When the blood boils behind the altar

A British Vicar has stepped down from her role in the church because her hatred for her daughter's killers is too much to forgive. I have the deepest sympathy and empathy for this British Vicar. Sympathy for her loss and her rage, empathy for her feelings about it.

LONDON - A British vicar whose daughter was killed in last yearÂ?s London suicide bombings has stepped down from her parish role, saying she cannot and does not want to forgive the killers.

The Rev. Julie Nicholson said she had taken the difficult decision after her 24-year-old daughter Jenny died in the July 7 bombing on the underground transport network.

She said she could not reconcile her faith with the feelings of hatred she has towards the killers. "I rage that a human being could choose to take another human beingÂ?s life," she told a regional BBC program. "I rage that someone should do this in the name of a God. I find that utterly offensive. Can I forgive them for what they did? No, I cannot. And I donÂ?t wish to. I believe that there are some things in life which are unforgivable by the human spirit."

I don't think the statements I bolded could better represent my own personal feelings about jihadic terrorism. Unfortunately, and more disturbingly, this woman of faith has been so utterly shaken by these horrible acts that she has lost the ability to forgive, a tenet central to the faith, and to the leaders of Christian faith.

Was this the intent of the Muslim suicide bombers -- to leave their survivors with unresolvable hate in their hearts for their cause? Was it to enrage one of God's supporters so greatly to turn away from God? Does this make God happy? I don't know why I would ask such questions, as clearly no jihadic terrorist is smart enough to either think for themselves or comprehend the answer.

Not ready for his close up

Think all this furor over cartoons is new? Whilst scanning the Wikipedia for manna for the brain, I stumbled upon a movie version of the story of Muslim's favorite non-depicted hero, called Muhammed: Messenger of God. Apparently, even back in the day, there were just as many problems with portraying the prophet back then as now:

Mohammad, Messenger of God (retitled The Message for U.S. release) (1976) is a film directed by Mustafa Akkad, chronicling the life and times of the founder of Islam, Muhammad. Released in both Arabic and English, Mohammad, Messenger of God serves as an introduction to early Islamic history. Although the movie revolves around Muhammad, his image is not depicted in any way throughout the movie, out of respect for Muslim beliefs. Instead actors were left to talk to the camera.

Akkad faced resistance from Hollywood to making a film about the origins of Islam and had to go outside the United States to raise the production money for the film. While creating Mohammad, Messenger of God, he consulted Islamic clerics and tried to be respectful toward Islam and its views on portraying Mohammed.

Nevertheless, some cinemas still received threatening telephone calls from those who thought that the film offended Islam by portraying the Prophet in a physical way, even though Mohammed is not shown on screen. On March 9, 1977, a group of Black Muslims, led by Hamas Abdul Khaalis, seized several buildings and took 134 hostages in the District of Columbia. While their actions were related to a sectarian dispute within the Black Muslim community, one of their demands was to prevent the release of Mohammad. One of the terrorists specifically said "he wanted a guarantee from whole world it will never be shown" or they would execute some of the hostages.

As with most religious protestors or fanatics, they were woefully misinformed. They mistakenly believed that Muhammed was portrayed by Anthony Quinn in the film. While I can understand not wanting Zorba to dance all the way to Mecca, it certainly wasn't worth killing a reporter.

Aside from that, it's no wonder that you don't see any movies about Muhammed. Not only can you not see him or observe him to speak, but someone will probably try to kill you for it, even if your intentions are the best. Christianity, by comparison, has had an in-your-face sales pitch that is tough to even hide from. Jesus on film, Jesus on TV, Jesus appearing in a taco in Mexico. You can be sure that if Muhammed appeared in a taco, someone would have Supreme Indigestion. Yet, how would we know what he even looked like, since no one can be allowed to show a representation of him?

And note that the Muslim law isn't against portraying the image of Muhammed, but that of any prophet, like say Jesus or Moses. I guess they just don't feel that their proprietary and copywright trademarks are infringed in those cases.

