Debating the debates
Lincoln and Douglas who? In case you missed them, here are the topics Jim and Anthony have debated in the first three-plus weeks of the two-man Final Score. If you click on "April archives" over to the right, you can scroll down and read all of them.
--Should Islanders fire Ted Nolan?
--Did Sean Avery cross the line with his waving?
--Should the Yankees retire Paul O’Neill’s No. 21?
--Should Mark Jackson be the next Knicks coach?
--Should Joba Chamberlain become a starter now?
--Who hurts him team more: Delgado or Giambi?
What Jim and I are wondering is: Who's winning?
Maybe some of our regulars (Brooks Simpson, Chicago Norm, Mushinghead, Jim A.) can give us a scorecard.
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Comments (1)
Winning the debates is different than whether I agree with the argument, and in fact both of you usually have a telling point or two. For example, I agree with Anthony that it's nonsense to retire O'Neill's number (setting aside his notion of length of service to entitle one's number to be retired), but Jim's right when it comes to the argument that if they are going to retire it, then retire it. That nonsense from Cashman sounds like "he's not a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but I'll vote for him later."
I still give that one to Anthony, although he lost points for his foolishness: 8-6 (out of ten...think boxing with real scoring, not an automatic 10)
On Nolan, I agree with Anthony that Nolan's getting dumped on, but unless he buys into "the plan," we're wasting our time with him (and, as Jim says, he'll go elsewhere and do a fine job). Jim squeaks it out, 8-7, although I'd rather keep Nolan.
On Avery, having played hockey, I know the difference between being an agitator/instigator and a bush leaguer, and Avery falls into the latter category. He actually has some talent, as he showed in the NJ series. So I go with Jim, 7-5, although Anthony deseves credit for recognizing Avery's creative streak. The real question should have been ... were the Devils right in not knocking him down? And what about the NHL making a t-shirt for the whole thing? Will the next one be "Steve Moore: Feeling Run Down? Take two Bertuzzis and call me in the morning"?
But when it comes to Delgado and Giambi, Anthony squeezes out the 7-6 win, because Giambi is Farnsworth in the field. Giambi is just teasing us, Jim, with his homer last night. He read what I said. Jason, be a real Yankee and tuck in your jersey.
Chamberlain? Sorry, Anthony, but here you know I think Jim's got the better of the argument for now. That's 8-6 for him. But you may be right come June 15. As it is, with Detroit and Cleveland struggling, I'm not too worried right now ... although I also think it will be a mixed blessing if the Yankees edge into the postseason again followed by a first round ouster. Maybe we need to take a step back to take two forward.
Finally, Mark Jackson. Who really cares? The Knicks are horrible. Jackson won't be a good coach. But he will be a sacrificial lamb. So I give it to Anthony, 2-1, in a tribute to his cynical mean streak over Jim's kind and thoughtful response, which all those Islanders fans wanted from him during the Arbour fiasco. Be consistent, Jim. :)