor, but then the KY Republicans voted an eye surgeon to be their Senate candidate in the fall.
posted by billsaysthis at 12:04 PM on May 19, 2010
Dudley defeated Allen Alley with 40 percent of the vote
That's better than his free throw shooting percentage.
posted by cjets at 03:15 PM on May 19, 2010
Please tell me that Allen Alley made some sort of gaffe in a debate with Dudley during the run-up to the primary which resulted in the following headline in the local paper: Dudley Pulling Ahead Thanks to Alley Oops.
Then I can die happy.
posted by holden at 03:46 PM on May 19, 2010
Not really clear to me on how being a baller, consultant on executive benefits and a wealth adviser make someone qualified to be governor
He is a Yale graduate with degrees in political science and economics. After retiring from the NBA, he started a foundation to improve the lives of diabetic children (Dudley himself is afflicted with Type 1 Diabetes). His grandfather served as the Ambassador to Denmark during the Nixon and Ford administrations. I would guess that he has some political and organizational skills.
posted by Howard_T at 03:50 PM on May 19, 2010
Don't forget Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura.
posted by bperk at 04:18 PM on May 19, 2010
...and current Detroit mayor Dave Bing...
posted by MeatSaber at 04:42 PM on May 19, 2010
Don't forget Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura....and current Detroit mayor Dave Bing...
Are any of these really good examples for successful politicians? I mean successful beyond being elected?
posted by cjets at 05:37 PM on May 19, 2010
Of course, the cynic in me wants to say that winning the election is all that matters.
posted by cjets at 05:45 PM on May 19, 2010
Well, how about Bill Bradley?
posted by bperk at 06:48 PM on May 19, 2010
He's much better than the other three. I have no reason to think that athletes can't be good politicians.
I just think in the case of Schwarzenegger and Ventura that people voted for celebrity rather than a competent politician.
posted by cjets at 07:04 PM on May 19, 2010
It's not clear to me that Schwarzenegger is doing or Ventura did a good job. While its true that governors are constrained by many factors out of their control the position, compared to say Senator or Representative (Bradley, Bunning, Watts and a few others), is one where you need to be a good organizational manager/executive in addition to making policy.
Nothing in Dudley's resume suggests he'll be good at that. Then again, Oregon population is not that much larger than SAG membership ;//
posted by billsaysthis at 09:13 PM on May 19, 2010
...and current Detroit mayor Dave Bing...
He is doing a stellar job compared to his predecessor.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 10:24 PM on May 19, 2010
What was wrong with Ken Cockrel? :D
Saying you're a better mayor than Kwame Kilpatrick is like saying you're a better free-throw shooter than Chris Dudley...
posted by MeatSaber at 10:35 PM on May 19, 2010
He's much better than the other three.
What's wrong with Dave Bing? Admittedly it wasn't a high hurdle to clear, but as YYM suggests, he's been a big improvement.
you need to be a good organizational manager/executive in addition to making policy
Wasn't Dudley one of the heads of the Player's Association during his playing days? He was always talked about as a cerebral player. This seems like an unfairly high set of qualifications you guys are looking for just because of his prior career. How many lawyers-turned-politicians do you apply this level of scrutiny to?
I'll cop to a soft spot for Dudley because I used to get stuck with his Blazers team in NBA Live '95 and he was a challenge to shoot free throws with. For some reason that led me to pay attention to the real guy.
posted by yerfatma at 08:25 AM on May 20, 2010
Barcelona sign David Villa, looks like Fabregas is next. Still not sure where Cesc fits in that midfield, but talk about the rich getting richer.