The SeedSing 2017 Mock NFL Draft

Tomorrow night is the first round of the 2017 NFL draft. Today, for the first time, I will do my own version of a "mock" draft. This mock will look different from other mocks that are out there. I will predict what I think will happen, not what should happen, including trades and all. I am only going to do the first round as well. I love college football, I think everyone knows this by now, but a 7 round mock is way too much. I'll give one or two sentences as to why I see the particular team drafting or trading their player or pick. I'm very excited about writing this, so let's get to it.

1. Cleveland Browns- Mitch Trubisky. Once again, the Browns will find a way to screw this up because that is what they do. This will be no fault of Hue Jackson's, but I guarantee that the Browns front office want a "sexy" pick, and not the sure thing. Trubisky is going to be a bust on the level of Ryan Leaf, so why wouldn't it be the Browns that make this horrific selection.

2. San Francisco 49ers- Myles Garrett. Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch will be the big winners from the Browns blunder. Garrett is the safest bet in this entire draft. He is also the best player too. Shanahan has time to build, and he will get his QB eventually and install his offense, but the chance to take Garrett will be too enticing, and the correct choice, and he will be a corner stone for this new era of 49ers defense. Absolute homerun pick for the 49ers.

3. Chicago Bears- Jamal Adams. Adams is the best secondary player in the draft, and while the Bears need help everywhere on the field, Adams can come in immediately and solidify the defensive backfield. He may be a bit raw in coverage, but he is a hard hitter, he's coachable, and he is a workaholic. Adams will be a very good player for a long time in the NFL, and the Bears will be lucky to have him.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars- Leonard Fournette. I was going to go defense here, but the Jaguars actually have a decent defense. Fournette is the best running back in the draft, and while Blake Bortles is atrocious, Fournette can immediately take the pressure off him. I love Fournette and think he can be a better Adrian Peterson. He is big, fast and will run over dudes left and right. Fournette is going to be great.

5. Tennessee Titans- Solomon Thomas. The titans are a team on the rise. They have a QB, a running back, a decent O line and some good defensive players. They do need receivers, but no one on this draft warrants this high a pick at receiver. Solomon Thomas is a great defensive tackle, and he will help the Titans pass rush and in run support right away. Thomas played in a pro style defense at Stanford, so he is ready for the NFL. He will be a very good defensive lineman for awhile, and this will only make the Titans better.

6. New York Jets- Malik Hooker. The Jets need help everywhere, and I should expect them to take a QB or receiver this high because they have made some terrible picks as of late, but they will look to shore up their secondary right away. Hooker is a good defensive back from the University of Ohio State, but he does have hamstring issues. This could hurt him in the long run, but he is a ball hawking safety that the Jets could build their secondary around over the next few years. Time will tell with him, but he can help as a rookie.

7. Los Angeles Chargers- Marshon Lattimore. Two University of Ohio State players in the a row, and cornerbacks for that matter. The Chargers do need a QB to replace Phil Rivers soon and they need receivers, but they will look at defense this high in the draft. Lattimore is a fine corner and should start right away. I do not know how good he will be, is he more Stephon Gilmore, or any number of corners that can't translate college success to the NFL? We will have to see, but the Chargers will take a chance.

8. Carolina Panthers- Johnathan Allen. The Panthers do need offensive help for Cam Newton, but with Allen being the best D lineman in the draft, that will be too enticing to pass up. He can plug up the holes in their rush defense, and I think he will be a great pro. He will solidify that line which will open things up for the linebackers and secondary in Carolina. The Panthers will be very happy with Allen "falling" to them in this draft.

9. Cincinnati Bengals- Hassan Reddick. I see some saying that Rueben Foster, the linebacker from Alabama going here, but after his incident at the combine, and the fact that Reddick is better, I think this is a perfect spot for Reddick to go. He can start from day one, and will shore up the linebacking unit. He is a good tackler, can get better in coverage, but will work on his game and fit in very well in the NFL. I love Reddick and he is going to be a good foundation for the Bengals defense.

10. Buffalo Bills- Trade. The Bills have a QB, a good running back, a decent receiver, a good line and a decent defense. I think they can trade this pick for some later picks and maybe even a veteran. They don't need much in a draft, and I think they will trade this pick away. They need to replace Stephon Gilmore, so maybe they trade the pick for a vet cornerback and some later picks.

11. New Orleans Saints- Do whatever you can to trade for Malcom Butler. The Saints need help on defense, and Butler immediately does that. He is a very good corner and will instantly make one side of the field unplayable. He will shut down big time receivers, and make this team instantly better. They need Butler, and I think it will take the 11th pick to get him.

12. Cleveland Browns- John Ross. With their blunder at number one, the Browns will panic and take the fastest guy in the draft because they will assume that they need to pair Trubisky with a receiver. This will be brutal for both guys. Ross will not get a chance to use his gifts because the Browns are so bad, and Trubisky is not going to be good. The Browns 2017 draft will just continue to get worse and worse. They are going to blow this draft.

13. Arizona Cardinals- Deshaun Watson. The Cardinals need a QB to replace Carson Palmer, who maybe only has one or 2 more years, and Watson is the best QB in the entire draft. I think Bruce Arians realizes this, and he will pounce on Watson. I love Deshaun Watson, and I feel like this will be a perfect situation for him. He can sit back for one or 2 seasons. learn the NFL speed and game, and come in and be a very good starter after backing up a decent veteran QB. This is a perfect fit in this draft.

14. Philadelphia Eagles- Takkarist McKinley. The Eagles do not need any offensive players, but they do need defense, and McKinley would be a good fit for them at outside linebacker. He is a good pass rusher and would fit in perfectly. Honestly they could take any defensive player available, but I like McKinley best of the remaining defensive players.

15. Indianapolis Colts- Cam Robinson. The Colts need something everywhere, except QB, but they need to protect that QB first and foremost. Robinson is the best O lineman in the draft. I hate his love for guns, but the NFL and the Colts will overlook that because they need protection for Andrew Luck. Robinson can do that, and the Colts will take him as fast as they can.

16. Baltimore Ravens- OJ Howard. The Ravens need some kind of help offensively, and OJ Howard is the best tight end in the draft. He is big, strong, fast and can catch the ball. He will help out Flacco, who I think is awful, but he will make Flacco look as good as he can. This will be a very good pick for the Ravens and John Harbaugh. He could help put them back in the playoffs very quickly.

17. The Washington Football Team- Derek Barnett. Washington needs help everywhere on defense, and while I think Barnett will be just average, he will help out on the line. He is an okay pass rusher, and I think plugging him in on the D line will work for a bit. Barnett needs to care a little more about getting better, but he is very talented, and Washington won't let him go past the 17th pick.

18. Tennessee Titans- Mike Williams. Tennessee inexplicably has 2 first round picks, and 18 is where they will get some help on the outside. Williams is a big, strong receiver, that runs nice routes and can catch the ball He will become one of Mariota's primary guys right away. Williams proved how good he was in last year's title game, and theTitans will get a very good value pick here.

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Christian McCaffery. McCaffery is a very versatile running back that will also be able to play the slot. He is exactly what Winston and the rest of that offense will need to push them back to a possible playoff berth. Tampa has good players everywhere on offense, except running back, and McCaffery will help make the running game a threat.

20. Denver Broncos- Trade for a QB. Somehow, some way, the Broncos need to offload this pick to get a QB. They have pretty much everything else, including a great, great defense. But, they need someone to com in and be a competent QB. I feel like making a draft pick now would be a waste. They should go out and try to get someone like Jimmy Garropolo or AJ McCarron, or someone else's backup to come in and game manage. That is what Denver needs.

21. Detroit Lions- Charles Harris. Harris is a great edge rusher that played on a bad Missouri football team. He was the lone standout, and that will pay off by him being a first round pick. He will pair great with Ezekial Ansah and they will form a very good pass rush duo. Detroit should need very little time to make this pick.

22. Miami Dolphins- Zach Cunningham. The Dolphins are set on offense, but they could use some defensive help. Cunningham reminds me a lot of Harris from Missouri, except he is a linebacker that played on a mediocre Vanderbilt team. But, he was awesome and I think the Dolphins would love to have him come in and play for them. He is a very good linebacker that can cover guys out of the backfield a little bit. This pick will really help the Dolphins.

23. New York Giants- Ryan Ramcyzk. The Giants need help on the O line, and Ramcyzk will do his best to help them. He is the second best offensive lineman in this draft, behind Cam Robinson, but this is a weak O line class. That being said, that is what the Giants need, and they will snatch up Ramcyzk late in the first round.

24. Oakland- Just take the best player available. The Raiders are pretty much set everywhere right now. They have a franchise QB, they are getting Marshawn Lynch, they have Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree, a great O line and a passable defense. If they do need anything, I'd say take David Njoku, the tight end from Miami. He would be a good fit and I think Carr would throw to him a lot. He's not a great blocker, but he is a very good pas catcher.

25. Houston- Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes is the second best QB in the draft, and the Texans will snatch a QB if Mahomes or Watson is available. He might have to play right away which could be a hindrance, but he could sit behind Tom Savage for a half a season, or even a whole one, then take over. He looks like he could be a good QB, and I think the Texans would be very pleased if he was still available at 25.

26. Seattle- Forrest Lamp. Seattle needs offensive line help, and while some think Lamp is the best lineman available, I do not, he will help on the O line right away. This team cannot protect Russell Wilson, but Lamp can help with that. Seattle has other needs, i.e., running back, receiver and in the secondary, but O line is their most glaring weakness.

27. Kansas City- Dalvin Cook. The Chiefs need a QB. Alex Smith just cannot get it done, but they can go out and sign a veteran, or wait until later rounds to draft one. That leaves them with a need at running back. Jamaal Charles cannot stay healthy, and I think Cook would be a good fit in KC. He is very fast and waits for holes to open up before he explodes through them. Cook would be a big step up at the running back position for the Chiefs.

28. Dallas- Jabrill Peppers. As much as this pains me, I love Peppers, but I loathe the Cowboys, he fits what they need. Peppers is a versatile defender that the Cowboys can plug into a lot of spots in their secondary. He can also help in their return game. The Cowboys are set on offense, but they need a lot of help on defense, especially in the secondary, and they will go out and get Peppers, "diluted sample" be damned.

29. Green Bay- Get a legit running back. I want them to trade for someone that is already a pro. As much as I like Ty Montgomery and Christine Michael, they are not starting running backs. They are backups at best, and Montgomery is a receiver anyway. Do whatever you have to do and go out and get a legit running back. That is the one position that could put the Packers over the top.

30. Pittsburgh- TJ Watt. The Steelers have a great offense and a bad defense. While he is not his brother, I watched a lot of TJ Watt this year, and he is a good pass rusher, a great tackler and has a "high motor". He seems like a Steeler already, and I feel like this is a match made in heaven for both the team and player.

31. Atlanta- Taco Charlton. The Falcons need some more pass rushers, and Charlton is a very good one. I watched him get better for four straight years at Michigan, and I think he would be a perfect fir for the Falcons. Let us not forget that they had a 25 point lead in the Super Bowl, and I feel like some more edge rushers would be great for them and would have helped them keep their lead. Charlton got better for four years, and I do not even think he is at his best yet. He will only get better.

32. New Orleans- Just like with the 11th pick, do whatever they can to get Malcom Butler. Trade both these picks if they have to. They need veteran help on defense and no one is better, and possibly available, than Butler. Do anything and everything possible to get Butler New Orleans. That is what you need.

There you have it, my first ever mock draft. I hope everyone has some thoughts and feelings about my choices, and if you do, please let me know in the comment section. Tomorrow starts the ten thousand year long coverage of the 2017 draft on ESPN, so tune in to that to see if I'm right about the Browns making horrible choices, or if they do the right thing and take Garrett first overall. This was fun.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. His mock draft submission was held until we could get a less diluted urine sample to test. 

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Who are the Real Top Players in the NFL Draft?

We have our own data to make semi-intelligent guesses.

The NFL draft is 2 days from now. Well, the first round that is. ESPN drags this damn thing out for like 5 days, but the big time guys will be coming off the board in the next couple of days. Tomorrow I will have my version of a "mock" draft for everyone. Today though, I want to talk about some of the prospects that are getting a little too much attention, or not enough.

First off, lets go straight to a few guys that played for my team, Michigan. What Jordan Lewis did was inexcusable and despicable. To put your hands on a woman is one of the, if not the, worst things a man can do. That should never, ever be tolerated, and I hope his stock falls massively in the draft. This was very upsetting to me because he seemed like a good kid. Then, he goes out and hits a woman. That is wrong on so many levels. It is frightening and appalling. Shame on you Jordan Lewis.

The next Wolverine I want to talk about is Jabrill Peppers. Yesterday it was reported that he had a "diluted sample" at the combine. Why is it coming out now, I have no idea. But, he has this "diluted sample". I have read and read about what this means, and I have to say, I do not think it is that big a deal. There are no steroids or illegal drugs that we know of yet. His people said that he was feeling ill and drank a ton of water while flying in for the combine. Again, I do not know if that is true, or why that would dilute someone's urine. All this being said, I feel like the people at ESPN, who have been covering this upcoming draft for what seems like years now, are trying to find anything and everything they can to discredit Peppers. I think he is very raw as a corner or safety, but I watched him play for the last 2 years, and that kid can play. He is never going to be on the level of the Ed Reed, Eric Berry and Troy Paulamalu, but I think he will be a fine nickel corner/safety, and a great return specialist.

As I said, I feel like ESPN has gone out of their way to chastise Peppers since he declared for the draft. They only had one story on Reuben Foster, who was asked to leave the combine because of how he handled himself during interviews at the combine, but he is an Alabama kid. ESPN will not attack the "almighty Nick Saban". Same can be said for Cam Robinson. Robinson is probably the best offensive lineman in the draft, but let us not forget, no matter how much ESPN refuses to talk about it, that he was caught in the offseason with unlicensed firearms. I'd rather have a kid that has a diluted piss test than a kid that had unlicensed firearms on my team. But, if you watch any ESPN coverage, you'd think Peppers broke the law and did the most horrific thing imaginable. But, their coverage of Foster and Robinson is only about how great of talents they both are, not the fact that Foster had to be removed from the combine and that Robinson likes to dick around with guns. It's almost like ESPN and Alabama are each dipping their hands in each other's honey pot. It is really rather disturbing.

I want to move on.

