The Case of Coach Edsall

Coach Edsall brought respectability
to a pathetic UConn Program.
He's earned our appreciation

On Sunday Coach Randy Edsall (via the University of Maryland's PR department) announced that he was leaving his post at Connecticut for greener pastures in Maryland. Ever since that report there has been a wholesale frontal attack on him - questioning his motives, character, and some disingenuous posts daring to attack his coaching prowess.  And as usual, many of the posters are barely sports fans let alone UConn Husky fanatics.

I was also disappointed to see that some usually reputable news reporters where actually fanning the flames by tweeting links to blog posts filled with less than responsible attacks about Coach Edsall's decision.  You have to wonder exactly what Coach Edsall did to deserve such a hateful barrage.  How exactly would someone go about making a life-career decision while at the same time pacifying such a nasty group of mere pen and pad holders who spew nothing but criticism and fire 90% of the time?

In the first place, Randy Edsall came to UConn about twelve years ago, when the football program was nothing more than underachieving team that seemed to lose more than it won in a conference barely recognized by others outside of the New England region.  I can distinctly remember going to games on campus as a student; sitting in rag-tag Memorial Stadium  just hoping we played well enough to not be embarrassed by teams like Maine, New Hampshire, and URI.  Oh, those were hardly the glory days!

In truth, we were lucky that Randy Edsall came and stayed on as long as he did.  Success breeds success, and success brings recruits.  For years, UConn couldn't recruit top talent to the program beyond those players who were passed up by powerhouse football schools as second and third string talent, or less.  It took Edsall nearly five years to create a winning season for Connecticut football. In 1999 they went 4-7, in 2000 they went 3-8, in 2001 they went a dismal 2-9.  It wasn't until 2002, that UConn finished a respectable 6-6, and from then out UConn never saw a losing season.  How many other coaches would have hung around to face an ugly media and a disappointed fan base?

And moreover, did anyone really care about Connecticut Football when both UConn Basketball programs were all the hype?  The University of Connecticut gave Coach Calhoun and Coach Auriemma the keys to the Athletic recruitment vault.  I'm surprised they didn't rename the school to The University of Gampel Pavillion. And hey, I'm not knocking them;  to their credit, they produced fabulous results - its just that the game of football was always placed on the back burner, and it seemed to most that trying to turn UConn into a football mecca-center was not acheivable in either the short or long term anyway.  No one ever thought about the words National Championship and UConn Football in the same sentence. 

Randy Edsell brought respectability to the Connecticut Football program.   He brought advancement to 1-A status, winning seasons, helped forge the move to Rentscheller Field, a East title, a win over Notre Dame (at Notre Dame), and even - three bowl victories.  All of this is hardly anything to sneeze at. 

Look, Randy Edsall didn't make a lifelong commitment to stay at the University of Connecticut in the same way that Coaches Calhoun and Auriemma have.  And you know, that's not a big deal.  And besides, did anyone notice that Coach Edsall is moving back home to where he grew up?  Perhaps, the so-called business side of things has an element of personal desire as well.  Sorry that Coach Edsall's personal plans may be interfering with Season Ticket holders plans through 2020.  Jesh, the reaction by some of you is just unbelievable. 

Another unfortunate criticism from the press is how he handled the announcement.  Really?  Should he have brought the team together in the locker room, stood up on a chair, and proceeded to undermine their morale BEFORE Saturday's Bowl Game against Oklahoma?  Maybe he did make the decision ahead of time, but from most reasonable perspective he did a darn good job keeping it under his hat in a world where social media spreads news in a flash!  Or what was he to do, call the team together after the painful loss, and tell them how he's leaving for another team - sort of giving the team a boot in the rear after taking a pounding?  C'mon media - think, just think for a change.  All you want to do is dump on Coach Edsall and throw him under the bus.  One reporter had the audacity to tweet, "[Do you think Edsall wasn't focused on UConn knowing he was heading for OK.]"  Oh please.  Get over yourself! Edsall was and will be forever the consummate professional.

Look at what he had to endure here in this past year alone.  One of his players is murdered in front of the Student Union by thugs, his team in emotional shambles, and yet he pulled together the team, turned around a terrible season, and overcame adversity.  So, he didn't get the movie ending by knocking off the Oklahoma Sooners.  Oh well.  I can live with a winning 8-5 season, and respectability for UConn Athletics.  And a man who put his players above all else when dealing with Jasper Howard's death.

So, here's to Coach Randy Edsall.  Thanks for twelve years of putting up with the fans, the media, and serious player issues - at times making you go well above the role of Coach.  Some of us appreciate what you've done for UConn and wish you nothing but success at Maryland.  I just hope that UConn fans can show the respect and dignity afforded to Coach Edsall should he ever grace our presence again.  Look at the record, and you'll see he's more than earned our respect and appreciation!

Good luck, Coach Edsall!

