If you simply look beneath the surface then you realize what is really wrong.
by tophatal
So much was made of the IPO (initial public offering) for the social media platform company Facebook . The investment banks and venture capital institutions were not only singing the company founder’s praises , that Mark Zuckerberg , who was heralded and thought of as the Steve Jobs of this modern era. Instead, what we are now finding out is that this company is built like a deck of cards . All that is needed for this all to come falling down, is one seismic and volatile shift in the market by institutional investors and that whole piece of crap comes tumbling down . In the time it that it took the initial-public-offering to be gobbled up and non-too successfully I might add , the share price has dropped in excess of 35 % of its original tender offer with the market capitalization of the company being devalued in excess of 60% . And that in turn, that has led to hundreds of millions of dollars being wiped off the shareholders’ stakes and investment portfolios. Beyond the advertising revenues does anyone truly comprehend how Facebook makes its money? Not only that but the company continues to alienate many of its subscribers by way of the changes made and what appears to be the surreptitious means by which they collect and disseminate much of the personal information it gathers .
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Slide show.
Public companies , are no more secretive than that of a private enterprise , albeit that both are asked to operate under differing standards. However, what should not be delineated from are the matters of ethics and the morals of the executives who preside of these companies. The criteria set by the SEC (Securities & Exchange Commission) in order to denote a public company that is traded on the NYSE , is that it should have at a minimum 500 shareholders , be they private or institutional stakeholders.
Consider, the NFL, and that of its franchises/teams, and the way that it operates. Led by a commissioner , in this case Roger Goodell , whose appointment has to be approved by its hierarchy , essentially a body that is made up of the league’s 32 team owners . What the fans have now come to find out, has been the very fact that the league shows no transparency with which it operates . Back-door , secretive negotiations and the very fact that the NFL cajoles municipalities to undertake greater financial burdens as a way blackmailing those very cities and ensuring its retention within those markets . I have read some rather asinine slant on why professional sports franchises benefits a community and the additional revenues they bring to a municipality. In large part that is true but what is not clearly stated , has been the way these agreements between those cities and a hierarchy can be so slanted to favor that sporting body , rather than it being a shared responsibility by the parties concerned . Case in point, with the turn of events within the Minnesota state legislature , it now guarantees that the state will have to bear the vast majority of the financial burden in building the new stadium that will house the state’s only NFL franchise . Somehow, from being a staunch opponent of using public funds to finance the almost $1.3 billion venture for the Minnesota Vikings , state governor Mark Dayton has acquiesced and signed into law a bill , that will lead to the financing of a new stadium . How this is all viewed in the eyes of the state’s residents while the Minnesota , itself, staves off financial ruination , having ran up budget deficits in excess of $5 billion ($5,000,000,000) does seem somewhat ridiculous. State employees are either being laid off , furloughed or simply being asked to work but at a reduced pay scale . Oh, these politicians on both sides of the political aisle, simply too f##king stupid for their own good ! Vikings’ team owner , Zygi Wilf comes up smelling of roses , even if in large part, he and his partners will only have to fund this deal with no more than $200 million of their own money to facilitate the building of the new structure . WTF!
Is there now really any need to go over the event leading up the New Orleans Saints’ bounty scandal ? Other than to suggest that both league and NFL franchise , have seen their images damaged irrefutably beyond repair . No one ultimately comes out of this situation looking good. Certainly not anyone, within the front office of the Saints’ organization, including team owner, Tom Benson, the coaching and entire playing staff. And for the owner , I have to wonder at times whether not he is truly cognizant of what it happening within his very midst .
The upheaval that has taken place with coaching , player , executive suspensions and the loss of draft picked as adjudicated by Roger Goodell , has done little to quell this situation. Goodell , could still find himself on the wrong end of a legal suit if things still play themselves out as they currently are . The league has offered an olive branch to Jonathan Vilma , whose lawsuit filed against the NFL and the commissioner as the two lead defendants in his defamation lawsuit , has me wondering how the hell did things get this far . Is there no common sense to be now found from anyone within the NFL , at this present moment in time ? The NFL commissioner has simply sought to sell the league as a money-making enterprise , with little concern for anything else , other than the billions it derives by way of its numerous commercial ventures and the television deals , that with each passing contract sees those values appreciate while the on-field talent becomes more diluted and mediocre.
The divergent paths taken by the Minnesota Vikings over the past five years indicates what can happen when you have no real idea what the hell you are doing . Last season the Vikings were an eyesore both on and off the field of play. At 3-13 , the words ___ “can be considered dangerous to one’s heath” had to be applicable to head coach , Leslie Frazier’s — team . I am not saying that the Vikings were bad but if there was an award offered by the NFL for futility , then the franchise would clearly be the runaway winners of the accolade .In 2012, it rings in a new chapter for the franchise, as they seek to re-address their problems of last year. The “ only way is up” as they say , and the distance that this team now has to travel is almost as wide as the Sargasso Sea . Everything this season as it relates to the Vikings will have to go through the Green Bay Packers , and that premise is also applicable to the Chicago Bears . I’m sorry but as long as Aaron Rodgers is breathing and is six feet above ground , then the more difficult the task becomes for both the Bears and Minnesota Vikings to topple that team (Packers) .
