Dallas Mavericks 121, Oklahoma City Thunder 112 (Mavs lead 1-0)
Mavs Moneyball vs Welcome to Loud City
Newsflash: Dirk Nowitzki can shoot. Nearly 50 points on only 15 shots? 24 free throws in a row? INSANE. When Nellie hyped up Dirk back in 1998 he sure knew what he was talking about.
I'm impressed the Thunder made it to the Western Conference Finals with such a young and up-and-coming team, but I think this is the beginning of the end of their nice run this season. They've got an extremely bright future, but it takes time.
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls Game 2 (Bulls lead 1-0)
Peninsula is Mightier vs BlogaBull
I don't know about you, but I was pretty shocked that the Bulls won Game 1 so easily. That Taj Gibson throwdown on Dwyane Wade was unreal. I still see a rematch of the 2006 NBA Finals in the script though. The Heat will come back with some fire- they'll bring the heat if you will.
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ROME - Novak Djokovic was twice beat Rafael Nadal on clay court tournament. However, Djokovic still think Nadal as King of Clay.
Yes, Djokovic managed to reap a second victory over Nadal on clay, after winning the Rome Masters tournament 2011. In the final match, The Djoker, nicknames Djokovic, won with a score of 6-4 6-4.
Previously, The Djoker also managed to become champion at the Madrid Masters 2011, after defeating the same opponent in the final. Practically, Djokovic became the third player after Gaston Gaudio and Roger Federer beat Nadal more than once.
In fact, Nadal immediately think Djokovic as the top-seeded player to win the French Open this season. However, the world's second ranked tennis player denied it. The Djoker still consider Nadal as the King of Clay or clay-court king.
"Nadal is the king of clay court. He is playing the best tennis player in this field, Nadal has dominated this field for a long time,"said Djokovic Sportinglife quoted as saying on Monday (5/16/2011).
"Yes, I really won twice in eight days and it was amazing achievement for me, this adds confidence ahead of the French Open tournament. But that is just two tournaments, while Nadal dominated for years," he said.
David Ortiz didn’t defend Jorge Posada’s decision to remove himself from the Yankees’ lineup here tonight. But he also believes the Yankees are disrespecting Posada, their longtime catcher, by making him be a full-time designated hitter and deciding to drop him to No. 9 in the lineup for the first time since 1999.
“You want me to tell you what I think? They’re doing that guy wrong,” Ortiz said after the Red Sox’ 6-0 win over the Yankees. “They’re doing him wrong. Know why? Because that guy, he’s legendary right there in the organization. And, dude, DHing sucks. DHing, it’s not easy. From what I heard, they told him from the very beginning, he’s not even going to catch bullpens. That, straight up, starts messing with your head. You’re going tell me Posada can’t catch a game out there? Come on, man. I guarantee you, they throw him out there once in a while, mentally, it’s going to help him out. Because he’s just not thinking about hitting. He’s a DH. When you just think about hitting and you’re not hitting, it sucks. It sucks.
“He’s played a position his whole career. I got used to this because I had no choice. But I can imagine how hard it is. He’s a guy that, he’s a good hitter. I don’t care what anybody says. He’s going through what he’s going through right now, but he’s a good hitter.”
Posada has spent his entire 17-year career with the Yankees, and along with Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, he is among the last remaining links to the club’s dynasty years. Asked about Posada telling Yankees manager Joe Girardi to take him out of the lineup before tonight’s game, Ortiz said it wasn’t something Posada should have done, although he understands the way he must have been feeling.
“No, you don’t do that,” Ortiz said. “But that’s what I’m trying to tell you. It’s frustration that you’re living through that sometimes makes you make mistakes. He’s not perfect. He’s a human just like everyone else. He probably thinks it was the right thing to do, but now you see it ain’t. He’s a good hitter. He’s going through some tough times right now, but he’s better than that.”
More from both Ortiz and Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek on the Posada situation in Sunday’s Herald. Meanwhile, it’s worth remembering this old SportsCenter commercial with Ortiz and Posada:
(Reuters) - The Detroit Red Wings stormed back with three goals in the final 10 minutes of the third period for a 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday to force a deciding game seven in their Western Conference semi-final series.
It is the Red Wings third consecutive victory over the Sharks, and they will attempt to become just the fourth team to rally from a 3-0 deficit to win a NHL playoff series on Thursday in San Jose.
The Red Wings had the most of the play throughout, but were trailing 1-0 with 16:06 remaining in the game, and potentially their season, after Logan Couture squeezed a shot through the legs of Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard.
Valtteri Filppula, however, keyed the Red Wings rally setting up the equalizer for Henrik Zetterberg with 9:22 remaining and scoring the second less than two minutes later past Antti Niemi, who was spectacular in the Sharks' goal.