Lets look at the QB class this year next. I think that Deshaun Watson is unequivocally the best QB prospect in the draft. He won on the biggest stage during his college career, and the year he didn't win, it wasn't his fault, he was dynamic. He may throw a lot of picks, but so did Brett Favre and Tony Romo and Cam Newton. Watson is an incredible talent, and I think he will be a great pro. The fact that the draft "experts" rate a guy like Mitch Trubsiky ahead of him is laughable to me. Trubisky only played one full season, and when he was in a big game, he tightened up and looked afraid. He didn't play up to his competition. He did not win anything of importance his lone year as the starter at UNC. He has the look of a Tim Couch or Christian Ponder to me. Patrick Mahomes will be good, as long as he goes to a team where he can sit for a year or two and learn from a seasoned vet. He played in that crazy air raid offense at Texas Tech, so if he can have that time to be a backup and learn the NFL game, I think he can be a quality starter. I have no faith in DeShone Kizer. That kid is out of his god damn mind with the quotes he's been making lately. I'm all for guys that believe in themselves, but this kid has done nothing to back up that talk. He is a average to mediocre QB. I do not think he will ever start in the NFL.

Running back is about 2 dudes and then everyone else. Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffery are the 2 running backs in this draft. They can both be transformative players for whoever takes them. I like Fournette more, but McCaffery should be a good pro too. Guys like D'Onta Foreman, Dalvin Cook and Jordan Howard will be okay pros, but not on the level that Fournette and McCaffery have the ability to be. I will not discuss the other back that everyone in the sports media is trying to redeem.

Receiver is very ho hum to me. The only guy that stands out as a first round talent is John Ross from Washington. He is lighting fast and can change the game as a returner as well.

Flipping over to the defensive side, this draft is stacked with defensive talent. As far a D line goes, I love Johnathan Allen and Solomon Thomas, just like everyone else. The linebackers are good, led by Hassan Reddick. Secondary is loaded, but I think Jamal Adams from LSU is the stand out, along with Adoree Jackson. I've heard a lot of talk about a couple of the University of Ohio State(I know what I wrote) guys, Malik Hooker and some other corner who's name escapes me because I hate that team. Hooker is good, but he is oft injured. He had hamstring surgery in high school. I've never heard of that before. Both these guys will go in round one though. But, if I had a pick, I'd do whatever I could to get Adams. He is a workaholic that will only get better with professional coaching. And how Adoree Jackson is not a lock first rounder is baffling to me. He is a better version of Jabrill Peppers, and I am as big a Peppers fan as there is. Jackson is a very physical corner and can cover. He is also an excellent returner as well. He is going to be great.

These are just some of my quick thoughts on some guys I like and others I'm not so high on. Come back tomorrow for my "mock" draft to see where I think these kids will end up, or what I think certain teams should do in the first round.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is dumbfounded by ESPN's draft "experts". Those guys get paid to be dumb and wrong. How can he score an easy gig like that.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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SeedSing Classic: The Ohio Problem

SeedSing classic is a look back at our most influential articles. These pieces have been presented in their original form. No Star Warsesque special editions. Enjoy

As goes Ohio, so goes the nation.

That is where the problem begins for people trying to run for office in Ohio.  I have worked as a campaign consultant for nearly ten years to a number of candidates and causes in Ohio, I have always encountered the same problems. The Ohio Problem (as I have decided to call it) consists of the state gaining outside media influence and money every presidential election due to its perceived electoral importance.  This extra attention every four years causes the most talented, and professional campaign experts to migrate towards the high profile state and federal races.  This leaves mostly inexperienced campaign workers and volunteers to work on the local races. The existence of the Ohio Problem causes political amateurism and laughable local governance for a state that seems to always be front and center during a presidential election year.

What makes Ohio so attractive to the national political establishment?  It begins with basic demographics.  Ohio ranks as the seventh most populous state, and it is overwhelmingly white (over 82%). The median income in Ohio sits below the national average.  The unemployment rate sits slightly above the national rate.  This all shows that the residents of Ohio are usually the target of national political platform messaging.  There is no major demographic swing to alienate the residents on national politics.  The voters of Ohio turn out in record numbers for the presidential election, and their turnout in other years is usually a record low.

Why do Ohioans care so little for the local elections?  This begins with the local political parties.  Many of the same people have been in charge of their local county parties for almost a decade.  In Hamilton County (Cincinnati), the local democratic party has engaged in such amateurism as in endorsing ten candidates for a nine member city council, having their endorsed congressional candidate lose the primary to an unknown person who was not running an active campaign, and running candidates over and over again who have no ability to win the race.  These actions would get most party bosses tossed after one election cycle (I have seen this happen in Missouri, Wisconsin, and Illinois). These party leaders keep their jobs in spite of their failures. The response to the parties failures is to remind critics that Obama carried the county the last two elections. There is no interest or fidelity to the local governance of the people they are supposed to serve.  The strong republican area of Butler County, where the Speaker of the House John Boehner calls home, does not fare much better.  The local Democratic party has on occasion attempted to try new things and bring in new people. In 2012 there were some new candidates with broader appeal to the strong conservative voters of the area.  Before the end of May the party had lost any momentum because candidates were not fundraising, people in the party were looking for signs and t-shirts(again this was in May, nowhere near election time), and most of the resources were being hoarded by a small group of candidates. During strategy meetings the top priorities were knocking on doors, and getting people to vote for President Obama and Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown (both Obama and Brown received around 37% of the vote).  This showed a lack of interest in the local races in service to the national party.

Once the 2012 election had passed, many of the campaign consultants had moved on to other jobs.  A large percentage leave the political campaign world.  The ones left over are usually underpaid (if they get paid at all) and lose any loyalty towards the local party bosses.  While all campaign workers divest themselves from the system, all the county party leaders stay put to repeat the same mistakes in the next election cycle.  The next mistake turned out to be the colossal failure of the Ohio Democratic party during the 2014 state elections. Little known, and barely vetted, Cuyahoga County executive Ed Fitzgerald was tapped as the Democratic nominee for governor. Fitzgerald was going against incumbent Republican Governor John Kasich.  The poll numbers for Governor Kasich were trending below 50%.  The state Democratic Party brought in out of state consultants to run Fitzgerald's campaign.  There seemed to be no local campaign experts, because none were groomed during the 2012 elections.  By the end of August 2014, Fitzgerald's campaign imploded (go see for yourself,  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_FitzGerald).  The entire state ticket went down with Fitzgerald's failed candidacy.   Since the local parties went all in with the Fitzgerald campaign, their backyard races all suffered.  Once the dust settled on the disaster of the 2014 campaign, the head of the state Democratic party stepped down, and that was the only high profile resignation.  The local party leaders were once again in charge of the next election cycle.  The 2016 election looks to be run the exact same way, all the resources moving to secure the state for the presidential candidate at the expense of local officials. 

Ohio has twice gone to President Obama, yet the state is overwhelmingly controlled by the Republican party.  Every day the citizens of Ohio watch women's health freedom get stripped away, LGBT rights sit well behind the rest of the nation, and local tax dollars being sent to the state capital so the richest can get more tax breaks.  The Ohio Problem is what causes residents below the median national income and above the national unemployment rate to .vote against their own interests.

Ohio is not alone in this issue.  The same could be said about Pennsylvania, Florida, and to a lesser extent Michigan.

The Ohio Problem must be solved.

RD Kulik

Head Editor

This is the End of Blake Griffin's Clippers Career

The time has closed on Griffin and LA

With the news coming out this weekend that Blake Griffin will miss the remainder of the playoffs, I want to try and answer 2 questions. Is his career with the Clippers done? And, is he done as an "upper echelon" player in the NBA?

I have not been kind to Blake Griffin. I think he is wildly overrated in fact. I've never bought into the nonsense that ESPN, Bill Simmons, basically any sports writer from LA, saying that he is one of the best players currently in the game, and he is one of the best power forwards ever. That is utterly ridiculous. As far as the forward position goes, I'd say he is not even in the top ten of current players. As far as an all time great, there is no god damn way that's true. In the current NBA, I'd take guys like Giannis, Kawhi, LeBron, KD, Draymond, Hassan Whiteside, Kristaps Porzingis, Andrew Wiggins, Karl Anthony Towns, Boogie, Anthony Davis, and many, many more before I'd take Blake Griffin. All those guys are unequivocally better than he is at basketball. I will argue anyone on this. Hell, I'd even take LaMarcus Aldridge, and he is playing very poorly right now. Same goes for a guy like Robin Lopez or Al Horford. At least they will get on the court.

With all this being said, he was a decent player once upon a time. He is nowhere near the explosive player he showed as a rookie, but he can still jump. His jumper looks disgusting, and it is not as reliable as one would want, but it goes in more now than it ever has. He has decent court vision too. He is an okay passer. Not this great post passer like Zach Lowe believes, but he is fine throwing lobs. But, even with the Clippers winning game three, then getting beat last night in game four against the Jazz, I do not think he will be in a Clippers jersey next season. The Clippers will probably get out of the first round, Chris Paul is playing out of his mind, and DeAndre Jordan is more than capable of making up for Griffin's lack of rebounding, but they won't go any further than the second round. They just don't have anyone else around Jordan and Paul, especially with Griffin out. Griffin wouldn't have made much of a difference, but it would have been one more guy for the Warriors to have to, at least, think about.

So to answer my first question, I think the other night was his last night in a Clippers uniform. He may love LA, but I'm pretty sure he despises playing with Chris Paul, and the Clippers have shown they are fine without him. Griffin is not the "super star", or leader of this team that he may have been 2 years ago when they were blowing a 3-1 lead to the Rockets in the second round of the playoffs. That was his best year, 2 seasons ago. That should be telling enough for the Clippers front office to be okay letting him go. That, and the fact that they play fine without him. The Clippers and Doc Rivers should focus on keeping Jordan and Paul, building the bench and getting a nice return for Griffin. I'm sure a team like OKC would let almost anyone, Westbrook being the lone exception, go in a trade for Griffin. If I were the Clippers I'd ask for a pick, Victor Oladipo, Andre Roberson and a bench guy and I bet the Thunder would happily make that trade. I'm sure the Knicks would be more than happy to part ways with Carmelo for Griffin straight up. I'm sure it won't happen because Phil Jackson would find some way to screw it up, but they should still try. I bet a lot of other teams would take a chance on Griffin. He is oft injured, but if he could ever stay healthy, he could help a contender as an instant offense off the bench guy, or be the "guy" on a middling playoff team.

This leads me to my second question I asked at the top. I never thought he was a top ten player in the league. I still think he is incredibly overrated. I was watching their playoff game the other night, and whoever the commentator was for ESPN said that the Clippers were "without their super star". That is so disrespectful to Chris Paul. When I think of the Clippers, I think of Paul, not Griffin. Even 2 seasons ago when Griffin was playing his best professional basketball, I still thought that team ran whatever Paul wanted them to do. He has been the leader, no matter how annoying and whiny he may be, the moment he was traded to the Clippers. So, not only do I not think he is a top tier NBA player, I think he is the third best player on his current team, behind Paul and DeAndre Jordan. Yes, Jordan cannot shoot free throws, and only dunks, but he is a better rebounder and defender, and I don't even think Jordan is that good at either of those things. But, he is better than Griffin.

Chris Paul is legitimately in the conversation as one of the best point guards to ever play. He is a big time pain in the ass for everyone, but he is good. Even I can't deny this no matter how much he bitches and moans or how dirty of a player he is. He is very good regardless of those things.

Another bad mark for Griffin is the constant injuries. He missed his entire rookie year with an injury. He seems to get small nicks and bruises that cause him to miss time. Other players will more likely than not play through this stuff, but not Griffin. He has also missed extended time in the last 2 playoffs. He cannot be counted on anymore to be healthy. That takes him out of the conversation immediately as an "all time great". There are so many younger, healthier, hungrier and coachable guys in the league that are going to, if they haven't already, surpass Blake Griffin.

I know the media wants to keep talking about him because he plays in LA, but he is irrelevant to those of us outside of the LA media bubble. I also, and I HATE the Clippers, think they are much more fun to watch when he is not on the court. They seem to be more cohesive. No one has to give him the ball because he just needs to touch it. The ball movement is much slicker and just flat out better. Griffin had his chance 2 years ago to jump into the upper level of NBA guys like LeBron, KD, Russ and Steph. He instead regressed and other guys like Harden, Kawhi, Giannis and Jimmy Butler are starting to become the "next generation".

I think Griffin is done being a "super star" if he ever was one. His time in the sun has come and gone. He also seems to be disinterested in basketball now too. He seems more focused on doing commercials and going to stand up and improv shows, which is fine. Follow your dreams Blake Griffin. I just want the Bill Simmons of the NBA world to stop telling me and everyone else how great of a player he is. He had one very good season. After that, he has either been a disappointment, below average or injured. I don't trust Blake Griffin as an NBA player anymore. He is done for all I'm concerned.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is looking forward to the annual Clippers second round playoff flame out. It let's Ty know that there is order in the universe.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Now We Have to Write About the Damn Unicorn Frappucino

Here is a pic of Ty's special coffee. It has cream and sugar in it.

I guess this week is going to be my old man grumpy week. Earlier I complained about music festivals. Yesterday I was shocked at how poorly all of the Celtics, except for Isaish Thomas, have been playing so far in the playoffs. I did write about my love for TV so far this year, but that is the only sign of happiness I have shown all week. I'm going to end the week much like it started, by complaining.

I am shocked and grossed out by this new drink at Starbucks, "The Unicorn Frappucino". I have no problem with frappucino's, or anything else at Starbucks for that matter. I love Starbucks and unicorns. Starbucks is second only to Tim Horton's, as far as my favorite coffee spot. I think unicorns are cool as hell too. I love the idea of a horse with a single horn that grants wishes, or whatever unicorns may do. More power to this majestic animal. But, what Starbucks has done is absolutely unnecessary.

This drink looks like an abomination. It looks like every kind of sugary candy, i.e., Skittles, Starburst, so on and so forth, that I gave up three years ago. It is hyper color for god's sake. It looks so sweet, I feel like it would immediately give me diabetes after one sip. All the things that go into this drink just do not make sense, especially on a Starbucks menu. When they introduce new or seasonal items, it has a theme that goes along with Starbucks. Pumpkin spice is big in the fall. They always have some kind of holiday drink with peppermint or cinnamon or some kind of spice that pairs perfectly with winter. Even in the summer they seem to introduce some kind of cold brew or something refreshing as opposed to their normal hot drinks. But this Unicorn Frappucino is just confounding.