Christian Ponder will be entrusted with the quarterback duties duties for the team in 2012, and I might hasten to add that although he has shown some poise in a number games played , he still remains a long way off from where Leslie Frazier and the coaching staff desires him to be . Ponder’s first test in the preseason , will be when the Vikings face the San Francisco 49ers , in Candlestick Park, San Francisco , California , this upcoming Friday . GM Rick Spielman has sought to use the franchise’s draft picks productively, in order to bolster the roster as well making a number of off-season free agency acquisitions . It should prove to be intriguing as to the progress made by Christian Ponder , as he seeks to make his claim as rising quarterback star within the NFL . A first round , twelfth pick overall from the 2011 NFL Draft , many felt that the former standout quarterback from Florida State was drafted far too high but in what might well have been an act of desperation on the path of the Minnesota Vikings , it has led the player to his present situation . Given his recent predecessors playing the quarterback position , I believe that the player cannot do any worse than the likes of Joe Webb , Tavaris Jackson , Donovan McNabb or a declining Brett Favre, during the latter stages of his career . As we know the way Favre bowed out of the NFL , was somewhat distasteful and undistinguished but these are but a few of the downsides to an otherwise phenomenal career. The biggest hurdle for the Vikings is to now engineer a swift return to full health one the NFL’s most impactful player , in running back , Adrian Peterson . As he goes , then so will this franchise over the course of this season . Anything short of Peterson not being fully fit , and you might as well count the Vikings out, as being a legitimate contender within the NFC . It has been three years since the Minnesota Vikings made an appearance in the postseason , which last came in 2009 . The team would ultimately fall to the New Orleans Saints in the NFC title game , losing 34-28 , in that now infamous match-up, that in part led to the events of the Saints’ bounty scandal.
The NFC North will not be ripe for the picking, as all roads will have to go through Lambeau Field , in Green Bay , Wisconsin , home to the Green Bay Packers . And anyone under the misapprehension that Mike McCarthy and his team are about to will lay down like lambs to the slaughter , had better think again . The secondary of the Packers were undistinguished last season, ranking near the bottom in a number of categories . And while there was no denying that the offense of the team was simply prolific , the needs of franchise rested squarely upon shoring up that porous defense . This is where GM Ted Thomson , Mike McCarthy and the coaching staff simply refocused their efforts in bolstering the roster strategically. Get the feeling that this season with the Green Bay Packers we won’t be seeing a repeat from this team defensively , as evidenced in 2011 ? Your thoughts on the matter with regard to the Packers’ defense ?
A colleague and I , were discussing the astonishing sale price of $800 million paid by a consortium in the purchase of the San Diego Padres . The family of the late Walter O’Malley and PGA Tour golfer Phil Mickelson , not only surprised the vast majority of baseball fans and MLB analysts by paying that exorbitant sum . It now leads me to believe that the game , economically , has lost all credibility ! The Padres are not the Los Angeles Dodgers or the Los Angeles Angels or Texas Rangers , for that matter . Yet somehow , a barely competitive baseball franchise in this day and age can realize almost a billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) as a sale price ? Are you kidding me ? Padres’ senior managing partners John Moores , Jeff Moorad are now laughing all the way to the bank as the recipients of this mountain of cash that will be coming their way , in the sale of the team . The deal now awaits league approval , of which I do not believe that it will be denied . Baseball (MLB) will now welcome its newest owners in the guise of Phil Mickelson and his partners .
Speaking of professional sports franchises that need to be sold ! Is it not time that the Maloofs sell their interest in the Sacramento Kings , altogether , ran than continuing to dupe their fans and city officials , who continue buy into the bull#hit that Joe and Gavin Maloof are selling ? Pardon me for saying this but at what point has bull#hit been able to look more alluring than the odor emanating from the Power Balance Arena in Sacramento ? Is there anyone actually now showing a blind bit of interest in a mismanaged and uncompetitive franchise , such as the Kings ? And for their besotted fans who yearn for years past , forget about it . As they are long gone !
Another franchise that I continue to have my doubts about , are the San Diego Chargers ! Bemoan as I might, the ineptitude continually shown by GM AJ Smith and head coach Norv Turner . I have to readily admit, nothing gives me greater pleasure concerning the NFL , than to hear the Chargers’ fans explain away their team’s woes . Think Oakland Raiders’ fan but with even less intelligence . I kid you not , the San Diego Chargers fans are now more willing to accept futility than even the fans bold enough to say that they support the Kansas City Royals . And anyone who knows of that baseball franchise’s —— ineptitude in terms of a lack of success , can argue the fact that while those fans will always point to the fact that they are building towards the future . I would question when, and where in the future are they looking towards seeking success? Chargers’ fans please take note.
