Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Merry Christmas,Everybody!!!!
I will likely not post again before Christmas. I want to wish everybody a very Blessed and Merry Christmas. Enjoy your time with friends and family,but most of all,remember the greatest Gift of all,God's Only Son Jesus Christ. Jesus gives true happiness and eternal life to all who receive Him. God bless you.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Why NASCAR Does Not Wish You Merry Christmas
There are many reasons to boycott NASCAR. One of them is NASCAR's refusal to recognize Christmas in their advertising. NASCAR only says "holiday" in their promotions. According to the American Family Association (AFA),a Christian and pro-family organization,NASCAR is a "company against Christmas". I absolutely and completely agree. These hypocrites want to make money off Christmas but refuse to recognize its existence. NASCAR does not want to offend a small minority but they do not mind offending the overwhelming majority of NASCAR fans who celebrate Christmas. NASCAR has obviously been brainwashed by the cult of political correctness as sadly many areas of society have been in recent years.
Between the "Drive For Diversity" nonsense,and the adoption of Obamaesque "biofuels" by NASCAR,it is obvious that political correctness has overtaken NASCAR. This goes along with NASCAR's abandonment and betrayal of working class Southern fans who put NASCAR on the map. Now, NASCAR parrots race baiters and race hustlers who lie about the Confederate flag,culminating in idiotic statements by Brian France in a TV interview. NASCAR's refusal to recognize Christmas is yet another another clear sign of how political correctness has overrun NASCAR.
Boycott NASCAR! Hit 'em where it hurts. We will have no more of their garbage.
Between the "Drive For Diversity" nonsense,and the adoption of Obamaesque "biofuels" by NASCAR,it is obvious that political correctness has overtaken NASCAR. This goes along with NASCAR's abandonment and betrayal of working class Southern fans who put NASCAR on the map. Now, NASCAR parrots race baiters and race hustlers who lie about the Confederate flag,culminating in idiotic statements by Brian France in a TV interview. NASCAR's refusal to recognize Christmas is yet another another clear sign of how political correctness has overrun NASCAR.
Boycott NASCAR! Hit 'em where it hurts. We will have no more of their garbage.
Friday, December 3, 2010
The Real State Of NASCAR
In recent blog posts, I have been very outspoken in my criticism of NASCAR's practices of recent years and finally had my fill when NASCAR successfully engineered Jimmie Johnson's fifth consecutive championship.
In addition to NASCAR's blatant favoritism of driver Jimmie Johnson and his crew chief,Chad Knaus,there are other factors that I and many other fans are increasingly disgusted with. The Chase is another factor that has given us the train wreck that is NASCAR. NASCAR CEO Brian France wants to expand the Chase to 15 drivers with some sort of "eliminate as you go" scenario,sort of like the playoffs in stick and ball sports. This is the most absurd idea that Mr.France has come up with and that speaks volumes considering the lunacy of his other ideas,including the Chase itself. Mr.France is expected to unveil his folly next month. Apparently,he does not get the message that fans are fed up with the Chase and want it abolished. Either that or Mr.France is in denial. Under the old points system,the same driver would not have won the Cup championship the past five seasons. Eliminating the so called Car Of Tomorrow,or COT,would be another way of bringing back exciting and more competitive racing.
NASCAR claims to be a fan-driven sport and says they are fan-friendly but if they truly listened to the fans,the sport would not be in serious trouble as it is now with declining attendance at races and falling TV ratings. These factors came into play long before the economy tanked. If NASCAR was actually receptive to the fans,they would not show mockery of and contempt toward the fans and not force things on us that we do not want and are obviously not good for the sport. But NASCAR has been overcome by arrogance and condescension toward the fans,undoubtedly contributing to its eventual demise.
Other things that might win back lost fans include returning the Nationwide series to its original purpose,which is preparing up and coming talent for the Cup series. NASCAR should restrict participation by Cup drivers in the Nationwide series. NASCAR should restrict how many Cup drivers can race in a Nationwide race and how many Nationwide races per season a Cup driver can race in. Cup drivers should not be eligible for driver or championship points,only team owner points.
While women and minorities should obviously be allowed to race in NASCAR, affirmative action programs such as the Drive For Diversity are not the way of doing it. Just like their white male counterparts,female and minority drivers should have to earn their positions in races,not have it given to them. NASCAR is exercising the same sort of reverse discrimination that has discriminated against white males in society for many years. Like the Apostle Peter denying the Lord Jesus Christ, Brian France wants NASCAR denying its Southern roots and betraying the working class Southern fans who made the sport popular. Like Judas Iscariot,Brian France has shown himself as a sellout. Not allowing drivers to speak their minds,after drivers Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin were essentially censored by NASCAR earlier this year after merely stating their opinions,has been to NASCAR's detriment. Drivers are no longer allowed to speak from their hearts by NASCAR. Gone are the fist fights of days gone by,such as the Allison brothers/Yarborough brawl at the 1979 Daytona 500. As is evidenced by the decline in race attendance and plummeting TV ratings,political correctness is killing NASCAR.
This brings us to the question,should fans boycott NASCAR? Well,I would say a boycott would send a message but at this point,NASCAR is destroying itself,as is evidenced by declining race attendance and falling TV ratings. A boycott would certainly add to NASCAR's woes. If millions of fans organized a boycott, NASCAR would probably cave,though not necessarily out of devotion to the fans,but as a means of saving themselves from bankruptcy and obliteration. I support whatever works to get NASCAR back to being the exciting,competitive,and all-American sport it originally was. There is still hope for NASCAR, but unfortunately time is running out.