The Unicorn Frappucino has a mango puree, some kind of sour powder, whipped cream and sprinkles. There is no coffee is this drink at all. I don't even think there is caffeine. That is fine, but it just seems lost on the menu, and the consumer. I have read multiple people's takes on this drink and they all seem to sound the same. I have seen stuff that says, "it's only good for one sip", or, "8 year old me would have loved this drink, but now that I have developed taste buds, it's disgusting".

All the comments seem to have that same sentiment. I read a story yesterday that said the employees that are making the drink have grown very disenfranchised with it as well. Apparently the powder stains their hands and people complain if it doesn't look like the pictures. Nothing ever looks like the picture. You ever seen a picture of a Big Mac or a Whopper, ordered it, and it looked like that same picture? No way. The picture is supposed to draw you in, and that is it. Food will never look like the picture. That would take far too much time.

To make matters even worse, my wife wants one of these drinks, but she is too embarrassed to order it. Do you know what that means? I have to get one for her because I could care less what the barista's at Starbucks think about me. My wife doesn't want them to think that she is the one drinking this thing. She'd rather they thought it was me, and I'm fine with that. I will not take one sip of this drink though. It sounds way too gross.

Another big issue I have with the Unicorn Frappucino is all the god damn pictures I have to see of it on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. That is probably my least favorite thing about social media and food. Everyone has to take pictures of their fancy or different food and share it with their followers. I do not give a shit about what other people are eating or drinking. I only care about what myself, my wife, and most importantly, my kids are eating. I never, ever take pictures of my food and post it to any social media site. That is so stupid and vain. I barely put pictures of myself on there, so why would I put pictures of food or drink. It is a waste of time and storage on your phone or camera. People seem to be more obsessed with ordering the Unicorn Frappucino to take pictures of it rather than drinking it. Great, you just wasted 5 dollars of your money for a picture. It is so stupid.

I guess that is the main issue. We are all too consumed with image as a society now. It shocks me that people will buy one of these drinks, snap a photo of themselves with the drink, take a sip, realize it is gross, and throw it away. They just want people to know that they are one of the many thousands of people that bought the Unicorn Frappucino.

It is not just this particular drink that drives me nuts. I loathe when McDonald's busts out the McRib. I'm not a fan of chicken fries from Burger King. I think Taco Bell having breakfast is vile and disgusting. Everything Arby's does is gross. It's becoming an epidemic in the fast food industry, making newer and newer concoctions for people to talk about. It works, obviously. I'm talking about it today, and I'm probably one of the last people to bring it up. But, fast food places that have established themselves do not need to keep coming up with new, and disgusting, ideas. Stick with the basics. That is why you became successful.

One more thing, if anyone out there has had one of these Unicorn Frappucino's, please tell me about your experience because I have not heard one good thing about it, and I'm dying to know who actually bought one, and enjoyed it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is willing to buy your Unicorn Frappucino, but only if you post a photo of Ty on your social media.

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The Martyrdom of Bill O'Reilly

When will Bill join the ranks of the other saints?

Around my fourteenth birthday I purchased a book, I think it was called "Everything Women Know". The book cost $4.95 plus tax and it was filled with empty pages. My fourteen year old self, and my group of friends that was a typical boys only crew, had quite the laugh. My mother was not quite as amused as I was with the great joke book. She was first disappointed that I spent money on an idiotic thing with no lasting value, and she also did not want her fourteen year old to think sexism and misogyny were a good thing. I told her it was only a joke, there was no harm intended. She still took the book away, and to this day I have no idea when or where she disposed of my prized joke book.

Bill O'Reilly's career was a lot like the empty "Everything Women Know". He built a career on appealing to the lowest impulses in the white male mind. His ideas were empty, his contribution to America was non-existent, and his career will be remembered as a waste of time and money. He was  popular, to an extant, because of the backwards thinking he popularized. The only thing that motivated O'Reilly was money and a false sense of popularity. His absence from the airwaves will not cause any major changes. Years from now we will not even remember when or how Bill O'Reilly left the public conscious. His lack of substance makes his disposal not worth noting.

The end of Bill O"Reilly's career will be part of the ash heap of history, but his actual career paved the way for white christian male victimhood. People like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, the resurgent Tucker Carlson, whoever the half wits on Fox Friends are, and the current occupant of the White House owe Bill O'Reilly a debt for the fact that he made white christian male victimhood acceptable in our culture. The fact that in 2017 we still have a discussion on racism towards whites only exists because of Bill O'Reilly. Rush Limbaugh became a force because he turned politics into an us versus them struggle. Bill O'Reilly made the us white christian men, and the them were everyone else. The them wanted to make scary changes that would cause white men to lose power, O'Reilly was the self annointed "culture warrior" who would stand against those scary changes. The modern day men's rights movement, the social ideas of the GOP, and the acceptance of bullying minorities found it's genesis with Bill O'Reilly and his Fox News show. 

Bill O'Reilly spent over two decades at Fox News. His time at Rupert Murdoch's Republican State media channel mirrors the rise of the 21st Century GOP. Everything bad against the Republicans was made into a struggle that Bill O'Reilly would bravely fight. The idea of not allowing your opponent a voice was perfected by O'Reilly. When Al Franken correctly called out Bill O'Reilly on lying about a journalistic award, O'Reilly's response was to yell "shut up". By the way, Al Franken is an influential United States Senator and Bill O'Reilly is now unemployed. There was the time O'Reilly told the son of a 9-11 victim to "shut up", then cut his mic. There were the many times that O'Reilly cowardly sent out his producer to stalk and harass journalist that O'Reilly did not agree with. O'Reilly never apologized for falsely accusing the Americans for slaughtering surrendering German troops during World War II (it was the other way around, but O'Reilly was trying to justify the US for slaughtering innocents in Iraq). There are many other instances, but my favorite is the time he tried to prove the existence of God by claiming the ocean tides were some magical unexplained phenomena. His defense against the "pinheads" that corrected him is the best example of white christian victimhood ever. 

The last clip is everything that Bill O'Reilly represents distilled down to one and a half minutes. O'Reilly is never wrong, and when he is wrong it is some grand conspiracy against him and all white male christians. Bill O'Reilly does not just claim to be the victim, he urges all like minded people to ignore facts, and fight against the progress of society. His antics on Fox News led to the demise of intelligent debate in our government and society at large. 

The saddest part of all of this is that Bill O'Reilly got rich off of this garbage. Fox News saw the dollar signs that a useful idiot like O'Reilly could bring in, and they ignored everything bad about their main talent. No matter what O'Reilly did, be it sexual harassment or any other despicable act, Fox News did not care and neither did Bill O'Reilly. The only thing that mattered was money. Fox News and Bill O'Reilly sold out American credibility for a few extra dollars. America be damned.

The ironic part of this whole saga is that money was the thing that finally got Bill O'Reilly fired. The loss of valuable advertiser revenue made the lords of Fox News come to the easy decision to let their main guy go. Note to people like Glenn Beck, that is what we call the free market at work. The hate, the bad old school ideals, the lack of journalistic integrity, the lying, the bullying, none of that ended Bill O'Reilly's career. Good old capitalism succeeded where common human decency failed.

The end of Bill O'Reilly does not end the disgusting views he popularized. Tucker Carlson is the current placeholder for O'Reilly on Fox News, and Carlson has had a career resurgence by embracing the white christian male victimhood line popularized by his predecessor. Sean Hannity has skyrocketed to the top of the cable news ratings by blindly toeing the line of white men good, everyone else is bad. Glenn Beck has spent the last few days diminishing the sexual harassment claims that brought Bill O'Reilly down, and whining about the loss of an old school voice. Bill O'Reilly will not be on the airwaves for the foreseeable future, but his poisoned doctrine will live on in the GOP thought leaders who still infect our television and radio programs. Bill O'Reilly's sins will live on with the help of the zealots he created. 

No matter how happy liberals may be today, the firing of Bill O'Reilly will change nothing. The people who continue in his misguided path will be more emboldened by O'Reilly's dismissal. They will see this as another unfair ill brought down on the white christian male. His accusers will be labeled as the real monsters. O'Reilly will live on as a martyr of the white male power movement. He will continue his lies, his bullying, and his destruction of valuable discourse. He will fail again, and he will claim victimhood again. Then one day Bill O'Reilly will disappear, and we will all wonder why they hell we wasted our time and energy on such an empty mind. Like how we question our youthful purchase of a dumb book.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. His favorite jam comes from an epic O'Reilly meltdown (NSFW). Can you do it live?  Come tell us. 

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

The First Round of the NBA Playoffs Have Gone as Expected, Except for One Series

Every NBA playoff series has played 2 games so far. I have some quick takes on all of them, then a very hot take on what is going on between the Bulls and Celtics. Lets look at the West first.

Golden State is doing exactly what everyone thought they would do. In the first game, both CJ McCollum and Damien Lillard went off, McCollum had 41 and Lillard had 34. The rest of the team scored 34 points. The game was close, then the Warriors pulled away late in the fourth. Last night, with Durant out with a calf strain, the Warriors throttled the Blazers. The Blazers gave the Warriors their best in game 1, and they lost by double digits. This is a sweep.

San Antonio may be getting a lot of calls, go watch David Fizdale's rant, it is tremendous, but the Spurs are clearly the better team. Memphis is old, and Mike Conley is really the only guy that has showed up. Marc Gasol has been rendered moot, Tony Allen is injured, Vince Carter is old and no one else is doing anything. The Grizzlies had a decent run, but with this as their nucleus, they will not win a title, and they won't get out of the first round this year. Kawhi is a beast and he is dominating this series, as expected.

Houston and OKC has not had the excitement that I expected. The Rockets smoked OKC in the first game. Last night was better, but even with Russ having a 51 point, 10 rebound and 13 assist game, it didn't matter because no one else is showing up for the Thunder. James Harden has been great, and this series has even furthered my belief that Westbrook is the MVP. Harden has a much better supporting cast, and it is showing. I still think OKC will win 2 games, but I do not think it will go 7. Guys like Enes Kanter, Steven Adams and Victor Oladipo need to start playing much better if they have any shot at pulling an upset.

The Clippers-Jazz series is very hard for me to get a grasp on. When Rudy Gobert went out in game one I figured the Jazz were done. Then, they won. The other night, the Clippers came out blazing, but the Jazz made it close, then Chris Paul made some big shots to pull out the win for the Clippers. I don't know if Gobert is coming back, but I don't think it matters. Blake Griffin looks awkward, DeAndre Jordan isn't doing much, but Chris Paul is the best player in the series. Gordon Hayward has been ice cold, George Hill cannot guard Chris Paul, and without Gobert, the low post is wide open for the Clippers.. I still have the Clippers in 7.

Now, the East. I'll save the Celtics-Bulls for last. So, lets look at Cleveland-Indiana. Cleveland is up 2-0, and it looks like they will sweep. I know the Pacers had a shot to win game one, and the final score of game 2 looked close, but I do not feel like the Pacers are any threat. And what's with Paul George calling out his teammates all of the sudden? Sure, he should usually get the last shot, he is their best player, but CJ Miles, who was wide open and is a good shooter, took the right shot in game 1. George should have never publicly called him out. Then, to throw the whole team under the bus after game 2, that was wild. He clearly wants out of Indiana. The Cavs are still horrible at defense, but I still see them winning in 4 or 5.

So far the best series of the first round, in either conference, has been the Milwaukee-Toronto series. It's tied at 1-1, and both game shave been good. Game 1, Milwaukee used a great, great game from Giannis Antetokoumpo and pulled away late to win by double digits. Game 2 came down to the very end, but Kyle Lowry hit a big shot to help the Raptors pull away late in game 2. There are good players all over the floor. Thon Maker has been playing great for Milwaukee. Giannis is cementing himself as a bona fide star and the rest of the team is doing their jobs. Kyle Lowry was horrible in game one, but bounced back in game 2. DeMar DeRozan has been steady. Serge Ibaka has been good and PJ Tucker is doing what they brought him in to do. This series is going 7, and I wouldn't be surprised if the Bucks or Raptors won. But, the Bucks look like they will be a very, very good team in a season or two, especially if this core stays together. This series is their coming out party. They are a ton of fun to watch.

The Wizards have looked better than the Hawks so far. Well, I should say that John Wall has looked better than anyone in the series so far. He is a man on a mission and he is showing out. I picked the Wizards to sweep, and I still feel like it could happen. John Wall is on fire right now and he just looks unstoppable.

Now, for the most surprising first round series. The Bulls and Celtics has not gone accordingly. I assumed that the Celtics were going to cruise. They had a better team, a better coach and are the one seed. The Bulls came in with a plethora of problems. They were a mess to be honest. Fred Hoiberg looked like a coach begging to be fired. Rajon Rondo was barely playing and looked disengaged. Dwayne Wade was coming off an injury. Jimmy Butler was disgruntled. This looked like an easy 5 game win for the Celtics. Then, tragedy struck. Isaish Thomas' sister died in a one car accident one day before game one. I cannot imagine the pain and sense of loss that he is feeling right now. This is a horrific, terrible tragedy. I am shocked that he is out there playing. And what Charles Barkley said, and I love Barkley, was wrong and insensitive and mean and uncalled for about Thomas crying on the floor during shoot around. Thomas can cry and grieve however he wants anywhere he wants. He lost a sibling. That being said, he is the only Celtic that has shown up. He is doing exactly what he has done all year. He may have had a subpar game 2, but he is facing double and triple teams, and no one is making open shots when he passes the ball. Marcus Smart, Jae Crowder and Avery Bradley are ice cold from three. In fact, they can't seem to hit a shot from anywhere. Then, the Celtics frontcourt has been an abomination. This was the thing that all Celtics fans worried about the most, their rebounding, but the Bulls are crushing them on the glass. I was listening to "The Lowe Post" podcast this morning, and Tom Haberstoh said that Rajon Rondo has grabbed more offensive rebounds than Tyler Zeller, Kelly Olnyk and Amir Johnson combined. That is appalling. The Celtics are being exposed. They are a poor defensive team, they can't rebound, Isaish Thomas is scoring, but can't defend anyone and they look like they have already been beaten. Jimmy Butler is clearly the best player on the floor. Playoff Dwayne Wade has shown up, and that is the best Wade. Rondo has all of the sudden remembered that he is a good point guard. And the Bulls front court, mainly Robin Lopez, are dominating the Celtics frontcourt. I am shocked most by this series of all the first round series.

