CanOfCorn

As the old saying goes, if work were fun, it would be called something else.

QUOTE(Palehosefan @ Mar 28, 2005 -> 05:58 PM) UT fans expect their mens program to be at the women's level every year, good luck Bruce, you are gonna need it. I hope someone taped the conversation with Tennessee officials. He might have been offered $80,000 and a Blazer to leave Milwaukee. Just remember Buzz Peterson. Michael Jordan backed and up and coming young coach. Run outta town on a rail. I give Pearl three years at UT and he goes to the Patriot league or something like that.

I'm a 1993 Grad of U of I...I missed the 1989 Final Four team by a year, but know exactly where I was for that damn Michigan game. I remember Bruce Douglas and Doug Altenberger. I have been an Illini fan since the early 80's and this was, by far, the best game I have ever seen. I am far away now in Austin, TX, but I will happily gloat over every Big 12 fan I meet. I miss the camaraderie of Illini Nation in Champaign/Chicago/St. Louis, but I still live and die by this team. If I can interject a quick story about my experience. I was watching at home with my fiancee and two friends, none of whom went to Illinois or anywhere close to a Big Ten school (Rice and Agnes Scott were their teams, yikes). Anyway, as the Illini were down 15, they all said, there's still a chance. I ran to the closet and got my torn up sweatshirt I bought my freshman year at Illinois and two Illini hats from the closet. I clutched that sweatshirt as tight as I could for the remaining 4 minutes of the game. I still don't know what happened, but when Deron hit that tying three, I think people as far away as Waco heard me. I always thought that sweatshirt was lucky...and now, I KNOW it is. Thanks for the story Krush and have a great time at the Final Four...just cheer as loud or louder at that game and know that there are Illini all over the world cheering through you and every other fan at the game. ILL INI!!! PS. If you can get Bill Murray to the games in St. Louis, that would be great...I think he's a lucky charm this year, too.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 24, 2005 -> 10:26 PM) Because its BS. Pearl didn't make any such offer. Deon Thomas is a real asshole for not taking any blame, if he didn't mention any illegal offers from Illinois none of this would have happened, and then 16 years later making this claim on the week Pearl takes on the Illini. If its true where's the proof? If you say Illinois didn't offer Thomas money and a car, you are calling him a liar, because he said they did. He has no credibility. Its also no coincidence Bruce Weber has nothing to say on the subject. He was an assistant at Purdue at the time, and knew what a dirty program Illinois had. He has no problems with Pearl. They aren't friends, but are cordial. I'll give you this...Illinois was dirty. They almost definitely give players money and cars to go there. But, Pearl is still a rat. If he's comfortable with his decision, that's fine. Good for him. And I'll also give him this, he's done his time in coaching purgatory. That doesn't mean that he should be put on a pedestal. Remember, he didn't give 8 minutes of the tape to the NCAA, just the 6 minutes incriminating the Illini. Read this. It was written by an Illinois Alumnus who was there and did some research. You'll find the link here: Bruce Pearl And yes, it is biased, but there are also incriminating evidence against Illinois, too. Standing up for what you believe in is one thing...doing something because you've been outworked not chosen is another. Pearl is the latter.

Ahhhh... Work: 512 Home: 512 Cell: 512 That means I only have to remember 7-digits and let the other 4-digit part of my brain waste away to sweet liquor. PS. Texsox, is that Charlie Chan and number 1 son? I never understood why they had a white Charlie Chan and an Asian son? Or David Carradine in Kung Fu?

Alright, kids. People hate Duke because Duke wins. Plain and simple. Not because of JJ Redick. Not because of Shelden Williams. I hate Duke because they win (but I like Coach K, strange). Just like I dislike Kansas, Kentucky, and UNC. Because they all win, except for Kansas this year.

QUOTE(winodj @ Mar 24, 2005 -> 12:25 AM) You think that after 7 years of fighting to grant her her final wish, that he might have run out of sadness? To your point, although I would have worded it better, you are absolutely right. She is no longer who he married and as Steff said (I believe), you can't expect the poor guy to dote on his vegetative wife. It's a real sad story but a great philosophical convo...when does your wife/child/family member/friend cease to be that person? Is the act of being alive enough? Or is it recognition? What level of brain function is enough? If you ask me, which you didn't, she is no longer the person he married. Nor is she the person her parents raised. So sad.