Norv Turner still seems content to ride on the coat-tails of the success achieved as subordinate of famed college and NFL coach Jimmy Johnson For Turner, his professional career as an NFL coach has been filled with lean years . In terms of his tenure with the Chargers , it would not be remiss to suggest the teams in question have achieved little of notoriety during the regular or postseason . Now with the fans lamenting those woes the desperation that now encompasses the franchise has left many wondering whether or not there should be an upheaval in the hierarchy of the franchise and amongst the coaching staff .
Alex Spanos , patriarch of the family, who owns the franchise, has handed over the reins to his son, Dean Spanos . The lean years have remained the Chargers’ fan-base seems to be declining . Qualcomm Stadium, home the franchise has become a decaying structure that has long outlived its usefulness. Dean Spanos has tried to negotiate terms wherein the San Diego city council would facilitate the building of a new state of the art structure to house the franchise. Given the dire economic situation that faces the municipality as well as the entire state of California, it seems highly unlikely that either the state or the city council would finance such a venture. With the city of Los Angeles yearning for the return of an NFL franchise , it would appear that the Chargers are the most likely option for the return of football to the nation’s second most populated city and home to the second largest ad-market in the nation. Untold millions are part the trove that awaits a franchise but at what cost to a city from a financial standpoint? And therein, lays the dilemma that faces so many cities that now houses a professional sports’ franchise across the country. Do they use the resources of their cities to facilitate the needs of multimillionaires and billionaires , especially in light of so many state , county and municipal agencies facing budgetary deficits . There are currently twenty-three cities within the state of California facing a budgetary crunch , with at least 7 , who are said to be considering declaring bankruptcy (Chapter 9) . Care to now hazard a guess as to the financial plight of the city of Los Angles and that of the state of California ? Well you would be correct in guessing that the finances of both are so acute, that neither Los Angeles city Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa or Governor Jerry Brown has a god-damn clue , as to how best to address those issues .
Whether not San Diego Chargers is relocated to the greater Los Angeles city area must be a decision left in the hands of the Spanos family. Their biggest concern has to be immediacy of this season and how this team goes about acquitting themselves during their 2012 schedule . For Philip Rivers , in his eighth season with the franchise , it has proven to be a career filled with highs and lows . The quarterback taken as the fourth pick overall in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft by the Chargers . Much of what we have witnessed by this organization over the years has to be one of amazement , as to why this franchise simply continues to come up short when it matters most.
The first test facing the Chargers as they embark upon their quest in 2012 , will be to get through their preseason schedule . They will play hosts to the Green Bay Packers at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego , California , on Friday 9th August , 2012. Though the preseason is not often thought to be competitive , this will give the Chargers’ rookies a chance to prove themselves to their new employers . And for players such as Melvin Ingram, Kendall Reyes , Brandon Taylor, LaDarius Green, Johnnie Troutman , David Molk and Edwin Baker , this now becomes their “baptism of fire”. For Norv Turner and the embattled AJ Smith , this may well be the last chance for the duo to prove their worth to the Chargers’ fans and NFL at large .
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Picture gallery.
Which of the salient points within this article do you believe raises an issue which in your opinion best gives credence as to what we ought to expect from the NFL this upcoming season ? By all means simply leave a comment as you see fit and thanks as always for the continued support of this site.
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Picture and slide show details below for your perusal.
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(1) Mark Zuckerberg , CEO & co-founder of social media platform of Facebook.com. The tech phenom has seen the market capitalization of the company drop precipitously , with $4.5 billion being wiped off the estimated $15.75 billion personal fortune of Zuckerberg. AP Photo/ Kris Patton …….
(2) Christian Ponder (7) of the Minnesota Vikings passes against the Houston Texans in the first half on September 1, 2011 at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Hannah Foslien / Getty Images North America ….
(3) SAN DIEGO, CA – AUGUST 8: Will Venable (25) of the San Diego Padres hits an RBI double during the second inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs at Petco Park on August 8, 2012 in San Diego, California. The Padres would go on to defeat the Cubs 2-0 . Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images …
(4) FILE – This May 29, 2012 file photo shows San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers warming up during NFL football training in San Diego. The Chargers have missed the postseason for two straight seasons and have one playoff win in the last four years. That victory came in a 23-17 victory over the Indianapolis Colts in the wildcard round of the 2008 NFL Playoffs . AP Photo/Gregory Bull …..
(5) PGA Tour golfer Phil Mickelson , seen here taking batting practice in the cages at Petco Park , San Diego , California . Mickelson along with the members of the O’Malley family have purchased the San Diego Padres for a reputed $ 800 million . The sale awaits the league hierarchy approval , pending a vote by MLB and team owners . Jeff Moorad and John Moores will relinquish control of the embattled franchise , which has struggled to remain competitive within the NL West in recent years . AP Photo / Chris Henson …
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For other sports’ related pieces within this , merely click unto the link provided
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NFL preseason schedule ….. & ….. week 1
NFL regular season schedule (2012-13)
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MLB standings & …… wildcard standings
MLB probable pitchers 9th August 2012
San Diego Padres overview & …. team results
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