With all this being said, all of these are best of 7, and a lot can change over the course of 5 more games. These are just my takes from the first 2 weeks of the never ending first round of the NBA playoffs. Most of my predictions are still in tact, minus the Celtics-Bulls, and I cannot wait to see where we go from here. I love the NBA playoffs.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest NBA writer on this planet we call Earth.

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Ty Watches the Best Television (So Far) of 2017

With season three of "Fargo" premiering tonight, I want to talk about how incredibly good television has been in the first few months of the year.

2017 has been pretty dreadful so far, except in pop culture. Pop culture such as music, sports and television has been very, very good, with television standing out most. I watch a lot of TV obviously. I seem to write about 4-6 new or old shows a month. 2016 was great too. I mean, we got "Atlanta", and that is the best show I have seen in quite some time. But, for the most part, every show I've sat down and watched in 2017 has been very good, both new and old. I am very stoked for "Fargo" tonight. The first 2 seasons were incredible, and every trailer I have seen for season 3 has looked great.

The greatest television right now is on FX and FXX. FX has the best original programming on all of television. "Taboo" was incredibly weird, historic and very violent. And I loved every single minute of it. Tom Hardy was great. Go back and read my review of the show. It was awesome. Season 12 of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" was great as well. The show is as funny as ever, and, spoiler alert, I do not think Dennis is leaving the show. The second season of "Baskets" just added on to the greatness of the first season. That show is sad and dark but it has its funny moments too. Louie Anderson is phenomenal on the show as well. He is well deserving of all the accolades. Shows I do not even watch like "Archer" and "Feud" seem to get glowing reviews across the board. Also, FXX gives us every "Simpsons" ever, and I will be forever grateful for that.

But, the crème de la crème of all the FX shows is "Legion". "Legion" is one of the most original, yes I know it uses X-Men stories, but very loosely, and innovative shows I have seen. It ranks right up there with "Atlanta" for me. They are different shows, but they are equally great. "Legion" has the pedigree to be a classic. The show is shot beautifully, acted tremendously, directed phenomenally and written perfectly. The cast is absolutely incredible. If you are not watching "Legion", start watching it immediately. It is the best show of 2017 so far, and to be honest, since "Atlanta" and "Louie" aren't coming back for awhile, or ever, "Legion" will most likely be my show of this whole year.

Moving away from FX and FXX, HBO has had some very good TV so far, and some of their classics are back. RD has been the biggest advocate of "The Young Pope". He has said nothing but glowing words about it. I've heard other people say how great it is too. I haven't watched it yet, but I will. My wife watched "Little Big Lies", and she loved it, as did most critics. "The Leftovers" just started its last season, and the reviews have been excellent. My mom and dad both love that show.

For the shows I actually watch on HBO. Pete Holmes' new show "Crashing" was funny and heartbreaking. This was the perfect vehicle for his comedy. The show is a comedy, but there is a lot of drama as well. It toes that line very well. "Veep" is back and it is nasty and funny and sharp as ever. "Veep" is the perfect type of show for the madness that is our current abomination of a "government". I'm very excited to see the rest of where this season takes us. "Silicon Valley" starts this Sunday and I know that it will be great because it has been great since its been on TV. I'm very pumped for that show to come back. HBO definitely has had some great TV in 2017.

I do not watch many other shows on premium cable. I did watch, and loved, "The Knick", but not much else. That is going to change in May when "Twin Peaks" comes back to TV, on Showtime. I have been catching up on the first couple of seasons to get ready for when it comes back on.

Going away from cable and getting to national TV, there are some real gems out there right now. I'm a big fan of "Trial and Error" on NBC. That show had its season finale last night. I hope it is not its series finale because that show is very funny and a perfect "Parks and Rec" or "The Office" replacement. I wrote about the show when it premiered, and I hope the brass at NBC give it a second chance. Remember, both "The Office" and "Parks and Rec" looked dead after their first season. Now, they are looked at as classics. "Brooklyn 99" is back and just as funny as it has always been. "Making History" is another new Fox show that I'm a fan of. It's about a guy with a time machine and he uses it to his advantage. Adam Pally is very funny and the supporting cast is good. I do not think it will get a second season, but if this is its only season, it will be remembered. "Last Man on Earth" is still wonderfully bizarre. "Bob's Burgers" is still doing its thing. And "The Simpsons" just continues to stay steady and be great. I do not watch CBS, but I'm sure they have some good new shows. In fact, I have heard some great things about a show called "Superior Donuts". To be honest, CBS seems like an "old person" channel. Too many procedurals and laugh track infused comedies. ABC doesn't really have any highlights either. "Modern Family" is still on, but that show has become very blah for me.

Finally, we have Netflix, and other streaming devices. This is the place to be for new TV shows. Shows on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, whatever, can do whatever they want. I personally do not have Hulu or Amazon, we only have Netflix, but I have heard some great things about the other streaming networks. "The Mindy Project" seems to have found a second life on Hulu. "Difficult People" gets phenomenal reviews from everyone. But, I do watch many Netflix shows. My favorite Netflix show is "Love", and season 2 was just on. I watched it all, and reviewed it, so you can go see my thoughts there. "Master of None" season 2 is coming in less than a month. The rebooted "Mystery Science Theater 3000" just released all their episodes last Friday. Marvel and DC has plenty of hit shows on Netflix, a lot of which will have their next season's premiere before 2017 is done. Streaming is the wave of the future, and right now the future looks bright.

Outside of the shows and Networks I have already mentioned, Comedy Central has a great new show, "Gorburger" on. "Detroiters" just wrapped up its first season, and that show is hilarious. "Jeff and Some Aliens" is bizarre, but very funny. Comedy Central has some good stuff that came out this year. I know the show is corny, but my wife loves "Pretty Little Liars", and their final season premiered on FreeForm last night. MTV is still plugging along with their endless run of "Teen Mom" or "16 and Pregnant".

I'm sure that I have forgot some other stuff, but the majority of what I just mentioned has been an absolute homerun and proves that 2017 may be the year for TV. If you take away anything from my piece today, please let it be that you start watching "Legion". It is a dynamite show. Keep it coming TV in 2017, you have been great to us so far.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He also forgot to include the greatest reality show of all time on his list, the incomparable "Bar Rescue".

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Let Me Respectfully Explain Why Musical Festivals are the Worst

Behold the natural beauty of the modern music festival

Today I'm going to put on my old man hat, pants, short shorts, whatever you want to call it, and complain about music festivals, mainly, Coachella. First off, I love, love, love music. I have made that abundantly clear on the site. Next to my family and sports, music is the biggest thing in my life. It has shaped my style, my thoughts and how I perceive the world today. The music is not the problem with Coachella and all other music festivals in general. The music is most definitely great at most of these festivals. The fact that people and bands I love like Kendrick Lamar, Radiohead and Run the Jewels headline these fests are great. The problems I have are the people, the attire and how commercial all of this stuff has gotten.

The bad stuff started a long time ago when some morons decided we needed a Woodstock 2. First off, the original Woodstock was a free event held at some family's farm. Woodstock was meant to bring people together, in a trying time, through music. Sure, there were some wildly dressed people and many of the memories and pictures we all know and see now have to do with the mudslide. But, for the most part, the original Woodstock is remembered for Jimi Hendrix and the like that played some of the best music of their careers. Then, Woodstock 2 came along. You know what most people remember about this crummy festival? Well, I remember the horrific lineup, the fights and the fires that were started, and people complaining how expensive everything was, including bottled water. That is where the biggest problem with festivals nowadays lies. The prices for merchandise, food and drink is utterly ridiculous, and it all started with Woodstock 2.

Of course that was a tremendous failure, and festivals were very sparse afterward. People just didn't want to deal with the headache anymore. Sure, there were still one or 2 day things. We had situations where there were 3 stages and the whole thing would start at noon and end after midnight, but nothing too big.

Then, in the early 2000's, Bonnaroo came along. I remember first hearing about this fest. This was during my jam band phase, and Bonnaroo had them all. I remember wanting to go to it so, so bad. But, I couldn't afford the tickets, and I do not like camping, so it was out of the question. I bought the compilation CD that came out, and listened to it a bunch. I figured I'd go in the future, but not at the current time.

As the years passed, I got less and less interested because it started to become this over crowded, pop obsessed, image driven festival. What started as a much better predecessor to Woodstock than Woodstock 2, was becoming just as commercialized and stupid, for lack of a better word, in my opinion. When bands like U2, who were great in the 80's, but not in the 21st century, are your main headliners, no thank you. They have tried to do other things, like add a comedy event, but I still have no interest. First off, it is in the dead of summer, and I have no interest in hanging out with a bunch of smelly, sleep deprived and drug infused music fans. I'm a nightmare when I'm sleep deprived. Put me with a million other sleep deprived people and I would go nuts. It doesn't help my case that I'm not a "partier". I have no problem with people doing drugs and drinking, as long as they aren't hurting anyone. But, I do not want to hang with people for 3 or 4 days that are just straight up binging. That is the worst. Bonnaroo is so off my radar now, when someone says that they are going, I always think to myself, I can't believe that it is still a thing.

I did try the whole festival thing about 12 years ago though. I found a festival called Wakarusa being held in Lawrence, Kansas. It had a good lineup, and I thought that I could handle the camping. I even went with my oldest brother, his wife, some of their friends and my niece, when she was a tiny baby. I thought this was the ideal situation. I was wrong. I was miserable. I was constantly harassed by hippies and stoners all weekend long. I was made fun of because I was not drinking and or doing drugs. I thought it was going to be like going to a Widespread show, where everyone is welcome, but I was wrong. I felt secluded. I could not believe how mean these supposed all loving people could be. To make matters worse, there was no time to see the bands I wanted to see because schedules always conflicted. I would catch 15 minutes of Robert Randolph, sprint over to the second stage to catch 15 minutes of Keller Williams, then run again to see North Mississippi All Stars encore. This was incredibly frustrating. Add the fact that I was getting little to no sleep, I was ready to go home by the second morning. Luckily for me, so were my brother and his wife. We left early. All the excitement I felt a month before Wakarusa was demolished within an hour of being there. I have never even thought about Wakarusa again, until I decided to write this piece today.

Here in Saint Louis we now have LouFest, and I have absolutely no desire to go to this. The prices are outrageous, there is usually only one, maybe 2 bands worth seeing, and it is so commercialized that it is disgusting. LouFest is utterly ridiculous.

They also have the Roots N Blues BBQ/Music Fest in Columbia. I have been to this twice, and both times, I was ready to leave the moment I entered the park. I immediately regretted my decision to go. This has gotten way out of hand too. They sell way too many tickets, and for a smaller college town like Columbia, they cannot handle the amount of people. I vividly remember going to see Buddy Guy, and leaving after his first song because there were too many people, I felt like I was in a sardine can, and I couldn't even see or hear Buddy Guy. Never again for Roots N Blues. There is other stuff like Lollapalooza, the Gathering, and I'm sure other things I can't think of now that I will never go to because festivals are the worst. 

Finally, what sparked this whole idea today, we just had Coachella this past weekend. I will never, ever ever ever go to Coachella. I stated at the top that the lineup is second to none. But, no matter who plays, even if Bob Marley and Robert Johnson were to rise up from their grave, I will not attend. First off, it is in the desert at, or near the beginning of summer. No thank you. Second, this festival over sells every year. There are so many people there. Third, it is straight debauchery. My brother has been to Coachella once, and from what he told me, it was absolutely intense and insane. Not for me.

But, what I find most appalling about Coachella though is the fact that it has become some kind of crappy second hand fashion show. All the pictures you see are of celebrities, or faux celebrities, and what they are wearing. I could care less what Vanessa Hudgens, Cam Newton or any of the god damn Jonas Brothers are wearing at Coachella. I had to scroll through 4 or 5 different stories that talked about the "fashion" or the "famous faces in the crowd" before I got a small review of Radiohead's problems with sound, or how great of a set Kendrick Lamar did. That is a big, big problem. Coachella is the definition of image. People care more about what the bands, performers, or even worse, the crowd is wearing, or what they look like. Coachella should be about the music first, the art second, then everything else last. I do not care about anything from Coachella, except the music. How long until Coachella is just as much a laughingstock for outsiders, such as myself, as Burning Man is? Not too far away I'd guess.

Festivals have gotten a well deserved bad rap. They are wastes of time, in my opinion, and they are just a big cluster. I'd much rather just see the bands or performers when they come to, or near, my hometown. The fact that I got to see Run the Jewels in Kansas City, or that I'm seeing the Chance the Rapper here in Saint Louis, at their own headlining shows, sounds so much more appealing than fighting with thousands upon thousands of sleep deprived, smelly music fans. I LOVE live music. I LOATHE festivals. Simple as that.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He used to be with it, then it changed, now what is it is confusing and strange. It did not take Ty long to morph into Grandpa Simpson.

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The Knicks are an Embarrassment

This flaming wreckage is going to be our Knicks photo until Jackson is out.

The saga of the New York Knicks just continues to get weirder by the day. I saw a few weeks back that Derrick Rose, who called this specific Knicks team a "super team", disappeared from the team for a few days in the middle of the year and claimed he wanted a max contract, now is injured once again and is now saying that he wants to go to a team in title contention. Money suddenly doesn't matter to him. Then, Joakim Noah got suspended for drugs, and to add to his shame of a contract and downward spiral of his current career, has rotator cuff problems and needs surgery. He will be out 4-6 months. The Knicks are nearly at rock bottom.

When I did not think things could get any worse, or more weird, the Knicks decided to pick up the last 2 years of Phil Jackson's contract. That is such a horrible, terrible idea. What has done besides say nothing and do nothing but bad things for the team he once played for? He has been an absolute train wreck as the player personnel guy, and the Knicks have only gotten worse and worse with him at the helm. The only good thing he has done, which was draft Kristaps Porzingis, he belittled the kid and said he wouldn't be able to make it in the league. He also was the guy that brought in Rose and Noah, and gave Carmelo a max contract, instead of trading him.