Darren Helm scored into an empty net for the third goal with just over a minute remaining at Joe Louis Arena to send the series to the sudden-death showdown.
(Reporting by Mike Mouat in Windsor, Ontario; Editing by Greg Stutchbury)
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NEW ORLEANS -- A surge of water not seen since the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 is forecast in coming days to test the enormous levees lining the Mississippi River on its course through the Deep South, adding another element of danger to a region already raked by deadly tornadoes and thunderstorms.
Mississippi's and Louisiana's governors issued flood warnings Thursday and declared states of emergency. Authorities along the swollen waterway in both states are warning nearby residents to brace for the possibility of any flooding. River boat casinos in Mississippi are closing and levee managers are readying sand bags and supplies – and the manpower to build the defenses – to fight the rising river along hundreds of levees in both states where the river crosses en route to the Gulf of Mexico.
"We're going to do everything we can to prepare for the worst-case scenario while we still are hoping for the best case," Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said, adding the state was prepared to withstand the test.
Louisiana is still recovering from powerful Hurricane Katrina, which struck in August 2005 as levees broke under surging waters and more than 80 percent of New Orleans was flooded. Since 2005, the corps has spent billions of dollars in repairing levees and improving the city's flood protections, but the vast majority of that work has been focused on protecting the city from hurricane surge, not river flooding.
While authorities who manage the levees express confidence that those structures can withstand the enormous surge, the high waters are expected to put pressure on the levees for as many as 10 days – and that has officials concerned.
"It is going to be a slow-moving crest and what that means is it does put pressure on those levees," Jindal said.
River flooding, fed by heavy rains across the Mississippi River valley, is already a serious problem hundreds of miles upriver, particularly in Missouri where the Army Corps of Engineers is considering whether to blow up a levee to relieve pressure on Cairo, Ill, a bottleneck where the Ohio and Mississippi rivers meet.
As the water makes its way downriver, the lower portion of the Mississippi will be tested.
The river is forecast to crest at 53.5 feet on May 18 at Vicksburg, Miss., a key gauge. That is the highest river stage recorded at Vicksburg since the catastrophic flooding of 1927 when the river reached 56.6 feet and would have kept on rising if levees hadn't given way, causing massive flooding and killing hundreds. After that calamity, the nation undertook an aggressive $13 billion plan to build levees and floodways that would avert such a scale of flooding again.
First Stop Of The 2011 Nixon WTA Headed To Rio; Winner-Takes-All to make first ASP Tour stop of the year, May 11-22
ENCINITAS, CA-The Nixon WTA (Winner-Takes-All) is back for the fifth consecutive year and will make the first stop of the 2011 series during The Billabong Pro in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 11-22.
The Nixon WTA is a winner-takes-all event along four stops of the 2011 ASP (Association of Surfing Professionals) World Tour and awards surfers with one-of-a-kind Nixon watches valued at over $10,000 USD for challenges ranging from Highest Heat score to Heaviest Wave and more.
“I really like the idea of the WTA, there are so many moments in these contests that go overshadowed by whomever won the heat or the event,” stated Mike Murciano, Nixon Marketing Manager. “Having an accolade for the highest air of the event directly recognizes a new breed in the WCT. I’m personally excited to see the guys push themselves in this category.”
The Rio leg of The Nixon WTA marks the contest’s inaugural stop in Brazil and also introduces a new category to The WTA format. The surfer who scores the Biggest Air, whether it be in the trials or the finals, will walk way this year’s winner making it anyone’s game!
Stops and challenges in The 2011 Nixon WTA will include:
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for Biggest Air: May 11-22, 2011
Jeffreys Bay, South Africa for Highest Heat Score: July 14-24, 2011
Teahupoo, Tahiti for Heaviest Wave: August 20-31, 2011
Oahu, Hawaii for the Triple Crown Winner: December 8-20, 2011
Video content of each of the Nixon WTA contenders will be available to watch at: billabongpro.com
About the Nixon WTA
Now in its fifth consecutive year, The Nixon WTA is a winner-takes-all event which awards custom, limited edition Nixon timepieces at four stops along the ASP World Tour. The four WTA challenges include: biggest air in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in May, the highest heat score in Jeffreys Bay, South Africa, in July; heaviest wave at Teahupoo, Tahiti, in August; and the overall Triple Crown winner on the North Shore of Oahu in December. The WTA celebrates an achievement in the contest that may have otherwise gone forgotten. The WTA makes sure to capture and reward a special moment in the event that usually coincides with the events best conditions.
About Nixon
Founded in 1998 in Encinitas, CA, Nixon is the premium watch and accessories brand for the youth lifestyle market. Focused on making the little stuff better, Nixon began with a small line of team-designed, custom-built watches sold exclusively in specialty boardsport and fashion retailers. Currently distributed in over 45 countries, Nixon’s product range has grown to include select men’s and women’s softgoods, leather goods and custom headphones.