Unfortunately for Islam, this adherence to their ancient law isn't going to win any hearts and minds in the internet or video age. Most people know the story of Jesus from happening to catch some late-afternoon showing of The Greatest Story Ever Told or King of Kings or Passion of Christ rather than actually reading a Bible or listening in church. By denying the use of Muhammed's image (oh, and threatening to kill cartoonists, of course), Muslims are making it just that much harder for people in the Western culture to even understand the religion, much less identify with it.

But I digress, and a lot. The hostage situation in DC had one lasting, somewhat ironic ramification. The hostage actions also had the unexpected result of catapulting then-DC-councilman and soon-to-be-most-notorious-mayor-alive Marion Barry to fame by shooting him in the chest during the crisis. The very next year he was elected mayor. One can only speculate if everyone's favorite crack addict would have become mayor if not for the notoriety of being shot by ignorant terrorists. Shows what a little press can do for you.

Life imitates art imitates...

Today, the South Dakota Governor signed a law banning almost all abortions today. We all knew a new round of court battles was coming, maybe just not this soon.

The law passed last month by the legislature will ban abortions unless the mother's life is at stake, Rounds, a Republican, said in a statement on his Web site. The governor, who views the law as a way of overturning Supreme Court precedent, said it may be blocked by legal challenges from taking effect in July.

"The reversal of a Supreme Court opinion is possible," Rounds said in the statement, citing the 1954 ruling that outlawed racial segregation and overturned a precedent upholding its legality. He said the new law "will give the U.S. Supreme Court a similar opportunity to reconsider an earlier opinion."

South Dakota is the first U.S. state to outlaw virtually all types of abortions, and supporters anticipate that it will take years before court challenges are resolved. The law is intended to create an opportunity for the Supreme Court, which has two new members appointed by President George W. Bush, to overturn the 1973 ruling in the Roe v. Wade case that banned states from outlawing the procedure.

Coincidentally, a recent episode of the best show on TV started its own abortion situation.

Back on the Galactica, Rya Kibby's desire to exercise her legal right to an abortion, and the revelation that Doc Cottle has been providing this service to women in the fleet for the past few months, becomes an incendiary political issue. The fleet's pro-life Gemenon faction threatens to pull its support for President Laura Roslin unless she condemns the practice of abortion and makes it illegal.

Fans of the series know that the writing rarely follows the safe and narrow path, so it wasn't much of a shock that, at the end, Roslin felt she had no choice but to outlaw abortions for the sake of humanity. Although a stanch pro-choice advocate, faced with the reality that our the species desperately needs to start repopulating, her decision was forced.

Think that I'm biased because I'm into science fiction? Maybe, but I'm not alone in my raves. Even Rolling Stone concurs:

Civilization is under attack by religious fanatics -- and the fanatics are winning. There are suicide bombers, a clueless president and prisoners who get tortured by the good guys. No, this isn't a particularly grim night on CNN: It's Battlestar Galactica, the smartest and toughest show on TV. In its second season, this remake of the 1978 camp classic has become -- no joke -- TV's most vivid depiction of the post-9/11 world and what happens to a society at war.

Improbably, all this is happening on the Sci Fi Channel, best known for reruns of Knight Rider. Battlestar has achieved the channel's best-ever ratings and reached a heady new level of critical acclaim: Time just named it the best TV show of 2005.

In the past few seasons, series television has finally opted to deal head-on with terrorism, with varying degrees of success. The one mainstream hit, 24, gleefully sacrifices relevance (or coherence) for pure adrenaline. In its fictional world, torture is a panacea, providing catharsis for an audience facing a perpetual "war on terror."

On Battlestar, these issues are more queasily ambiguous. Its futuristic tale of mass genocide of humans and persecution of survivors by the Cylons, a race of zealot androids, somehow manages to feel both realistic and oddly contemporary. "The networks are terrified of controversy," says Battlestar Galactica executive producer Ronald D. Moore. "But in sci-fi, they don't notice or care so much -- you get a free pass."

As with the original, the new Battlestar starts with a surprise attack on humanity by the Cylons. Only 50,000 or so people survive, fleeing in a ragtag fleet protected by the Battlestar Galactica, a third-rate ship with an unpolished crew. As they escape, they try to build a new society under the strain of constant attack...

