I have a few hours to waste on a Saturday afternoon at FOX Sports in the highlights room on floor 4 as I watch the defending NL champions blow another game.

I came across this story in my daily news browsing. It really amazes me that as a country we are so far behind when it comes to issues of climate change and global warming. It upsets me just as much when people say "things can still be done but we have to act now" but then continue to do nothing. I think civilization actually has taken the first steps toward a complete change in the way we live. I understand that these changes will take time, but how much time can we afford to sit back and do nothing. I also think that by the time my life is over these changes will make life dramatically different than it is today. We will look back at this time as the 'old days' and also as a time when things began to change, but hadn't yet turned the corner. In the 2008 election this is the most important issue to me because it is linked to so many other issues. The energy crisis links the economy, the war, oil prices, food prices, unemployment, our future as a country and a species. There are great minds out there, and there are people who want to alter the way things are done. We just need to give them more of shot to compete against the powerful hierarchy that already exists.

Enough for my rant on politics/current events.

This story about the 3-point line moving back one foot in college basketball. I found this interesting because I think it actually may hurt the quality of play. Mediocre college bball is pretty tough to watch. For the players that weren't all that good at basketball to begin with, this rule isn't going to help in any way.

Kyle Ringo's blog on the Buffs being one of the youngest teams in the country. I don't really think you can read too much into this because CU was a team with loads of seniors and juniors a few times in the past decade and underaccomplished. With CU this year they must simply win the games they are supposed to win and compete into the 4th quarter in the ones they aren't supposed to win. Easier said than done, but that is the next step for CU this season. If the Buffs(or any team) can follow the 'win the ones your supposed to' theory, and also have superior talent (see 2009 and 2010 seasons for CU) they will compete for a conference title and then ultimately a national title. For the 2008 season Coach Hawk will have more talent and more understanding with his players than most of the coaches in the Big 12 North.

Speaking of Coach Hawk...his blog is a must-read. Hawk is an old-school guy but his approach to life is amazing. He believes in doing things the way they should be done. He doesn't believe in taking shortcuts or only doing something half-way. He is an amazing speaker in person and if you ever have the chance to see him don't pass it up. I learned a ton about life from my season spent around coach Hawkins.

Dave Plati, the CU SID also keeps a blog and probably has been doing so since well before the word blog was even created. Dave might be the most connected person in Colorado sports media. A great guy with some great insight on things in general and especially CU sports/history.
My final thought is about the Superclasico 2008 Version #2. It was really cool to see Roberto Burling play on the same field as David Beckham and Landon Donovan. The only thing that I could come up with to compare Bob being on the same field as an icon he had followed through a career would be if I stepped onto the court at some NBA arena on national televison and tried to hoop with Lebron. Let's just say that probably wouldn't work out as well as Bob's experience did.

As for the game; the HDC was sold out and the game was as big as they get in the MLS. I thought Bob played really well. Although I don't know all that much about the technicalities of soccer, I can see that he is more comfortable with the speed of the game, his role on the team and his abilities each time he goes out there. There was one challenge just outside the 18 yard box during the first half that I don't see too many people make in the MLS. They just aren't physcial enough, quick enough or are just afraid to get a penalty. There was also a header off of a corner/set piece that I think Bob would like to have back. From my angle behind the goal he had a good look that could have been put on frame with some force. Overall probably up there with his best 1 or 2 performances so far. The best that I've seen were the Thursday night game against Chicago and maybe the game against New England and/or the game in New York (All ESPN televised games except New England).