QUOTE(AddisonStSox @ Mar 23, 2005 -> 06:58 PM) ...no no no. That's why the dinosaurs died. I thought that's why kittens are killed.

So ANYWAY... Welcome Back Nuke!!!

At some point, we all have to move on with our lives. If, from what I've heard, she only responds to light, how long do you expect me to live like that? Do you think Terri, who also said the same vows, would want me to dote over her, while in this vegetative state, for 15 years? 20 years? Until she passes? What if she lives to be 80 in the state she's in? Do you think she would want her husband to live like that? Maybe she would, but since she's not there, and the emotional distress on her husband, it's time to let her go. If he really wants to pull the plug and his family doesn't, then get a divorce and move on. But, then the same argument above shifts to the parents. Having hope is wonderful. But at some point, hope doesn't heal. I know this doesn't make a difference in this case...but I don't want my soon to be bride or my family to hope that I can make it off a feeding tube after 15 years. Not even 5. It's not fair to them. If they want to do it, that's up to them. But personally, if I can't enjoy life, then life isn't worth living.

In the immortal words of Dr. Evil: Boo-frickity-Hoo. And what a crock by bringing his son..."Look at what you are doing to my family, my son (hey, look sad)." Crap on a stick. Steroids or not...that was bush league.

Found this is a NY Daily News article: Now I'm not saying it's true, but what if it is? Would this make Pearl more or less underhanded in his tactics? Maybe, if the NCAA wants to clean their games up, they should tape ALL conversations or send a representative with the coach on EVERY scouting trip.

What this case should do...is make every single one of us go out, seek a lawyer, and write up a living will. Especially if you don't want to live like this. If the government wants to keep her alive, then they should take over her care. I think her husband has done enough and maybe it's just too much for him to handle. As for the wife/children argument, I have been married (and soon will be again) and I couldn't see my wife in a vegetative state for 15 years...that's too much suffering for anyone. I don't have kids, but I would think that keeping a child alive is pretty selfish. The problem is she can't make the decision for herself anymore and she's not going to get better. Let her go. Either way it's a slippery slope.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 22, 2005 -> 04:52 PM) So you are saying Pearl is all wet while implying that he has broken numerous rules, has offered cash and other incentives to recruits etc. Where's the proof on your allegations? Illinois had run a dirty program for years, in fact, Ron Rappoport goes through a little of it in today's Sun-Times. Evidently, he didn't "offer" Deon Thomas more than Jimmy Collins did. Btw, Thomas was at least 18 when this happened, and maybe 19, which makes him an adult. He took NO responsibility. He is responsible for what he does. Finally, if the situation was reversed, and all the facts the same, and Jimmy taped Iowa, there is no chance in hell you would refer to him as a rat. I'm saying if you would have looked at Iowa's recruiting, they probably would have been hit with sanctions, too. As would Duke, UNC, Indiana or any major conference program. I'm not alleging anything...I'm saying it was and probably still is a practice of ALL teams. What Bruce Pearl did was give the NCAA no other choice but to find anything to save face. When has the NCAA ever let anyone off the hook? And as for Collins, I was never a big fan of his anyway. The only thing he did with the Illini, as far as I'm concerned, was open the path from the Chicago Public League. I probably would refer to him as a rat. As for Thomas being 18, I thought I read in the Sun-Times or Trib a couple of days ago that he was 17 when he was being recruited...I'll check it out. Edited at 1:55pm: You are right. He was born in 1971, which would have made him 18 in 1989. That's still a lot of pressure to put on an 18 year old kid. But I retract all the minor talk...my bad.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Mar 22, 2005 -> 12:36 PM) Actually, I think you summed it up quite nicely. Yes, Illinois was guilty. Yes, Deon Thomas could have said nothing. But he was 17, and I don't know about you, but I didn't always do the right thing at 17. My point was, if the situation was reversed, and Collins taped a call, implicating Pearl, and the NCAA investigated, they (the NCAA) probably would have found things that Iowa did and put them on probation. The NCAA had to save face and gave the Illini a one year postseason ban and two years fewer scholarships. Illinois paid it's penalty (and I believe made a run to the title game of the Big Ten Championship in one of those years as a 10 or 11 seed), but that doesn't mean that Illinois should let it go. Bruce Pearl is a rat, plain and simple. And he definitely shouldn't be portraying himself as a martyr, as he is in some interviews now. And don't you tell me that an "aggressive recruiter" didn't offer cash, cars, women, whatever in the course of his time as an assistant or head coach.