In addition to NASCAR's blatant favoritism of driver Jimmie Johnson and his crew chief,Chad Knaus,there are other factors that I and many other fans are increasingly disgusted with. The Chase is another factor that has given us the train wreck that is NASCAR. NASCAR CEO Brian France wants to expand the Chase to 15 drivers with some sort of "eliminate as you go" scenario,sort of like the playoffs in stick and ball sports. This is the most absurd idea that Mr.France has come up with and that speaks volumes considering the lunacy of his other ideas,including the Chase itself. Mr.France is expected to unveil his folly next month. Apparently,he does not get the message that fans are fed up with the Chase and want it abolished. Either that or Mr.France is in denial. Under the old points system,the same driver would not have won the Cup championship the past five seasons. Eliminating the so called Car Of Tomorrow,or COT,would be another way of bringing back exciting and more competitive racing.
NASCAR claims to be a fan-driven sport and says they are fan-friendly but if they truly listened to the fans,the sport would not be in serious trouble as it is now with declining attendance at races and falling TV ratings. These factors came into play long before the economy tanked. If NASCAR was actually receptive to the fans,they would not show mockery of and contempt toward the fans and not force things on us that we do not want and are obviously not good for the sport. But NASCAR has been overcome by arrogance and condescension toward the fans,undoubtedly contributing to its eventual demise.
Other things that might win back lost fans include returning the Nationwide series to its original purpose,which is preparing up and coming talent for the Cup series. NASCAR should restrict participation by Cup drivers in the Nationwide series. NASCAR should restrict how many Cup drivers can race in a Nationwide race and how many Nationwide races per season a Cup driver can race in. Cup drivers should not be eligible for driver or championship points,only team owner points.
While women and minorities should obviously be allowed to race in NASCAR, affirmative action programs such as the Drive For Diversity are not the way of doing it. Just like their white male counterparts,female and minority drivers should have to earn their positions in races,not have it given to them. NASCAR is exercising the same sort of reverse discrimination that has discriminated against white males in society for many years. Like the Apostle Peter denying the Lord Jesus Christ, Brian France wants NASCAR denying its Southern roots and betraying the working class Southern fans who made the sport popular. Like Judas Iscariot,Brian France has shown himself as a sellout. Not allowing drivers to speak their minds,after drivers Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin were essentially censored by NASCAR earlier this year after merely stating their opinions,has been to NASCAR's detriment. Drivers are no longer allowed to speak from their hearts by NASCAR. Gone are the fist fights of days gone by,such as the Allison brothers/Yarborough brawl at the 1979 Daytona 500. As is evidenced by the decline in race attendance and plummeting TV ratings,political correctness is killing NASCAR.
This brings us to the question,should fans boycott NASCAR? Well,I would say a boycott would send a message but at this point,NASCAR is destroying itself,as is evidenced by declining race attendance and falling TV ratings. A boycott would certainly add to NASCAR's woes. If millions of fans organized a boycott, NASCAR would probably cave,though not necessarily out of devotion to the fans,but as a means of saving themselves from bankruptcy and obliteration. I support whatever works to get NASCAR back to being the exciting,competitive,and all-American sport it originally was. There is still hope for NASCAR, but unfortunately time is running out.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Is NASCAR Betraying Mostly Conservative Fan Base?
I found an interesting article written about a month ago by JR Dieckmann. While I do not agree with everything Mr.Dieckmann writes in the article, he makes some excellent points.
NASCAR Turning Hard Left, And Not Just On The Track
By JR Dieckmann
First with Nascar’s "Drive for Diversity" program, created in 2004, and now with the introduction of EC-15 biofuel in Nascar racing, the organization seems to be moving toward the liberal agenda. I have been unable to find any evidence of the Soros-Obama administration putting pressure on Nascar but I am not convinced that it isn't happening. For one thing, government owned GM and Chrysler are major financial contributors to Nascar. In the Soros-Obama administration, the money comes with a price. Another thing that connects Nascar with Obama is a recent "anti-texting while driving campaign". Who could object to that?
If Nascar is not being threatened or pressured by the Soros-Obama administration, then the problem would seem to be with the current Nascar CEO, Brian France, son of Bill France Jr. and grandson of William France Sr., founder of Nascar in 1948. Brian France became Nascar CEO in 2003. Brian is a marketing genius who has taken the sport from the southeast to international status. But does he really understand the Nascar heritage and what Nascar fans want?
Apparently, Brian must be a liberal or a fool for green energy. He appears to have little or no understanding of the origins of Nascar and the founding principles of the racing organization. He appears to be trying to comply with the Obama agenda, which goes against everything Nascar has always stood for. On the other hand, maybe he’s just looking for a share of stimulus money, which is unlikely since he is worth billions between Nascar and his other business interests. France also owns Brandsense Partners, a Los Angeles based company whose clients include Halle Berry, Sheryl Crow, Jenny McCarthy, the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.
The “Drive for Diversity” website states: “Drive for Diversity is the industry’s leading development program for minority and female drivers and crew members.” Why should minorities and women be given special opportunities in Nascar? Why is this competition not open to white men? If it was any other group being excluded, there would be all kinds of charges of discrimination. I can’t wait to see a woman tire changer or “jack-man” on someone’s crew. With all of the minority groups created by the left, the one minority group always ignored is the white male minority.
Stock car racing is a man's sport, not a fashion show. Women have no place on a Nascar track, yet today's Camping World Truck Series race has three women drivers, getting in the way of the male drivers. Danica Patrick has been a real failure in the Nascar Nationwide Series in spite of Nascar and the media making such a big deal about her attempt at stock car racing. In spite of all the hype, the fact is that when she gets out of the racecar without all the studio makeup, she really doesn't look so hot - more like a little girl.