The original blog article can be found at http://www.thekingsview.blogspot.com/

The Anxiety of New Years' Resolutions

Every year we hear the same old story - "I'm going to create some New Year's Resolutions and I'm going to stick with them."  The second part is where people get it wrong.  Haven't they learned anything from politicians?  It's perfectly fine to create a set of promises - whether they be to others or to ourselves, but its an absolute no-no to plan on keeping them.  What's wrong with you people, anyway? Why buck the system?  Why set yourselves up for disappointment and disaster?

Here are some of the resolutions that often abound, with a side of commentary, of course:

Resolution: I'm going to lose weight. 
Reality:  Liar!  You've just spent the last three weeks eating like you've just entered the Dittsville Pie Eating contest and oh - now - now you plan on dropping the weight?  I bet you have a refrigerator full of ice cream, cheese-cake, pies, cheeses, cookies, and tons of other stuff that doesn't exactly make Body for Life's top 10 foods for a healthy lifestyle.  Oh, and don't forget to throw in an unattainable goal while you're at it, like planning to lose 30 pounds by June!  Live in a house with others?  Oh, good luck with that - I bet they all look forward to a diet of salad and tofu? Hmmm. Yeah right!

Resolution:  I'm going to find a new job.
Reality:  I like this one myself.  But, easier said than done.  Hell, losing weight is easier to achieve than making this one come true in an Obama-economy, and for those in Connecticut  - an Obama-Malloy-economy, hell it will be a two-for!  The problem with this one is that you have to be willing to enter the fray of new style resume writing (whatever "fashion" HR types are looking for this year), schedule management, answering stupid questions, and the desire for humiliation and rejection based on the slight of gamesmanship from the moronic-HR team.  After all, they need to pretend to look busy and strategic too, you know.  No HR job is safe unless they have a million appointments on the calendar, thousands of unreturned phone calls, and a line out the door longer than any ride at Disney. Am I saying, keep your crappy job - no, I guess not.  Just don't go into the job finding effort half-hearted or you'll be worse off from wasting time going in no direction with lots of aggravation in return, feeling 10x more miserable than before.

Resolution:  I'm going to take up _____.
Reality:  This could be anything from golf, to playing a musical instrument, to learning to cook like Betty Crocker.  As someone who could have a world class tag sale based on bits and pieces of nearly every hobby imaginable, you might want to invest in a hobby that is - nearly free, so that when you quit, you won't feel more depressed than necessary, and you can cheekily say you gave it the old college try.  And you won't have even more clutter than necessary laying around reminding you of the day when you tried Polo, or Scuba Diving.

Resolution:  I'm going to get outside more.
Reality:  This isn't such a bad idea, but the problem is that New Year's Resolutions are made in January when its minus 16 degrees outside, and after about five minutes of breathing like Jack Frost you realize that your lungs have crystallized and that man was made for better things like sitting inside the warm house watching reruns of Sanford and Son or the Food Network. With any luck, you'll resort to this resolution in June, when the sun is warm and you can't slip and kill yourself on the ice.

Resolution:  I'm going to be a better person.
Reality:  This only worked for Ebenezer Scrooge.  And remember his case was special; if a dark robed scary skeleton-looking guy brought you into a graveyard at 3 am and threatened you with death by pointing to a gravestone with your name on it in ALL CAPS - I bet you'd promise to make big changes too.  I think you are born how you are, bad genes, personality and all,  and you can make some changes here and there, but a wholesale personality change looks and smells of severe metal illness.  The friends you have like you for who you are, or else they wouldn't be your friends.  And if you don't have any friends do you want to win over some new ones by pretending you're Elton John or Jerry Seinfeld? C'mon get real. 

I guess I could go on.  And on. And on.

So here is what I recommend. 

Don't make ANY New Year's Resolutions about ANYTHING.  If you have an inclination to make a few modifications to your life, some by choice, and others by circumstance, than make them life-long changes and commit to them.  If they don't work, abandon them and go with what feels right.

Obviously, there is one place I do deviate from this check and tongue entry - if you have health problems and the doctor tells you to give up the gallon of ice cream you inhale each night, then find a way to get it done. You can start by throwing out all the empty calories in your refrigerator and stop shopping for food filled with salt, sugar, mega-carbs and fat. 

Other than that.  Like Mr. Roger's said, "I like you just the way you are."  If you're good enough for Rogers, than you are good enough for everyone else. 

So be it resolved, no more resolutions. 

Merry Christmas from The King

First, I want to thank all of my friends who've been knee- deep this past year in the fight, working to keep America free.  While Connecticut's results were beyond disappointing, at least the encroachment of Socialism on the National level was - for the most part - halted by our friends in other states.

But we have a long way to go. 

There is still a lot of undoing of what Obama and his cronies have passed that needs to be REVERSED and STOPPED.  Note that I didn't write amended, or retooled or make reference to anything that remotely mentions keeping his socialistic bills in place in some other form. 

The economy is in shambles, and taxes are at an all time high.  Things may appear somewhat stable, but the double digit unemployment figures tell the tale of what things are really like.  Make no mistake, things could unravel further if Obama gets his way.

