The Stink of the Packers is Getting Worse

Current home to the Packers offense

I'm going to end my week on a sour note.

I've been giving love and skepticism to two different teams this week. I love the Warriors and I'm very suspicious of the Panthers. Today, it's straight up hate for my favorite NFL team, the Packers.

They have looked incredibly lost four of the past five weeks. First, Denver, with an injured, old and past his prime Peyton Manning, absolutely crushed them. This was the lone game of the season thus far where Manning looked like himself. He shredded Green Bay's secondary, and Denver's running game looked the best it has all season in that game. Aaron Rodgers was rushed, pressured and beaten into submission. His throws were off target and he was missing wide open receivers. The run game wasn't much better. They couldn't hit the holes or there were no holes for them to hit. Denver is a better team than Green Bay and that game proved it. I thought this was going to be a one time thing. They were playing a very good team, on the road, so the loss didn't bother me as much. It was a bump in the road, or so I thought.

The next week, they went to Carolina to play the undefeated Panthers. I had a bad feeling about this game, but I thought the Packers could win. Then, the Panthers pulled out to a huge lead in the second quarter, scoring 24 points. The Packers defense, for the second straight week looked absolutely abysmal. They couldn't stop the run or the pass. Cam Newton and Jonathan Stewart ran and passed all over them. And, all the way until the fourth quarter, Green Bay's offense was non existent. They, once again, couldn't run or pass. In the fourth quarter, they finally put together some offense, pulling to within 8 with about 2 and a half minutes left. They drove all the way down to the red zone, but Aaron Rodgers missed a wide open receiver, instead flushing out of the pocket and throwing a stupid interception to a linebacker. It was yet another frustrating loss.

But, the silver lining was still around. They lost two straight, but they were both on the road to two undefeated teams. Something like this happens to every team at some point during the season. Also, they had the Lions upcoming at Lambeau. The Lions hadn't won there since 1991 and they looked bad. Their offense was just as inept as Green Bay's, and their defense, not that much better. Surely, they'd right the ship. I figured it would be a blow out and the Packers would be back. Then, the game happened. Once again, Green Bay couldn't move the ball on offense. The run game was nowhere to be found. Rodgers was getting pressured constantly and he was, once again, missing open receivers. The defense played better, but it was the Lions. Everyone was shutting them down. The game was boring too. At halftime Green Bay was winning, but the score was 10-6. One touchdown and four field goals. Terrible. Then, the Lions scored an early second half touchdown due to a Packers turnover. No big deal I kept telling myself. They'll figure it out I kept telling myself. The Lions even missed the extra point, so the Packers were only down three. But, they just couldn't move the ball. No run game and Rodgers running for his life and throwing errant pass after errant pass. The Lions scored later in the half, but missed the extra point again. So, that left the score at 18-10 with about 4 minutes left. They still had a shot. And, wouldn't you know it, they put together a drive and scored a touchdown. It only took them three and a half quarters to score a second touchdown against a mediocre defense. They cut the lead to 18-16. They had a chance to tie with a two point conversion. They had a great play call, but the pass was late, and the defender batted it away. I thought the game was over there, but they recovered an onside kick and had a chance to win with a field goal. But, they missed the kick and lost the game. It was inevitable. They lost this game early in the third quarter. So, the Lions snapped a 23 year losing streak in Lambeau. The Packers were a mess.

The Vikings continued to win, and actually took over first place from them leading up to their showdown the following week in Minnesota. Everyone, including me, thought that this was going to be a beat down from the Vikings. Green Bay was reeling and Minnesota was on a win streak, shutting down every opponent and chewing up the clock with long drives. But, the Packers actually came out with a fire and a passion. They completely shut down child abuser Adrian Peterson. They rushed and hurried and hit Teddy Bridgewater all game. Their corners were lock down. It was a great effort from the defense. The offense showed up too. Eddie Lacy ran for over 100 yards. Rodgers hit open receivers and had time in the pocket. They cruised back into first place with an easy 30-13 win. Now, everything seemed to be back on track.

They were back in first place and had an upcoming Thanksgiving home game against the sorry Bears. Surely they'd win. They were retiring Brett Favre's jersey, they were at home, they came off a big road win and they were playing the Bears, another team they own at Lambeau. But, they crapped away an easy win last night. They looked great in the first quarter, Eddie Lacy capping it off with a 25 screen pass for a touchdown. But, they couldn't do anything after that. And, the Bears found enough offense to take a 14-13 lead into halftime. In the second half, Green Bay did zero with the ball on offense. At one point, Rodgers took a sack after a botched shotgun snap, and he came up holding his left wrist. Now, I'm sure the wrist hurt, but I also think his pride was hurt too. He's looked pretty bad at times these past five weeks. He's not the same QB I picked to win the MVP. He definitely misses Jordy Nelson and the run game is non existent, but that doesn't explain his drop off in accuracy. He's dancing around too much in the pocket. He's not getting a lot of time from his line, but he's getting enough. He's either hurt, or he is struggling, maybe both, but he's not the same QB he was in weeks one through six.

Something is wrong in Green Bay and it may be too late to fix it. I picked them to win the Super Bowl, but I have no faith in them anymore. They can't sustain drives and they can't stop anyone. They look really bad right now and the blame goes to everyone. The players, the coaches and the organization all deserve equal blame. They better fix what ails them quick, or they won't make the playoffs, much less the Super Bowl. They are maybe the fifth or sixth best team in the NFC. They aren't on Carolina or Arizona or even Minnesota's level right now.

The Packers stink and it hurts my soul to say it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. If the Packers continue their losing ways Ty will have to deal with the Head Editors gloating. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Ty Gives Thanks

Gobble indeed

Today my blog is going to be short and sweet. I'm going to keep on the same path as the recent podcast and just tell what I'm thankful for today being that it's Thanksgiving.

As I stated in the podcast, I'm thankful for my family and friends. My wife is the best person I've ever met. She is one hundred percent my better half and my life would be incomplete without her. I love you and I'm so thankful for you, you're the best.

I'm thankful for my two wonderful children as well. They can be a handful at times, but it's worth every second. My seven week old is the cutest baby I've ever seen. Her smile lights up the entire room and I can't wait to see the person she grows up to be. My son is wacky and goofy in the best ways. He keeps me on my toes, but he's always there to snuggle. I also am thankful for the fact that he's into sports. He plays tee ball, football and basketball and loves them all. He's my mini me. I'm very thankful for my two wonderful kids.

I'm thankful for my mom and dad. You are the best parents in the world and I'm the person I am today because of you. I'm the parent I am because of you guys as well. Mom, you're the calming influence in my life. Dad, you're my best friend and I love watching sports with you. I love you mom and dad.

I'm also thankful for my three weird, odd, nuts but awesome older brothers. I feel that I have bits and pieces of all of your personalities in me and that's also made me the person I am today. Ross, you gave me awesome sports abilities. You and dad taught me how to play everything I still play. Cub, you gave me my taste in movies. You joke and say I'm pretentious, but you and I like similar movies. Seth, you gave me my taste in music. The day you sat me down and played Bob Marley for me changed my life. I love you guys.

I'm also thankful for all my nieces, nephews and in laws. You guys are awesome and I'm so happy to have you in my life.

So go out and enjoy your big Thanksgiving dinners today and enjoy your time with your families. I know I will. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Ty 

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He is extra happy that Thanksgiving means his diet is taking a holiday. Follow him on twitter @tykulik.

The Greatest American Band Debate: The Up-and-Comers

For the greatest American band debate, today I'm going to write about some current bands that I think are on the verge of belonging in the conversation. These particular bands aren't quite at the level of some of the other bands I've written about, but they could be if they continue on their current paths. Some of these bands have only put out one, two or three albums, but the albums they've released have put quite an impression on not only me, but the masses as well.

The first band I want to talk about is Alabama Shakes. I have written about them already on the website, reviewing their most recent album "Sound and Color". As my review stated, I love this album. It's a wonderful array of different genres of rock music. They use cool effects and bring in new instruments to mess around with. Their first album, "Boys and Girls" was an out of nowhere phenomena to me. I had a friend tell me about the record, I bought it not having heard anything from it, and was immediately hooked. It's a throwback to swamp rock. It's funkier than any Creedance album I've heard, and Brittany Howard is a powerhouse. If Alabama Shakes continues to get better and experiment like they have on their first two records, there will be no denying the fact that they belong in the conversation. They are bringing swamp rock to the masses and taking chances that make their music sound that much better. Alabama Shakes are a very good band.

Another band that is on the verge is Ratatat. I've written about their record and concert on the website. They are bringing electronic music to the masses. Their newest album, "Magnifique", was one of the best reviewed records of the year. Ratatat is the newer, better version of a band like YES or ELO. Their electronic music appeals to the masses because it's guitar driven. It's not jump computers and repetitive beats used over and over again. It's actual music that has a beginning, middle and end. There are no words, but you get the gist while listening. You can also tell when the bridge comes in. They are weirdos making some of the best electronic music I've ever heard. They have released more albums than the other bands I will mention today, but they don't have the mass appeal that some of the other bands do. That has begun to change with "Magnifique", and if my father is into an electronic band, they have to be good because he doesn't like electronic music at all. Ratatat is a great band that is finally getting noticed.

Black Joe Lewis has a chance to be huge. On their first two records the band went by Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears. They played some of the funkiest rock and roll I'd ever heard. Black Joe Lewis almost sounds like a modern day James Brown, scream singing lyrics, and the rest of the band is dynamite. The horn section is absolutely phenomenal. The drums and guitars are totally on point. After the release of their first two albums, they changed their name to Black Joe Lewis. They've released one album under this name and while it's not as funky, it's one of the best rock and roll albums I've heard in a long time. The band uses very heavily distorted guitars and they almost have a metal sound. But, just when you think it's going to be Black Sabbath esque, Black Joe Lewis comes in with his awesome, gruff voice and gives you what you are used to out of the band. The horns even make an appearance on more than half the album. Black Joe Lewis is great. They are one of the best rock bands out there now. They should be playing arenas, but they may like playing the smaller venues more. Black Joe Lewis is incredible. Go out and listen to them now.

The Arcs, another band I've written about before, put out one of the coolest albums I've heard all year. "Yours Dreamily" is a Western movie soundtrack with fantastic musicians playing the music. It's not corny like most Western movie music, it's rock and roll mixed with funk, blues and even a little R&B. It's not literally a Western movie soundtrack, that's just what it sounds like to me. The Arcs are one of Dan Auerbach's side projects. He has many other interests outside of the Black Keys, but The Arcs has been my personal favorite. It doesn't hurt that Richard Swift is the co founder of this band. He's an awesome solo artist, and he's been playing bass with the Black Keys on their most recent tour. Dan Auerbach has a chance to be in this conversation at least twice. He's a musical genius and I'd take him any day over the extremely overrated Jack White. If The Arcs continue to make more and more records, I'd be hard pressed to not write about them for the greatest American band debate.

The last band I want to talk about today is St. Paul and the Broken Bones. They've only released one album so far, but it's dynamite. "Half the City" is 50's and 60's R&B come to life in the 21st century. The band plays excellent, funky music in the background and the lead singer has one of the best voices I've heard in a long while. He can hit very high notes. He reminds me of a modern, better Rufus Thomas. The band is incredible, as I stated before, and they play perfect funk/R&B music. Not too many people know St. Paul and the Broken Bones, but I have a feeling that will change very soon. They have a radio friendly sound and they will start to become more and more popular within the next few years, especially if their future albums are as good as their debut. There are many other bands I'm leaving out of the discussion today, but these five have the best chance to end up in the greatest American band debate in the future. As long as they all continue to do what they're doing, and get better and better, they will all be as famous and popular as the bands I've written about for this debate previous to today.