Former United States Senator Rick Santorum represents everything that is wrong with the Republican Party. If dismantling big government is now a primary concern, Santorum has spent a career promoting big government. If stopping massive spending is now a top priority, Santorum has a lifelong record of championing massive spending. If our debt is now considered the greatest threat to our national security, Santorum has always considered everything but the debt a greater threat.
Indeed, if conservatism means limiting government, the many ways in which Santorum has been the consistent enemy of conservatism are virtually unlimited.
In his 2003 Wall Street Journal column, “Big Government Conservatism,” the Weekly Standard’s Fred Barnes explained George W. Bush’s distinct GOP brand: “Reagan was a small government conservative who declared in his inauguration address that government was the problem, not the solution. There, Bush begs to differ. The essence of Bush’s big government conservatism is a trade-off. To gain free-market reforms and expand individual choice, he’s willing to broaden programs and increase spending.”
Whether free markets and individual freedom saw any love during his tenure is arguable, but Bush’s massive “broadening” of government programs, budgets, and power is not, making Bill Clinton look conservative in comparison. During that time, Santorum was every bit as much the poster boy for big government as the president, and if Obama and the Democrats now triple the size of government, that growth is constructed on top of the statist groundwork laid by their Republican predecessors. Throughout Bush’s debt doubling agenda—No Child Left Behind, Medicare Plan D, you name it—Santorum was fully on board. And for that entire period, the Republican Party was completely off course.
Today, Santorum remains the personification of Bush Republicanism. Heading into the 2012 campaign, the former senator sounds more like the ghost of Republicans past, invoking Bush’s name more often and favorably than any other candidate, while seeming to hope his beating of the culture and foreign war drums might drown out his big government record. Last week, Santorum even tried to make amends with small government conservatives by publicly apologizing for his support for Medicare Plan D. Too bad Santorum is running in an election cycle in which conservatives are fed up with candidates who are constantly apologizing yet never changing.
Let us examine the Santorum scam: In positioning himself as the most socially conservative candidate, Santorum has been successful in spending as many taxpayer dollars as the Democrats by seeking right-wing refuge in his pro-life, pro-gun, and anti-gay-marriage positions. The problem is, “conservatives” of Santorum’s stripe rarely do much to actually advance these issues. Is America any closer to overturning Roe v. Wade? Do we generally have more federal gun laws today or less? Has homosexuality become more or less culturally acceptable? For most Republican politicians, social conservatism has always been more of a fashion statement than a mission statement. You even get the sense that politicians like Santorum know full well they can’t do much legislatively on these issues and thus enjoy the conservative cover it always provides them. A 10th Amendment revolution in this country might give social conservatives more political victories than they’ve had in decades—but it would also mean the loss of a valuable election tool for Republican politicians who not-so-coincidentally seem to always favor impossible-to-pass federal legislation.
The Bush-era term “compassionate conservatism” suggests that plain, old-fashioned vanilla conservatism is somehow lacking and gives even more insight into Santorum’s philosophy. In a 2005 piece entitled “Goodbye to Goldwater,” Reason’s Jonathan Rauch explained how Santorum’s rejection of traditional conservatism tied in with the Senator’s essentially statist philosophy: “As Goldwater repudiated Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon, so Santorum repudiates Goldwater and Ronald Reagan.” “Some will reject what I have to say as a kind of ‘Big Government’ conservatism” admitted Santorum in his 2005 book It Takes a Family. Notes Rauch: “Santorum shows no interest in defining principled limits on political power. His first priority is to make government pro-family, not to make it small… With It Takes a Family, Rick Santorum has served notice. The bold new challenge to the Goldwater-Reagan tradition in American politics comes not from the left but from the right.”
As grassroots conservatives are now rediscovering and again embracing the limited government philosophy of Goldwater and Reagan via the Tea Party, Santorum’s Jurassic Park GOP comes across as more out of step than ever. As a pre-emptive 2012 political strike, Santorum now laughably describes himself as being “Tea Party before there was a Tea Party.” RedState.com’s Ben Domenech has zero tolerance for such revisionist history: “Does Rick Santorum have any clue what the Tea Party movement stands for? Is he being purposefully obtuse here? Doesn’t he realize that the big government solutions he advocated for in his book are exactly the reason so many Tea Partiers today don’t call themselves Republicans anymore?”
Domenech added: “it’s precisely the Republican Party of Rick Santorum that even makes the Tea Party movement necessary.”
Again, Rick Santorum represents everything that is wrong with the Republican Party. And in 2012 and beyond, he is a candidate who has consistently proved he possesses both the will and the intention to do as much harm to the cause of limited government as the current president he seeks to replace.