Then, it just keeps getting worse from here everyone, sorry Knicks fans, during Jackson's end of season exit interview with Carmelo Anthony, he said that he does not see a future where this team can win with him being the focal point. That is fine, and I even agree with it. But he made this public knowledge. He said it at a press conference for all reporters and fans to see. He made it known to the world that he wants to get rid of Carmelo Anthony. This was the problem. The sentiment is correct, but the delivery, a total disaster. This is going to drive the price way, way down on Carmelo. His price wasn't that high to begin with, I wouldn't trade anything except a second round pick for him, but now it is even lower. All 29 other teams know that the Knicks want to offload him, so they can low ball the hell out of them. I remember that the Clippers seemed to be the surest team at the last trade deadline to get him, and they offered nothing of true value. I think they were willing to part with JJ Redick, Austin Rivers and some second round picks. That is not a king's ransom by any means. I remember hearing that the Cavs would be willing to trade for Carmelo Anthony straight up for Kevin Love. Now, I feel like they wouldn't trade Iman Shumpert for Carmelo. The Bulls were in the mix for him, but now they would not have to offer anyone, Rajon Rondo included, worth any value to get him.

This is all on Phil Jackson. He made a very stupid decision in making this well known that Anthony was available. This was the latest in a long line of idiotic decisions from the once great coach.

To make things even more stupid, after the exit interview Carmelo goes on Instagram, because why would anyone anymore talk face to face about their problems anymore, to complain about Phil Jackson and the Knicks front office. I get it. The front office is a nightmare, but talk to them in person. Everyone who follows you on Instagram, for the most part, is a fan of yours, so of course they are going to agree with you. I agree that you need to get out of that situation, but you put yourself in your current situation. You demanded the trade while on the Nuggets, causing the Knicks to give up any kind of chance in the near future, and then you signed the max deal, with a no trade clause, when you had the chance to sign with a contender a few years back. Air your anger out, but don't do it on social media. That makes you look like a spoiled child. I hate that social media is where current athletes go to gripe about their situations. It is embarrassing. But, we are talking about the Knicks.

Finally, it was reported that Kristaps Porzingis skipped his exit interview because he is "frustrated with the direction of the team". Again, I agree with him, but this is a childish way to go about handling your business. Do the exit interview. It is part of your job. You are a professional, and anyone in a profession needs to do an exit interview. Just skipping it is like when a kid says they will do one thing, but just decide they don't want to anymore, but they don't tell anyone. Porzingis could have easily talked about his frustration in the exit interview, but he chose not to go. He chose to continue to let the Knicks run this franchise as dysfunctional as they have been for over a decade now. He is the guy they should be building around, and with this action, I'm sure young guys coming in the league to play for the Knicks will think it is okay for them to skip exit interviews if they are frustrated too.

Look, the Knicks are a mess. I waited until today because I thought some more stuff may happen. Nothing else has happened yet, but give it time. This team is a disaster, and until they rid themselves of Rose, Noah, Anthony, Phil Jackson and James Dolan, they will continue to stink on and off the court. Also, Porzingis needs to grow the hell up and act like a professional, especially if he is the future and the guy they will build around. The Knicks are a joke, and that makes the NBA not as fun as it could be. The Lakers may be bad, but I kind of feel like the Knicks are in a worse spot, as we speak. It will not get better until Jackson is gone.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He thinks the only thing that can help the Knicks now is Whoopi Goldberg as coach and / or Lil Bow Wow hitting the floor. 

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Ty Listens to Kendrick Lamar's "Damn"

What should be to no one's surprise, Kendrick Lamar has done it yet again.

I heard rumblings about a week or so ago that he was putting out another new record so shortly after "To Pimp A Butterfly" and "Untitled, Unmastered". It was proven to be true when his new record, "Damn" was officially released today. I bought it as soon as I woke up, as I have done with all of his records, and I have already listened to it all the way through twice.

I have to say, I really enjoy this album. This is the first album that feels like you can just sit and vibe out to. All his other records are tremendous and wonderful and very, very insightful. Lamar has proven himself the best writer in hip hop since Jay Z, and now, I think he has surpassed him.

After I bought "Damn" this morning, I found an hour to myself, my wife is off work for the day, to listen to it from start to finish while doing some chores here and there, so the kids didn't have to hear it. They cannot listen to this record, just like every other Kendrick Lamar album. Then, when my kids retired to their room for naps, I went to work out, and that was when I really dug into the record. It was just me, my headphones, the pavement and Kendrick Lamar. I got to really focus.

What I really enjoy about "Damn" though, while it is still incredibly introspective, it is easily his most "fun" record. Now, it is not fun in the way that Puff Daddy or any other "party" rappers from the early to mid nineties. It is fun more so in the way that Jay Z was having fun on "The Black Album", or how Run the Jewels have fun on all three of their records.

This record has it all. Like I said, it is deep. The intro is sad and terrifying. Then, the album slips into an almost R&B/funk type record with Kendrick rapping over the beats. It was so different from what I have come to expect from him, but I found myself really enjoying it. I like when artists take a shot at something different, and when they hit, it is even better. Then, the record reverts into a straight up rap record with some big time bass thumping beats. These songs were perfect running songs. Being able to pound the pavement to every bass beat is exactly what I look for when listening to an album that I use for working out. The song "Loyalty" is so prefect for that. "Humble" is another track that made me feel like I could an extra mile or two. "XXX" is kind of a blend of bass and R&B, and it is tremendous.

Look, what it comes down to for me, I am a fan of Kendrick Lamar's just like I'm a fan of Run the Jewels. He would have to do something truly awful, Macklemore awful, for me to not like whatever it was/is. "Damn" just proves tenfold that Lamar is so gifted as a rapper and a writer. The fact that he can put out 3 records in less than 2 years is incredibly impressive. The fact that all 3 records are totally different from each other and successful proves that he may be the best solo rapper in the game right now. Scratch that, he is the best solo rapper right now. He has taken over that throne from Jay Z.

Looking at just the current hip[ hop scene, Kendrick Lamar is so much better than anyone right now, especially Drake. The fact that each of them have a newer record out now, and that Lamar's is so much better is proof enough. Add on "To Pimp A Butterfly" and "Untitled, Unmastered", and he is so much further ahead and so much more prolific than Drake could ever imagine being. While Drake is out there being a front runner for whoever is the best team in college football, basketball and the NBA at the current moment, Kendrick Lamar just keeps getting better and better at rapping and writing. Kendrick Lamar cares more about his craft than most musicians in any genre of music, and "Damn" further hammers home this point. If you ask me, there is no debate about who is a better emcee. It is Kendrick Lamar by a million miles. Lamar is so god damn good and can do any style of rap better than anyone.

I will be listening to "Damn" for a long time now. It will be spliced between listens of "RTJ 3" and "Awaken! My Love" for the next couple of months. There is another rumor floating now that he may release even more music on Sunday, I cannot think of a better way to celebrate Easter, which is a hilarious farcical holiday anyway, than more Kendrick Lamar. Until then, I will be listening to "Damn" over and over again, and you should too. This record is phenomenal.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Ha has yet to pick up the new Drake record. Ty is just not in the mood to hear sub-par rymes where Drake bashes the mentally ill.

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The SeedSing 2017 NBA Playoffs Preview

As I promised earlier this week on the podcast, today, I have my NBA playoff preview. The reason it has taken me so long is because the playoffs weren't fully set until last night. Sorry Miami Heat, you guys really turned it around after starting 11-30, but that poor start killed you guys, and the terrible Chicago Bulls took your spot. So, with this preview I will go round by round and matchup by matchup. I will give 3 or 4 sentences, unless I get really fired up for a series, and I will pick a winner all the way to the title. At the end of this piece I will pick a winner, and I will give you final winners for every big award. So, lets get to it.

I'm going to start with the Eastern Conference. Our 1-8 matchup is Boston-Chicago. I'd be a very teeny tiny bit nervous if I were a Celtic fan. There is something to Rajon Rondo wanting revenge, Dwayne Wade is always great in the playoffs and Jimmy Butler is the best player on either team that will take the floor. That being said, Boston has a much better coach and a much, much better team, by far. Brad Stevens will coach circles around Fred Hoiberg, Isaish Thomas will score at will, and I have the Celtics finally winning their first series under Stevens in 5 easy games.

The 2-7 matchup has the Cavs facing off against the Pacers. I was so incredibly high on the Pacers before the year but, they never found a rhythm and the team was never cohesive. Paul George has been playing great as of late, and Myles Turner has only gotten better and better, but the Pacers are not much of a threat, especially to the Cavs, even with their defensive deficiencies as of late. George will try to make things interesting, but LeBron James will shut him down, and unfortunately for the Pacers, they have no one else. I have the Cavs in 5.

The 3-6 matchup is going to be awesome. Toronto is at full strength and playing pretty well. Milwaukee is super young, but they are fun and they are long and they have Giannis. Milwaukee can make this a series. Like I said, they have length everywhere on the floor and will give DeRozan, Lowry and Ibaka headaches, but Toronto is a seasoned playoff team and I think Dwayne Casey is a very good coach. He will make the difference, and I have Toronto advancing in 6 games, but those 6 games will be a load of fun. Look out for Milwaukee next year though.

The 4-5 could be a good matchup according to some, but not me. I feel like Washington is going to obliterate Atlanta. Washington is better at every position, in my opinion, on the floor. Wall is much better than Schroder, Beal is better than any 2 guard the Hawks have, and the Wizards front court is better than the Hawks, including Paul Milsap. This is going to be the only first round sweep in the East. Washington should, and will, crush Atlanta.

On to the second round for the East.

The first matchup we have is Boston-Washington. I am/will be so pumped when this matchup comes to fruition. These teams genuinely hate each other, and we don't have many more rivalries like this in professional sports. I think this will be a hard fought, rough and tumble series. But, when I sit down and really think about it, I am going with the Wizards in 7. The Celtics have the better coach in Stevens, but the Wizards have better players and the Celtics won't be able to hide their flaws. Thomas cannot guard Otto Porter, John Wall or Bradley Beal and the Celtics frontline is no match for the Wizards.

The other matchup is a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Finals, with the Cavs facing the Raptors. I really, really have been trying to convince myself that the Raptors can beat the Cavs in a series. The Cavs stink on defense, and that greatly favors guys like DeRozan, Lowry and Ibaka. The Raptors also seem tougher than the Cavs. I'd much rather have guys like Ibaka, Jonas Valenciunas and PJ Tucker than Tristan Thompson, Kevin Love and whoever in the hell else the Cavs put out there. But, LeBron James is the best player in the world. He showed that he can single handily win series for this team. But, is he tired? Are Kyrie and Love tired? A lot of these guys haven't played this much basketball over three years in their whole lives. With all this being said, I'll go with Cleveland in 7. LeBron is just too damn good, and he will find a way to get his team back to the East Finals.

That gives us Cleveland-Washington in the Eastern Conference Finals. Here comes my hottest take of all time. I think the Wizards will win this series in 6 games. The Wizards are the Cavs biggest threat and nightmare in the East. I also don't think the Cavs can just turn on the switch. I think the guys not named LeBron James on the Cavs roster are tired and that will show in the East Finals. I also love the way Wall and Beal and Porter Jr have played all season long. So, I have the Wizards representing the East in the Finals. That is my big time hot take for the East. The Cavs will not make it to a third straight Finals.

Lets move to the West, the far superior conference, now. The 1-8 matchup is Golden State-Portland. I know Damian Lillard has been on record saying that the Blazers will win in 6 games. That is great that he has that much confidence in his team, but sorry to say Dame, the Blazers are getting swept. The Warriors have everyone back, and they won't even break a sweat in this first round series. Warriors in 4.

The 2-7 matchup has San Antonio-Memphis. I love Memphis with the grit and grind. I love guys like Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, Tony Allen and Vince Carter. Those guys aren't nearly enough to stop the Spurs. Kawhi is on a mission. Danny Green is a great defender and 3 point shooter. LaMarcus Aldridge is quietly very decent. Pau Gasol has been fine, when healthy. And, the Spurs are coached by the best coach in the NBA. Memphis will try all their tricks, but it won't matter, Spurs in 4.

The 3-6 is the best matchup in the entire first round. We get OKC-Houston. I CANNOT wait to watch Harden and Westbrook trade blows and try to one up each other. It will be fast and ferocious, up and down basketball. I wouldn't be shocked if each team is in the 100's for every game. I think this will be a very competitive series, and both main guys will want to prove why they should be the MVP. But, in the end, the Rockets roster is better and deeper, and I think they will win in 7. This series is going to be must watch basketball, and I'm so excited to see these 2 teams play.

For the 4-5 matchup. we get a sneaky good series between Utah and the Clippers. This is going to be a very underrated and dare I say, very competitive series. The Clippers have home court, and that will be a big, big deal for them. I love the head to head matchups in this series too. I think Rudy Gobert will cancel out DeAndre Jordan and Gordon Hayward will do the same with Blake Griffin, but no one on Utah is close to Chris Paul, and that will be the difference. I see this series going 7, if the Clippers can stay healthy. I think they will win because they have the best player in Chris Paul. The two teams styles couldn't be more different, but I think this will be a very good, hard fought 7 game series.

Lets move to the second round.

The first matchup is Golden State-Clippers. I think we all know how this will end. Not only do the Warriors own the Clippers on the floor, but they also own their minds. The Warriors not only crush them physically, they do the same to them mentally. The Clippers just cannot beat the Warriors. Again, the Warriors sweep their way to the West Finals. The other matchup features San Antonio and Houston. This is where Houston's run of scoring in the high 100's stop. The Spurs defense is too good and plays with too much pride to let the Rockets shoot open three after open three. The Rockets will still jack up 30 threes a game, but the Spurs will defend them. And, the Rockets have no one that can stop Kawhi. James Harden doesn't play defense, Patrick Beverly is too small and slow, Sam Dekker is too slow, Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson think defense is optional and Trevor Ariza is not the defender he once was. The Spurs front court is far superior as well. I think the Rockets will get a game, possibly 2, but the Spurs will advance to face the Warriors in the West Finals.

So, we have the 2 best teams in all of the NBA facing off in the West Finals. This will be the only time the Warriors break a sweat, but I see them winning in 5. The Spurs have too much pride to get swept, but they will only win one game. The Warriors will be like a machine by this point, and most importantly of all, they should be at full health. Kawhi can only guard one guy, and the Warriors will use whoever Kawhi isn't guarding. The Warriors will represent the West in the Finals.