Go out and listen to these bands if you don't already. You'll thank me later.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He will be travelling a lot this Thanksgiving and plans on listen to these bands multiple times. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Ty is not impressed with the undefeated Carolina Panthers

This is how scary the Panters are right now

Yesterday I gave a lot of love to the undefeated Golden State Warriors. Today, I'm going to talk about another undefeated team, this time in the NFL, that hasn't impressed me.

I heaped a ton of praise on the Warriors, rightfully so, but the Carolina Panthers may be the most suspect 10-0 NFL team that I've seen in quite some time. Sure, Cam Newton is playing like an MVP this year. And their defense is about as shut down as they come. But, their run game has been spotty, at best, and they have no real receivers since Kelvin Benjamin went down in the preseason. Devin Funchess has turned it on as of late and Greg Olsen is, right now, the second best tight end in the league behind Rob Gronkowski. But, the main reason they are undefeated is, their schedule has been one of the easiest in the NFL. The ten teams that they've beaten are as follows; the Jaguars(4-6), the Texans(5-5), the Saints(4-6), the Buccaneers(5-5), the Seahawks(5-5), the Eagles(4-6), the Colts(5-5), the Packers(7-3), the Titans(2-8) and the team from Washington(4-6). The rest of their schedule has the Cowboys(3-7), Saints again, the Falcons(6-4), the Giants(5-5), Falcons again and their season ends with the Buccaneers. For those of you keeping track at home, that's 2 teams with a winning record, the Packers are good, but the Falcons are not. That's 4 teams that are at .500. The best of the .500 teams may be the Seahawks, and they've given up big leads at home, Marshawn Lynch is hurt, Russell Wilson is STRUGGLING and they don't know how to effectively use Jimmy Graham. The Buccaneers are shockingly a .500 team, but they're led by a rookie QB. Sure, Jameis Winston has looked good lately, but he's still a rookie. The Texans stink. I don't care that they recently beat the Bengals, they have no offense and, other than JJ Watt and Vince Wilfork, their defense stinks. And the Colts have been the biggest disappointment in the NFL. The rest of the teams they've beaten are all below .500. The Jaguars have won two straight, but it's still the Jaguars. They are about four or five years away from competing for anything important. The Saints play absolutely no defense. None whatsoever. They are awful. The Eagles are just as bad as the Saints, if not worse. They have no clue what to do on offense because Chip Kelly is an idiot and their defense just gave up 45 points, at home, to the Buccaneers. The Titans have nothing. They have a rookie QB, no running game, no receivers and no defense. They will probably end up with the worst record in the NFL this year. And the team from Washington is a joke in every sense of the word. They are an irrelevant franchise at the moment.

So, when you look at who the 10-0 Panthers have beaten, it's by no means a murderers row. We are talking a combined record of 45-55. That's pretty bad. That's really bad actually. They've also had to squeak out victories over the Titans two weeks ago, the Saints in week three without Drew Brees, they needed overtime to beat the Colts in week 8 and they needed a game saving interception to beat the Packers after they squandered a huge fourth quarter lead. The only real blow out came last week when they trashed Washington. A lot of teams have crushed Washington this year.

Now, it's hard to win 10 straight games, and just as I stated yesterday, you need luck and teams to blow games to have streaks that last this long. What the Panthers have done is very good and a bit intriguing, but if I was a team coming to play them in Carolina for a playoff game, I wouldn't be that worried about them. They don't have a very good home field advantage. They don't strike fear in their opponents. Put Cam Newton on any other team, the Panthers would be lucky to be 5-5 right now. For an example, put him on the Titans, and they'd be a 5-5 or 6-4 team right now. That's how good he's been this year. I didn't think he'd make much of a pro, but he's gotten better every year, and he's become an MVP candidate. But, he doesn't scare me when it comes to the playoffs.

This has happened with the Panthers before. Two or three years ago, they were the surprise of the NFL, winning their division with a 12-4 record. They seemed like a lock to get to the conference championship, but they got crushed in their playoff game and became an after thought. They have a real chance to go undefeated this year though. Their schedule the rest of the way is very easy, with their toughest game coming next week at Dallas. They should win that easily. So, let's say they finish the regular season 16-0. They'd be the number one seed and have a first round bye. They'd also have home field advantage. And let's just say they win that second round playoff game to advance to the NFC title. They'd either get the Green Bay Packers or the Arizona Cardinals. Those are the three best teams in the NFC in my opinion. I'd take the Packers, I picked them to win the Super Bowl, or the Cardinals in a second over the Panthers if I were a betting man. I know, the Panthers already beat Green Bay, but the end of that game showed me that the Packers know how to score on the Panthers. And the Cardinals, I think they'd absolutely crush the Panthers in a playoff game. They have an excellent secondary that would shut down their mediocre receivers, and someone will cover Greg Olsen. And the Cardinals offense, if healthy, I could see them scoring 40 by the end of the third quarter. They will beat them with the run, and their receivers are bigger and more physical than the Panthers secondary. It would be a totally lost season for the Panthers.

I will say again, good for you Carolina for being undefeated this late in the year, but until you win some games against quality opponents, I'm not impressed. The Warriors you are not Carolina, sorry. Good luck, and I hope Cam Newton continues to get better because he's fun to watch, but I just don't see them as a viable, fear inducing opponent to whoever they will face in the playoffs. The Panthers will have a very good regular season, possibly an undefeated one, but they will crap out in the playoffs, that's what they do.

They aren't champions yet.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He just recently learned there is a North and South Carolina. What's next, a New Mexico? Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik. 

The Warriors may be the best team in NBA history

Steph Curry would average over 60% on these rims

As you all know by now, I'm a HUGE NBA fan. It is on my TV whenever possible. I wrote a ten part season preview. I love the NBA almost as much as college football.

NBA basketball is getting back to the good ole days. Sure, teams don't shoot the midrange jump shot as well anymore, and if you turn on ESPN, all they show are Clippers highlights and the men's college game is becoming borderline unwatchable, with all the one and done players, but the NBA has gotten a wee bit better. It's more enjoyable to watch games now than it was 5 or 6 years ago. Most of the teams have become pretty competitive, save for the 76ers, Lakers and Nets. The East has even improved from last year. The West is still much better though and will continue to be for awhile. The Spurs signed LaMarcus Aldridge and resigned Kawhi Leonard. They also still have Tony Parker, Manu Ginobli and Tim Duncan. When the Thunder are at full strength, Durant has missed the past 10 days, they're as competitive as any team in the league. The Clippers look bad right now, much to my delight, but they will fix things and still win in the 50's. The Mavericks have played surprisingly well 15 games into the season. Dirk is still Dirk, and Wes Matthews, coming off a torn ACL, looks pretty good. The Pelicans had a terrible start, a possible playoff hopes crushing start, but Anthony Davis is back completely healthy, and they've won their past two, beating the Spurs in one of those games. The Rockets are a mess, I'll give you that. Firing Kevin McHale may prove to be a huge misstep. It's not his fault that Dwight Howard doesn't care about basketball that much anymore. And what in the world has happened to James Harden? He was the MVP runner up last year, but this year, teammates are griping about playing with him, calling him a diva and a ball hog, and he spent the entire offseason partying and not staying in shape. It's gotten so bad with him that even Bill Simmons has cooled on the Thunder trading him being the worst thing that ever happened in the NBA, and he hasn't shut up about it for five straight years. The Grizzlies and Jazz are .500 teams right now, but they, much like the Clippers, will figure it out.

All these teams pale in comparison to what the Golden State Warriors are doing right now. As you all know, the Warriors beat the Nuggets last night and tied for the best start in NBA history at 15-0. Sure, they've had some close calls to inferior teams, the Nets, but other than two or three games, they've been blowing out teams. Each win seems to be by at least ten, and the starters rest almost all of the fourth quarter. Steph Curry has been unbelievable to start the year too. He's averaging something like 33 or 34 points a game, shooting almost 50 percent from three, 60 percent from two and 90 percent from the free throw line. That's incredible! I don't know that there's ever been a 60, 90, 50 player ever. It would be astounding if Curry can accomplish that this year. He's also stepped up his game on defense as well this year. Sure, he won't be first team all defense, but second or third team is a real possibility. But, it's not just Curry winning these games. You're probably thinking, well it's him and Klay Thompson scoring in bunches. Nope, Thompson has, I don't want to say struggled, but he hasn't been scoring like he normally does. He still is playing absolute lock down defense though. That part of his game has never wavered. He's one of the best, if not the best, maybe a step behind Kawhi Leonard, the best defender in the NBA. Harrison Barnes, who turned down an extension, betting on himself, has been a beast so far. His numbers may not show it, I think he's a 14 point per game and 5 or 6 rebound per game player statistically, but what he's doing for the Warriors is awesome. He's already had two of the best dunks of the year, he's is getting to the line more frequently, and he's hitting midrange and floaters on a regular basis. He's going to get paid this offseason if he keeps this up. Draymond Green is proving that he's an elite defender, rebounder and he's becoming a pretty good scorer. He's also a total pain in the ass with the opposition, and the Warriors love that about him. I've never seen a guy under 6'8 that can guard centers like he does. It's amazing. He made the right decision to stay in Golden State. This is the perfect team for him to be on. The other players on the team are doing whatever they need to do to help this team to continue to dominate. Andrew Bogut is protecting the rim and grabbing rebounds like he has his whole career. Andre Iguodala is knocking down open threes and dominating on defense like he has his whole career. He's also taken to being a sixth man better than anyone who used to be a franchise player that I've ever seen. He clearly just wants to win. Shaun Livingston is still a point guard in a 6'7 players body. He has command of the second unit and he finds the open man every time. Festus Ezeli is still crushing it on defense for the second unit and he seems to have found a bit of a scoring touch lately. Mo Speights and Leandro Barbosa still play out of control at times, but they are both instant offense off the bench for a team that has a ton of offensive weapons. The only other bench player that kind of contributes is James Michael McAdoo and in his limited playing time, he hustles his ass off. That's great for an 11 or 12th man off the bench. You usually don't see a lot of hustle from guys that deep on the bench.

The main reason I'm singling out the Warriors today is, I feel like I didn't give them enough love in my preseason preview. I had them as the second best team coming into this season behind the Spurs. Time will tell, but the Warriors, right now, are far and away the best team in the NBA. They may be historically one of the greatest teams of all time if they continue to play like this. I never thought, not only would I say it, but see a team that has a chance to win as many games as the Chicago Bulls did in the 95-96 season. That was the team that went 72-10. That was unreal to watch that team play because they could've won 75 or 76 games that year. The Warriors won't win all 82 games, that's impossible, but I think they have a real chance to tie, or even surpass the Bulls team that won 72 games. Their schedule will get tougher and players will get injuries, it's a long season, but they seem to have a goal in mind. This offseason a lot of people said that they didn't earn the title, they didn't have to play all the tough teams, they faced teams with key injuries and so on and so forth. The thing that was said that really got to them, in my opinion was, that they were "lucky", and that they weren't "true" champions. First of all, that's bull shit. Any team that's won a title in any sport needs luck, be it with health of their players, bounces going their way, a player on a hot streak, any kind of luck has been involved with every champion in every sport. But saying they weren't "true" champions, that just gave a team that won 67 games and a title last year, a chip on their shoulder. Now, they don't just want to beat you, they want to destroy you. That's the killer instinct that people talk about when it comes to champions. Sure, they won last year, but they want to continue to win and they want to crush you while doing it.