Now we have the 29-year-old twin bleached blonde nieces of Derrike Cope making their debut in the truck series. I don't care if their last name is Cope; they belong on a fashion runway, not on the Nascar speedway. What are the chances that Mark Martin and Tony Stewart could be seen strutting down the fashion runway?
We remember when Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison fought door to door on the track, and then got into a fistfight in the infield after they wrecked. It was one of the great moments in TV and racing. We remember when Nascar racers were real men, aggressively competing bumper to bumper for the win. There are places for women in this world but a Nascar track isn't one of them unless they are dressed like a cheerleader and carrying a trophy. Nascar is a man's sport, driven by men who can aggressively manhandle a car, or at least it was.
The earlier days of Nascar were the best after the sport grew out of hopped up Fords, Dodges, and Packards used for moonshine runs. Until the 1980s, most of the drivers owned and prepared their own cars for racing. The sport was dominated by middle age white men because they were the ones who wanted to race and had the money, experience, and ability to build their cars. Nascar had track rules and inspection requirements for safety, but that was about it. The starter would drop the green flag and let them have at it. The driver who could get to the finish line first won the purse.
Today, racecars are owned by corporations and driven by hired drivers. This has brought kids, some not even yet out of their teens, into Nascar racing, rather than seasoned drivers. Usually, they actually do quite well on the track but they just don't look like real Nascar drivers anymore.
Then one day, along came Jesse Jackson with his shakedown of Nascar, claiming the usual discrimination against blacks. After 3 years of donating to the Jackson racket, Nascar management showed him the door in 2003 and told him where he could stick his race-baiting tactics to find funding for his Rainbow Push organization. Nascar was one, if not the only organization to stand up to Jackson after demands by Nascar fans to stop giving into the race baiter.
Blacks have been involved in Nascar racing on the track and in the pits but they have never done well and don't last too long. In 1986, Jackson played a role in getting the Dr. Pepper team into Nascar with driver Willy T. Ribbs, but Ribbs only started in three races.
This is not basketball or track & field. If you don't put on a good show for the fans, you can't get sponsorship for your car. Without sponsorship, you can't afford to race unless you are independently very wealthy. This is a very expensive sport to participate in.
Starting with Juan Pablo Montoya of Colombia, Nascar recently began encouraging foreign drivers to join the organization. Now, in partnership with BET (Black Entertainment Television), they are actively searching for minority drivers in the "Drive for Diversity" program. Why? Wouldn't it be better to have drivers on the track who use their own initiative to gravitate toward stock car racing? Political correctness seems to have infiltrated the Nascar organization under the leadership of Brian France.
Nascar has now grown into a regulating bureaucracy that can be compared only to Obamacare. Nascar dictates every detail of how the cars are built which makes them all virtually the same. Team innovations to make their cars faster are not allowed. Every inch of the cars has to comply with the rulebook, and this includes even parts that have nothing to do with safety.
Excessive Nascar rules and regulations have stifled race team creativity, independence, and freedom. Nascar’s view is that it makes closer racing more fare and entertaining for the fans. What about the teams and the drivers?
The Nascar rules on the track became so overbearing - penalizing and fining drivers for being too aggressive; telling drivers when they can pass; when they can and cannot bump-draft; taking all driver decisions away from the drivers, etc. - that drivers revolted at Talladega a couple of years ago and didn't even attempt to pass for fear of violating some Nascar rule. Cars just circled the track in single file for nearly the entire race. It was the most boring race in history and everyone knew it. Where do drivers draw the line between being aggressive enough and being too aggressive?
After that demonstration, Nascar dropped the excessive track rules and told the drivers that they would no longer be responsible to Nascar for aggressive driving, but rather to their owners and sponsors from now on. The drivers got some of their freedom back and competition on the track resumed. Of course, track penalties were still in force for violations such as speeding on pit road and passing below the yellow line, but drivers would no longer be virtually arrested for aggressive driving unless they intentionally wrecked another car.
Since Obama took over the White House and with Brian France running Nascar, the organization has become more interested in liberal environmentalism, diversity, and political correctness. The latest unnecessary change to EC-15 biofuel appears to be nothing more than a politically correct acceptance of liberal environmentalism. The water in biofuel is going to cause problems for the teams’ engines and fuel handling equipment. Is Brian France a believer in global warming?
I have been a Nascar fan all of my life and find the direction in which Brian France is taking the sport very disturbing. As a marketing executive, Brian France is taking Nascar global, but is that really in the best interests of Nascar fans? I'm sure many other Nascar fans are bothered by this as well. We want Nascar drivers to look like Nascar drivers, not Formula 1 drivers.
Nascar has always been enjoyable for fans as a good-ole-southern-boy sport. That is the heritage of Nascar and I hope we don’t lose it in the same way we have been losing the heritage of America to radical left liberalism. Nascar is not Formula 1 and should never look like it. If France wants to lose the support of millions of fans, this is a sure way to do it. Nascar is an all-American sport and should remain that way or it may die a slow death just as all other liberal programs eventually do.
NASCAR Turning Hard Left, And Not Just On The Track
By JR Dieckmann
First with Nascar’s "Drive for Diversity" program, created in 2004, and now with the introduction of EC-15 biofuel in Nascar racing, the organization seems to be moving toward the liberal agenda. I have been unable to find any evidence of the Soros-Obama administration putting pressure on Nascar but I am not convinced that it isn't happening. For one thing, government owned GM and Chrysler are major financial contributors to Nascar. In the Soros-Obama administration, the money comes with a price. Another thing that connects Nascar with Obama is a recent "anti-texting while driving campaign". Who could object to that?
