The Pursuit of Happiness

I read a lot of philosophy, and there is no part of philosophy that I enjoy more than the question of happiness. And why is this? Because I agree with Aristotle that happiness is the end or purpose of life. It is what we seek for its own sake. Ask anyone why they do anything, and their logic will eventually end with the statement that they are doing this to be happy.   The problem with Aristotle is that he really never tells us what happiness is. He comes to a logical dead end. I think Epicurus answered Aristotle's problem by defining happiness...

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Two Lawyers Among Five NFL Commish Finalists

It looks like Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, who is otherwise occupied, will not be the next NFL Commissioner, contrary to earlier speculation. Nor did Forida Governor / First Brother Jeb Bush make the cut. Instead, the NFL announced today the following five finalists, including two lawyers:ROGER S. GOODELL, 47, New York, N.Y. Executive Vice President and COO, NFL GREGG...

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The Law, Politics, and Linguistics of Fantasy Sports

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times has an excellent piece on how courts and Congress may address the growth of fantasy sports ("Licensing Case Could Hurt Rotisserie Sports," 7/29/2006). As also discussed recently by Geoffrey Rapp and Greg Skidmore (Geoff's post; Greg's post), Major League Baseball, which requires fantasy sports operators to obtain a license to use MLB statistics,...

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The Enemy is Islam

Watching all of the recent bullshit in the Middle East, I have to wonder what all of these people have in common. Osama bin Laden, a Sunni, hated al Zarqawi and hates Hezbollah, a Shiite sect. Iraq is torn by civil war between Sunnis and Shiites with Americans caught in the middle. The Arab world could give a shit about Palestinians, but they hate the Jews with a passion. What is wrong with all of these people?   The one thing all of these people have in common is that they are Muslim. They are united by a dogmatic belief in their dogshit...

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Playing for Peace: The Power of Basketball to Promote Peace

ESPN's Chad Ford--who is also a professor of international cultural studies at BYU-Hawaii, with a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center and an M.A. in conflict resolution from George Mason University--has two excellent articles on Playing for Peace, a non-profit organization founded in 2001 that uses the game of basketball to unite and educate children and their communities....

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War is Expensive

I am against war. This does not mean that I am a peace loving hippie who would run and smoke dope instead of protecting himself. I am a big believer in having a strong national defense. But I would prefer to never have to use it. If you've noticed the rising prices at the gas pump, then you know that war comes at a price. War is destruction--pure and simple. It takes a nation's resources and squanders it all in an attempt to destroy another nation's resources for the sake of politics, religion, or what have you. War is the primary occupation...

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Top 50 Earning Athletes in the United States

Jonah Freedman of Sports Illustrated has compiled a list of the top 50-earning athletes in the United States. Not surprisingly, Tiger Woods leads the way, although the size of his most recent annual earnings may startle you: $97.6 million, or twice as much as what the #2 person on the list, Phil Mickelson, earned in the last year ($46.0 million). These figures include winnings, salaries, endorsements, and appearance fees. In his career, Woods has earned over a half-billion dollars; he could earn well over a billion dollars by the time he retires...

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The KCSD is a joke

I just got done getting my car back from the Kershaw County Sheriff's Department. What a bunch of idiots. I am fairly confident that justice will not be served in this incident. How do I know this? Because these guys keep asking me who the deputy was who took my statement the morning I reported it. The shitheads don't even know who is working for them, what they do, or anything else. If these folks can't even find out who took my statement, it is a virtual certainty they won't find out who took my car. Your tax dollars at work....

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Ex-NBAer Mashburn sued for golf injury

One-time Miami Heat basketball player Jamal Mashburn (who retired from basketball in March after he was waived by the 76ers), has been sued by a Florida man who claims Mashburn failed to shout “fore” or provide any warning before hitting a golf ball in the man’s direction. The plaintiff claims to have suffered serious injury.Mashburn developed an interest in golf at the University...