I'm not a Warriors fan, I'm indifferent when it comes to the Warriors. They're a ton of fun to watch, and Steph Curry has surpassed LeBron James and Kevin Durant as the best basketball player in the world, but I'm a Thunder fan, so that's who I root for.

Oh, they are also doing this without Steve Kerr. Luke Walton has been the interim head coach while Kerr's back heals. That's crazy.

I just want to apologize to the Warriors fan base and the Warriors organization for not ranking them as the preseason number one team in the NBA. They're doing something magical right now, and this could be a historic season. Just sit back and realize when you watch the Warriors this year, you could be watching a historically great NBA team. Maybe the greatest of all time. The rest of this season will be the judge.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He has seen one team go 82-0 in an NBA season, his Oklahoma City Thunder on NBA 2K13. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Ty Takes a Joyful Tour of the City Museum.

Imagine if this slide was a lot cooler

(Ed Note: I lived blocks away from the City Museum when it first opened, and I saw the positive transformation it had on the area. Every city deserves a place like the City Museum, you just need bold leaders to make the magic happen.)

The best playground in the world is made of junk.

This past Wednesday I had a meet up with my dad's group. If you've listened to the podcast or read my piece from last week, you know just what I'm talking about. The meet up was scheduled for the City Museum here in Saint Louis.

I've lived in Saint Louis my entire life, but I've only been to City Museum two times. Both cases have been within the past year. I went earlier this year with my son, my sister in law and my two nieces. It was awesome. I'd never really heard of City Museum until my sister in law mentioned bringing the kids there. Going downtown has never been my thing. Unless I was going to a concert venue downtown, I had no reason to go. I don't like bars, I'm not a smoker or a drinker, I don't like night clubs and unless I'm going on a trip, hotels are too expensive for me. But, when we ventured out to City Museum earlier this year, I was so happy I went.

I didn't really know what to expect. I'd heard of it, but not too much. When we walked in, I was immediately taken aback at how huge this place is. There's three main floors, and a rooftop that has things you can crawl and climb on. Besides the three indoor floors and the rooftop, there's an outside play area that looks like the coolest playground in the world. There's enormous climbing structures made out of medal and rebar that all lead to some of the most exhilarating slides I've ever been on. I'd go as high as my anxiety would let me go while outside, then slide down the inevitable, upcoming slide. My son loved walking around outside too. But, he was more interested in the ball pit. Yep, they have a very big ball pit filled with kickballs and soft bouncy balls.

It's incredible.

I haven't made it to the rooftop on my two trips there, but you can see everything from the parking lot as you walk to the entrance. They have a Ferris wheel! A Ferris wheel that's on the fourth story of this huge building! Just typing that I got weak in the knees. There's an old school bus that kind of hangs off the edge of the building. It takes some brave souls to climb on this bus, but I saw at least five children on it when we arrived. They have some cool looking slides and climbing apparatus' up their as well. Like I said, I'm a wimp, so I've never ventured up there, but it looks pretty cool and I'm sure it's their most popular feature. You have to pay extra to go to the roof top. That's how popular and cool it is.

The best part of the whole place, in my opinion, is the entire inside. When you arrive, you are greeted by the very end of a three story slide. This slide is enclosed with painted rolling pins. This is the very first thing both me and my son do after paying admission. If you choose to stay on the first level when you get there, there's an enormous climbing and crawling and walking structure that's made to look like a white whale. When you enter the whales mouth, the inside is filled with statues of crickets and fish and seaweed, basically anything you'd find in the sea. Off to the side of the whale there's a huge tree house like structure where you can climb and do slides. When you venture to the second floor, there's cave like structures that you can climb up four stories to the biggest slide in all of the City Museum. It's awesome to climb through these caves, but climbing up to that slide is an exercise in facing your fears. You keep climbing up and up and up and the higher you get, the more narrow the hallway becomes. One of my nieces and her mom went all the way to the top while me, my son and my other niece waited at the bottom for them. There's also a cafeteria and other eating places on the second level. I love this because they know that you will be there for a long time, so why not have a snack or a meal. The third floor is my favorite. That's where the afformentioned three story slide starts. But, there's a cool hall with Egyptian type statues and other cool memorabilia. This is the educational part of City Museum. There's also a toddler area. It has every thing that City Museum offers, but it's paired down to fit kids 6 and younger. They also have cool, soft Legos to build with and other building type blocks. And the ball pit in the toddler area is incredible. This is my sons second favorite part of City Museum. I like that they have this for the kids. It's great that they have their own area where they can have just as much fun. Near the toddler area is a train. It's a five seater for kids, and they get to do a couple loops around the third floor. It's nice. They also have old school sculptures and memorabilia. There's a cool frog sculpture and an old school Big Boy mascot. Mine and my sons favorite part is the "running room". This room has ramps that turn into make shift slides and big circular structures that get higher and higher the more you run. The ramps are kick ass. Do know, when you enter the "running room", you will get sweaty and tired, but you'll have a lot of fun too. It's great to go in there and let the kids blow off steam by simply running and sliding on ramps. I'd spend the whole day in this room if I physically could. It's so much fun.

It was very nice when we went with my sister in law and nieces. We had a ton of fun, but the girls are quite a bit older than my son, so they couldn't do everything they wanted. When I went with my dad's group, it was perfect. My son got to play in this enormous playground with kids his age. It was perfect because they all went at the same pace and all had equal amounts of fun. They all knew what they could and couldn't do. It was great. The City Museum is so cool and it's a must see and do in Saint Louis. It's not cheap, but not expensive. It's totally worth the price of admission. You can also stay there all day if you want. I wish I knew about it when I was younger because I would have went constantly. It's nice that I just found it now though. That means I can share the fun with my son and daughter.

I love City Museum and you will too. Check it out.

For more information visit www.citymuseum.org

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He would consider going to the roof, if the price was right. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Nothing but Losers in the Nick Foles Sam Bradford Trade

NFL Scout thinking about next big deal

Trading for past potential never works out.

I'm from and live in Saint Louis, Missouri. Lately, I've been reading a lot of sports stories headlined, "Who Won the Foles for Bradford Trade". Football fans know what I'm talking about. Last offseason, Sam Bradford was traded to the Eagles straight up for Nick Foles. The trade at the time seemed very blah. It wasn't that big of a surprise to me. Both of these guys are mid level, at best, NFL quarterbacks.

Nick Foles wasn't really on anyone's radar until he blew up two seasons ago, coming in for an injured Eagles quarterback and put up insane stats. I believe he had 20 touchdown passes and 1, or maybe even 0 interceptions. He led the Eagles to the playoffs where they were ousted in the first round. Last season was supposed to be when Foles became a upper level quarterback. He wasn't going to be Tom Brady or Peyton Manning or Aaron Rodgers or Cam Newton, but he was supposed to be on the same level as a Jay Cutler or Russell Wilson. That didn't really happen. He started the season very slow. He looked to be lost in Chip Kelly's offense and struggled. Also, Chip Kelly is NOT an offensive genius, at least not in the NFL. Foles eventually got hurt and missed the last half of last season. Mark Sanchez replaced him and played better than him. That's insane to me.

Sam Bradford, on the other hand, was the number one overall pick in the draft. He was supposed to be the savior and new face of the Rams franchise. In his case, he could never stay healthy. He'd start to show flashes, fitting passes into tight windows, throwing a decent deep ball and protecting the football, but it was just that, a flash. At other times, he'd looked flustered and lost. Sometimes, the defense looked so much faster than he could comprehend. He'd take sack after sack by holding the ball way too long. And, he'd ALWAYS end up getting hurt, usually resulting in a lost season. He'd get a concussion or a banged up shoulder, but he always seemed to tear an ACL. Be it preseason or the regular season, he's missed time his entire career.

So when the trade was announced I wasn't surprised so much as thinking, why would these two teams trade for average, oft injured quarterbacks that haven't had much success in the NFL? I didn't really think either team won the trade, but multiple outlets had multiple feelings on the trade. Saint Louis media was thrilled to get rid of Bradford and his huge contract, and they were happy to have Foles. He was cheap and although he was just recently injured, he was more durable than Bradford. In Philadelphia, they were happy to get rid of the slow moving, plodding statue that was Foles. I guess they thought Bradford would be a better fit in Kelly's offense because he ran something similar at Oklahoma. That's problem number one, neither of these guys are mobile at all. They're both pocket passers. I also heard a report from Philadelphia saying that Bradford could lead this team to a Super Bowl, if he could stay healthy. Now, I'm not a Rams fan, but after watching him on local TV for four or five years, he NEVER stayed healthy. I already mentioned all his injury woes earlier. Before the season, Foles pretty quietly came to Saint Louis with little to no fanfare. Not much was expected from him because the Rams just drafted Todd Gurley, and their defense is top notch. Foles was supposed to be a game manager. In Bradford's case, the Super Bowl mention was out there, and he turned down an extension, deciding to bet on himself having a big season to get a big contract. Needless to say, Bradford's expectations were much higher than Foles. Then, the season started.

We are nine games into the season, and neither is really doing too much. Foles was just recently benched. He's completing almost less than 50 percent of his passes and he has 7 touchdown passes compared to 6 interceptions. Without Gurley, the Rams offense would be non existent. Foles isn't managing games. He throws critical interceptions and misses open receivers a lot. The Rams are struggling, look at what the Bears did to them last week, and Foles is a big reason why. I don't care or mind the benching. He's struggled and when you're more than halfway through the season, it's hard to fix these problems. Why not give Case Keenum a chance? What do the Rams have to lose really? In Bradford and Philadelphia's case, they've both been some of the biggest disappointments in the NFL. Philadelphia's offense has been downright awful at times. Kelly is calling way too many pass plays, putting the ball in Bradford's hand way too much. When you have DeMarco Murray, Ryan Matthews and Darren Sproles, why not run it 70 percent of the time? That's a great trio of running backs. But, the Eagles have counted on Bradford too much to the tune of 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions and a 4-5 record. And also, guess what happened in their last game, Bradford got hurt. Surprise, surprise. He's going to miss, at least, the next two games.

I'll ask again, why are people trying to figure out who "won" this trade? No one did. Both of these quarterbacks have been huge disappointments this year, and both teams should have seen this coming. These two guys are back ups and should be treated that way. For what was supposed to be team changing trades for each team has been, but not in the way the Rams and Eagles thought. These guys stink. I don't know why this trade was made and I bet both teams GM's are kicking themselves right now. Both teams had big plans for this season, but these two QB's have almost derailed these plans.

Sorry Saint Louis and Philadelphia, no one wins this trade.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He once traded his brother a rookie Bo Jackson baseball card for an Alf pog. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Guitars are Great and the Gibson SG is the Greatest Guitar of All

Ty's first life partner

In lieu of writing about a band for the greatest American band debate on SeedSing, I'm going to write about an instrument today.

It's an instrument that I play, I'm very average, but I love. This instrument is the guitar. Now, I know, that's a very open ended thing to write about. To make it more interesting though, I'm going to specifically talk about a brand of guitar, that I and a lot of pros prefer. I'm a big fan of Gibson guitars.