Instead of the rubber match between Cleveland and Golden State, I have Golden State facing Washington. Golden State will crush the Wizards, if my prediction is correct. Golden State would crush anyone, but they will absolutely destroy the Wizards. John Wall will be great, but Steph will cancel him out, and Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and, Kevin Durant especially, will be out for blood. This will be an easy sweep for Golden State. Golden State will be your 2017 NBA champions, and they will do it by going 16-1. They are just too damn good.

As far as the awards go, first off, I hate that the NBA is waiting to give them out until a month after the season ends. That is so dumb. Anyway, I have Russell Westbrook as MVP. I think I have made that very, very clear. Defensive Player of the Year should always be Kawhi, but Draymond Green will win it this year. Coach of the Year, which should always be Poppovich, will go to Mike D'Antoni. Most Improved Player should be Giannis Antentekoumpo. He is an incredible talent and he will be a force for the rest of his career. As for Rookie of the Year, Embiid would have gotten it if he played 40 plus games, but he only played 31. So, I guess I'd give it to Embiid's teammate, Dario Saric. He stepped up when he needed to, and he and Embiid are the future for the 76ers.

There you have it, my 2017 NBA playoff preview and prediction and all my awards predictions. You read it correctly, a Washington vs. Golden State finals. I cannot wait for Saturday for these games to start. Lets get to it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. When Washington makes the finals, Ty is going to celebrate by doing the Dougie. Does that make Ty a non-profesional? 

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RIP Charlie Murphy

I finally got a chance to sit down and take a breath today in between feeding my kids and cleaning my house, and god damn if the news wasn't disheartening once again this year. No, I'm not talking about our abomination of a "government", and their many stupid actions, I'm talking about the loss of another actor/comedian/writer that has been a part of my life since I was 11 years old. Today we lost the great Charlie Murphy.

Charlie Murphy was a tremendous comedic actor, if he was in the correct role. Most of my generation knows of Charlie Murphy from his real Hollywood stories that he did on "Chapelle's Show". That will be his great legacy, and those stories are wonderfully absurd, hilarious, and most important of all, true. The stuff he says in those stories, and the things that happened are now part of our society's vernacular. I say, "cocaine is a hell of a drug", all the time. I don't do drugs of any kind, but that quote is so memorable, and came to us courtesy of Charlie Murphy's story about hanging out with Rick James. I used to try the, "what did the 5 fingers say to the face" joke all the time, but always chickened out when it came to its conclusion. His story about Prince being a great basketball player put me into the deepest wormhole I've ever gone on in the internet. And, when I finished my research, it was all true. Prince was an all state point guard in high school. But, I also walk around and say, "Game, Blouses" whenever I win anything. The player haters ball on "Chapelle's Show" was another big time hit for him. It was a perfect showcase for his brash sense of humor.

The stuff he did on "Chapelle's Show" will be his lasting legacy for sure, but he did so much more, at least in my life. As I said at the top, I remember the name Charlie Murphy being mentioned to me as an 11 year old. My father went on a trip for work, and when he returned home, he told me and all my brothers about this great movie he saw called "CB4". The movie starred Chris Rock as a wannabe gangster rapper who steals his identity from Charlie Murphy's Gusto. "CB4" is one of the greatest movies ever made, it is wonderful satire, and Charlie Murphy is one of the main reasons that movie is such a classic, at least in my home. He is so gritty, yet hilarious in that movie. He trades comedic scenes with Chris Rock, who is an all time great comedian/comic actor, with ease. The stuff with the car chase and in the club is classic satire comedy of real and wannabe gangsters. I was 11, and I thought it was funny even though I didn't get it. I watched "CB4" again around the holiday's, I got it as a gift, and now that I get the jokes, I loved the movie, and Charlie Murphy's performance, that much more.

After seeing "CB4", I, like most people, continued to follow Chris Rock, but Charlie Murphy was always on my radar. Yes, he is Eddie Murphy's brother, but he was so much more than just a famous person's sibling.

Following "CB4", I saw Charlie Murphy pop up in things like "The Players Club". That is by no means a great movie, but Murphy is very good in his minimal role. Then the "Chapelle Show" became the enormous hit that it was, and that opened up so many more chances at good roles for Murphy. He was great as a thief/criminal in the terrible movie "King's Ransom". But, his role was what got me through that movie, and it was simply because he was in that movie as to why I watched it. He was tremendous in the very underrated movie "Roll Bounce". That is a great movie about roller skating, but it is touching and funny, and Murphy is excellent as Victor, the garbage man. He then played a bunch of bit roles in low budget movies, but he was still steadily working, which is an accomplishment in and of itself. Most actors would do anything to be a working actor, and Murphy made it to that level.

Murphy then found a second life as a voice actor. He was the voice of Ed Wuncler III in one of my favorite cartoons, "The Boondocks". It was a great fit, and Murphy nailed that character that I had read in the comics and they now turned into a cartoon character. Whenever I go back and read old "Boondocks" comics, I always picture Murphy as the voice. He did some more voice acting, 2 episodes worth for Adult Swim's "Black Dynamite" cartoon series. Again, it was the perfect fit for him. He was in every single episode of another Adult Swim show, "Black Jesus", and he, and that whole series for that matter, were phenomenal. That was a very good show, and Murphy excelled.

So, yes, he got famous first for being Eddie Murphy's brother. Then, he went out on his own and was tremendous in "CB4". Then, he became himself with all the success and wonderful things he did on "Chapelle's Show", which led to him becoming a steady working actor. He had a great career.

What makes his untimely death so sad for me, I did not even know he was sick. I had no idea he had leukemia. This is a very sad day. Charlie Murphy meant a lot to me in what I looked for in a comedic actor. He kind of shaped my taste for what I look for when I watch comedies. He will forever be remembered, at least by me, as Gusto. And for that I am forever grateful to Charlie Murphy. This death, as a fan, really shook me up.

Rest In Peace Charlie Murphy. Now you can tell your hilarious and true stories wherever you are right now. You will be greatly missed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. 

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Everyone Needs to Accept the Fact that Russell Westbrook is the NBA MVP

Westbrook at least will get our MVP Award for his season

The other day James Harden was asked how he felt about all the talk of Russell Westbrook being the new front runner for the MVP. It seemed like a fine question. Westbrook was/has been on a tear lately, putting up monster numbers and single handily winning games for the Thunder. I said on Facebook, and to anyone that would listen, after he put up his third 50 point triple double of the year, breaking Oscar Robertson's record of triple doubles in a season and beating, and eliminating, Denver from the playoffs on a last second three the other night that he wrapped up the MVP, in my opinion. Harden's team won that night too, and he put up a triple double as well, I think his 12th of the season, I'm not sure, and when asked the question Harden said, "I thought the MVP was all about winning games".

That is a very fine, and maybe even true statement in past seasons. I don't think anyone would argue that Steph deserved his 2 straight MVP's the last 2 seasons after leading the best team in basketball, but this year is different. First off, Harden was kind of miffed at the question. It was a fine question, and reasonable, as I have already stated. It is not like the reporter said that Harden wasn't deserving, he just asked what he thought of Westbrook possibly taking the lead. Then, Harden's answer, while plausible, does not justify why he should win the MVP. I've gone on record twice on this site now that if I had a vote, it would easily go to Westbrook, with Harden being a distant second. The Thunder lost KD and they are still a playoff team. They will not get to 50 wins, but they have 46 right now, and I did not think that they'd win more than 42 or 43 games. They are the 6th seed in the West. Westbrook is the Thunder's only option as well.

I think it's hilarious that reporters like Bill Simmons, who has done nothing but trash the Thunder since they traded Harden, try to justify that the Thunder's roster is just as good, if not better than the Rockets. Well, it is not. Westbrook has guys like Doug McDermott, Victor Oladipo, Steven Adams, Andre Roberson and Taj Gibson as crucial guys. Harden has Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson, Lou Williams. Clint Capela, Sam Dekker and Nene on their roster, and they got rid of Dwight Howard. Harden has so many better shooters around him than Westbrook does. And while Gibson and Adams are tough, Capela is more athletic than Adams and Nene is tougher than Gibson. The Rockets roster is much, much better than the Thunder. So Bill Simmons, stop with the whole, the Thunder aren't as bad as some think. You thought they were going to stink, and Westbrook is proving you wrong. Stop bashing the Thunder.

Also, Simmons is the main guy that says this as well, that he thinks averaging a triple double is not that impressive. I could not believe him when he said this. If Westbrook were a Celtic doing this, he would only say glowing things about his play and demand that he was the MVP, even if the Celtics had the same record as the Thunder. Averaging a triple double is wildly impressive, especially in the modern NBA. Bill Simmons needs to get off ripping on the Thunder because it has become tired and hackey, just like his now cancelled TV show. 

Lets get back to Harden's comments from the other night. He said the MVP is all about wins. Okay, than by his logic, he should finish, at best, third in the overall MVP vote behind anyone of the 5 starters on the Warriors and Kawhi Leonard on the Spurs. Both those teams have more wins, 7 more for the Spurs and 12 more for the Warriors, than the Rockets do. So, if we go by that logic, the voting in Harden's theory would be something like Curry/Klay/Draymond/KD number one, Kawhi 2, then himself. So, even his own theory blew up in his face. Also, teams like the Celtics only have 2 less wins, the Cavs are sitting players left and right, and they only have 4 less wins, as do the Clippers and Jazz. All these teams are 50 plus win teams. So, if he wants to do the math, the best he can finish is third. I mean, I have him second behind Westbrook, but if he wants to talk about wins being all that matters, than my vote would be KD 1, and he has only played in 60 games, Kawhi 2, then Harden. Harden's "logic" makes no sense. Also, both KD and Kawhi are one million times the defender that Harden could ever dream of being. I mean if we are going off wins for the MVP, it should be my preseason pick, Kawhi, by a landslide. He is the best defender, hands down, in the league and he has upped his scoring a lot. He is the best Spur since Tim Duncan, and I think he has a real shot at being better overall.

Anyway, I just do not see a just world where Westbrook is not the MVP this year. What he has done is anything beyond what anyone imagined, Westbrook included, in their wildest dreams. The Thunder are not a bad team, but no one else on that team is any real threat, yet they have still managed to get in the playoffs and be a well above .500 team after losing the third best player in the NBA. When the Cavs lost LeBron the first time, the next season they won 19 games. Look at how bad the Lakers have been since Kobe got hurt, then retired. The Celtics were dreadful after they traded away Paul Pierce and KG and Ray Allen left. The Suns have been horrendous since Isiah Thomas and Goran Dragic got traded. It took the Jazz forever to rebound when they let Deron Williams leave in free agency. The Nuggets haven't been good since Carmelo was traded. So, the fact that the Thunder are this good the year that KD left them high and dry is more than enough for me to give Westbrook the vote. The triple doubles, playing in every game, winning in the high 40's and going out and giving his all every night is just icing on the cake.

I'm sorry James Harden, but just like 2 years ago, when Curry beat you out for the MVP, the same should happen again this season, and Westbrook should win the MVP over you. No matter how many more wins the Rockets may have than the Thunder. A side note, I cannot wait for the Rockets-Thunder first round matchup coming in the next week. It should be epic.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He once averaged a triple double for a rec league season. Double digit turnovers, shots that were blocked, and somehow ten or more fouls a game. 

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Better Late than Never on "Rogue One"

SPOILER ALERT - "Rogue One" has been out for a while, and people have talked about it for months. This article will also talk about major plot points in the movie. You have been warned. 

In what is becoming a never ending quest, I'm not saying that to complain by the way, my wife and I just recently watched "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story". I have been on this quest to see every "Star Wars" related movie since my daughter was born over a year and a half ago. "Rogue One" was currently the only one I hadn't seen. I wanted to go to the theaters, but it gets harder and harder the older my kids get. So, I bought it the day that it came out on DVD and Blu-Ray. My wife and I sat down last Thursday night, we were warned by several people to not let our 5 year old watch it, andfinally watched it.

The 2 of us could not have had completely different reactions to the movie. While I enjoyed the darkness and war story undertones set in a "Star Wars" universe, my wife said she was bored and would have just rather watched "The Force Awakens" or any of the other "Star Wars" movies, except for the prequels. When we finished, I told her I loved it, and that was when she dropped that hot take on me. I asked her why she did not like the movie and why would she rather watch the other stuff in the "Star Wars" cannon? She told me that she likes the other movies because they are more fun, have funnier scenes and she enjoys the fun and very fast paced atmosphere that George Lucas and JJ Abrams created with the original, and new, "Star Wars" movies. I get this argument.

There are definitely moments in "Rogue One" that could be deemed boring and or hyper violent, but my take on "Rogue One" was that is was a movie about war, it just happened to have "Star Wars" in the title. Had this just been a straight up movie about combat, and they used real weapons instead of blasters and everything we have become accustomed to in "Star Wars", I think it would have been considered an excellent movie about the brutality of war. Do not get it twisted, "Rogue One" is a very, very brutal movie. There is a happy ending, if you want that, but everyone, spoiler alert, dies. The only dude left standing in the end was Darth Vader. Sure, there was that very odd, yet cool scene with a CGI Carrie Fisher, RIP, but Vader is the only guy left standing to move on to the Death Star.

"Rogue One" erased all the bad stuff that the prequels did with Darth Vader, and restored him to the truly badass villain that he is meant to be. When he shows up in the middle of the movie and chokes out Ben Mendelsohn's character with the force, I got goosebumps watching that scene. Then, the last scene with him, again, spoiler alert, was horrifying. RD told me this, and I totally agree with him, that last scene with Vader is a straight up horror movie. It was so intense and scary and all the screams from the guys getting done in by Vader was terrifying.

Where my wife wasn't all that crazy about all the new characters introduced in "Rogue One", I liked them all. We both agreed that Chirrut Imwe, the blind guy with the awesome karate skills that thought he was like a Jedi, was the best new character, but we also liked his buddy, Baze Malbus, with the big armored suit and enormous blaster. They were both very badass. Riz Ahmed, as Bodhi Rook, the pilot that was captured by Forrest Whittaker's squad, was kind of a traitor, but he pulled through when he was needed. That dude is a very good actor. Speaking of Forrest Whittaker, his character, Saw Gerrera was awesome, and his death scene was brutal. Sorry for all the spoilers, but the movie has been out for awhile now. Diego Luna was very good in his role as Cassian Andor. I liked how he was a no nonsense badass that always seemed to do what was best for his people. Felicity Jones was incredible as Jyn Erso, the lead in the movie. I love that "Star Wars" is giving all the hero roles to females lately. It is a very nice change of pace. Jones was great throughout and I bought her as much as I did Daisy Ridley in "The Force Awakens".

