no fun, national anthem

The No Fun League

So, the NFL fined Terrell Owens $7500 for his end zone celebration last Sunday. Following a touchdown he scored during the Cowboys' game against Miami, Owens propped himself against the goal post and pretended to use the football as a video camera, "filming" signals in the manner of the New England Patriots. All I can say is, "Where the hell is the NFL's sense of humor?" Sure, football is about sportsmanship and being a team player and all that, but isn't it also about entertainment? I don't know about you, but I sure got a good laugh out of it. Why not just hand out the 15-yard penalty (which in itself is probably even a tad too harsh), let the Cowboys' coaching staff handle the situation as they see fit, and be done with it? The moniker "No Fun League" -- as some are referring to the NFL these days -- certainly seems appropriate here.


The "National Anthem of Texas"?

I recently received a Texas Music newsletter which contained a link to a Lone Star Beer promotion. Lone Star is encouraging music fans to help select the "national anthem of Texas" Participants are presented with a list of a few dozen "Texas" songs to choose from -- from classics by Bob Wills, Willie and Waylon, and Tanya Tucker to lesser known, more contemporary tunes by Cooder Graw and Cory Morrow. I scrolled down the list, planning to enter a quick vote for Pat Green's "I Like Texas". Alas, it wasn't listed (although some other Pat Green songs were). I was trying to figure out why, and then it occurred to me that in "I Like Texas", Mr. Green voices a preference for a competing brand: "I like to pick my guitar down in Luckenbach, and drink that Shiner Bock beer..." I guess that was enough for the folks at Lone Star to scratch it off the list. Too bad, 'cause it's a great Texas song. Sure, you can argue about Pat Green being a sellout and appealing to the lowest common denominator of Texas music fans and all that, but it's still a good song (and from his pre-sellout days, at that). I was glad to see that Doug Sahm's "Beautiful Texas Sunshine" made the list -- it's one of my favorite "Texas" themed songs. But I don't see it being a "national anthem" type of song. So in the end, I ended up not voting. "I Like Texas" really should have been one of the choices, even if it does advertise a superior product.

I actually remember the last time I drank a Lone Star -- probably seven or eight years ago at an Old 97s concert at the Ridglea. A guy offered to buy me a beer if I saved his spot for him while he went to the bar. When I agreed, he asked "what are you drinking?" I held up my Lone Star can and he asked, "Why are you drinking that?"
"'Cause it's cheap." (Lone Stars were a buck-seventy-five at the Ridglea; every other brand was at least two-fifty).
The guy insisted on returning from the bar with something other than a Lone Star. "Well, do you drink anything else?"
"Sure, how about a Shiner?"

WSC

np: Junior Brown - "Semi Crazy"

nr: Ayn Rand - the Fountainhead