A Gibson SG was the first real electric guitar that I bought. This guitar was my baby before I had real babies. The sound was so clean and smooth. Even when I put distortion on heavy on my pedal board, it still sounded clean. The feel of my SG was phenomenal. It was heavy, but not too heavy. It felt good when I rested it on my lap. I liked the feel when I stood and played it. The colors are beautiful. There's hints of dark brown, black, white and even soft red colors. It looks like it was cut from a humongous redwood tree. I was, and still am, a bit obsessed with this guitar. It was the first thing I bought when I got my first paycheck from my first real adult job. I had been at the dental lab I first worked in, waited two weeks, got my paycheck, cashed it in and went straight to Guitar Center. I brought my dad and two of my brothers with me. I had tested this particular SG prior to this day, but I wanted to weigh all of my options. I tried Squires, Epiphones, Alvarez and Fenders, just to name a few. They all sounded decent and were within my price range, but I kept going back to the SG. I even tried different styles. I tried semi and full hollow bodies, 12 string, electric/acoustic combo guitars, but none of them sounded and felt the same as the SG. After about two hours, my dad and brothers agreed that it was time for me to just pick a guitar already. I went with the SG because I could not shake it. I thought about it the whole week leading up to the purchase, and kept saying about the other guitars I tried, "it sounds fine, but that SG, that's a great sounding guitar".

So, I bought the SG, on sale, with cash. That's how much I wanted this guitar. I brought it home that night and played it for what seemed to be 10 hours. I just couldn't put it down, it was the coolest thing I ever owned, and it was truly mine because I bought it with my own hard earned money. I had an acoustic, and I still have it, prior to this purchase. It's a Washburn that my folks bought me for the holidays about 12 years ago. It's a fantastic guitar and still sounds excellent, but it's not my SG. I have a dobro that I play slide and rhythm guitar on, but it's not my SG. I have a lap steel that I strictly use for slide guitar, but it's not my SG.

Do you see what I'm getting at? My SG is a wonderful and beautiful guitar. I know this sounds like a love letter to a guitar. It sounds like that because it is a love letter to my guitar. This is the best inanimate object that I own. I have a full size Michigan football helmet, I have a signed Charles Woodson football, I have a lot of Michigan memorabilia, and as much as I love these things, they don't compare to my SG. I've heard people, mostly older people, tell me that Gibson is inferior to Fender, but I vehemently disagree. They all tell me that when I'm older, I'll understand, but my love for Gibson guitars will not waver. I'm 32 now, been playing guitar since I was 20, and I still prefer Gibson over Fender. I'll take Gibson 10 out of 10 times if you ask me.

I know that a lot of the older blues musicians, blues is my favorite style of music, play Fenders, but nothing compares to Gibson guitars, and most importantly, their SG brand. I mean, look at some of the famous musicians that played Gibson brand guitars throughout their entire career. First of all, the man who invented Gibson, Les Paul. He was a genius guitar player and created the whole Gibson brand. He is one of, if not the, greatest guitar players that ever lived. Go back and listen to him playing guitar, it's masterful, and he did it all on his Les Paul brand Gibson guitar. Slash, from Guns and Roses and many other side projects, plays Gibson guitars. I may not like the genre of music he plays, but he is an incredible guitar player that only plays Gibson guitars. No way he gets that same sound out of a Fender, not in a million years. Jimmy Page, maybe the second greatest guitar player, behind Les Paul, plays primarily Gibson guitars. He is the master of blues/rock and it sounds so fantastic coming from his enormous collection of Gibson's. Do you think that "Stairway to Heaven" or "Whole Lotta Love" would've sounded the same if he played on any other brand of guitar? No way. Randy Rhoades has played only Gibson's his entire career. You may not know who he is, so I'll tell you. He's been Ozzy Osbourne's lead guitar player his entire career. He played on songs like "Crazy Train" and "War Pigs". Both songs, Gibson guitars. Zakk Wylde, widely considered one of the best heavy metal guitarist of all time, has played all those dizzyingly fast riffs on only Gibson guitars. Ace Freehly, KISS leading guitarist, has played only Gibson Les Paul's his whole career. I don't like KISS, but Freehly is a pretty damn good guitar player. Duane Allman, probably the greatest rock and roll slide player of all time played all of those hits from the Allman Brothers on Gibson guitars. Eric Clapton, arguably considered the best guitar player of all time, played every hit song and every fantastic solo on Gibson guitars. When he was with Cream, Gibson guitars, with Traffic, Gibson guitars, the lead on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", Gibson. Enough said. Bob Marley, the king of reggae music, played Gibson guitars. That steady beat and groove that almost everyone has come to love was played and made famous on Gibson guitars. I'll get crushed by my brother Seth if I don't mention that Jerry Garcia played a Gibson, an SG at that. I don't like his music, but it's hard to ignore their influence on music, and he was playing a Gibson. Even newer musicians, like Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, plays pretty much only Gibson guitars. Gibson's are the best.

I think I made that point pretty clear today. But, tell me why I'm wrong or why Fenders are better, or any other brand for that matter, than Gibson in the comment section. Anyone who's played a guitar, or still plays guitar has a favorite brand and mine are Gibson guitars. Specifically, a Gibson SG.

They're the greatest.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He neglected to tell us that all great wannabe guitarists play Gibson, it was the original Guitar Hero controller. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Marc Maron's interview of Lorne Michaels was mostly gristle and very little steak

Sometimes a sword, sometimes a surrender flag

Last Monday, Marc Maron finally got his white whale.

He had an interview with Lorne Michaels. Saturday Night Live has been a big obsession for Maron. He has interviewed many SNL cast members. He is always very forward with these people. He wants to know about their audition. He wants to know about fellow cast members. He wants to talk about certain hosts and musical guests. But, most importantly he wants to know about Lorne Michaels. He has so many questions about Lorne Michaels. It can get uncomfortable at times and you can hear in some of the interviewees voices that they're uncomfortable with the barrage of questions about Michaels. Sure, most of them aren't on the show anymore, but they don't want to speak ill of Michaels. In most cases, he gave them their break, and without him, they probably wouldn't have a real career.

I, for one, like when Maron pushes the envelope. I like all the questions, because I want to know too. I'm from Saint Louis and New York and SNL are like mythical beings to me. I have a real love hate relationship with SNL, and I want to know all I can. I like to hear from these people about their experience. I like knowing that SNL is a cutthroat place to work, and you have to stay on your toes if you want to keep your job. But, much like Maron himself, I want to know about Lorne Michaels. He is a mysterious show biz person and he seems to be a real hard ass. He, at least on the surface, doesn't seem like a guy that takes crap from anyone. He's a star maker and may be a career ender, if you cross him.

I've been listening to Maron's podcast since the beginning. I'm a big fan of his and I look forward to listening to his podcast every Monday and Thursday. He's gotten pretty big recently as well, the interview with President Barack Obama putting him on everybody's map. I weirdly looked forward to this interview as much as I did the Presidents. As I stated before, I love SNL and I was very interested to see how hard Maron would come at Lorne Michaels. Maron has had a bone to pick since he wasn't picked to be on the show when he auditioned back in the 90's. He's brought this up a lot, so when I saw that Lorne Michaels was going to be on last Monday, I figured he would press him hard on this, and a lot of other things. The fact he wasn't picked for SNL has always been a big bone of contention for him. I figured, finally, some closure.

Then, I listened to the interview. It was fine. Maron asked some questions and Lorne Michaels answered in kind. But, the questions were softballs in my opinion. He just kind of lobbed some stuff to Michaels and he answered very predictably. It kind of felt like Maron was told by Michaels people that he could only ask certain questions, and to not push him too hard on the tough questions. The interview was like an appetizer. It was good, but not filling. We just got the tip of the iceberg. This was a two hour interview also, so the fact that nothing was pressed on Michaels, in two hours, left me disappointed. When Maron did ask about his audition and the process of not being selected, Michaels gave a very typical answer. He told Maron that "his voice wasn't right for the show". Yeah, no duh Lorne Michaels. Maron is a foul mouthed comedian. He is filthier than Norm Macdonald on his filthiest day. Maron assumed that he would be a Weekend Update guy, and while that fits his identity, his style isn't a good fit at SNL. We all already knew this. This was no revelation.

After they settled Maron being passed over, the rest of the interview was very blasé. It was like a pat on the back session after that. Lorne Michaels praised Maron's comic voice and what he's done with the podcast medium. I say again, we all know what he's done. They talked about doing an internet show before the internet was popular. Not that big a deal. Maron never really asked any really tough questions. When it comes to Lorne Michaels, he couldn't have been more congratulatory of himself. He gave himself the credit for young generations wanting to be on TV and do comedy. He credited himself for making Jimmy Fallon a late night star, something which makes me angry because I cannot stand Jimmy Fallon. He said that he's never forced anyone out of SNL, and that he's still friends with "pretty much everybody". He couldn't have been more pleased with himself. I understand what he's done for late night TV, and how big he made SNL, but show some humility. He claimed that while he wasn't the guy in charge for 5 years, he never watched the show. I believe that, because he comes off as arrogant, so why would he watch something he had nothing to do with?

I guess, overall, I was just disappointed with the interview. It left so much to be desired. And even at the end, when Maron does his usual sign off, he said he got closure. I don't know, because as a listener, I felt like he could've gotten so much more out of this once in a lifetime interview. My excitement was dashed pretty early on in this WTF episode, but not all of them can be winners. I think even Marc Maron would agree with me about this. I should also temper my expectations because, not every interview is going to be President Obama's interview. I love WTF and I'm a big Marc Maron fan, but this episode just left me wanting more.

Oh well, this Monday he has Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe on. Hopefully, this one will be better.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He figures Lorne Michaels should have more humility after the Donald Trump SNL appearance last week. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

This is the End. The End my Friend Peyton Manning

I bet Peyton could float the ball over those mountains

Sometimes we miss the best time to say goodbye.

Yesterday, while watching the NFL, I witnessed the death of a legend. It was brutal and very, very tough to watch. This guy has been a staple in the NFL since 1996. He was on the radar since he was playing college football. He was the Heisman runner up in 1996. He was and definitely will go down as one of the greatest to ever play quarterback, but Peyton Manning probably played his final NFL and football game yesterday.

It was excruciating to watch. First, he surpassed Brett Favre for most passing yards, but it was less than impressive. The pass that broke the record just floated very slowly through the air until it finally landed in his receivers hands. Lots of cheers were showered down and the players all congratulated him, but his day got far worse after that. Manning couldn't move in the pocket. His passes, as they've looked all season, had no zip. They literally float through the air. When rushed, he almost looked flustered and would just throw the ball to no one in particular. He threw for 35 yards and 4 interceptions before Gary Kubiak and the Broncos coaching staff mercifully pulled him in favor of Brock Osweiler. Osweiler's passes looked great compared to what Manning was putting out there. This was pretty much a mercy kill that's been put on hold for 9 and a half weeks now.

Manning has not looked like himself since the midway point of last season, but yesterday, and this whole season, has been brutal. He looks old. The game looks too fast for him now. It was revealed that he has an injured foot today, but he's looked hurt since the playoffs last year. To give a comparison, Charles Woodson, taken in the same draft, is the leader of the Raiders defense, I know they got throttled yesterday, but he's still performing at a fairly high level. No, Woodson is not the same player he was three or four years ago, but he's not hurting his team.

Now, the Broncos are 7-2 after the Chiefs beat them yesterday, but they're winning with defense. They have no running game at all, they lost Julius Thomas in free agency, and Demaryius Thomas is giving his all, but the ball is not getting to him when it needs to be there. The offensive line isn't good either. Make no mistake, this team is led by its vaunted defense. Who would have thought this just two years ago? The Broncos were in the Super Bowl. Their running game was on fire and Peyton Manning was crushing it. He opened that season with a 7 touchdown performance. He was on fire. The ball was were it needed to be. It was on time and had plenty of zip. Julius and Demaryius Thomas were a lethal combo. Then, in said Super Bowl, they got destroyed by the Seahawks. Last season, they played well in the regular season, but got beat, at home, by an inferior Colts team. And, this was when Manning started to look bad. I thought this was a one time thing, he'd fix it in the off season and be back to his old self when this season started.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

The first time I watched the Broncos play, I was appalled at how bad Manning's throws looked. As I've said many times, the ball just floated very slowly through the air. Receivers just waited on the ball, or had to fight through defensive backs to get to the ball. There were times that receivers looked like they'd get blown up by corners and safeties if they attempted to catch a pass. It's a shame what has happened. It looks like Manning has played longer than he should have. This isn't like Michael Jordan when he was with the Wizards or Brett Favre with the Vikings. At least those two lead those teams to the playoffs. The Broncos will make the playoffs, but not because of Manning's leadership. It's because of their defense. In the case of Jordan, he was still a 20 point per game player. Brett Favre led the Vikings. Without him, that team wouldn't have made the playoffs. It's a bummer.