Winning breeds chemistry. Losing destroys chemistry. Let's see how the first couple of months play out before we compare them to the 2000 Sox.

Berkman is the first baseman as soon as Bagwell retires. He played first in college at Rice, he's from Texas, he probably gave them a hometown discount. Hopefully, he'll be a lifer in an Astros uni...as long as he doesn't hire Bora$$!!!

Tex...It says right in your article: Deon Thomas wasn't informed. AND to make matters worse, he was a minor. And with the Republican government in then, they would have deferred to the state law. I know what you are saying, but Bruce Pearl was wrong. He broke the law. He wouldn't have gone to a pound-you-in-the-ass prison, but he would have gotten a nice little fine.

QUOTE(Nokona @ Mar 19, 2005 -> 11:47 PM) I will also be filing suit against Notre Dame for their blatant discrimination of my fellow peoples, the leprechauns. I'm not of Scandanavian descent, but look out Minnesota Vikings, you're next!!! Youppi! for U of I!!!

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 21, 2005 -> 02:47 PM) Thomas verbally committed to Iowa then switched to Illinois. Then Thomas tells Pearl Illinois offered him cash and a car. Pearl turns them in. The person responsible for all of this was Deon Thomas, not Bruce Pearl. Why would you tell a coach of another university, you are backing out of your commitment to them because another school is giving you cash and a car? If Illinois was absolved of all wrong doing, why were they put on probation? If you think Illinois would be stronger with Jimmy Collins coaching them, you need to look at the job he's done at UIC. Not too impressive. Pearl kicked his ass. Oh Dick, Dick, Dick...c'mon...I'll agree with the Pearl over Collins coaching ability. But, the Deon Thomas and Illinois were cleared of allegations over that incident. They were put on probation for other infractions, which, if you opened up an investigation at ANY PROGRAM, would probably come up. Including Duke, UNC, Kentucky or Kansas. From what I remember (I was at Illinois at the time), Thomas was a 17 year old kid, trying to get an aggressive recruiter off his back. Did Deon say those things, probably, but the NCAA couldn't prove anything and instead saved face by putting Illinois on probabation for other infractions. Bruce Pearl is on the same level as Linda Tripp. Why wasn't he, or the Iowa team, put on probation for illegally wiretapping a recruit? Isn't that entrapment? Sorry Dick, but Bruce Pearl, good coach or not, is not a martyr, not a do gooder, he is a rat, plain and simple.

The Lakota dress was given to the university by a chief from South Dakota if my Illini history is correct. What is the University supposed to do if the tribe no longer exists? Here's some background...check the links at the bottom of the page. History of the Illini

The end of a long and storied career...Robbie, not Bautista. Robbie's done.

QUOTE(silver and black @ Mar 18, 2005 -> 11:19 PM) :headshake Fine, lose the Chief. I'm sick of this. Become the Tigers or the Bobcats or the Squirrels or whatever...but I hope all Native Americans realize that once the Illini drop the moniker Fighting Illini, then the original Illini Nation will truly become extinct. No one will ever ask again, "What's an Illini?" No one will ever do research on who they were. No one will ever care to remember that they were a distinguished midwestern tribe of farmers. And then we will be like everyone else...with a name like Vikings or Blues. Go whatevers!!!

QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Mar 18, 2005 -> 11:22 PM) http://chicagobears.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=7201 Started 15 games for a top rushing attack, must be at least solid. Anyone know anything further on this guy? I know the Packers were looking at him to replace the two guards they lost. Looks like Favre is going to be running a lot next year.

Why is everyone talking about 4-5 years? What about 3/$28-$30 mil. He'll still be young if the Sox want to go in a different direction and they won't be stuck for all that long. It's really only two years, cuz they could always trade him midway through the 3rd year? Did Koney say he wanted 4 years?