If Nascar is not being threatened or pressured by the Soros-Obama administration, then the problem would seem to be with the current Nascar CEO, Brian France, son of Bill France Jr. and grandson of William France Sr., founder of Nascar in 1948. Brian France became Nascar CEO in 2003. Brian is a marketing genius who has taken the sport from the southeast to international status. But does he really understand the Nascar heritage and what Nascar fans want?
Apparently, Brian must be a liberal or a fool for green energy. He appears to have little or no understanding of the origins of Nascar and the founding principles of the racing organization. He appears to be trying to comply with the Obama agenda, which goes against everything Nascar has always stood for. On the other hand, maybe he’s just looking for a share of stimulus money, which is unlikely since he is worth billions between Nascar and his other business interests. France also owns Brandsense Partners, a Los Angeles based company whose clients include Halle Berry, Sheryl Crow, Jenny McCarthy, the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.
The “Drive for Diversity” website states: “Drive for Diversity is the industry’s leading development program for minority and female drivers and crew members.” Why should minorities and women be given special opportunities in Nascar? Why is this competition not open to white men? If it was any other group being excluded, there would be all kinds of charges of discrimination. I can’t wait to see a woman tire changer or “jack-man” on someone’s crew. With all of the minority groups created by the left, the one minority group always ignored is the white male minority.
Stock car racing is a man's sport, not a fashion show. Women have no place on a Nascar track, yet today's Camping World Truck Series race has three women drivers, getting in the way of the male drivers. Danica Patrick has been a real failure in the Nascar Nationwide Series in spite of Nascar and the media making such a big deal about her attempt at stock car racing. In spite of all the hype, the fact is that when she gets out of the racecar without all the studio makeup, she really doesn't look so hot - more like a little girl.
Now we have the 29-year-old twin bleached blonde nieces of Derrike Cope making their debut in the truck series. I don't care if their last name is Cope; they belong on a fashion runway, not on the Nascar speedway. What are the chances that Mark Martin and Tony Stewart could be seen strutting down the fashion runway?
We remember when Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison fought door to door on the track, and then got into a fistfight in the infield after they wrecked. It was one of the great moments in TV and racing. We remember when Nascar racers were real men, aggressively competing bumper to bumper for the win. There are places for women in this world but a Nascar track isn't one of them unless they are dressed like a cheerleader and carrying a trophy. Nascar is a man's sport, driven by men who can aggressively manhandle a car, or at least it was.
The earlier days of Nascar were the best after the sport grew out of hopped up Fords, Dodges, and Packards used for moonshine runs. Until the 1980s, most of the drivers owned and prepared their own cars for racing. The sport was dominated by middle age white men because they were the ones who wanted to race and had the money, experience, and ability to build their cars. Nascar had track rules and inspection requirements for safety, but that was about it. The starter would drop the green flag and let them have at it. The driver who could get to the finish line first won the purse.
Today, racecars are owned by corporations and driven by hired drivers. This has brought kids, some not even yet out of their teens, into Nascar racing, rather than seasoned drivers. Usually, they actually do quite well on the track but they just don't look like real Nascar drivers anymore.
Then one day, along came Jesse Jackson with his shakedown of Nascar, claiming the usual discrimination against blacks. After 3 years of donating to the Jackson racket, Nascar management showed him the door in 2003 and told him where he could stick his race-baiting tactics to find funding for his Rainbow Push organization. Nascar was one, if not the only organization to stand up to Jackson after demands by Nascar fans to stop giving into the race baiter.
Blacks have been involved in Nascar racing on the track and in the pits but they have never done well and don't last too long. In 1986, Jackson played a role in getting the Dr. Pepper team into Nascar with driver Willy T. Ribbs, but Ribbs only started in three races.
This is not basketball or track & field. If you don't put on a good show for the fans, you can't get sponsorship for your car. Without sponsorship, you can't afford to race unless you are independently very wealthy. This is a very expensive sport to participate in.
Starting with Juan Pablo Montoya of Colombia, Nascar recently began encouraging foreign drivers to join the organization. Now, in partnership with BET (Black Entertainment Television), they are actively searching for minority drivers in the "Drive for Diversity" program. Why? Wouldn't it be better to have drivers on the track who use their own initiative to gravitate toward stock car racing? Political correctness seems to have infiltrated the Nascar organization under the leadership of Brian France.
Nascar has now grown into a regulating bureaucracy that can be compared only to Obamacare. Nascar dictates every detail of how the cars are built which makes them all virtually the same. Team innovations to make their cars faster are not allowed. Every inch of the cars has to comply with the rulebook, and this includes even parts that have nothing to do with safety.
Excessive Nascar rules and regulations have stifled race team creativity, independence, and freedom. Nascar’s view is that it makes closer racing more fare and entertaining for the fans. What about the teams and the drivers?
The Nascar rules on the track became so overbearing - penalizing and fining drivers for being too aggressive; telling drivers when they can pass; when they can and cannot bump-draft; taking all driver decisions away from the drivers, etc. - that drivers revolted at Talladega a couple of years ago and didn't even attempt to pass for fear of violating some Nascar rule. Cars just circled the track in single file for nearly the entire race. It was the most boring race in history and everyone knew it. Where do drivers draw the line between being aggressive enough and being too aggressive?