I watched Manning in college and the pros. He seems like a good guy. I'd much rather hang out with him than Eli. But, his time has come. He needs to retire. He needs to do it now too, not wait until the end of the season. The Broncos need to move on from him and he needs to move on from football. You're one of the greats Peyton Manning, but Father Time has taken over and your career is done. It was a great career. You've won multiple MVP's, shattered records, won a lot of football games and won a Super Bowl. Quite a careerindeed.

Go and enjoy your retirement, you've earned it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He feels bad for Peyton since he will always be number 2 (runner up in Heisman and runner up to Brady - Go Blue). Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Terrorism Turns us into Monsters

The only way to defeat the terrorists

The tragedy in Paris is still raw. Many people have expressed their unfiltered opinions of the attacks. Some have been more careful in their reactions. The common chorus coming out of the political class, and the media, is that ISIS needs to be bombed into oblivion. Another horrible terrorist attack on an industrialized country, another call to level another nation. We see those like us being killed and maimed, we demand double retribution. The only way to end terrorism is to counter with our superior firepower. This is a trap. The terrorists need our aggression The way terrorism thrives is when we become the monsters.

The way we used to respond to terrorism was through strategic police action. The criminals would be identified, their locations would be found, and the terrorist activity would end via death or capture of the bad guys. Some of the time we would change policy to make terror activity more difficult, such as London removing trash bins from the tube and central downtown. That all changed after September 11th. President Bush days after the horrible attacks promised to do to the attackers what they did to us. Bush promised to level a nation for America's wounds. Bush was good to his word, he did level a nation, two nations. The American people cheered on our campaign of "shock and awe". We incorporated words into our culture like "collateral damage" in order to justify the death of Afghan and Iraqi innocents. The new way to respond to terrorism was to retaliate with our superior might and technology. We became angry when terrorism hit our shores, and the world did not like us when we are angry.

Terrorism caused America to turn into the Incredible Hulk. Extremely powerful, unable to control, and a danger to everyone around us. We were big, green, and willing to destroy anything that got in our path. The United States was so focused on the enemy, that any unfortunate thing between us and our prey was going to be caught in the crossfire. It did not matter how many weddings were bombed, we had to get the Al Qaeda number two. A few hospitals get destroyed, we must depose of Saddam. The US was angry, the US must smash.

In the safety of our shores we cheered on this destruction. The destroyed hospitals, weddings, and innocents was never shown on the news. The bodies of kids sent to die in war were not covered on the network news. When Saddam was executed via hanging, we celebrated the end of Iraqi unrest. We were wrong. When Osama Bin Laden was gunned down in a bedroom we celebrated the end of Al Qaeda. We were wrong. When Jihadi John was bombed off of earth, we celebrated the death of ISIS. We were wrong. 

Every time the United States used over the top crushing force to destroy the latest identified terror group, we create a new and more dangerous group. The Bush administration was built for starting wars. These hawks had no idea, and no intent, to end these wars. Bush's folly of endless wars created the unstable and overtly dangerous ISIS. The terrorists who use a warped incorrect version of Islam as their ideology need to have a clear cut enemy. These monsters need the western world to be overtly aggressive to Islam. Charlatans like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Bill O'Reilly are some of ISIS's greatest weapons. The need to define Islam as a central problem helps ISIS to recruit. Young, unemployed, and ostracized Muslims are more receptive to the idea of hating the west when the popular media of the west preaches hate towards Islam. When innocent Muslim families are destroyed in a drone strike intended for a few terrorists the idea of the west as the enemy starts to take hold. When the U.S. can justify the killing of innocents in the name of global security, ISIS will use the killing of innocents as an equal method of war. If ISIS was able to wipe an entire US city off the map because a military base was close by, the world would scream in horror. When we kill innocents because they unfortunately live close to terrorist bases, the monsters gain sympathy. Our fear and anger is delivering new, desperate, recruits to the terrorists. 

The monsters of ISIS caused over 400 casualties in Paris. So far 129 innocent people have died. The French government over the weekend bombed known ISIS strongholds in Syria. Innocent families were undoubtedly killed in these bombing runs. Here in the United States we continue to bang the drums of war. Hillary Clinton regrettably used the specter of terrorism to justify donations to her presidential campaign from Wall Street billionaires. Egoist Donald Trump ramped up his hate filled campaign for President of the United States by telling the nation he would consider shutting down mosques he deems dangerous. Failing republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush is using the attacks to try and jump start his fading campaign. The rest of the republican field is falling all over each other to blame President Obama, Hillary Clinton, and anyone else their followers hate. Hours after the attacks, the US political class was screaming for more war. The media was demanding the current crop of presidential candidates to come up with a plan to destroy these terrorists. We were angry, we need to smash.

Smashing everything in our path is not a solution. Terrorism needs to end. Peace is the natural evolution of humanity, and terrorism is causing us to not evolve. To honor the innocents of terror, we should not create more terrorism. Killing Saddam, Bin Laden, Jihadi John, and a number of other monsters did not end terrorism. Killing children and families has increased the perception of the West wanting to destroy Islam. The media feeds the terrorists when they cheer on war. The political class emboldens the terrorists when they argue over what words we should use to describe the monsters. The need for the right wing to alienate all Muslims is making fighting terrorism much more difficult. Our past and current course of action feeds terrorism. We need a new plan. We need a global community to end terrorism. Paris should be the wake up call. Terrorism has turned us into a rampaging monster. Peace will bring us calm.

Stand with Paris, and with Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, anywhere else terrorism and war has touched. Stand proud and demand peace. Terrorism will end when we refuse to be the monster. Peace will prevail when we learn to not be the Hulk.

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. His opinions are strong, but really needs your strength. Write for SeedSing. 

Thoughts on Paris

It seems that whenever tragic events of great suffering unfold I find myself attracted to the Twitter hashtags and other various online commentary related to these events. I am less interested in what the profit driven media has to say about these sort of events and more interested in what actual people without such a motive have to say. Since I have heard about what happened and is happening in Paris I have been spending much of my time looking into the thoughts and feelings of people around the world in reaction to these events.

One of the topics centered on in these reactions has been religion. The reactions regarding the intersection of the Paris attacks and religion are spanning several spectrums. I have read tweets from some of those who self-identify as atheist calling out religious ideology in general as the cause of this tragedy. I have read comments from some of those who self-identify as Christian who perpetuate the idea that Islam is inherently violent and thus justify grouping all who call themselves Muslim in with these attacks. I have read posts from some of those who self-identify as Muslim who are desperately pleading to disassociate Islam from the attack by pointing to specific entries in the Quran which show the peace that they see as representative of Islam. I have read the thoughts of some who want to take the focus off of religion entirely because they do not see how it could be related.

Most of my personal thoughts on the matter are with the people of Paris. I imagine that they are feeling terrified right now. Sadness and anger are probably also very prevalent. They need a sense of security and safety and stability and respect. They are extremely lacking in all of those needs right now. They also need some support and empathy from the rest of the world right now which is something that many people are also offering. There is a lot of that in the online discussion and it is good to see.

I do not want to be the person who says that we need to take the focus off of religion. I know well that just as some receive a sense of peace from the ideals of Islam or whatever religion they follow there are always those who can use alternative text in the same book to justify such inhumane acts. I think it is important to discuss the influence that religion has in any event. But as much as some of that influence might cause suffering, some people need the influence of religion, however flawed it may be, to give them solace in these times.

I have been the self-identifying atheist who quickly rises up to call out religion as the cause of all the suffering. I can appreciate the need to understand why things like this happen and to want to have a solution to the suffering no matter what ideological affiliation one might identify with. But our problems are more complicated than that.

The blame never lies in one place. Yes, the ideas of religions can be used to justify horrendous acts. But to abolish Islam, Christianity, etc. is, to those who peacefully follow those philosophies, to make an enemy in the abolishers for taking away their source of solace and community. We are all participants and influencers in a world that allows people who commit these atrocities to exist. If there is blame to be dealt it belongs to us all.

Perhaps instead of focusing on who or what ideas to blame, it would be more useful to focus on the unmet need. The attackers maybe needed a sense of community. In the common worldviews which offer an abundance of sides to take, labels to adhere to, and others to blame it is no wonder that some find their sense of community in such aggressive groups. Groups such as these who have come to the flawed understanding that in order for their to be peace for their group those who they can identify as “others” must be destroyed. The need for understanding can never be met with violence. One who wins a violent conflict never proves who has the truth. They only prove who has the strength. Understanding is not found there.

I guess I just needed to get these thoughts out. These events will likely be an ongoing worldwide discussion for a while. I think that the best thing to do is to react with empathy and support for the suffering, discuss how we all might come to a common understanding of the world, and take non-violent actions which help cement the sense of community that has the potential to result.

Kirk Aug

Kirk coordinates SeedSing's Idea Farm. Follow him on twitter @kirkaug.

Welcome to SeedSing Stories

Having a story and owning the world go hand in hand

The central idea behind SeedSing is to let the average person have a voice. One did not need to be rich and connected in order to have their ideas heard. Our pop culture and politics is controlled by an incompetent media that only cares about ratings and influence, they do not care at all for the truth. Our world has a lot of problems, and voices without influence need to be heard. The truth needs to have a spot in our discussion.

SeedSing Stories is a place where we encourage people to talk about who they are. Understanding each other as real people will help us connect and understand each other's concerns. We may talk about or political views, but what made us feel this way. There are types of music and movies we enjoy the most, but what causes us to find worth in one thing and a guilty pleasure in another. SeedSing Stories will allow us to understand each other as real people, and not just a jumble of words extolling our grand virtues.

SeedSing Stories is meant to bring humanity back to discussion. The internet is a big open space with a lot of anonymous contributors. Being anonymous makes one into the mob. Individual voices will change the world. I want to learn about the individuals and join their voices together into a movement to fix the world. Your stories deserve to be heard. Do not keep quiet anymore.

I plan on telling stories of my days working with clowns. Other contributors have stories of living in world where gender roles have been reversed. You have stories equally, if not more, interesting than these. Your stories will give others moments of humor, knowledge, and inspiration. Share them with us. Let the world know we can fix it because we survived. Let your life lessons be another persons curriculum.

We want to know what you do with your life, and why. What event, or series of events, informed your world view? Bring us your stories. Plant your seed and let all of the world hear your song.

We look forward to understanding who the people are in the world around us.

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. He looks forward to what happens with SeedSing Stories and does remind everyone we have a few rules around here. 

Ty is tired of idiots who fight coffee and embrace racism

Idiots make my head hurt

I don't get political on this site ever. I'm not into politics and I feel that's its best, for me, to keep my political beliefs to myself. Politics are RD's thing and he does them well. But, two recent news stories have really gotten to me. They've both made me angry for very different reasons. I feel that I need to talk about these things because, if I keep them inside, I'll explode.