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Excitement of USA Basketball.

First, I want to thank Rick Karcher and Michael McCann for inviting me to be a guest. After several days of trying to log on, I finally listened to and followed Michael's instructions and was able (hopefully) to make a post. While its tempting to post a comment on the on-going issues concerning anti-doping, it seems the resurrection of the USA Basketball team recently is a new, fresh topic for discussion.Depending on your age, you probably recall the first "Dream Team" that went to Barcelona and walked through the 1992 Olympics on its way to...

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Harold Reynolds Fired: Is Sexual Harassment Situational or Dispositional?

Neil Best of Newsday writes about Harold Reynolds' surprising firing from ESPN--allegedly because of a sexual harassment complaint filed against him--and in the process, suggests that sexual harassment is a significant problem at the network:Harold Reynolds, one of ESPN's most visible analysts and a longtime panelist on "Baseball Tonight," has left the network in the wake of one or more incidents of sexual harassment.Three people who work at ESPN and were familiar with the case said the cause was a pattern of sexual harassment, apparently culminating...

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Good Info on Law Career Blog re: LL.M. Degrees

Slightly off topic, but likely of use to some readers: I periodically receive e-mails and questions about the benefits of obtaining an LL.M. degree, or a masters degree or a Ph.D., as well as inquiries about going on the tenure-track law professor market. For some great information on these and other topics, please check out Law Career Blog, which is run by my good friend and colleague, Gregory Bowman. Here are the relevant posts: Pros and Cons of LL.M. Part I, Part II, and Part I...

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Recent Events

Folks, I'm sorry I haven't written in awhile. My car was stolen about a week ago, and I have been dealing with getting another one. The police are working on finding my car, but I fear the car is wrecked to shit.There's not much to say about being a crime victim though I have to thank the government for one blessing. The regular larceny that the federal and state governments perform on my paycheck has made me accustomed to getting fucked such that I could be philosophical about the theft of my wheels instead of giving into despair and doing something...

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More on "Donated" Sneakers, Brand Loyalty, and Title IX

In the last couple of weeks, we've discussed how shoe companies are arguably manipulating children by "donating" high-priced sneakers to young basketball players as a way of building brand loyalty, and also how by only donating to boys, they may be inducing schools to violate Title IX (see The Salivating Army and Justin Jenifer post).There are two more great stories on this...

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New Sports Law Scholarship

New this week:Sabrina Bosse, Casenote, Is the price of victory just?: Attorney's fees, punitive damages, and the future of Title IX in . . . (Mercer v. Duke University, 401 F.3d 199, 4th Cir. 2005), 13 VILLANOVA SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT LAW JOURNAL 319 (2006)Jackie J. Cook, Casenote, Determining who wears the pants in thoroughbred horseracing (Albarado v. Ky. Racing Comm'n, 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 16378, W.D. Ky. July 20, 2004), 2004 THOMAS M. COOLEY LAW REVIEW 635 (2005)Casey N. Harding, Casenote, Nickel and dimed: North Carolina court blocks...

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Phil Kessel: Getting Help from a Family Friend or Representation by an Agent?

But you say he's just a friend.But you say he's just a friend.--Biz Marke, from his sublime 1988 song "Just a Friend"It's not too often when I can invoke lyrics by the great artist, Biz Markie, but they come to mind when reading about the Boston Bruins' contract negotiations with first round draft pick Phil Kessel, a rising sophomore at the University of Minnesota, and Kessel's...

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My New Law Review Article on Social Psychology, Calamities, and Sports Law

A draft of my article Social Psychology, Calamities, and Sports Law, 42 Willamette Law Review __ (forthcoming, 2006) is now available for download on SSRN for free, right beneath the article abstract. I hope you give it a read. Through social psychology, the article addresses such topics as the future of the New Orleans Saints; how the fear of catastrophic weather influences where players want to play; natural disasters and franchise relocation; the NFL pat-down policy and stadium security; and communicable disease and restrictions on scouting...