...There's plenty of drama to be found in paranoia, grief and politics. In the original, Cylons were large chrome robots with an oscillating red eye and not much personality. Now, the Cylons can look like any other human (or in the case of Tricia Helfer, a lot sexier). The synthetic life-forms are sleeper agents inside human society: monotheistic religious zealots, in contrast to humanity's secular polytheism. "I know God loved you more than all other living creatures, and you repaid his divine love with hate, corruption, evil," one Cylon tells his human interrogator. She responds by having him tortured.

Battlestar's culture is very close to our own. As with ours, in Battlestar, society has been predominantly pro-choice until this moment, when the pro-lifers (their representative is portrayed about as unsympathetically as you might expect -- unforgiving, unbending, judgmental) seize the opportunity to change the law. Parallel to the present, with the world at war with terrorism and a sudden shift with the Supreme Court, and it doesn't seem like far-fetched TV anymore. In fact, it can be downright scary.

In case you want to catch up on the last few episodes, here's your chance.

March 6, 2006:
Starting at 9AM/8C on Tuesday, March 6, tune in for a six-episode Battlestar Galactica marathon! It will consist of episodes 214 ("Black Market") through 219 ("Lay Down Your Burdens," Part 1) to get you ready for the March 10 season finale.

Don't miss your chance to get involved in some intelligent TV, and don't take your eye off the fascist, liberty-reducing governor.

We all go a little mad sometimes

Continuing to be a domestic hot-bed for Muslim hot-heads, a recent graduate of the University of North Carolina tried to kill as many students as possible with his Jeep by plowing it into a campus gathering area.

Derek Poarch, chief of the university police department, confirmed Saturday that Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, a 22-year-old Iran native, told investigators he wanted to "avenge the deaths or murders of Muslims around the world." Poarch would not provide any other details on the motive.

Taheri-azar also is charged with nine counts of assault. No one was seriously hurt in the incident just before noon Friday at The Pit, a sunken, brick-paved area surrounded by two libraries, a dining hall and the student union near the center of campus...

Taheri-azar graduated from the university in December after studying psychology and philosophy.

But clearly he did not study tactics, logic, rationalization, or sanity. Technically speaking, by Mohammed's own goals, he is a miserable failure, having failed to avenge even one of the 'deaths or murders' (whichever is better?). Still, he managed to inflict some minor injuries, which is more than the shoebomber could manage.

This isn't an isolated incident on the campus. A couple weeks ago I blogged about a local cartoonist controversy at UNC. Still, Mary Katharine Ham notes that the press has been relatively quiet about this story:

I'm interested to see how the UNC campus reacts to this incident. It's getting surprisingly little national press. The Washington Post covered it Saturday, but seems not to have a follow-up. A search in the NYT comes up empty.

Even the Raleigh paper below-the-folded the incident today. Curious. Even though Taheri-azar is believed to have acted alone, this is a very big story. Attempted murder with an SUV on a popular campus quad is a big story even if it's not a terrorist act. Why's everyone being so quiet about this one? It was not mentioned during TV coverage of the UNC/Duke game Saturday night (carried on EVERY SINGLE ESPN channel), despite the fact that it happened just the day before.

Truly it was on every station, but not a mention was made. Maybe it wasn't worth mentioning because, this kid obviously isn't a terrorist, but he is guilty of performing terrorists acts, and performing them with the skill and cunning of a drunk bobo. And that is just embarrassing.

That goofy president

Stevel Knievel posts about Antarctic melting and a Bush response worthy of being published in The Onion.

But the latest research signals a greater loss of ice across the entire continent Â? an amount equal to more than 13% of the annual sea level rise measured in recent years, the researchers said. The shrinkage is concentrated in the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which has enough fresh water to raise sea levels more than 20 feet.In response to the findings, President Bush condemned the Antarctican government saying that the loss of the polar ice cap is their fault. When told that Antarctica has no government of its own, Bush blamed America's outsourcing U.S. jobs to foreign countries such as India and China. When reminded that he, in fact, supports the outsourcing of American jobs, Bush denied ever supporting such a policy. When told that he is currently in Pakistan discussing outsourcing issues, Bush excused himself to go to the bathroom.

I may not have an recent evidentiary support record for the democrats (as noted by recent comments, but I sure can point and laugh with the best of them.