I am going to start with this whole Starbucks thing with the red cups. First of all, who really gives a shit about the cup that you're drinking delicious coffee out of? I've never noticed the cup before, but these recent stories coming from jack ass religious people are boiling my blood. The religious right is complaining that Starbucks is unholy because they aren't doing their Christmas or holiday cups this year. They're just doing a red cup. First of all, I like that Starbucks is trying to not affiliate itself with any holiday. A corporation shouldn't have to tell or show you their religious beliefs. Who cares what you believe in, as long as you aren't hurting anyone and the product is good? That's what I say. But, these asshole Christians coming into a Starbucks, or going on live TV or social media and degrading Starbucks for "taking the Christ out of Christmas" need to get a god damned life. Hey assholes, maybe the people who run Starbucks don't celebrate the same holiday that you do. People all over the world celebrate different holidays. That's why people should say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" this time of year. Not everybody is a Christian, I hate to burst your bubble Catholics and any other iteration of Christians. Also, how do you know that your "God", if there is even a God(I personally don't believe there is) celebrates Christmas? Just because your dumbass Bible tells you so doesn't make it true. The Bible is as reliable as someone saying, "I heard it from a friend of a friend". It's all hearsay and conjecture, and written by governments so the established white people stayed in power. It's ridiculous story after ridiculous story passed down and rewritten many times. Basically, the Bible is a crock of shit. It's as reliable as a story from "In Touch" magazine or "Us Weekly". It's a rag, and it's false. I used to believe pretty heavily in this stuff, and if you do believe, that's great for you, just don't stuff your religious opinion down my throat, I don't care. But, I grew up and was taught science through my folks. Now, I am a man of facts, not faith. So, all you wacko Christians going into Starbucks and saying your name is Merry Christmas, get a life and find some real things to complain about. Instead of bitching and moaning about a stupid cup, put your religious fervor towards something that matters. Try helping starving children overseas and in America. Do something that helps, stop complaining about a cup.

A bunch of imbeciles.

The other thing that has me upset is this whole situation going on in Columbia, Missouri at the University of Missouri. To get it out in the open immediately, I side with what the students and players did, going on strike until that racist, ignorant and arrogant piece of shit president resigned. They did the absolute right thing. What makes me angry are people out there calling these students and athletes spoiled and arrogant and saying that their scholarships should be revoked. What kind of ass backwards shit is that? These kids did something very important and took a stand against racism. Why should the football players have to give up their scholarships? Why do people think that going on strike made these kids feel entitled? How is what they did any different than when we have a labor union strike? These laborers, who seem to be the majority of people that dislike what the students and athletes did, get upset when another company comes in and undercuts them, offers a lower price to make a product and that certain company goes with the cheaper price. Then, while driving around or taking my son to his basketball game, I have to see grown ass adults holding a sign that says "Shame on Lucky's Market" or "Shame on insert company name here" for hiring non union workers. I'm sorry, but I thought your beloved America was a country that was built on commerce. Why wouldn't a company take a cheaper price to give you the same product? Who gives a shit if the name Boeing is attached when some other company can make me the same stuff for a lesser price. So, I ask again, why is what the students and the athletes at the University of Missouri did any different than when laborers go on strike? The only difference I see is racism. The now former president of the University of Missouri was and is clearly a racist. He does not care about students of color. Take their non violent protest when they stood in front of his Corvette and he had his driver, because of course he has a driver, rev the engine and eventually bump into some of the students. What the hell is that? Why don't these kids deserve to feel safe? They are away from their families, most of them in a new town, and they have to deal with stupid ass, privileged white boys yelling racial slurs at them and the president of the university does nothing. That's a crying shame. Did I miss something, because I thought we were in the 21st century. This is supposed to be a golden age where everyone is equal. Men, women, white people, black people, brown people, Chinese people, so on and so forth. But, this doesn't seem to be the case on Missouri's campus right now. They reverted to the 50's, and that was not a good time in America. I find it totally obnoxious that the people complaining the most about the protests are white people, that I assume. are all conservatives. That's absurd. Get over yourselves. We are all equal, contrary to what you dumbasses believe, and what these kids did was 100 percent in the right. Stop bad mouthing them and telling them they deserve to have their scholarships revoked. If they deserve that, all the laborers out there deserve to have their jobs taken away when they go on strike. Fair is fair, right? Conservatives will tell you an eye for an eye, right?

Just stop with all the nonsense and realize that we are in the 21st century. Not everyone celebrates, or even believes in Christmas, and we are all created equal. That's what they wrote in the Constitution over 200 plus years ago. We are all equals. And a big thank you to RD for giving me this platform to get on my soapbox about these two issues today. I needed to get this off my chest. I know I'll hear from people in the comment section and all I can say is, this is one man's opinion on these issues.

Take it or leave it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. His goal in life is to attend a gay wedding in Indiana that serves pizza at the reception. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik

The Democratic Party is Hurting Voter Turnout

The average democrat on election day

Once again we have another fringe republican beat the polls and win a major election. The good Democrats across the nation point the blame squarely at low voter turnout. If people do not vote, bad people get elected. We have seen so many people talk about this phenomenon. When people do not vote, their own interest suffers. When republicans win, it is because democrats do not vote. This has been the conventional wisdom for decades. Democrats lose, blame the voters who did not vote. Democrats win, it was a great get out the vote effort. The same story election after election. If voter turnout is the only way for Democrats to win, then elections that experience low voter turnout must be the fault of the Democratic Party.

Once upon a time the modern Democratic party cared about elections in non-presidential years. Throughout most of the 20th century the Democratic Party had a stranglehold on the US Congress, and the majority of state governments. The platform of the democratic party fit well with the humanity of the electorate. The great Reagan electoral slaughter of 1984 saw the Democratic party maintain control of the House of Representatives and gain seats in the US Senate. The media will tell you that everyone loved Reagan and the Republicans in 1984, but that is just not true. When the Democrats won presidential elections, they controlled the entire federal government. In 1992 Bill Clinton won the White House, and the Democratic Party had solid control of both chambers of Congress. Two short years later the Republican Revolution of 1994 saw the GOP take control of the US House, Senate, and many state governments. Since 1994 the Republicans have gained more and more control of state governments, and they have increased their hold on the US Congress. Near the end of 2015 31 state legislatures are completely controlled by the Republican Party (8 are split control, leaving only 11 state legislatures run by the Democratic Party). The Republican party has 32 State governors (they will take control of Kentucky in 2016, and may lose Louisiana later this year). Things are getting better for the Republicans, and much worse for the Democrats. 

The interesting trend to look at is the election of Republican governors in states that Obama won in 2012. There are a number of states that vote for the Democrat at the top of the national ticket, and then tend to go for the Republican in state races. These states include Florida, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The interesting thing to look at with theses states who are blue and red is that each of these states do not hold their governor elections on the same year as the presidential election. The Democratic Party invests heavily in these states during for the Presidential election, yet in the off years there is no financial or human capital remaining to mount a statewide campaign for the governor's mansion. The local party leaders are rewarded for winning the state for the president, yet they are never called to task for losing the state governments. It seems like most of the Democratic Party cares very little in trying to govern in they very states they value so much every four years.

Money is crucial to elections. Starting with the election of Bill Clinton in 1992, the DNC has funneled most of the campaign contributions to the top of the ticket. By 2012 the Obama campaign was hording money, while the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee was begging for funds. The funding for republicans in local elections is far larger than that of democratic candidates. Currently the Hillary Clinton campaign has a record amount of money raised, yet no local democrat is benefiting from this war chest. Who can blame the Clinton campaign, they are just following the accepted practices of the Democratic National Committee. They are telling democratic voters that only the presidential campaign matters.

This is not a new problem, it started in 1994, and the Democrats in Washington DC always have some response. In 2005 DNC Chairman Howard Dean implemented a 50-state strategy, and in 2006 the Democrats took total control of the US Congress. Many of the established class of Democratic party operatives disagreed with Chairman Dean. They wanted to continue and sink money into "winnable" races. These Democratic Party experts were the ones that left the cupboard bare to begin with. Unfortunately the Paul Begalas and James Carvilles won out, and Dean was removed from the chairmanship of the DNC after the 2008 elections. Under Tim Kaine and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the Democratic Party has seemed to give up on any state race that is competitive. Giving up on these races allowed the Republicans to gain control of many crucial state legislatures in 2010, just in time for congressional redistricting. 2010 happened to not be a presidential election year. The Democrats still won the White House in 2012, and have continued to lose seats in US House, Senate, Governorships, and State Legislatures.

The DNC says they care about more than the Presidential election. They recently launched an effort to assist local races with Advantage 2020. The cynic may look at their plan and realize it coincides with a Presidential election year. Where is the plan for 2015 (already failed), 2016, 2017, 2018, or 2019. Social media allows us to lay the groundwork at a lighting fast rate. The truth is the Democratic party has ceded the states to the Republicans. Once they were handed over, the Republicans built a system to make elections difficult for the Democrats. Gerrymandering, voter id, right to work, all of these were implemented recently. All of these new policies push down Democratic voter participation. The DNC sat back, complained a little, and did nothing to strengthen the state parties. The Democratic Party wants to inspire only every four years.

That is the key word, inspire. People who vote democrat want to be part of something. They want to change the world. They need to be inspired. In Kentucky Jack Conway did not give anyone inspiration, and very few turned out to vote for him. He lost. In Ohio Ed Fitzgerald was as uninspiring of a candidate ever, and very few turned out to vote for him. He lost, badly. The Republican party has built in a method to turn out voters. Every election, no matter the office, the republicans get out and vote. They are inspired. 

The endless complaints about voter turnout, and people voting against their own interests, will never end. Complaining about the same things, will get you the same results. Democrats must want the same results, because they keep complaining about voter turnout, and they keep losing. Solve the voter turnout problem, then you can win. The Democrats have the White House locked up for many elections, it is time to win back the states. The voters are not losing elections for the Democrats. The lack of excitement, financial resources, and inspiration is keeping voters away. Stop complaining about low voter turnout. The Democratic Party is to blame for the fact people will only vote for them ever four years. Do something new. Be inspirational.

RD Kulik

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. He really wants to be inspired by you. Come write for SeedSing.

The Greatest American Band Debate: Digable Planets

I'm going to get back to music that I enjoy today for my nomination to the greatest American band debate. Last week, I nominated the Beach Boys, but I made it abundantly clear that I loathe the Beach Boys. Today, I'm getting back to mid 90's rap music and I'm nominating Digable Planets.

I know a lot of people may not know who Digable Planets are, they only released three albums, but everyone knows one of their songs. I'll get to that song in a bit. Also, of their three albums, I only like one of them. But, the one I like is classic and way ahead of it's time. Much like my Sugarhill Gang blog, I nominated them based on one song, Digable Planets get the nod simply based on one classic album. The album that I'm speaking of is called "Reachin (A Refutation of Time and Space)". This album came out in 1993 and it was totally different from anything I'd ever heard. I hadn't yet discovered A Tribe Called Quest, so the jazz influence that Digable Planets used on this album was completely new to me. The way each of the members rhymes on each of the songs is very much their own unique style. The three members are named after insects, they went for a whole vibe of being insects from another planet on this album, very weird but very cool. Their names are Butterfly, the leader, Doodlebug, the city boy and Ladybug Mecca, the fierce feminine voice of the group. Butterfly has a very cool, hip way to how he raps. He sounds so confident and comfortable doing what he does. He is one of the most underrated and best rappers I've ever heard. Butterfly brings the "street" to the group. He's got a gruffer voice, but he also reads poetry on this album and speaks truth on political beliefs of the band. Ladybug Mecca is awesome. She's a strong female and she can rap with the best of them. Some of her verses on some of the songs are incredible. She is/was a true genius of a rapper. They use jazz as the driving force in their sampling on this album. Now, I don't care for jazz music, but put a beat to it and some good rapping, I'm totally on board.