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World Poker Tour Target of Antitrust Case

With the World Series of Poker underway in Las Vegas, it's fitting that Dewey Ballantine attorney Jeffrey Kessler chose this month to launch an antitrust case against the World Poker Tour on behalf of champion players including Chris Ferguson and Howard Lederer. The AP's story is here, and the Poker Prof comments here.The plaintiffs argue that WPT Enterprises Inc. made them...

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Basketball Player Sues Yearbook After He's Indecently Exposed

A New Jersey high school basketball player has sued his school district and the editors of his high school yearbook after a yearbook photo appeared in which portions of his genitals were visible. The New Jersey Law Journal has the story:Tyler Bennett of Colts Neck claims he suffered emotional distress because his genitals were partly visible in a basketball game picture in his 2001 school yearbook. The suit says Colts Neck High School authorities acted slowly to suppress the yearbook, worsening the distress Bennett suffered as a senior the next...

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Sign of the Apocalypse? Bill Belichick's Alleged Affair and The Boston Herald's Front Page

It might seem peculiar for someone who contributes to a sports law blog to question a major regional daily devoting nearly its entire front page to a sports and the law issue. But I ask that you to take a look at the front page of yesterday's Boston Herald:Yes, Patriots coach Bill Belichick has been named as the dreaded "other man" in a messy New Jersey divorce case involving...

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The Salivating Army? Shoe Companies that Donate Free Sneakers to Youth Basketball Players

A couple of weeks ago, we discussed Eli Saslow's excellent piece in the Washington Post on Justin Jenifer, the 10-year old basketball phenom who is already being aggressively recruited by shoe companies. This theme of marketers' exploitation of kid athletes resonates again in Mark Alesia's excellent piece in the Indianapolis Star on shoe companies "donating" free sneakers...

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Welcome Travis Tygart

I am delighted to announce that Travis Tygart will be filling in for me as a guest contributor next week. Travis is the Senior Managing Director, General Counsel of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). USADA is the independent, nongovernmental anti-doping agency for Olympic sports in the U.S. and is dedicated to protecting the integrity of competition and the rights of clean athletes to participate in drug free competition.Travis is responsible for all legal matters of USADA including the handling of alleged doping offenses in arbitration...

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Steroids in Golf?

By now you are probably tired of reading and hearing about the Bonds indictment and his possible suspension by MLB. But you might not have read or heard about the latest in the "war on steroids": Testing for steroid use has officially begun within the sport of golf ("Golf Tournament Doing Drug Testing"). According to the press release, testing will be administered at the...

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World War III

I haven't written in awhile because I've been so wrapped up in the Middle East conflict. Things look grim, and I hear "world war" tossed about. This is regrettable.I don't have an answer to the conflict in the Middle East, but I still believe in adhering to the Broadway Doctrine. That doctrine states, "We don't start shit, but we will finish it." Unfortunately, I am not in a position to see this doctrine put into practice, but it will help explain the current mess that we have in the Middle East. Basically, Hezbollah stuck its nose into something...

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New Sports Law Scholarship

New this week:Lindsay M. Korey Lefteroff, Student Article, Excessive heckling and violent behavior at sporting events: a legal solution?, 14 U. MIAMI BUS. L. REV. 119 (2005)Clary Moorhead, Note, Revenue sharing and the salary cap in the NFL: perfecting the balance between NFL socialism and unrestrained free trade, 8 VAND. J. ENT. & TECH. L. 641 (2006)Richard H. McLaren, An overview of non-analytical positive & circumstantial evidence cases in sports, 16 MARQ. SPORTS L. REV. 193 (2006)Stphen F. Ross & Stefan Szymanski, Antitrust and...