I really enjoyed everything about "Rogue One". I really like war movies, and "Rogue One" is a movie about war. There are a few "Star Wars" call backs. There is Darth Vader obviously, but R2D2 and C3PO show up. There are Mon Calamari soldiers, like Admiral Ackbar, that help out the rebellion. There is the rebellion. And there's the Death Star. But, other than that, this was a brutal, violent movie about how tough war can be.

I get my wife's criticism. She likes to watch movies for fun that move seamlessly from one scene to another. When she watches a movie she wants to escape and just enjoy herself for 2 hours and not have to think. Me, I like movies that set up for big, big battle scenes. I mean, there are a lot of minor fight scenes here and there in the first 90 minutes. The one that immediately comes to mind for me was when the blind dude takes out about a dozen Storm Troopers, then his buddy finishes off the rest of them. But, the last 30 minutes is an incredible battle scene that is also tragic and horrifying. It was such a great final battle to what I consider a very good movie. The topping was that final battle scene with Darth Vader. It was so horrifying, but also very, very incredible.

So, while my wife wasn't the biggest fan of "Rogue One", I enjoyed the hell out of it. It doesn't rank up there with " A New Hope" or "The Empire Strikes Back", or even "The Force Awakens", but I do like it more than "Return of the Jedi", and all three of the terrible prequels. It was a hit for me. If you like war movies, I think you will definitely enjoy "Rogue One". I thought it was great.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is glad his son did not see the last Vader scene in the movie. Ty does not want his son trying to slice the dog up with a fake lightsaber while he throws the dog on the ceiling. 

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War is a Drug for the Media, and We Will Suffer the Side Effects

This will not make you feel good

SeedSing is proud to offer voices to anyone who has something to say. Sometimes these voices can only use crude language to express their ideas. Sometimes these vulgar voices come from the head editor. This following article is rated R for adult language and extreme anger. Get your ideas heard by writing for SeedSing

When President Trump was lobbing missiles at Syria, I wrote about the possibility of two new wars the American people are going to be forced to endure. I urged all of us to ignore the media's love of war. I asked us all to remember all the times that the media worked with the White House and sold false information to the American people. I hoped that the media would not be so craven again and be the mouthpiece for another quagmire.

I hoped.

Goddamnit.

Fareed Zakaria on CNN when asked what changed for Trump after the Syrian missile strikes. Trump "became President of the United States"

Brian Williams on MSNBC, quoting Leonard Cohen, "I am guided by the beauty of our weapons". Williams also described the missile strikes as "beautiful" a few more times.

Chris Matthews on MSNBC, "I thought if there was a way for him to kill the narrative that he’s in bed with Putin, it would be this"

Retired Major General James Marks on CNN, "My point is, this not like Kentucky basketball, one and done. This is the start of a series of operations."

The lapdogs at Fox News "Trump is the best. It is Obama's fault. We have no brains." (not an actual quote, but pretty close).

It goes on and on.

What the fuck is wrong with the media? Do these morons have no conscience? While the missiles were exploding in Syrian soil, the news media was having an orgasm about the awesomeness that President Donald Trump suddenly ascended to. It was predictable, comical, and infuriating. The media went out of their way to claim the greatness of Trump because he told Russia about his incoming missile strike, then launched his missiles, talked tough on national tv, and then did nothing else. The media got their high with "beautiful" explosions, and forgot about being defenders of truth. It was a fucking joke.

It adds even more to this shit sundae that disgraced journalists like Zakaria and Williams are out there falling all over themselves to praise Trump for his pointless military strike. Both journalists. No, not journalists. Liars. Why are these liars still considered credible newsmen?

 Why?

Fareed Zakaria has been caught plagiarizing other people's work numerous times. Brian WIlliams lost his NBC News head anchor job because he could not stop lying about his helicopter in Iraq being brought down by enemy fire (it never happened). These self centered hacks still get to keep their jobs as opinion leaders in our news, and they have gone out of their way to drag America into another military quagmire. It is a fucking disgrace.

The retired generals explaining war to the American Plebeians equally piss me off to no end. When Retired Major General Marks tried to be funny by comparing our military strikes to Kentucky Wildcat basketball, I did not laugh, I was fucking terrified. These asshat former military people on tv were the same ones claiming with certainty that the Iraq war would be easy. Using their long distinguished military career as their expertise, these retired generals sold Americans on a destructive lie. And they are fucking doing it again. Being in the military does not make you an expert on every war. Being a retired military person, and being excited about sending more troops to their death for a lie, that makes you fucking war criminal in my book. Your goddamn jokes about "one and done" is not funny. Shut the fuck up.

Then we have Fox fucking News. The imbeciles at the Republican state media do not know how to actually report news. They never have. That craptastic network exists only to bring America down. Shitbags like Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity would be crying their eyes out for the lost British tea if it were 1773. These fuckers exist to only make old, out of touch, white people feel good about their misogyny and racism. There is no value whatsoever in what ever comes out of Bill O'Reilly's or Sean Hannity's mouth. The rest of Fox News follows the lead of O'Reilly and Hannity until we reach the bottom of human conversation with the dipshits on Fox and Friends, President Trump's favorite show. With the absolute lack of integrity, and the pure hatred for what America is, it is no surprise that Fox News would be all in with anything President Trump does. Especially the un-Constitutional warmongering of the Syrian strikes. That is the type of shit that gets Fox News all kinds of excited.

It is a wildly excepted fact that Fox News does not give a shit about American lives. They count on scared white people, and shocked liberal gawkers, for their ratings. And you know what, scared white people, and always ready to be outraged liberal gawkers, watch cable news. For years we have heard that Fox News has the best ratings, for cable news that it is. In response to this pointless bit of information, the CNN's and MSNBC's decided to chase Fox News for ratings, and in the process the entire news industry gave up their souls. The reason CNN keeps a plagiarizer like Fareed Zakaria employed is because of ratings. Liar Brian Williams gets to keep being a "newsman" because scared white people liked him when he did the nightly news. Truth and professionalism have no seat at the modern American news table. Self serving gluttons like Fareed Zakaria and Brian Williams need to hog the table with greedy retired military personal and the slime at Fox News. The truth, and the American people, do not rate in a world where ratings are the only thing that matter. It is why we have some real shitty news coverage here in the US. It is why the smart people look to Al Jazeera and the BBC.

The fucking union of the press and the President is going to cause a lot of problems. People are going to die, especially a lot of "beautiful children". Regions of the world will be destabilized. American troops are going to come home with a long list of medical and psychological problems. But none of that matters to the for profit American news industry. They will have their ratings, and their "beautiful" weapons. That is the only thing those inhuman fuckers care about. 

So from here on out we have the narcissists in the media feeding the uber-narcissist Commander in Chief. President Trump now knows that when he starts a war, the media will call him a strong President. The only way the press, and the President, can get what they want is through war, and now we have war. Trump is happy because he is getting the positive coverage he has craved for decades. The media is happy because they have explosions and death to talk about on an hourly basis. It is like a goddamn Michael Bay movie, flashy with no fucking substance. It is a drug, and the drug of war is working its way once again through our government and our media.

Fuck.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He did not even get into hos thoughts on North Korea. Come back soon and he lose his fucking mind on that issue.

Sorry for the language mom.

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Let Me Respectfully Explain Why Tony Romo is the Most Overrated NFL Player Ever

Artist interpretation of Ty reading another Romo love piece on ESPN and Bleacher Report

Tony Romo has mercifully retired from the NFL. I cannot think of a more overrated QB in the history of the NFL than Romo. If he had played for any other team not named the Cowboys, his retirement would have been last minute news on ESPN, Bleacher Report and any other sports publication, website or TV show. If he had spent his 14 year career all with the Chiefs, no one would be opining for the days of Tony Romo's greatness. Did I mention that he is overrated.

There are 2 things I remember most from Romo's incredibly average career. First, he choked in the very few big games that he was the Cowboys starting QB. When all they needed was a field goal to beat the Seahawks, Romo muffed the snap. Whenever he was in a playoff game, he seemed to always throw a crushing interception or give the ball back to the opponent by taking a bad sack or throwing the ball away. Whenever the Cowboys had a chance at the end of the regular season to win their porous division and go to the playoffs, he was on the losing side more than the winning side. He could not utilize awesome play makers like Dez Bryant, Terell Owens, Darren McFadden or seemingly any halfway decent running back they had. Remember when DeMarco Murray was a Cowboy? He was great, but they wanted Romo more than him and let Murray walk in free agency. I'd much rather have Murray. The only guy that Romo seemed to use properly was Jason Witten, but they never had the same relationship a QB and tight end like Phil Rivers and Antonio Gates or Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski or Matt Ryan and Tony Gonzalez had. Witten and Romo were fine, but I'd much rather have the three combos I just mentioned much more than Romo and Witten.

Tony Romo was never a clutch player is what I'm getting at. Sure, he put up big stats, but when you are barely in the playoffs, never made a NFC title game, let alone a Super Bowl, and never seemed to win more than 8 games a year, I don't have much respect for those numbers. He'll go down as the Cowboys leader in yards and TD's, but he is still behind Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach, guys who have long retired, in the most important category, wins. Wins are all that matter. If Tom Brady didn't have the Super Bowl wins, who cares about his numbers. Same thing for Aaron Rodgers, and he's only won one Super Bowl. The fact that some sports reporters put Tony Romo's name in the same breath as those guys is ludicrous.

Romo, if I had to do a list, wouldn't even make my top ten, hell, probably top 20, of all QB's currently in the league. To show you how much I disrespect Tony Romo, I'd rather take a chance on a guy like Jay Cutler, who I loathe, or Trevor Siemian, who should be, at best, a third string QB. Romo is not a hall of famer or an all time great. He was a very average QB that just happened to be on the Cowboys.

This leads me to the second thing I will remember about Romo's career, he was just a handsome dude, not a great QB. Again I will go at ESPN for this. They publicized who he was dating and married to because they couldn't talk about him winning Super Bowl's. I remember when he dated Jessica Simpson, when she was still relevant, and that's all ESPN talked about. You know why that's all the talked about? Well, it was because the Cowboys were too busy going 6-10, 7-9 and 8-8 and sitting home for the playoffs. But, ESPN is so star obsessed, they felt they still had to talk about Tony god damn Romo. I do not care who these athletes date or are married to. That doesn't make me like or dislike them more or less. Who they date and marry is their personal business. But, since the Cowboys were pretty much irrelevant for 14 years, that's all these major companies could do to keep the Cowboys in their news feed. It's sad if you really think about it. 

Therein lies why I think Tony Romo is massively overrated. Those are the 2 biggest things I will remember from his 14 years in the NFL, his constant choking and who his girlfriends were. Also, why did the Giants receivers, who went on that trip to Miami before playing the Packers get blasted by the media, but no one said a word when Romo and Witten did the exact same thing a few years earlier during one of the few seasons the Cowboys made the playoffs? The media skewered the Giants players, but they applauded Romo for getting away from all the distraction. That is a real crock and shame on those same people for doing that.

Also, no disrespect to Dak Prescott, but if Tony Romo is an all timer and a hall of famer, how'd he get beat out by a fourth round rookie? I know he got hurt in a preseason game, but when he was back healthy he did not get his starting job back. Imagine if that same thing happened to Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Cam Newton or Russell Wilson. If those dudes get injured, doesn't matter how good the team is playing, once they're healthy, they are the starter, and no one bats an eye.

Just so am making opinion clear, I do not think Tony Romo belongs in the hall of fame, he is not even in the top 50 of greatest QB's of all time. He will always be remembered as a choker who the media covered for and he is more known for who he dated than his playing days. I also don't think he is going to be some great announcer, as some others do. Enjoy your retirement you overrated hack of an NFL QB. You will not be missed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. The head editor usually defends Tony Romo. Why? Because he is so handsome.

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Beware the Drumbeat of War

Do not listen

The United States is at war again, and this new war will once again be fought in two different nations. Word is coming out of Washington DC right now that says the US is conducting bombing strikes in Syria. At the same time, President Trump, with a lot of help from the media, is getting Americans excited about military action against North Korea. Regardless of what we hear, US military involvement is still continuing in Afghanistan and Iraq. With these new conflicts, the American people will now have to sacrifice more blood to fight a battle on four fronts. We can accept this.

The case for war in Syria intensified this week after the world learned of the horrible chemical attacks that killed 70 people. The images were horrifying. Many people on the left and right sides of the political spectrum condemned the attack and said the US should respond in some way. President Trump promised that he would do something, and bombing the civil war torn nation seems to be his first shot. 

The situation in Syria has been terrible for over six years. The pictures the world saw this week are part of a mosaic that goes back to the beginning of the crisis. President Trump, and the Republican War Hawks, did not care when dead children were washing up on Mediterranean beaches. They did not care when Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was using chemical weapons on his own people for years. Now they care. Why?

The reason the United States had not earlier engaged in any major military action in Syria is because of Russia. President Vladimir Putin is allied with al-Assad, and any aggression towards the Syrian government could intensify problems with the Russians. Leave Syria alone, make Russia happy. This is the way politics has worked for all of civilized history. It is not kind, but it has kept the world out of many bloody global conflicts. Thinking people understand this trade off. 

Now things seem different. President Trump appears to be very eager to get involved in war with Syria. The propaganda says that relations with Russia do not seem to matter, because the United States cannot sit by as innocent Syrians are being gassed, even if we have sat by for the last six years. The media is playing up all the worst actions of the al-Assad government to get Americans fired up for war. Liberals on social media are crying out to save the children. War in Syria is going to happen. Again, why?

Donald Trump has not had the best start to his Presidency. The only time the media has been complimentary to Trump was when at an address to Congress, the President honored the widow of a recently killed Navy Seal. The DC pundits rushed to their twitter accounts, and cable news panel shows, to gush about Donald Trump being Presidential. With that event, Donald Trump learned that the media will support him if he goes to war. Trump desperately wants the media to like him. Since that moment in the US Capitol, President Trump has been looking to get involved in any military action, and the media has been banging the drum for the President.