I do... allow you a freebee

In a move obviously designed to further outrage cartoonist-hating Muslims, Masha Lopatova, the wife of NBA star (never heard of him until now) Andrei Kirilenko, revealed Thursday that she allows her husband a once-a-year sex fling with another woman.

Kirilenko, the 25-year-old Jazz forward, reveals in the current issue of ESPN The Magazine that Lopatova, mindful of the presence of women who congregate around wealthy professional athletes, has granted permission for him to indulge himself, so to speak, with another woman once per season. "If I know about it," Lopatova said Wednesday, "it's not cheating."

That philosophy was applauded, frequently in jest, in a variety of settings. On ESPN's own "Pardon the Interruption" television show, for example, Washington Post columnist Michael Wilbon asked, "Ain't Mrs. Kirilenko the coolest wife in the world or what?"

His co-host, the Post's Tony Kornheiser, agreed: "She is a Top 5 wife, all-time. In fact, she is up there right now on the Mount Rushmore of wives."

That was the consensus on the sports network's morning radio show, "Mike & Mike," too, where co-host Mike Greenberg, calling Kirilenko's allowance "the best story we've ever had," lamented that his wife doesn't share Lopatova's attitude. "I'd just like one day of guilt-free golf," Greenberg joked.

So, coolest wife ever, or biggest fool? For me, neither. Having just ended a two-year relationship, I'm about as single as you can get, so I can be more honest than, say, the Emperor.

However, lest I devolve into something uncomfortable, even for the 'internet', I understand Masha's point of view that, in a more 'open' relationship, it's not cheating if it is known (and, presumably, it is done safely). Of course, saying that and practicing it are completely different animals -- the film Kinsey is an excellent example of the pros and cons of sexual freedom in relationships. I'm not sure if I would, if presented with such a scenario, be ready or able to handle such a thing. On the face of it, it sounds like a dream come true, but in the end, it also sounds like a razor-thin line to walk.

Superhype

For even casual college basketball fans, it goes without saying that tomorrow night's Duke-North Carolina game is a big event. Even if you didn't have a streaking #15 North Carolina team coming into #1 Duke's senior night, you have a rivalry that is always on the short list of the greatest in sports.ESPN has chosen to premier a new telecast style for the game called 'Full Circle', which at first glance, resembles overexposure. Here is the description for the In-Game Plans for ESPNU Full Circle:

• ESPN: traditional game telecast with commentators Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Dick Vitale (analyst) and reporter Erin Andrews (reporter) plus "look-ins" to how other entities are covering the game
• ESPN2: entire game action live from "Above the Rim" camera (traditional feed during deadballs)
• ESPN and ESPN2 HD: both ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD will offer high definition presentations of game coverage; the widescreen view provided by HD's 16x9 aspect ratio will offer a unique glimpse into offensive and defensive strategy, particularly for ESPN2 HD's Above the Rim telecast
• ESPNU: entire game live from cameras on and within famed "Cameron Crazies" (Duke student fans) section, split screen with traditional feed
• ESPN360: live traditional game feed on ESPN's customized broadband service enhanced with extra stats not featured on telecast, hosted by ESPN Radio's Jeff Rickard
• Mobile ESPN: game alerts, live updates and in-game polling for a replay of a classic UNC-Duke matchup (see ESPN Classic below)
• ESPN International: coverage offered to approximately 120 countries worldwide, including on ESPN Taiwan, ESPN Israel, ESPN Mas (South America), ESPN Philippines, ESPN Atlantic, ESPN Pacific Rim, ESPN Dos, J-Sports (Japan) and more
• ESPN.com: live chats, in-game polling for a replay of a classic UNC-Duke matchup (see ESPN Classic below) and highlights on ESPN Motion

Additionally, on select pay-per-view channels, you get the following bonus material:

• ESPN Homeless: A camera crew follows an ESPN host who dangles a $100 bill in front of homeless people, which he promises to give them if they answer the following question correctly: Who is better -- Duke or Carolina? Of course, the host always tells them the answer is the opposite of what the homeless person chose, leading to tears and laughter.
• ESPN ER: A surgical Emergency Room team attempts to provide play-by-play of the Duke-Carolina game from a monitor while saving the lives of critically injured patients.
• ESPN Hostage: Wearing a wire, an ACC basketball fan gets himself 'captured' by terrorists, and then demands 'updates and highlights' from the game every five minutes, pushing his captors' patience to the limit.
• ESPN Fries-With-That: A camera is positioned on a food services worker at Cameron Indoor who is so 'over' the rivalry and just wants a better career. Watch her slowly turn into a true 'Cameron crazy' over the course of the evening.