After that demonstration, Nascar dropped the excessive track rules and told the drivers that they would no longer be responsible to Nascar for aggressive driving, but rather to their owners and sponsors from now on. The drivers got some of their freedom back and competition on the track resumed. Of course, track penalties were still in force for violations such as speeding on pit road and passing below the yellow line, but drivers would no longer be virtually arrested for aggressive driving unless they intentionally wrecked another car.
Since Obama took over the White House and with Brian France running Nascar, the organization has become more interested in liberal environmentalism, diversity, and political correctness. The latest unnecessary change to EC-15 biofuel appears to be nothing more than a politically correct acceptance of liberal environmentalism. The water in biofuel is going to cause problems for the teams’ engines and fuel handling equipment. Is Brian France a believer in global warming?
I have been a Nascar fan all of my life and find the direction in which Brian France is taking the sport very disturbing. As a marketing executive, Brian France is taking Nascar global, but is that really in the best interests of Nascar fans? I'm sure many other Nascar fans are bothered by this as well. We want Nascar drivers to look like Nascar drivers, not Formula 1 drivers.
Nascar has always been enjoyable for fans as a good-ole-southern-boy sport. That is the heritage of Nascar and I hope we don’t lose it in the same way we have been losing the heritage of America to radical left liberalism. Nascar is not Formula 1 and should never look like it. If France wants to lose the support of millions of fans, this is a sure way to do it. Nascar is an all-American sport and should remain that way or it may die a slow death just as all other liberal programs eventually do.
An Open Letter To Brian France
Dear Mr.France,
I am disturbed and disheartened by the direction NASCAR has taken in recent years.
To begin with,I have never liked the Chase. I knew it was a stupid idea from the beginning. I am even more convinced of that now than I was in 2004 when you,Mr.France,introduced it. It is not a fair system. In fact,five of its first seven years,the Chase has been won by the same driver and team. The Car of Tomorrow has also reduced competition and fighting for wins in NASCAR races. The COT has taken the excitement out of NASCAR and reinforces the arguments of those who consider watching cars circle a track a waste of time. If the Chase is an attempt to get TV viewers away from the NFL,it has failed in a big way. The NFL maintains its viewership while NASCAR ratings have declined. The idea of a playoff system in racing is ridiculous. No amount of "tweaking" will convince anybody the Chase is a good thing. Neither will it win over NFL fans. The Chase should be scrapped completely.
Also,there are many suspicious "debris cautions" that seem to favor the number 48 team. The crew chief of the number 48 team has repeatedly gotten away with cheating,while teams that have committed lesser infractions have been harshly penalized. NASCAR preaches consistency yet does not really practice it. NASCAR's top priorities nowadays are pleasing sponsors and team owners but not necessarily the fans. This shows in declining race attendance and falling TV ratings that will only fall farther unless NASCAR does something to win back the fans they have lost.
NASCAR today lacks the excitement of days gone by,when drivers could really "have at it",including bare knuckle confrontations on Pit Road (the 1979 Daytona 500 and the Allison brothers/Yarborough fight for example). Drivers said and did things from their hearts. Today,it is mostly scripted,politically correct pretty boys not allowed to speak their minds. Like a dictatorship, NASCAR punishes those who speak out,especially earlier this year when drivers Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin received monetary fines for merely stating their opinions.
Why is the Nationwide series championship repeatedly won by Cup drivers? The purpose of the Nationwide series is developing up and coming talent for the Cup series. While I am not against having some Cup drivers in Nationwide races,it is still not right that nearly half the field in most Nationwide races are Cup drivers. That makes it much more difficult on new talent finding its way into NASCAR. NASCAR should limit how often Cup drivers race in the Nationwide series and how many per Nationwide race. Also, Cup drivers in Nationwide should not receive driver points,only team owner points.
All these factors,Mr.France,have made me essentially give up on NASCAR. NASCAR might have "crossed the rubicon" now and might never again be the great sport it was,the sport your father and grandfather worked so hard building and you are destroying. I will still watch as an outsider looking in and be a more casual observer,much like I was before becoming a die hard fan in 2003. I did not leave NASCAR,it left me.
I hope I am wrong. I hope NASCAR will again be the no holds barred gutsy sport it once was but unfortunately, I am not holding my breath.
Sincerely,
A Disgusted NASCAR Fan
I am disturbed and disheartened by the direction NASCAR has taken in recent years.
To begin with,I have never liked the Chase. I knew it was a stupid idea from the beginning. I am even more convinced of that now than I was in 2004 when you,Mr.France,introduced it. It is not a fair system. In fact,five of its first seven years,the Chase has been won by the same driver and team. The Car of Tomorrow has also reduced competition and fighting for wins in NASCAR races. The COT has taken the excitement out of NASCAR and reinforces the arguments of those who consider watching cars circle a track a waste of time. If the Chase is an attempt to get TV viewers away from the NFL,it has failed in a big way. The NFL maintains its viewership while NASCAR ratings have declined. The idea of a playoff system in racing is ridiculous. No amount of "tweaking" will convince anybody the Chase is a good thing. Neither will it win over NFL fans. The Chase should be scrapped completely.
Also,there are many suspicious "debris cautions" that seem to favor the number 48 team. The crew chief of the number 48 team has repeatedly gotten away with cheating,while teams that have committed lesser infractions have been harshly penalized. NASCAR preaches consistency yet does not really practice it. NASCAR's top priorities nowadays are pleasing sponsors and team owners but not necessarily the fans. This shows in declining race attendance and falling TV ratings that will only fall farther unless NASCAR does something to win back the fans they have lost.