As I said before, Digable Planets came to me before Tribe, so without them, I would've never found Tribe. A Tribe Called Quest is one of my all time favorite groups and you can read why I like them so much on the site involved within this very same debate. "Reachin" came to me as a pre teen. My brother Seth, who's been on the podcast before, introduced to them. I was listening to Ma$e and Puff Daddy and Seth gave me this record and told me to "enjoy some real hip hop". He was right on the mark, and I listened to this tape, that's right, I remember when there were tapes, so much, I wore it out and my folks had to buy it on CD for me. I love everything about this album. I used to listen to it on my Walkman while playing basketball with my friends. I was, and still am, totally obsessed with this album.

It opens with "It's Good to Be Here". This is a great song. They talk about their love for music and the fact that they're just happy to be performing together. This song proved to me that all bands don't hate each other, some really do enjoy the other band mates company. After that song, it's great song after great song, in my opinion. Songs like "Pacifics", "Where I'm From" and "What Cool Breezes Do" are classics. "Pacifics" is a groovy, jazzy rap song. It's a great early 90's rap tune. "Where I'm From" shows the band giving love to their hometowns. It's a great song for anyone from either Philadelphia or New York. "What Cool Breezes Do" is almost a full on jazz song. There's rapping on it, but this song is more about the instrumentation. "Time and Space (A New Refutation Of)", has Doodlebug reading poetry and the rest of the band doing straight forward rap. It's pretty great. The song I spoke of earlier that I thought most people would know is "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)". This song was played pretty heavily on the radio in the 90's and I still hear it in commercials from time to time. The chorus is the most memorable part. simple lyrics, "I'm cool like dat, I'm cool like dat, I'm cool like that, I'm cool" and they switch it up a little with, "I'm cool like dat, I'm fly like dat, I'm hip like dat, I'm down like dat". I guarantee most of you know this song when you hear it. Later in the album they have great songs like "Jimmi Diggin Cats", "La Femme Fetal", "Nickel Bags" and "Swoon Units". "Jimmi Diggin Cats" has the band expunging the fact that, if Jimi Hendrix was still alive, he'd be a Digable Planets fan, and it's hard to argue with them listening to the song. "La Femme Fetal" is a song that's way ahead of it's time. The lyrics call out people that oppose places like Planned Parenthood and talk about how insane right wing Christian nut jobs truly are. Had this song been released now, it would be all over social media. Back then, it was kind of overlooked and that's a shame. The song is about a young couple who decide to abort a pregnancy because they live in squalor and don't have the means to take care of a child. It has a great message and for the pro choice people out there, me included, this is a great statement song. I love this song so much. "Nickel Bags" is about exactly what you thin it's about. Each member takes a turn talking about how much they like weed and why it's so good. This is a love song to marijuana. Also, this was ahead of it's time too. Release it today, it would be a mega hit. "Nickel Bags" would put Afroman's "Because I Got High" to shame. "Swoon Units", the second to last song on the record is a straight ahead rap song. Each rapper is rapping fast yet smooth and the beat is very bass heavy. It's a good song. This album is a rap masterpiece and I love every minute of it.

It's kind of a shame because they peaked so early, but "Reachin" is a great high point to have in their short career. I love this album and I love Digable Planets. I hope this piece brings new listeners to the group and you discover this great album.

Digable Planets, you get my nomination for the discussion of greatest American band today.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He is still washing the Beach Boys stink off his mind and needs some great hip hop to clear his thoughts. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Ty is overjoyed about "The Knick" and "Ash vs Evil Dead"

Good tv is on. The couch is calling

Today I'm going to talk about two TV shows on premium cable channels that I absolutely love. One is new and the other is currently in it's second season. One's on Cinemax, the other, Starz. They're both great, but for totally different reasons and I'll tell you why I like them both.

First, we will start with the Cinemax show that's currently in it's second season. The show is called "The Knick". "The Knick" takes place in the early 1900's at the Knickerbocker Hospital in New York. They focus on the earliest days of surgery and the doctors and people involved with the hospital. The way they film the surgery and show how primitive it was back then is astounding. The surgeons don't wear gloves. They hand crank blood through tubes. They always have a group of people watching the procedure while the lead surgeon explains what they're doing, almost teaching a class. Every surgery has the risk of being fatal. They use liquid cocaine and morphine as anesthesia. It's truly incredible and heart racing to watch them perform the procedures. The main character in the show is John Thackery, played eloquently by Clive Owen. Thackery is a surgery genius. He knows more than anyone in the room and he's always finding new and inventive ways to perform surgery. Problem with Thackery, in season one, he's addicted to cocaine and can only do procedures when he's high. Clive Owen plays Thackery as a junkie very convincingly. You can see when he's craving the drug, and you can see how it makes him laser focused and the best surgeon in the world. You also see him at his worst, be it bedding a nurse, taking way too risky chances in surgery or hanging out in an opium den. Spoiler alert, at the end of season one, Thackery is taken to a rehabilitation center and to get him off cocaine, they give him a new drug called heroine. That's where season two picks up, but there's another critical story line, there's a lot of critical story lines, but this is the most important in season one. A young African American surgeon, who's almost as talented as Thackery and just as smart, is brought to the Knick to work with Thackery. Here we meet Dr. Algernon Edwards played fantastically by Andre Holland. As I said, he's just as smart and innovative as Thackery, but he's a hot head that gets into fights on purpose and he's a man of color in the early 1900's, so there's a lot of turmoil surrounding Edwards. He's not accepted at the hospital by Thackery at first, but as season one goes on, Thackery sees that Edwards can help move this hospital into the for front of modern surgery and they begin to work together. There's many other characters, all very good, but these are the main two characters of the show. Back to season two. They're three or four episodes in now and during the season premiere, we see that Edwards is now chief of surgery since Thackery is in rehab. One of the other doctors goes to the rehab facility and saves Thackery from the abuse the doctors there are putting on their patients. Thackery returns to the Knick to see that things have changed with Edwards at the helm and he's miffed. Thackery also cannot perform procedures because he is off cocaine. He eventually gets back to doing cocaine, but he's now snorting heroin as well. In the most recent episode, Thackery saved his old love from dying from syphilis by giving her a fever of 108, and by gosh, it works. This is the Thackery I've been waiting for. We haven't seen a whole lot yet from Edwards, but I know spmething big is coming and I'm giddy at what the rest of this season will bring. Steven Soderbergh is the genius behind "The Knick" and I'm glad they have a show like this on television. "The Knick" is must watch TV.

The other show lands in multiple genres. It's gory, it's horror, but most importantly, it's a comedy. This show is on the Starz network and it's "Ash VS. Evil Dead". This is a reboot of sorts. "Evil Dead" was a very popular B horror movie in the 80's with Bruce Campbell playing the lead role of Ash. Everyone knows that in "Evil Dead", Ash and his friends and girlfriend find a book and the book releases the evil dead on society in search of putting Ash six feet under. The movie was huge for both Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi. It gave them horror and comedy cred. I love "Evil Dead", so when I heard a TV show was in the making, I was very excited. Two episodes in and I absolutely love the show. It's just as gory as the movie. It's just as scary as the movie. But, most importantly, it's funnier than the movie. The show is played to huge laughs coming from Bruce Campbell and his sidekicks, Pablo(Ray Santiago) and Kelly(Dana DeLorenzo), his colleagues at his crappy job. Bruce Campbell as Ash is just as funny and aloof, yet a shockingly good fighter, as he was in the movie. His trademark chainsaw hand is back too. That was awesome when they busted that out in the season premiere. In the premiere, Ash and his book summon the evil dead while he and a prostitute get stoned together. Ash is the only guy who knows how to fight the demons, and he's the best man for the job. As I said before, the gore is still alive and well on "Ash VS. Evil Dead". If you remember the movie, you have to completely remove the demons head to kill them. They do this with gusto on the show. It's so gross and brutal, but Ash has a quirky or stupid catchphrase every time he defeats a demon, it's played to uproarious laughs. They're only two episodes in, but they've already killed a dozen demons. That's a lot of death for two episodes. This show has all the potential in the world and I'm happy to see Bruce Campbell in a starring role that he desperately deserves. He's awesome and "Ash VS. Evil Dead" is awesome.

"The Knick" is on Friday nights on Cinemax and "Ash VS. Evil Dead" is on Saturday nights, so you can watch them during the weekend. "The Knick" is in it's second season, but the first only had ten episodes and they've only aired three or four from season two, so catching up will be easy. "Ash VS. Evil Dead" is only two episodes in, and you can watch both of them On Demand. Do yourselves a favor and watch these shows. They're totally different from each other, but they're both great.

You'll thank me later.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He first thought "The Knick" was about former NBAer and US Senator Bill Bradley solving crime on Capitol Hill with his epic basketball skills. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Soylent: The pet food for people?

Since we are not Soylent, sales have been challenging.

Being a house pet must really be nice, ya know? You never have to think about what to eat. It is just the same thing for every meal. You can rest assured that as long as you eat that one thing and only that one thing, you will get a balanced nutritional serving.

Us humans on the other hand have it tough. Options. Nothing but piles and piles of options. Always either fighting off an urge to eat more leftover Halloween candy or worrying about whether another bowl of pasta might make three too many. If only there were an option to fill my cupboards with a single product that would satisfy all of my nutritional needs and make it so that I do not have to put any more effort into my nutrition than to consume said product every so often.

Enter Soylent. “Soylent is a meal replacement beverage, advertised as a "staple meal", available in both liquid and powdered forms. Its creators state that Soylent meets all nutritional requirements for an average adult.” (via Wikipedia)

When I first heard about Soylent the first thing that came to my mind was, “is it made of people?” This as I had only been subjected to the 1973 film Soylent Green and not the earlier term reference in a 1966 science fiction novel Make Room! Make Room! which featured a product called Soylent made of soya and lentils. Soylent’s name apparently comes from the novel, but I am still suspicious.

Soylent has gone through several revisions since it was released as a product for consumers to utilize. The first versions came as a powder which needed to be mixed. The powder was shipped in bags that contain 3+ servings. They are available in various quantities and there is even a monthly subscription option for those who want to put this diet of nutritional ease on autopilot.

Now in revision 2.0 there is a ready to drink bottle. You can subscribe to get 144 bottles a month for only $348. It apparently does not spoil, even unrefrigerated, for a year. What is claimed to be in it, if you are one of those who believe the claims that it is not people, is soy protein, algal oil, isomaltulose, vitamins, and minerals. Each 400 calorie serving contains 33% carbohydrates, 47% lipids, and 20% protein. The product is vegan and the bottle is recyclable.

Reports on the taste of the substance are highly variable. Some find it surprising, some find it disgusting, others have more of a neutral stance on the taste.

So I suppose I need not envy my dogs’ tightly simplified diet any longer. I too can have the option of no options. I am not sure if I really want to try this or not though. After all, my dogs are always begging for table scraps. What about you. Would you try a diet of Soylent for the benefit of making your dietary needs super simple? Let me know what you think.

Kirk Aug

Kirk cultivates the Idea Farm here at SeedSing. He is curious why they did not name Soylent Bachelor Chow. Follow Kirk on twitter @kirkaug.

The Cowboys and the NFL do not care about the safety of women

This means more to the NFL than decency and repsect

Today I was going to write an irrational hatred sports blog about the Dallas Cowboys.