The bombs being dropped in Syria were not the beginning of the drum beat. Terrible, fear mongering, stories about North Korea have been featured on all of the media for months now. Right wing thought leaders like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Rush Limbaugh have been talking about the terrible things North Korea could do to Hawaii. Their stories of potential terror line up exactly with what the White House has been pushing. Even left leaning news organizations like The Huffington Post and Vox have been writing articles about the foreignness, and evil, of North Korea. The case for war in North Korea has been presented to the American people long before any action in Syria. Because the drum beat for war in North Korea has been going on longer, and getting louder, many Americans will not be surprised when the fighting starts.

The media has a long, and dark, history of getting Americans on board with pointless wars the White House wants to engage in. The Spanish American War is most known for the term Yellow Journalism. The reporting of lies concerning the Gulf of Tonkin assured US involvement in Vietnam. More recently, the cheerleading by all of the media to get the United States in a second war with Saddam Hussein and Iraq has had horrible consequences to our military and national budget. Now the press, all of the press, is feeding the American people information so we can get on board with two new wars in Syria and North Korea.

The geopolitical consequences of unilateral, plus Great Britain, action in Syria and North Korea is dire. Russia may not do anything directly to the US, but they will continue to act in a way detrimental for NATO and the United States. China will probably not go to war with the United States, but they will continue to develop their markets and strategic partnerships in a way that harms the US economy. The weakening of US global influence that started with our ill conceived wars in Afghanistan and Iraq is only going to continue with our ill conceived aggression in Syria and North Korea. You will not read about that in any of the professional media, left or right wing. We will say it, war is not good for the United States.

We need to ignore the banging drums. These wars only exist as a way for the media and President Trump to get along, and start making money together. The DC pundits desperately want to legitimize Trump, that is dangerous. The President desperately wants favorable coverage from the press, that is narcissistic. Glenn Beck and Vox only want more internet traffic, that is unAmerican. These entities may not think they are causing harm, but they are. The lives that will be lost in these pointless conflicts will not affect the President, members of Congress, or anyone in the media. The people who beat the drums for war have no consequences. The call for war is about ego and money for the President and the media. We can not let them get away with this, again.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. We desperately want to know why you think war is needed right now.  Come tell us. 

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Ty Watches "Bar Rescue": Desi Romano's Edition

This past Sunday "Bar Rescue" got back to its usual form. The episode the week before, with Big Mike's Sports Bar and Grill, was moving and very different from anything I have come to expect. While that was a very nice change of pace, I was happy to see it get back to its roots.

Taffer and crew traveled to New Orleans once again, but the bar was not in trouble due to a massive flood of epic proportions. This bar was failing because of the ownership and staff. You know, typical "Bar Rescue" type stuff. The bar is called Desi Romano's, and I will say right at the top, Taffer could not and did not change the name. It was named after the owner, and to Taffer's credit, when the bar has a historical or meaningful name, he does not change it.

This bar was like most other bars on the show. At first, they were making tons and tons of cash. They were making so much money, they couldn't count it fast enough. Then, the bad stuff happened. In this bar's case, the owner Desi had a stroke. This was very unfortunate and it happened at the worst possible time. Desi was ready to hand the bar over to his daughter, but she needed lots and lots of training. She is very young and inexperienced, but he wanted to keep the bar in the family, which is very understandable. So, Desi has the stroke, and he misses 3 plus months of work. He had to get his life back together. During that 3 month period, the bar took an enormous tumble. The staff started to take major advantage of Laura, Desi's daughter. She could not run the bar properly yet, and the staff knew it. A bunch of the bartenders and the head chef started to run their own bar tabs. The bar also was becoming neglected. The staff didn't clean as much and they did not restock liquor and food kind of took a back seat. When Desi was healthy enough, he came back, but he more so came to his bar to drink and berate his daughter, along with the entire staff.

When Taffer and crew showed up to the bar to watch from their van on the monitors to see how poorly the bar was being run, the main thing that stuck out to them, and me for that matter, was that Desi just got more and more hammered as the night wore on. Taffer sent in his spies, who were former bar owners that had their bar rescued and were now thriving, and what they saw from the inside was even worse. The bartenders couldn't make a simple drink, and a New Orleans staple, the Hurricane. The bartender told them she had no idea how to make one, and instead offered to make him a margarita. When they tasted the margarita, both spies said it was terrible. The other spy ordered a rum and coke, seems simple enough, and he said that it was watered down and gross. When they ordered food, they ordered what the menu said was "Award Winning Mac and Cheese". Well, this did not look like halfway decent, and definitely not award winning, mac and cheese. It looked awful and that was confirmed by both the spies.

All the while this stuff was going on, Desi was having beer after beer and shot after shot. When Taffer finally decided to enter the bar it took him over 3 tries to get Desi's attention. When Desi finally acknowledged Taffer was there, he called him Tom. His first name is Jon. All of us know this. But, Desi was so wasted he couldn't even say his first name. While Taffer was berating him, Desi would go back and forth between yelling and asking for help. He couldn't figure out what he wanted because he was so inebriated. It was a mess. It started out funny, but soon became sad. Desi clearly has an alcohol problem and his daughter was very worried about him. After Taffer had enough, he walked out to Desi yelling at him to not leave, then giving him the finger.

Taffer, of course, came back the next day, and Desi showed up sober. He even stated that he did not remember what happened the night before and that he was very embarrassed. It is always nice to see an owner own up to his or her bullshit on this show. Taffer and crew immediately got to training after Taffer let Desi and his daughter know how much money their staff had run up on their bar tabs. The first few were average, right around 50 or 60 dollars, but then they got to the head chef. Her bar tab was 2,000 dollars. That is a whole lot of alcohol that she had not paid for in three months.

After this was all resolved the real training started. The staff was not prepared for the simplest of tasks and you could see it weighing on Taffer's experts. Stress test came and it was a nightmare. They had no system in place that was any good, and Desi and his daughter could not run the bar. No one was getting drinks and food was getting cold in the window. It was a typical stress test nightmare. After seeing how far behind they were, Taffer's experts decided it would be best to make the menu as simple as possible. During this training session, Taffer and his construction crew got to fixing the bar up.

With the new, easier menu and the bar being all gussied up, Taffer was ready for Desi and his crew to see their new bar. The name was the same, but the inside was totally different. There were new POS systems, new décor, new bar tops and stools, new pool tables, charging docks at the bar. Basically, the inside looked brand new, and everyone loved it. It was one of Taffer's better efforts I must say.

During re launch, everything ran smooth and Desi Romano's looked to be getting back to its money making ways. The staff was better, the kitchen staff was firing on all cylinders and Desi and his daughter were doing everything right. Taffer left feeling he had done all he could. During the 6 week check up, the bar sales were up 12 percent and the staff no longer had open bar tabs. Desi Romano's looked to be slowly, but surely getting back on its feet.

This was another run of the mill "Bar Rescue" , and I loved it. This Sunday they are doing another back to the bar thing, so I won't review that, but in 2 weeks there will be a new episode and I will be back to review that one. Come back then for your next "Bar Rescue" update.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He was relieved when he found out the bar was not serving Mac's Famous Mac and Cheese. Poor dog.

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Ty's Preview of the 2017 MLB Season

In response to RD's MLB preview, I have my own that I will do today. Now, as I say a lot, RD is the resident MLB expert here at SeedSing. I know enough, but my interest and expertise lies more so in football and basketball, both college and pros. RD knows his baseball. I loved playing baseball, but watching it, no way. I do not get involved until the playoffs, and unless the Cardinals are in, I could care less. I watched last year because it was historic, but for the most part, baseball season comes and goes with a very soft whimper for me. My NBA playoff preview coming in about 10 days will be way more in depth than my MLB preview, but I still enjoy doing these preseason looks ahead. I will say, I was right all year long about the Cubs last year too. I know that I'm not alone in that fact, but still, I picked them all year long, and they won it all. So, maybe I know more than I think I actually do. Anyway, lets get to it.

I'll start with the American League first. In the AL East pretty much everyone is picking Boston, and so am I. They added Chris Sale to an already loaded pitching staff. They have a great lineup as well that is also very young and has many good years ahead of them. They will miss David Ortiz, but not as much as some think. I know RD picked the Yankees, but their starting rotation is trash and I'm not as high on their lineup. The Orioles are who they will always be under Buck Showalter. They will compete and blow it in big games. Manny Macahdo is awesome though. Toronto is fine, but they have very average starting pitching and their lineup gets older every year. Tampa is back to being a bottom feeder. Boston all the way in the East.

The AL Central will be absolutely dominated by the Indians. They are the best team by a mile in the division, and I look for them to win a lot of games this year. I do not think 100 is out of the question. They have a great pitching staff, the best bullpen in baseball and a very awesome small ball lineup. The rest of the Central is average. Detroit still has Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera, but they aren't the horses they were 3 and 4 years ago. Minnesota and the White Sox are so young and inexperienced, but they both could be fun to watch. They are like the Timberwolves of MLB. The Royals are kind of confounding to me. They have some good pitching, they lost Ventura to a tragic death this offseason though. Maybe that will add to how they play this year. They also have a good lineup and are only one year removed from being in the World Series, and winning it. I think they will play better this year, but they aren't as good as the Indians.

The AL West is a 2 team race. I know RD called the Mariners always overrated, but I am fully on their bandwagon. They have a great pitching staff and an awesome lineup led by Robinson Cano. I think this is the year they can finally push through and live up to very high expectations. The team that may have something to say about that is the Astros. They took a little slide back last year, but that team is still young, and those young guys now have a full year under their belts and I think that will greatly benefit them. I have seen some websites claim the Angels are back, I don't think so. Mike Trout is a once in a generation talent, but when he's surrounded by guys well past their prime it doesn't matter. They'll be lucky to reach .500. Texas is the definition of an overachiever, but this year it won't matter because the Astros and Mariners are much better than them. All that needs to be said about the A's is that they stink. I'm picking the Mariners to finally win this division.

So, we have Boston, Cleveland and Seattle as my division winners in the AL. My 2 Wild Card teams will be Houston and Detroit.

Now, the National League.

The NL East is Washington, then everyone else. The Nationals are loaded. Bryce Harper is going to have a monster year. They are a lot like the Mariners, but with better, younger players. The Mets have a great rotation, but they lack any type of threat in their lineup and I just don't believe in them. I know RD said the Braves will be a surprise team, but I think that his love for Brandon Phillips (ed note: Dat Dude BP for life) has clouded how bad this team truly is. The Braves are rebuilding and I do not think they are ready to threaten any team in their division. The Phillies are worse off than the Braves. They are just as bad as the A's. Miami has talent, they too lost a pitcher due to a horrific accident. They have a monster hitter in Stanton, and Ichiro is still plugging away, but this team is a few players away from truly competing. They will be at least .500, but no threat to the Nationals. The Nationals are the clear cut favorites in the East.

The NL Central is much like the East. The Cubs are the best team by a whole lot. They did lose a few players this offseason, but they still have the best starting rotation in baseball and a killer lineup. They also get Kyle Schwarber back for a full year too. And the signing of Wade Davis was tremendous for their bullpen. The Cardinals will always be around an 85 win team, but they aren't ready to compete with the Cubs yet. I love the Dexter Fowler signing. He is my immediate favorite baseball player. He adds much needed speed to this lineup. Other than Fowler and Molina, this lineup is filled with young guys and guys past their prime. Their rotation is average as well. I love Carlos Martinez, but Wainwright is old, Wacha has never found his form from a few years ago and Lance Lynn is unreliable and oft injured. The Pirates stumbled last year, and who knows what will happen with Andrew McCutcheon. I think the Pirates would be best suited trading him to a contender, and if they do that, they will stink. If they keep McCutcheon, they will be a .500 team. The Brewers are better than last year, but not by much. They have no real pitching and when Ryan Braun is your offense, ouch. The Reds, sorry RD, are really, really bad. They will be lucky to win 60 games this year. The Cubs will walk with this division.

The NL West has the next 2 best teams in baseball behind the Cubs and Indians in the Giants and Dodgers. The Dodgers have a great rotation, led by Clayton Kershaw, who finally looked good in the playoffs last year, and they have an awesome lineup. They also have money coming out of their ears to spend on whoever they choose to go after. The Giants play baseball the way it is meant to be played. They small ball you to death and out pitch you all the time. They are a really, really good baseball team. Bruce Bochy is an incredibly underrated coach, especially for a guy that is a multiple World Series champ. San Diego and Colorado stink. The Padres are a mess and the front office looks like it has no clue how to run a team. The Rockies have some decent guys, and I have heard about some stud pitcher they have, but they are still a ways away from competing. They will play in a lot of 13-10 games that they will get beat in. The Diamondbacks, and more importantly, Zack Greinke, look lost. They have a good lineup on paper, and Greinke should be an ace, but they looked dreadful last year. I wonder if they just don't have what it takes to compete. We will have to see. With all that being said, I'll take the Giants to win a close race with the Dodgers in the West.

So that leaves us with the Nationals, Cubs and Giants as my division winners. My 2 Wild Cards are Saint Louis and Los Angeles.

Here is how the playoffs will shake out. The ALCS will feature Cleveland taking on Boston, and once again, I see Terry Francona sticking it to his old team and sweeping them out of the playoffs on his way to a second straight World Series appearance. They remind so much of a better version of the Royals a few years back that went to 2 straight World Series. In the NLCS, the Nationals, despite Dusty Baker, will take down the Cubs. It is just too hard to repeat these days. Look at the Warriors last year in the NBA Finals. But, this is where the comparison for the Indians and Royals stops for me. Whereas the Royals won in their second attempt, I think the Nationals win beat the Indians in a very hard fought 7 game series. It won't top last year, there is nothing that literally could top last year, but it will still be very well played. The Nationals will be your 2017 World champs.

As far as MVP and things of that nature go, I will pick Mike Trout in the AL because no one is a better baseball player than him anywhere, and Bryce Harper, who will have a humongous bounce back year, in the NL. They are the 2 best players, Mike Trout is better, and they will continue to win MVP awards. My coaches of the year will be Terry Francona in the AL and Dusty Baker in the NL. The Cy Young awards will go to Clayton Kershaw in the NL and Chris Sale in the AL. When it's this easy to pick award winners, these certain people must be doing something right, right?

So there you have it, my 2017 MLB preview. Let's see if I'm as right this year as I was last year. And I ask RD one more time, the Atlanta Braves? Really (ed note: just watch)?

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is like every other spoiled Cardinals fan and thinks 85 wins is a disappointing season. Cincinnati would be dancing in the street if the Reds won 85 games.

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