NASCAR today lacks the excitement of days gone by,when drivers could really "have at it",including bare knuckle confrontations on Pit Road (the 1979 Daytona 500 and the Allison brothers/Yarborough fight for example). Drivers said and did things from their hearts. Today,it is mostly scripted,politically correct pretty boys not allowed to speak their minds. Like a dictatorship, NASCAR punishes those who speak out,especially earlier this year when drivers Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin received monetary fines for merely stating their opinions.
Why is the Nationwide series championship repeatedly won by Cup drivers? The purpose of the Nationwide series is developing up and coming talent for the Cup series. While I am not against having some Cup drivers in Nationwide races,it is still not right that nearly half the field in most Nationwide races are Cup drivers. That makes it much more difficult on new talent finding its way into NASCAR. NASCAR should limit how often Cup drivers race in the Nationwide series and how many per Nationwide race. Also, Cup drivers in Nationwide should not receive driver points,only team owner points.
All these factors,Mr.France,have made me essentially give up on NASCAR. NASCAR might have "crossed the rubicon" now and might never again be the great sport it was,the sport your father and grandfather worked so hard building and you are destroying. I will still watch as an outsider looking in and be a more casual observer,much like I was before becoming a die hard fan in 2003. I did not leave NASCAR,it left me.
I hope I am wrong. I hope NASCAR will again be the no holds barred gutsy sport it once was but unfortunately, I am not holding my breath.
Sincerely,
A Disgusted NASCAR Fan
Friday, October 15, 2010
More Reasons To Ditch NASCAR
I am amazed at how at how good NASCAR drivers are at pretending to be ignorant when it comes to NASCAR's declining race attendance and falling TV viewership, along with Jimmie Johnson living in denial as to why his predictable dominance is without a doubt a factor in declining TV ratings and falling race attendance.
NASCAR drivers know just like everybody else exactly why NASCAR's TV ratings have fallen and race attendance has declined. The races lack excitement anymore. The same driver wins the championship every year. NASCAR plays favorites with the #48 team by throwing alleged "debris" cautions and not penalizing crew chief Chad Knaus for his blatant cheating,as they did with driver Clint Bowyer and his Richard Childress Racing team. It should be noted that earlier this year,drivers Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin were fined for just speaking their minds about NASCAR's questionable practices and blatant favoritism toward the #48 team so it could be the drivers are feigning ignorance to please Brian France,Mike Helton,Ramsey Poston,John Darby,and others. Since the Newman and Hamlin incidents, NASCAR has essentially placed a gag order on their drivers.
Jimmie Johnson's dominance of the NASCAR Cup series since 2006 is one reason,but not the only reason,why fans are losing interest in NASCAR and why TV ratings have fallen and race attendance has declined. Fans figure why bother spending their hard-earned money when they already know the outcome of the races and the championship? Few races NASCAR runs today even come close to the bumper-to-bumper,side-by-side,fight to the finish races of days gone by. Even tracks that traditionally have had exciting races,such as Bristol,are not as exciting now and do not sell out anymore. The Chase is a big turn-off and should be scrapped. The NFL will always dominate the ratings on Sunday afternoons in the fall and NASCAR cannot and will not change it. The fact that TV ratings have fallen and race attendance has declined since the inception of the Chase in 2004 should tell NASCAR something but like Jimmie Johnson,NASCAR refuses to look at the facts.
Another factor is NASCAR's refusal to listen the fans. They pretend to listen but they do not listen. If they did listen,the seats at race tracks would not be increasingly empty as they have been in recent years. The races would not be predictable and boring as most of them are now. TV ratings would not be declining every week. The problem is not with the fans. The problem is with NASCAR and those who run it. The excitement has also gone out of the Nationwide series,especially since its domination by Cup drivers.
Abandonment of heritage: It was hard working blue collar Southerners who put NASCAR on the map and spurred its phenomenal rise. Now NASCAR has abandoned and betrayed their Southern following and fans south of the Mason/Dixon line are letting their displeasure be known. The damage was only worsened with the dropping of a race at historic Atlanta Motor Speedway. When Brian France made disparaging remarks about the Confederate flag and started trying to lecture fans about diversity and multiculturalism,it sealed the sport's fate for the worse. Brian's Southern grandfather, William France Sr, was probably expressing outrage from beyond the grave at his grandson's treasonous statements.
In the old days,NASCAR races were often followed by knock down,drag out brawls in the pits. Nowadays,such activity would result in fines and suspensions but back in the day,it was the rule instead of the exception. Earlier this year,NASCAR decided to let drivers police themselves on the track and it has brought back some excitement to NASCAR races but not enough to reverse the decline of recent years.
Unless NASCAR,those who run it,and some of the drivers,get their heads out of the sand and put the emphasis on real racing again,NASCAR's future is no future at all.
NASCAR drivers know just like everybody else exactly why NASCAR's TV ratings have fallen and race attendance has declined. The races lack excitement anymore. The same driver wins the championship every year. NASCAR plays favorites with the #48 team by throwing alleged "debris" cautions and not penalizing crew chief Chad Knaus for his blatant cheating,as they did with driver Clint Bowyer and his Richard Childress Racing team. It should be noted that earlier this year,drivers Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin were fined for just speaking their minds about NASCAR's questionable practices and blatant favoritism toward the #48 team so it could be the drivers are feigning ignorance to please Brian France,Mike Helton,Ramsey Poston,John Darby,and others. Since the Newman and Hamlin incidents, NASCAR has essentially placed a gag order on their drivers.