All that said, I can't wait for the game.

TWTYTW: 2003

The other day, after I noted my blogging anniversary, and beset with loads of anti-work at the office, I started perusing my old blogs. Like any author, there were some that induced cringing, some that were okay, and some that I still get a kick out of. Thusly, I decreed that my readers (cricket sounds) should not be deprived of some noteworthy passages from yesteryear.

I've included a snippet of the original blog, but click on the link if you find yourself wanting more. So, without further ado, here is That Was The Year That Was: 2003:

The Last Word on Phantom Menace
Here's a short list of some things that I don't get: The Dave Matthews Band, movie musicals, Terry Gilliam films, Care Bears, divas, country music, lederhosen, coffee, and twizzlers. I'm not a fan of any of those things, and don't care to listen/eat/watch/wear (match appropriately, please) any of them. Taking Dave Matthews for a moment, I am not saying that these guys aren't talented musicians, but that their music does nothing to move me, nor do I find it remarkable. That doesn't mean that I think they are the worst band ever, but rather that I recognize that there is something missing from my cranium that others have which would have enabled me to see their genius. I don't have it, and I don't miss it. However, I'm not spiteful about it, or blockheaded. If you are a fan, congratulations. Well done. Just let me be.

Favorite Author
For those of you unfamiliar with Moore (or, perhaps, with me), Chris possess wit and talent with the pen, writing some of the funniest and coolest stories I've read. Here, below, for the first time ever, I will rank his previous works as I see fit (by favorite).

This is Sportscenter
One of the other features was showing bloopers from their award-winning SportsCenter ad shorts. In light of that, I delved into the video archives of This Is SportsCenter. Here are my favorites from that list.

Malaysian DVDs
This is the long awaited (at least by me) final chapter in the Malaysian Espionage story. My return from Pennsylvania this Sunday was met with the vaguely labeled international package from my friend "Tran". This customs-evading parcel was the one that managed to deliver my DVD order of The Matrix: Reloaded and X2: X-Men United safely into my allegedly law-abiding clutches.

Best Christopher Walken video ever
Now back online: Spike Jonze's MTV-award-winning Fatboy Slim video, featuring a dancing Christopher Walken. For those of you familiar with my Walken-impersonation, this will be a blast form the past. Great video (and song).

Decoding the Matrix Trilogy
I’ve just watched Reloaded again, and I’m much more impressed with the film now that I’ve seen Revolutions. A lot of people have complained about the seemingly impenetrable exposition in the 2nd film, how the characters always spout lengthy philosophical claptrap that never seem to answer the questions posed. Indeed, at first glance, it appears as nonsensical evasion

Boondock Saints sucks
Although this is sure to inspire the rage and baffling indignance of some readers, I'm going to post the most negative review ever of the most deserving film ever, that being (of course), Boondock Saints.

Top Twenty Favorite Movies You’ve Probably Never Seen
There are many lists out there of great films that everyone knows. Through my own limited experience, the following list represents my favorite films that, when spoken of in casual conversation with the average joe, bring blank stares or shrugs (and in return receive my patented ‘aghast look of condescension’).

Anti-Islamist Manifesto

A group of twelve writers has issued an intellectual manifesto, smack in the face of all this ridiculously bloated and idiotic Islamic fanatacism. It's worth reading, so here it is in its entirety:

Together facing the new totalitarianism

After having overcome fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism, the world now faces a new totalitarian global threat: Islamism.

We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all.

The recent events, which occurred after the publication of drawings of Muhammed in European newspapers, have revealed the necessity of the struggle for these universal values. This struggle will not be won by arms, but in the ideological field. It is not a clash of civilisations nor an antagonism of West and East that we are witnessing, but a global struggle that confronts democrats and theocrats.