The next two years will be harder than this year.  The wicked witch Pelosi and that SOB Reid were easy demons to expose by their own words and and deeds.  Starting next year, the bullseye will be on us.  The so-called President, and his Democrat buddies will spend 90% of their time working with their friends in the media to make Republicans and Tea Party members out to be cruel, heartless, and the party of "no" even if the bills we are trying to reverse - should have never been introduced, let along passed, in the first place.

Remember, if we cave a little or compromise a little - we still lose.  Republicans who talk about amending the Healthcare Reform Bill are just a stupid as those who put the whole ridiculous thing in place.  The only option that makes sense in a Capitalist Society is repeal.  Anyone uttering the word "replace" should be accosted publicly.

If we aren't going to be strong, than we are wasting our time.  I suggest we look at root causes to solve issues, and control the dialogue, instead of playing the reaction game and letting the far left dictate our every move.  The one thing we lack is coordination within the Party.  I'm hoping we find a voice in the crowd (other than that ridiculous Sarah Palin) or we are going to be doomed.

In liberal Connecticut, we really have problems.  We lack a principled Republican party, we have no organization, and a lot of angry people, divided and worn.  Chris Healy has got to go.  I don't care where.  But he must go NOW!  If we settle on an establishment, big money tycoon who lacks charisma and leadership skills, then we continue to be on the verge or losing Party status in Connecticut.  It's a disgrace and an embarrassment!  The last election was evidence of pure INCOMPETENCE of the Connecticut Republican Party.  Oh sure, we sort of tried - well effort is admirable, and success is valuable. 

So, conservatives, libertarians, Republicans - all of you - take a few days to rest up!  Have a Great Christmas with your families and friends!  The King will be back in full force next year! Hope to see many of you on the battleground!

Lastly, a quick note of thanks to those serving in our Armed Forces and sacrificing so much for the rest of us.  For you guys - we just can't pay you back enough for all you do!

Again, Merry Christmas from the King!  May God Bless you!

Good Bye Chris Dodd!

Dodd: disgraced like his father

Lately, there's been a lot of revisionist history about Chris Dodd's so-called acheivements and alleged legacy floating around in print and in his farewell interviews on TV. What's missing is the fact that Chris Dodd didn't run for re-election because he became tired of the job or he had better offers elsewhere.  No. I instead like most of those with 20-year tenures, he's feasted upon the system like a rat in a cheese factory, and eventually got caught in its trap of corruption.  Dodd leaves the United States Senate on a sour note - if not disgraced - having been caught up in the Countrywide Scandal and having been involved in payoffs to AIG and other executives through the course of his banking committee tenure.  It's ironic that Dodd follows in the footsteps of his father, Thomas Dodd, who also served in the United States Senate, and was censured by the Senate in 1967 for using campaign funds for personal purposes... something that is not being repeated by his friends in the media -  as Dodd gets a free ride by the likes of Dennis House and others who have been serving  if not cheerleading his interest for decades.

Chris Dodd would still be running (and likely re-elected even if he ran against Linda McMahon) and we'd be looking at six more years of Dodd's continued advancement of a socialist state which given his votes is Dodd's true legacy. Never once did Dodd either recognize or stand up to the corruption of his party or of Washington because he has been a steady recipient of its self-serving policies. Dodd was a liberal loyalist who was in the pocket of big labor unions his entire life, as they rewarded him with steadfast support, he never once wavered in filling their pockets with benefits and rewards.  Dodd and labor is a sweetheart story that never subsided.  He spent 30 years of public service dedicated to taxing Americans and expanding Government involvement in our lives.  Much as a leader of his party, exposing hypocracy at every turn.

A revelaing article on Chris Dodd's corrupt activities can be found here. It's interesting reading backed full of citations and factual references which even Dodd and his cronies won't deny.  Dodd's guilt is so clear that even the biased Connecticut press or his party collegues could not find a way to keep him in office for six more years.  The evidence of his crimes was too damning, and too obvious.  Just like his father, Thomas Dodd, he leaves the U.S. Senate under a dark cloud, and instead of taking accountability, is heard murmuring against the very system of bribe and con that he helped to forge.   

The biggest irony came last week in his admonishment of the Congress during his farewell speech on the Senate floor where he claimed that Government at the Federal Level had become ineffective, and partisanship has paralyzed Government.  Yet not once did he make the point that the Obama Presidency has been clearly the MOST partisan in the history of our nation.  Like a loyal Democrat, he wouldn't dare criticize his own party, or his own President.  Here was the disgraced Senator from Connecticut lecturing his peers on morals and effective Government.  What an joke by one of the Senate's longest serving hyprocrites.  I can't image what his colleageus were thinking of this incredible shrinking character and his stammering indignation.

But we all know, Chris Dodd will leave the Senate to the spoils of his victories at the expense of taxpayers.  Retiring with millions in campaign donations, homes all over the world, and endless connections through favors and patronage.  What a life.  A life of corruption and shame - a tale that history won't hide.

Don't let the door hit you in the arse on the way out, Mr. Dodd.  So glad you are gone!  I pray that history records you as just another corrupt Senator feeding at the troth, corrupt and indignant to the end.