Jimmie Johnson's dominance of the NASCAR Cup series since 2006 is one reason,but not the only reason,why fans are losing interest in NASCAR and why TV ratings have fallen and race attendance has declined. Fans figure why bother spending their hard-earned money when they already know the outcome of the races and the championship? Few races NASCAR runs today even come close to the bumper-to-bumper,side-by-side,fight to the finish races of days gone by. Even tracks that traditionally have had exciting races,such as Bristol,are not as exciting now and do not sell out anymore. The Chase is a big turn-off and should be scrapped. The NFL will always dominate the ratings on Sunday afternoons in the fall and NASCAR cannot and will not change it. The fact that TV ratings have fallen and race attendance has declined since the inception of the Chase in 2004 should tell NASCAR something but like Jimmie Johnson,NASCAR refuses to look at the facts.
Another factor is NASCAR's refusal to listen the fans. They pretend to listen but they do not listen. If they did listen,the seats at race tracks would not be increasingly empty as they have been in recent years. The races would not be predictable and boring as most of them are now. TV ratings would not be declining every week. The problem is not with the fans. The problem is with NASCAR and those who run it. The excitement has also gone out of the Nationwide series,especially since its domination by Cup drivers.
Abandonment of heritage: It was hard working blue collar Southerners who put NASCAR on the map and spurred its phenomenal rise. Now NASCAR has abandoned and betrayed their Southern following and fans south of the Mason/Dixon line are letting their displeasure be known. The damage was only worsened with the dropping of a race at historic Atlanta Motor Speedway. When Brian France made disparaging remarks about the Confederate flag and started trying to lecture fans about diversity and multiculturalism,it sealed the sport's fate for the worse. Brian's Southern grandfather, William France Sr, was probably expressing outrage from beyond the grave at his grandson's treasonous statements.
In the old days,NASCAR races were often followed by knock down,drag out brawls in the pits. Nowadays,such activity would result in fines and suspensions but back in the day,it was the rule instead of the exception. Earlier this year,NASCAR decided to let drivers police themselves on the track and it has brought back some excitement to NASCAR races but not enough to reverse the decline of recent years.
Unless NASCAR,those who run it,and some of the drivers,get their heads out of the sand and put the emphasis on real racing again,NASCAR's future is no future at all.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Happy 50th Anniversary,Mayberry
On October 3, 1960, "The Andy Griffith Show" debuted on CBS,with Andy Griffith as widowed Sheriff Andy Taylor, Don Knotts as Deputy Barney Fife, Frances Bavier as Aunt Bea,and 6-year-old Ron Howard as Andy's son Opie. During the first season, Andy's love interest was Ellie Walker (played by "Father Knows Best" actress Elinor Donahue), who worked at the local drug store. Andy's Aunt Bea moved in with Andy and Opie after Andy's wife died to help keep house and help take care of Opie. "The Andy Griffith Show" spun off from another long-running sitcom, "Make Room For Daddy",starring Danny Thomas. In an episode of "Make Room For Daddy", Danny Williams (Danny Thomas) passes through Mayberry and clashes with Sheriff Andy Taylor,who jails Danny. This episode introduces some of the townspeople as well,including Aunt Bea.
The show revolves around happenings in the fictional town of Mayberry, North Carolina, and in the lives of its residents,mostly the Taylors and those close to them. The stories are tales of small-town and rural life. The show promotes spiritual and moral values such as church attendance and doing the right thing,along with human values such as neighbors helping neighbors and helping anybody in distress. As a native North Carolinian, I am proud that this show represents my home state well. These are values we Tar Heels share.
The show has its share of hilarious episodes, my favorite episodes include Aunt Bea's pickles that she wanted to enter in the county fair but Andy and Barney did not have the heart to tell Aunt Bea how badly her pickles tasted. Andy and Barney replaced Aunt Bea's pickles with store-bought pickles. It is hilarious when Barney tries smuggling Aunt Bea's pickles out of the house in a suitcase,only for the clinking sound of the jars inside that almost give away what Barney is doing. Another favorite is when Andy runs out of room at the jail,so town drunk Otis Campbell must stay overnight at Andy's house. Aunt Bea treats Otis' stay as a jail sentence and makes him work hard around the house and forces him to give up liquor. The show's Christmas episode is excellent when Mayberry's own version of Scrooge makes it clear that he wants no part of Andy's Christmas celebration but in reality, he is lonely and wants to take part in the festivities so he gets himself arrested and brings Christmas presents for everybody. The "fun girls" episodes are funny also,especially when Helen and Thelma Lou get the wrong idea when they see Andy and Barney with other women. The Darling family episodes are great also,especially Charlene and her crush on Andy. The Darling brothers were played by the Dillards, who in real life perform bluegrass music professionally.
Another hilarious episode is when Barney and Floyd the barber are held hostage by escaped women convicts. One of the escaped convicts dances with Barney right out the door to Andy,who immediately arrests her. I also like the episode when Andy and Helen are trapped in a cave after a rock slide but discover a way out,only to return and spare Barney embarrassment after he organizes a rescue party.
It makes me want to cry when I see Opie crying when he carries a mother bird he accidentally killed with his slingshot. That is some of the most powerful acting ever done on any show,comedy or drama. For punishment,Andy makes Opie listen to the baby birds crying out for their mother. Opie raises the baby birds until they are fully grown,when he releases them.
There are so many other priceless moments on this show. Howard Morris is hilarious as Ernest T. Bass.
As with most long-running series, "The Andy Griffith Show" endured its share of changes.