A lot of people hate the Cowboys and I'm one of those people, but I hate them for different reasons. That blog will have to wait until a future date because I have a newer, even bigger problem with the Dallas Cowboys and one irrational hatred blog wouldn't be able to cover it. This deserves it's own separate blog. I have a big, big problem with how this team is handling this Greg Hardy situation.

From the top of this organization all the way to the bottom, they've mishandled this whole ordeal. First of all, the Panthers did the right thing when they cut ties with this monster last offseason. I know he was under contract and that he was supposed to come back after his year long suspension for hitting a woman, but the Panthers did the right and respectable thing cutting ties with him completely. They wanted to move on from this horrible person, and they didn't want him involved with anything they did as a team. That's a wise decision by a front office. So, he gets released and he's a free agent able to sign with any team willing to take a chance on this woman abuser. Who should that team be? None other than the god damned Dallas Cowboys.

America's team they still call them.

What a crock of shit.

The Cowboys are no longer America's team. They're almost as irrelevant as the Cleveland Browns. ESPN is the only network that seems to cover these two teams like they matter. They don't. But, of course the Cowboys signed him. They needed a pass rusher and they went out and got one of the better pass rusher in the league. They figured, who cares that he's a loose cannon that, at any minute, will turn on you and use physical abuse if necessary, they needed a defensive lineman.

Prior to this season, world class moron Roger Goodell gave Hardy a ten game suspension, then dropped it to four games when a court agreed that was enough for his heinous crime. Let me say it again, he physically abused a woman. He beat her and left brutal bruises on her body and a court agreed that he would only miss the same amount of games that they tried to give Tom Brady for under inflating footballs. How on Earth is this allowed by the most popular sport in the US? Why do they let these abusers back on the field so soon? I guess, if you're a good enough football player, what you do in your personal life doesn't matter. You can be a woman abuser like Hardy. You can beat children like Adrian Peterson and you can bully teammates so much that they consider suicide like Richie Incognito did. Doesn't matter, these guys are good football players, so they get second, third, fourth and so on and so forth chances. Some stupid ass GM for some irrelevant team will sign them.

As I said before, the Cowboys are also rans, the Bills haven't been good in over a decade and the Vikings are finally having their first real success since they drafted child abuser Adrian Peterson. I will say, Peterson, at least on the surface, seems to show some kind of remorse, but what he did what so heinous, I can't look at him without disgust. Incognito doesn't seem to care what people think of him and I'm sure he still bullies people and Greg Hardy is an insane person that should not be in the NFL. Let's look at some of the things he's done since being reinstated by the league. His first game back was against the Patriots. During the week of practice leading up to this game, while being interviewed, he made some odd and inappropriate remarks regarding Tom Brady's wife Gisele Bunchen. He said, and I'm completely paraphrasing, something along the lines of "I hope she's there to see me crush her husband" and "I hope that I see her and her sisters in the crowd because they're very attractive". I'm sure in his mind, he thought he was complementing them. He couldn't be more wrong. This is inappropriate and if anyone said stupid shit like this at any office job, they'd be fired in less than one second for sexual harassment. This was very bizarre behavior from Hardy. This should've been strike one and should've been a sign to the front office that more stupid ass, Neanderthal behavior was to come from this monster. The Cowboys did nothing about this situation. Then, a couple of weeks later, during a game, he verbally berated some special teams players for giving up a big play during a crucial moment of the game. You could see him, on live TV, screaming obscenities at these teammates of his. He threatened these guys with physical violence. Dez Bryant had to step in the way and be the voice of reason. Dez Bryant is one hell of a football player, but he should never be counted on to be the voice of reason. Hardy proved in this moment that nothing has changed with him. He's still the same psychotic monster that thinks the best way to solve conflict is physical abuse. After the game, Jerry Jones was asked about the incident and he said that he loved the compassion coming from one of the teams leaders. Are you flipping kidding me! This is not what a leader does. A leader doesn't scream in people's faces and threaten them with violence. This is what a psychopath does. How in the world can Jerry Jones think that this is, not only okay, but a sign of leadership? It's baffling. Then last week, Deadspin, one of my favorite websites, released photos from the night that Hardy abused his then girlfriend. The photos are haunting. They're some of the most brutal things that I've seen in quite some time. This woman had bruises all over her body. The 911 call was released and the back and forth between the caller and dispatch was scary. It was as bad as what I imagine the recording of the guy getting eaten by the bear in the movie "Grizzly Man" sounds like. It's also very terrifying to see what was said during the call. After all of this was released, Hardy released a statement and said what every repeat abuser says, "I'll never do this again", "I was young and dumb", "It was a lapse in judgement", basically, a bunch of crap. He doesn't mean these things when he says them. His law team gave him something to read and he read it. He didn't give it a second thought after reading and went about his day. I assumed he would have been cut before their game last night. I figured this would be the third strike and the Cowboys would have to let him go. He was and is becoming the nuisance that he is and he's a very big problem. He's the definition of a distraction. But, did the Cowboys and Jerry Jones do the right thing and let him go? Of course not. Jerry Jones said that the Cowboys were giving him the second chance he deserves. I'm at a loss for words.

How can Jerry Jones be so blind to doing the right thing? How can he think that he and the Cowboys can help make Greg Hardy a better person? They can't. My mother has worked with battered women and children for the last 20 plus years and she tells me all the time that these guys don't change. Once an abuser, always an abuser and I agree with her one hundred percent. Greg Hardy is a monster and should not be playing in the NFL. He shouldn't be playing football anywhere. He needs to be in anger management and taking classes on how to be less of a total asshole. I guess that I'm naïve though. How many correct decision has Jerry Jones made in the past ten years? How many correct decisions has Roger Goodell made since he's been commissioner of the league? The answer is a resounding ZERO. Both of these guys are morons and they will continue to let monsters like Adrian Peterson, Richie Icognito and Greg Hardy play as long as they're making money hand over fist. It's a shame because the NFL is the most popular sport in the US and young kids see this behavior and will think that it's okay to be abusive or that bullying is okay because if they're good enough at football, they can get away with it with very little to no punishment. That's a frightening scenario.

I long for the days when the biggest problem was Mike Vick fighting dogs. He went to jail for 18 months for that. He paid a very large price. Peterson, Icognito and Hardy, all they had to suffer was missing games for their horrible crimes. Use that as context for the next time you argue with someone about how the NFL punishes players harsher now than they did 5 or 10 years ago. Mike Vick went to prison. The three guys I mentioned, Hardy being the main culprit, have seen no jail time and they're all considered leaders of their respective teams. That's the state of the NFL today, and that's a crying shame for a sport I, and the rest of the country love.

Get your act together NFL. You're in danger of losing more fans by letting horrible people like these guys stay in the league.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He does not actual enjoy writing about anything the NFL commissioner does, it is quite frustrating. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

"Barefoot Contessa" is one thing you and your mother in law can agree on

Oh the things Ina could do to you

What does one do with a new baby and his working wife on maternity leave?

As I stated yesterday, I've been watching a good amount of day time TV with my wife being home. I've also let it be known that I've been watching a good amount of the Food Network. The Food Network is pretty much the perfect channel to have on in the background if you like ambient noise. During the day, it's pretty much all straight forward cooking shows. The night time is when the competition shows come on. So, during the day, having that ambient noise in the background is nice when I'm blogging or when I'm cleaning or doing something around the house. I do watch pretty much all the competition shows too. With my wife being home, we watch shows like "Pioneer Woman" and "Everyday Italian" and "The Best Thing I Ever Ate". We also enjoy the competition shows like "Chopped", "Cutthroat Kitchen" and any iteration of the "Baking Challenge", be it Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas. The only shows we avoid on the Food Network are, anything involving human douchebag Guy Fieri and their awful rip off of "The Chew" called, "The Kitchen". First of all, "The Chew" is terrible, but, "The Kitchen" makes "The Chew" look like "Breaking Bad". "The Kitchen" is awful.

None of these shows compare to what I believe to be the greatest show the Food Network has ever created. I'm talking about "Barefoot Contessa" with Ina Garten of course. This show is absolutely perfect on every level. First of all, Ina Garten is the best host of any cooking show ever and yes, I think she's much better than Julia Child was. She has a very soft, calming way of talking about food. She never raises her voice to show appreciation of food like Fieri does. She doesn't need any catchphrases like "BAM!" or "winner, winner, chicken dinner" or, "that's money", she just talks about food like a normal person. She also seems to get the very best ingredients. She made steak the other day and my mouth was watering when she brought out the cut of meat. It looked so good and it was clearly the best quality her butcher had. Same thing when she made bone in lamb chops on a recent episode. She has an affinity for fruit tarts. The fruit she gets is the freshest fruit I've ever seen. I didn't know strawberries could look that red and fresh. She also hand makes all the crusts for these tarts. When the finished product comes out of the oven, I want to go into my TV and eat this delicious looking food. She also makes all her drinks fresh. Sure, most people do this with alcohol, but how many people go out to their garden and grab the freshest mint leaves I've ever seen? The only person involved with my life that does this is my mother in law. I've never seen anyone else use fresh herbs from their garden to cook besides from mother in law and Ina Garten. Ina also made a fresh hot chocolate for her husband Jeffrey, I'll talk more about him later, and it looked dynamite. She boiled milk and half and half in a big pot, used big hunks of what I'm sure is expensive milk chocolate, put semi sweet chocolate and used vanilla extract and ground decaf coffee. I used to work at a Saint Louis Bread Company and we used real milk and Hershey's syrup to make our hot chocolate and RD, my brother and founder of the website, used to refer to this as "orgasmic" (ed note: yes it is). Ina's hot chocolate puts Bread Company's to shame and I don't need to taste it to know this, I can judge it simply based on seeing it. Simply look at the ingredients I listed.

Now, the food is the main part of her show, as it should be, but she also seems to be the most genuinely happy person I've ever seen. She has the perfect life. She loves her husband Jeffrey and he reciprocates this love ten fold. When he gets home from work or a trip and Ina has a big meal ready for the two of them, he lights up. But, he doesn't just light up at the site of the food, he's happier to see Ina and she's just as happy. Each embrace is different, but they all share the same amount of love. These two are clearly soul mates. When Jeffrey is working, Ina seems to have an endless number of friends involved in many different occupations. She's friend with carpenters, florists, college students, painters and butchers, just to name a few. These people love Ina and she loves them back. It doesn't hurt that she's making them delicious food and has these friends of hers be her "tasters". We all know the food is delicious. I'd love to befriend Ina and become one of her "tasters". Very few things would make me happier in my life. She also has a beautiful home in the Hamptons. Jeffrey and her are clearly well off and the pictures of her home during the show hammer home this point. I don't say this because I'm envious, I say this because Jeffrey and her deserve this. They both work hard and are very accomplished in their fields, so why not live lavishly? Good for them.

One other thing I like about Ina was told to me by my mother in law. She never competes on these competition cooking shows because she feels like 1) cooking shouldn't be a competition, you should cook because you love it and 2) she won't compromise her ingredients, she believes you should use the best ingredients available to you. This makes me like Ina even more, and I'm already a HUGE fan. I wish there were more chefs and personalities on the Food Network like her, but Ina is one of a kind. I don't think her show is on anymore, she's probably happily retired from making a show and doing whatever she wants, as she's want to do, but at least we have reruns. I look forward to these episodes twice a day. I love her show and her whole vibe. Ina Garten is the best thing that the Food Network ever had and I'm glad they still air "Barefoot Contessa".

Ina, you're a national treasure, thanks for everything you do. And thanks for being you, you're the greatest.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. "Cooking a Steak" would be Ty's favorite food show, if only it existed in the real world. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.