Like all totalitarianisms, Islamism is nurtured by fears and frustrations. The hate preachers bet on these feelings in order to form battalions destined to impose a liberticidal and unegalitarian world. But we clearly and firmly state: nothing, not even despair, justifies the choice of obscurantism, totalitarianism and hatred. Islamism is a reactionary ideology which kills equality, freedom and secularism wherever it is present. Its success can only lead to a world of domination: man’s domination of woman, the Islamists’ domination of all the others. To counter this, we must assure universal rights to oppressed or discriminated people.

We reject « cultural relativism », which consists in accepting that men and women of Muslim culture should be deprived of the right to equality, freedom and secular values in the name of respect for cultures and traditions. We refuse to renounce our critical spirit out of fear of being accused of "Islamophobia", an unfortunate concept which confuses criticism of Islam as a religion with stigmatisation of its believers.

We plead for the universality of freedom of expression, so that a critical spirit may be exercised on all continents, against all abuses and all dogmas.

We appeal to democrats and free spirits of all countries that our century should be one of Enlightenment, not of obscurantism.

This is just starting to make rounds in the mainstream media, although I doubt that it will be published in this country until the coast is clear. The only name I recognize on the list of twelve is Salmon Rushdie. Although he is clearly used to being marked for death, every single one of these writers have to know the serious consequences to their safety they have tempted by being so brave to publish such a piece.

Via Belmont, again.

The evil that you know

The Belmont Club takes note that the Danish cartoons have been published much more often in Muslim countries than in non-Muslim countries. His theory of why the media has ducked the issue speaks greatly to my reasoning behind not backing a Democratic candidate in 2004:

I think the real reason for the reluctance among Anglospheric publications to print the Danish cartoons was less timidity than the fear of tacitly repudiating the underlying assumption of the President Bush's War on Terror, that the West is not at war with Islam but only with a small group of extremists who have corrupted "the religion of peace". The Danish cartoons threatened to convert this limited war into a more general confrontation between the value systems of the West and Islam. Why, one might ask, should the media, with no love lost for President Bush, care at all about protecting the key assumption of his limited war?

The reason I think, is that the Left in their reflexive opposition to President Bush since the invasion of Iraq had not bothered to create a war strategy of their own. The nomination of Senator John Kerry in 2004 was an attempt to offer up the appearance of an alternative rather than a rival strategy. He was a placeholder for a policy that didn't exist. Trapped in the mental world of the 20th century, the Left had not decided how to respond to the challenge of the 21st. In marked contrast to the Cold War, in which 9 successive US administrations pursued the common policy of containment against the Soviet Union, the war after September 11 was characterized by the absence of a strategic consensus. President George Bush had a strategic vision; and the Democrats an endless supply of peanuts which they were prepared to pitch from the gallery.

Once the Danish cartoon crisis threatened to knock the props out from under President Bush's limited war on Islamic renegades and escalate it to a "clash of civilizations" the barrenness of the Lefist intellectual cupboard became obvious even to themselves. There was no recipe to deal with this contingency. A "clash of civilizations" would pull matters from their grasp precisely because they refused to touch it in the first place. They could only continue to pretend Islamism didn't exist; and so they thrust their heads into the sand even further. The Danish cartoons? What cartoons?

The portion I bolded encapsulates my major objection to the democratic candidates that have been produced since 9/11. Until there is a clear alternative plan or a unified policy on terrorism, every candidate the democrats throw up is still going to be scarier to me than even the dreaded Bush himself. Why? Because the evil that we know is best. (no, I didn't pen that -- it was Titus Maccius Plautus).

Thursday, Bloody Thursday

As unexpected as a tsunami, the ramifications of the talks breakdown between the NFLPA and the owners are already starting to be felt. As Len Paquaurelli puts it:

By Thursday, however, when the real-world ramifications of the failed labor talks become more apparent, fans in a lot of NFL precincts will take notice. With negotiations toward an extension having broken off Tuesday afternoon -- despite earlier optimistic reports that the sides were poised to strike an agreement -- salary cap managers from several franchises are readying themselves for what one general manager suggested late Tuesday will come to be known as "Bloody Thursday."

