Collisions with Reality

This has been a long week, and here are some highlights!

• This article about Muslims and Christians protesting together in Egypt nearly made me cry. (Related: Muslims in Egypt protecting Coptic churches, and Christians protecting Muslims during Friday prayers during the protests.)
• I didn’t make it to IKEA today, but here are some awesome images from Homemade is Best, a cookbook of Swedish baked goods by IKEA. Unfortunately, it’s only available in Swedish IKEA stores. Can I even pick a favorite? Okay, maybe this one: (via the always awesome Things Organized Neatly tumblr.)
• I’m not entirely sure why the Wall Street Journal keeps writing articles about college hockey. In their latest, they celebrate the low-frills college hockey arenas, and rank them on various qualities. Michigan was ranked as the best crowd, to which I say, “Duh,” and, “You’re welcome.” (via my father-in-law.)

Have a lovely weekend, everyone! I will try not to brag too much about the lovely weather we’re having here.

I have to confess that I’ve bought into the hype, and am actually excited about the Big Chill game tomorrow. I wish I could be there (mostly because I think the hockey season ticket holders are getting the best seats). But in the meantime, checking out the webcam on the site is pretty cool — hey, someone’s practicing right now! (I am going to a bar in Berkeley to watch the game with the UM alumni club — yes, really — and someone had better have a cowbell.)

In some related notes:

• I’m amused by this guide to the Big Chill, aimed at the non-hockey fans who will be in attendance. And not just because of the warning about the student section cheers.
• Here’s an article from the WSJ wondering if college hockey is about to hit the big-time. There’s two key points that it misses, though. First, the NCAA hockey tournament is one of the four tournaments that actually makes money. So hockey may be under the radar, but it’s doing well for itself. Secondly, it seems like programs fold as often as new ones form. I’d be surprised if one didn’t fold before Penn State starts in 2012.
• On a sports note, in a survey asking which channels people couldn’t live without, ESPN was the highest cable channel noted. To which I say, DUH. I may be able to wait until this summer to watch the last season of Big Love on DVD, but you cannot replace live sports if you care about sports.
• Finally, you should all check out the recently-launched ESPNW. Over the years, ESPN has taken itself more and more seriously, but I think the ESPNW site makes it fun again.

Have a great weekend, everyone! And Go Blue!

Here’s some updates and a round-up of what’s going on with the assistant AG of Michigan (Andrew Shirvell) who is harassing the U of M student body president (Christopher Armstrong):

• Governor Granholm tweeted (. . . sigh) that she would have already fired Shirvell.
• Mr. Armstrong has filed for a restraining order against Mr. Shirvell (via B). I am relieved to see this, but distressed that it’s come to this.
• It has become an issue in the current campaign for Michigan Attorney General (also via B). I’m not sure how I feel about this.
• Mr. Shirvell was apparently a campaign manager for Mike Cox in 2006, but I’m having trouble directly verifying this — I can’t find anything from earlier than 2008 about this. Like, I dug up Cox’s campaign website with the Internet Wayback Machine, and nada. So when you see that factoid bandied about, maybe take it with a grain of salt until someone verifies it.
• On a lighter note, the Big Ten part of Michigan’s schedule starts on Saturday, as does the hockey season!

Finally, I want to note that I generally do not get involved with politics in other states. I do not write letters or donate money, no matter how dear the cause. However, I do not think this is a political issue. Even if politics were more explicitly involved, I think that I do have a legitimate stake in this as an alumnus of the University of Michigan. And Mike Cox has hardly avoided involvement with the affairs of my state.

I am deeply upset by the harassment of a gay University of Michigan student by an assistant Attorney General of Michigan. So, while it appears that Chris Armstrong can handily defend himself, I knew that I wouldn’t feel better until I wrote to the Attorney General myself. Here it is.

Attorney General Cox,

I am a former resident of Michigan and a proud graduate of the University of Michigan. I am deeply concerned about the systematic stalking and harassment of a University of Michigan student by an assistant Attorney General. I find it hard to believe that all of Mr. Shirvell’s actions — cyber-bullying, showing up at MSA meetings, videoing the student’s residence — are fully within the realm of legality. Even if he is not breaking any laws, his obsessive targeting of Mr. Armstrong is grossly unethical and an abuse of power.

Mr. Shirvell is clearly unfit for public office, and I encourage you to remove him from that position immediately.

(I never liked Mike Cox, anyhow.)

Once I had decided on Michigan for graduate school, friends and family asked me if I was excited about Michigan football. High off of several seasons of Penguins playoff hockey, I told everyone that I was excited about the Michigan hockey. And that was before I had any idea what the Yost environment was like. I’ve always loved college football, and sure, I enjoyed my first game in the Big House. But then I went to a game at Yost, and I was hooked. Football is great on TV, but hockey is awesome in person. Doubly so at Yost. You’re right on the ice, the cheers are vicious and random and loud, the crowd loves a good penalty kill, there’s no piped-in music or sirens — just the band — and oh yeah, the hockey is usually pretty good, too.

I know that it’s summer, the Stanley Cup Finals ended yesterday, and college hockey won’t start up again for another four months. But with the imminent implosion of the Big 12, let’s pretend that college sports are occasionally about, you know, SPORTS. The lovely article about the history of the student section at Yost had me thinking about my favorite memories at Yost from the six-and-a-half years I was at Michigan (many shared with friends J and Sarah): Read the rest of this entry →

I have been obsessively following the Pac-10 and Big Ten expansion rumors. And no one in Santa Barbara really cares about college football, so I really need to blog about it. I’m not going to touch the Pac-10 rumors — mostly because I don’t care, although it is hilarious that the Texas legislature is involved — but let’s talk Big Ten. If it expands to 12 teams, who should that twelfth team be? And how on earth will we fit a 2 into the Big Ten logo? (Update: Eli sent me these suggestions for a new logo. My favorite is “Big Ten Conference and Northwestern”.)

I know that the deciding factor is actually money, but let’s pretend that geography, academics, traditional rivalries, and competitiveness matter. Who do we want in the Big Ten? It has to be in a state that borders a Great Lake — currently Iowa is the only outlier — and it has to be pretty good both academically and athletically. Of all the teams suggested so far, only Pitt, Syracuse, and Notre Dame make the cut. For family smack-talking purposes, I really want it to be Pitt, but I honestly can’t see Pitt or Syracuse leaving the Big East, due to basketball. Notre Dame is insufferable, but they already play Michigan and Sparty nearly every year, and they can have in-state rivalries with Purdue and Indiana. Plus, they have a big rivalry with USC, so that helps sustain the Pac 10-Big Ten rivalry.

Sigh. Notre Dame. If the Big Ten has to expand by one team, I really think it’s the best fit for everyone. I can’t believe I’ve talked myself into this.

Forgetting about the super-conference rumors for now (I’m afraid the Big Ten will be stuck with the crappy teams from the Big 12) let’s move on to the most important matter: what becomes of the Michigan-Ohio State game? Assuming that the Big Ten in split into two divisions, whether they each have six or eight teams, I figure there are three options: Read the rest of this entry →