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New Sports Law Scholarship

New this week:W. Burlette Carter, The Age of Innocence: the first 25 years of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, 1906-1931, 8 VAND. J. ENT. & TECH. L. 211 (2006).Amanda Schlager, Note, Is the suite life truly sweet? The property rights luxury box owners actually acquire, 8 VAND. J. ENT. & TECH. L. 211 (200...

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Open Letter to Bud Selig

Dear Mr. Selig:I understand that you are disappointed and angered by Jason Grimsley’s recent admission that he used the human growth hormone (HGH) and by his statements that other major leaguers use the banned substance. Last month in your “open letter to fans” you said that you will not tolerate the use of HGH and other performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. It is time to get aggressive with the union, more so than you have ever been before. On the eve of negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement, and with the fans 100% on your...

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New Article on Bill Walker and Possible Legal Options for NBA Draft Eligibility

Tom Groeschen of the Cincinnati Enquirer has a new and interesting article on the possible legal options for Bill Walker, the high school phenom who has good reason to argue that he should be eligible for the 2007 NBA Draft ("Lawyer: Walker Has a Case", 7/11/2006). Yesterday we discussed Chad Ford's article on Walker's potential arguments, and those of O.J. Mayo.I am the lawyer referenced in Groeschen's article title, and while I do believe that Walker would have a strong case (as I discuss in the article), I would like to add the following proviso:...

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Does a "Diploma Mill" School Have a Defamation Claim Against the NCAA?

Last week the NCAA released its second list of high schools from which it will no longer accept transcripts that supposedly provide easy academic solutions for high-profile athletes. According to Pete Thamel of The New York Times, none of the 25 disqualified schools on either list are recognizable athletic powerhouses, with the exception of maybe Christopher Robin Academy in Queens where New York City students have long gained high school credits during the summer and winter breaks ("N.C.A.A. Schools' List Stirs More Controversy"). However, the...

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O.J. Mayo and Billy Walker to Challenge NBA Age Restriction?

ESPN's Chad Ford has an excellent and extensive piece on two amateur players who may put the new NBA age restriction to the test next year: O.J. Mayo (right) and Billy Walker (left), the top two high school seniors in the country. Both players are one year older than a traditional high school senior and, for different reasons, if they decide to drop out of high school and...

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NBA Earnings as a Marathon, not a Race: Lebron James to Take Less Than Max

According to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, Lebron James has informed the Cavaliers that while he is willing to sign an extension, he will not sign a max contract (5 years, $80 million), which the Cavs prefer. Instead, he is only willing to sign a 4-year extension worth $60 million. Considering that NBA contracts are guaranteed, you might wonder why he wouldn't want to maximize...

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Virginia Sports and Entertainment Law Journal's Article Submissions Drive

The Virginia Sports and Entertainment Law Journal ("VaSE") is conducting a submissions drive for possible publication in the journal. So if you are a law professor, other type of professor, practicing attorney, judicial clerk, law student, or graduate student who has written a substanative piece that pertains to sports or entertainment law, please consider submitting it....

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Random Thoughts on Various Subjects

1. North Korea rattled its sword, and I expect the rest of the world to give Kim Jong Il what he wants.You probably won't get this explanation in the mainstream media, so I will give it here. Kim Jong Il's regime sits atop a powder keg of public unrest ready to explode and consume him in a firestorm much like they did in Romania under Ceaucescu. Mass starvation has a tendency to cause this. Kim Jong Il does a desperate balancing act of extracting as much as he can for his war machine while winning concessions from the West for foreign aid. That's...

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Parties, Politics, and Persuasion

"You guys will never win an election."Someone told me this in response to my declaration that I was a libertarian. I had to laugh a bit because I could really give a shit about winning an election or getting people like myself into public office. There are two basic reasons for my peculiar stance. First of all, the Republican Party and the Libertarian Party have consistently sold out on any principles they may have had. The fact is that just about any libertarian candidate that did win would do so on a lot of compromise and then compromise even...

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