Translation: Because so many teams are up against the projected cap limit of $95 million to $96 million for 2006, and the lack of a CBA extension means there are few options for relief, some big-name players will be jettisoned by Thursday, when teams must be in compliance with the spending limit.

How bad will it get? For some teams, this is the tolling of the bell...

How drastic? There continue to be rumors the Washington Redskins, who extended numerous contracts in the past to deal with previous cap crunches, could have to play with 20 rookies on the roster in 2006. On Tuesday night in Atlanta, there were rumblings the Falcons, who aren't in nearly the dire straits some other franchises are, might be forced to release tailback Warrick Dunn, who rushed for a career-best 1,416 yards in 2005. The Kansas City Chiefs could part ways with perennial Pro Bowl guard Will Shields if he doesn't agree to adjust his contract and reduce a $6.67 million cap charge. And that is just the start of the many examples of potential attrition cited by team officials Tuesday evening.

So who will be most and least affected? ESPN has a list as of yesterday of teams in the black and the red. See if you can find yours on the 'good' list:Well, the Bills are under, just barely, so that's good. Most interesting to me is the Eagles' situation. Last year the management took a lot of ribbing for being tight-fisted with salaries and ruthless with contracts, especially in light of the T.O. fiasco (who won't be demanding any money from anyone after this day). Well, now it just looks like damn good money management and keen foresight. Granted, no one could foresee that things would go this bad, but if you are on the 'naughty' list below, you are getting blindsided.Does this really mean that teams are going to be cutting some of their best players? It's already happening as of 9 A.M. this morning:

• The Bills, who entered Wednesday $2 million under the $92 million salary cap, made their second major cut of the offseason by releasing former Pro Bowl defensive tackle Sam Adams.
• The Panthers cleared $4.64 million of cap room Wednesday by releasing three veterans -- running back Stephen Davis, running back Rod Smart and defensive tackle Brentson Buckner.
• The Broncos released three starters -- defensive end Trevor Pryce, running back Mike Anderson and tight end Jeb Putzier in moves that pull the team within a couple of millions of the salary cap.
• Forced to slash contracts in order to get under the salary cap for 2006, the Miami Dolphins on Wednesday released four veterans, the most notable of which was four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Sam Madison.

And there is certainly more to come. For the local sports fans, the sad news is that the Redskins are almost certainly going to cut LaVar Arrington. Maybe the Eagles can sign him for a pittance. So what is the bottom line? Some are saying it is doomsday, some are saying it's a good thing. I think it's exciting and interesting to see how this shakes up the rosters for next year. I think it's good to have a little revolution now and then.

UPDATE: ESPN has listed possible and probably cuts for every team.

UPDATE THE SECOND: This morning the NFL owners unanimously rejected the latest NFLPA proposal. Teams continue to feel the urge to purge. Question: with Green Bay way over the salary cap, will they cut Favre?

My kind of band

It's been a long time since I've heard a local band that caught my ear. Last night, in the midst of my Mardi Grasing (new verb?), I attended a performance at the Clarendon Grill of a band called Naked Grace. This was such a band.

At first glance, a typical cover band, playing probably one original for every 2-3 covers (the proper ratio, in my less-than-humble opinion, to keep any new audience interested). They were a very capable band, with strong originals, but what made me notice (and get excited) were their covers of 90's alternative songs. And not your typical, heavy air-play covers, but less known, tight numbers. I've been known to be blase about pop, country, hip-hop, ska, funk, you name it. Even today's 'alternative' music by and large is a mere shadow of what it once was. Of course, you are going to get that when you had 'alternative' go mainstream in the early 90's, by far the best era for alt-rock.

Naked Grace played a lot of covers from that golden era. Two that I was very impressed to hear were Galaxie from Blind Melon's Soup album and The Bends, the title track from Radiohead's The Bends LP. Neither received a lot of airplay on college radio when they were released, but they remain two of my favorite songs from that era. The latter, most notably, is my favorite Radiohead song of all time. To actually hear another human other than Thom Yorke belt out the soaring lyrics at the end of the song (and do it well) was damn cool.

In short, in the course of a few hours of drinking, they got themselves another groupie. Check out their site for a few samples of their originals.