Ellie Walker was gone after the first season when Elinor Donahue left the series. Barney was romantically involved with Juanita (or "Nita" as he called her),who worked at the Mayberry Diner but was never seen. Barney later found romance with Thelma Lou though she eventually left town. Barney is crushed when he finds out Thelma Lou is married when she returns to Mayberry for a visit. After the fifth season, Don Knotts left the series, with Barney Fife having moved to Raleigh,where he became a police detective. Don Knotts returned for occasional guest appearances. Andy eventually finds romance with Opie's schoolteacher Helen Crump. On the first episode of Andy Griffith's successor, "Mayberry RFD", Andy and Helen marry and move away. Opie grows out of the little boy phase and starts taking an interest in girls in the show's later years. Howard McNear,who played Floyd the barber,suffered a stroke,resulting in a long absence from the series. He eventually returned to the show. Mr.McNear passed away in 1969. Early in 1968, even though his show was still number one in the ratings, Andy Griffith announced he was ending his show.
By the fall of 1968, "The Andy Griffith Show" was no more. In its place was "Mayberry RFD", starring Ken Berry as Sam Jones, a widower like Andy Taylor. Sam also had a son, Mike. CBS retained the original cast,sans Andy Griffith and Ron Howard. Frances Bavier left as Aunt Bea in 1970 after 10 years in that role and was replaced by Alice Ghostley (who at that time also played Esmeralda on "Bewitched") as Aunt Alice. "Mayberry RFD" was canceled by CBS in 1971 when the network purged their "rural-oriented" shows for supposedly more sophisticated,urban fare such as newcomer "All In The Family". "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Green Acres",and "Hee Haw" were also canceled by CBS for the same reason. The line went that CBS canceled any show "that had a tree in it".
By the fall of 1968, "The Andy Griffith Show" was no more. In its place was "Mayberry RFD", starring Ken Berry as Sam Jones, a widower like Andy Taylor. Sam also had a son, Mike. CBS retained the original cast,sans Andy Griffith and Ron Howard. Frances Bavier left as Aunt Bea in 1970 after 10 years in that role and was replaced by Alice Ghostley (who at that time also played Esmeralda on "Bewitched") as Aunt Alice. "Mayberry RFD" was canceled by CBS in 1971 when the network purged their "rural-oriented" shows for supposedly more sophisticated,urban fare such as newcomer "All In The Family". "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Green Acres",and "Hee Haw" were also canceled by CBS for the same reason. The line went that CBS canceled any show "that had a tree in it".
Notwithstanding, "The Andy Griffith Show" remains enormously popular and is shown on local stations and TV Land,with new generations of viewers enjoying the show. Mayberry is a fictional town but will always be real in the hearts of millions of fans. Andy Griffith's hometown of Mount Airy, North Carolina, hosts an annual event known as "Mayberry Days", when actors and actresses from the show and people who worked behind the scenes on the show visit with fans and sign autographs. There is a Barney Fife impersonator. There is a reproduction of Sheriff Taylor's car. Fans dine at a local eatery known as the Snappy Lunch,believed to be the real-life inspiration for the Mayberry Diner. Andy Griffith lives on Roanoke Island, North Carolina, where he began his acting career portraying Sir Walter Raleigh in "The Lost Colony". Frances Bavier passed away in 1989 after having moved to Siler City, North Carolina, many years before. Don Knotts starred as landlord Ralph Furley on "Three's Company" in the early 1980s and had a successful movie career, sometimes appearing with Tim Conway. Don Knotts passed away in 2006. Andy Griffith had another long-running TV series in the 1980s and 1990s, "Matlock",on which he played folksy Atlanta attorney Ben Matlock. Ron Howard starred as Richie Cunningham on the long-running sitcom "Happy Days" and later found success as a movie director.
"Gomer Pyle,USMC" was a successful spin off of "The Andy Griffith Show",with Jim Nabors in the role he began on 'The Andy Griffith Show" as filling station attendant and auto mechanic Gomer Pyle, who had joined the Marines. Gomer was replaced as a filling station attendant and auto mechanic by his cousin Goober Pyle, played by George Lindsey.
Most of the cast of "The Andy Griffith Show" reunited for the 1986 made for TV movie "Return To Mayberry". Andy and Helen return to Mayberry. Barney is now sheriff. Opie and his wife are expecting a baby. Andy helps deliver his grandchild after his daughter-in-law goes into labor. Barney and Thelma Lou get married. Most of the supporting characters return,though Aunt Bea was written out as having passed away,even though Frances Bavier was alive.
With so much junk on TV nowadays,it is comforting that a wholesome series with excellent writing,great comedy,and timeless values such as "The Andy Griffith Show" remains an American classic and will entertain future generations.
"Gomer Pyle,USMC" was a successful spin off of "The Andy Griffith Show",with Jim Nabors in the role he began on 'The Andy Griffith Show" as filling station attendant and auto mechanic Gomer Pyle, who had joined the Marines. Gomer was replaced as a filling station attendant and auto mechanic by his cousin Goober Pyle, played by George Lindsey.
Most of the cast of "The Andy Griffith Show" reunited for the 1986 made for TV movie "Return To Mayberry". Andy and Helen return to Mayberry. Barney is now sheriff. Opie and his wife are expecting a baby. Andy helps deliver his grandchild after his daughter-in-law goes into labor. Barney and Thelma Lou get married. Most of the supporting characters return,though Aunt Bea was written out as having passed away,even though Frances Bavier was alive.
With so much junk on TV nowadays,it is comforting that a wholesome series with excellent writing,great comedy,and timeless values such as "The Andy Griffith Show" remains an American classic and will entertain future generations.
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