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Aw, shit.

FRANKFURT, Germany – The NFL folded its development league in Europe after 16 years on Friday, calling the decision a sound business move that will allow for a stronger international focus on regular-season games outside the United States.

The announcement came less than a week after the Hamburg Sea Devils beat the Frankfurt Galaxy 37-28 in the World Bowl title game in Frankfurt before a crowd of 48,125. Five of the league’s six teams are based in Germany, with the other in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

A statement on the German-language edition of the NFL’s Web site said the NFL decided to concentrate its “strategies and resources” on regular-season games outside the United States in an effort to reach as many people as possible.

Memo to Rajah Goody-Two-Shoes:&#160 Y’know, maybe if you had – oh, I dunno – ESTABLISHED AN AMERICAN TV MARKET FOR IT!!!!!! – it might have had at least some moderate success.

You know, like the Arena Football League has.

And yes – I know this was mostly your predecessor’s doing (damn that (@%)@@^*@!!! Tagliabue).&#160 But it wouldn’t have hurt to have had at least one&#160 network carrying the games, hm?&#160 Y’know, like Fox Sports Net did a couple years ago.

Chalk another one up to NFL extreme shortsightedness…

If you’ve been keeping up with the Rott at all, you know that I’ve recently found out that my stepdaughter soon-to-be-adopted daughter is pregnant.&#160 A fact I first made mention of in this thread.

Naturally, Misha’s post was picked up by the knee-jerk (emphasis on the latter) website, “Sadly, No Brains (or Balls)”, and subsequently parroted around certain points of the Nutroot-o-Sphere.&#160 (Amazing, isn’t it, how they call us&#160 “mind-numbed robots”, yet are wholly incapable of any original thought themselves.)

KORRIOTH:&#160 And this suprises you…how again, m’Liege?

LSIK&T:&#160 Yeah, yeah, I know – “Don’t expect great things from the ShortBus-o-Sphere.”

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The business of professional wrestling lost one of its absolute best today.&#160 Chris Benoit, along with his wife Nancy and their son Daniel, were found today at their home in Fayetteville, GA.&#160 Chris Benoit was 40.

Cause of death is unknown at this time.

The Realm&#153 extends its deepest condolences.&#160 Chris was one of this scribe’s favorite entertainers in the genre, and he will be very much missed.

UPDATE:&#160 AP is reporting that this is being handled as a double murder/suicide.

Holy shit.

UPDATE the 2nd:&#160 It’s been reported now that Benoit strangled his wife Nancy last Saturday, then smothered his 7-year-old, suffering-from-Fragile-X-Syndrome son Daniel on Sunday, before hanging himself in his weight room on Monday.

I have no idea what could make Benoit snap like that, although there are reports that he & Nancy were arguing about caring for Daniel prior to the killings, and Nancy had previously filed for divorce from Chris back in 2003 before reconciling.

I do not&#160 believe, however, that steroids were a part of this.&#160 Although they were found in the Benoit household during the subsequent investigation, Benoit did not have a ‘roid freak’s physique, per se.&#160 Plus, the WWE claims that he tested negative for ‘roids back in April.

Right now, all we can do is wait and watch.&#160 This story isn’t going away that soon.

ITEM:&#160 All season long, the Texass stRangers have been insisting that there’s nothing wrong with Vicente Padilla’s arm, despite the fact that he’s 3-8 with a 6.69 ERA in 15 starts this season.

ITEM:&#160 Padilla went on the 15-day Dl with what they’re calling “triceps inflammation behind the right elbow”.

Oh.&#160

As the credibility slide for this franchise continues…

One that – gasp, arrrrrrgh!!!! – didn’t&#160 come from the SpatulaGoddess.&#160

It’s right here.&#160 Prepare to scrunch up your face a la&#160 Kermit the Frog.

I just have one question:&#160 What the Hell&#153 is a Belvedere?&#160 ‘Zat any relation to the Edsel?&#160

So our betters in the Imperial Socialist Congress&#153 figure they’re just gonna run over our asses with this zhamesty bill, right?

Well, not so fast there, Sparky.

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I don’t feel like writing tonight.

Tonight’s Grab-Bag&#153, therefore, is from LC Guido Cabrone:

Gee, Cap’n Jack…I knew you were swishy ‘n all, but…&#160

Denizens, I don’t mind telling you that stuff like this brings tears to my eyes:

As you know, I never served in the military (they have a thing against lasagna guts and flat feet).&#160 OneOfTheseDays&#153, though, I pray to God that my own son gets to greet me like that.

Lord willing, he will.

Happy Father’s Day 2007.

ITEM:&#160 Last week, the Dullest Moaning Snooze&#160 called the Dallas mayor’s runoff race too close to call, giving businessman Tom Leppert a 47-45 edge over homosexual councilcritter Ed Oakley (margin of error 5.8%).

ITEM:&#160 Last night, Leppert kicked the shit out of the heterophobe, 58%-42%.

Thus raising the question “Why do we take the media seriously when handicapping political races, anywayz?”

So Bob Barker retired from game show hosting after 50 years on the job (the last 35 at CBS for The Price Is Right).

I’m starting to think it wasn’t Barker’s choice.&#160 I’m getting the definite impression that CBS forced his ass out the door.

Reason:&#160 The doddering old bird is getting senile.

Bob Barker endorsed his friend Rosie O’Donnell as a possible successor on “The Price Is Right,” although the newly retired host isn’t sure CBS wants a woman to take over the game show.

[…]

Barker said his friendship with O’Donnell goes back several years, when she had him as a guest on her old daytime talk show.

“She told me she loved `The Price Is Right’ and wanted to host it one day,” he recalled.

One wonders what Goodson & Todman ever did to this guy to make him hate them so.&#160 Talk about a show-killer…&#160

Okay, Denizens, I guess you could consider me “back”.&#160 Not that that means a whole lot – the honeymoon’s not until the end of July, which is when I’ll really&#160 be out of pocket.&#160 And I have&#160 posted a couple of things during the last three weeks.

Anyway, with all that said, I believe I mentioned something about a “major announcement”.

So here it is.

There ain’t one.&#160 Not yet, anyway.

See, here’s the deal:&#160 I’d told a couple folks that I was probably going to retire as a regular, active blogger once I’d gotten married.&#160 The same maladies that caused me to close up the BBS 10 years ago or so are now once again in place – i.e, not time to do much of anything, least of all write.

The fact that I’m on the road all day long doesn’t help things any.&#160 Life was a lot more fun when I was sitting at a desk, waiting for the next cry for help from just down the hall.&#160 Trouble is, it was also a lot less pay, too.&#160 &#160 Plus, there’s the matter of trying to find a house, trying to keep this&#160 place relatively clean, paying bills, the side business, that sort of thing.&#160 And that I’m usually exhausted by day’s end helps things not one whit.

The plan was, therefore, to shut this place down and continue ranting, raving and pontificating (not to mention crank out those therapeutic PFWs ( ) over at the Rott.

Well, not so fast.

Fact is, I’m not ready to give up this gig yet.&#160 Things won’t always be this hectic, and it’ll be a beast to fire up the warp engines again.&#160 (You think it was hell on Kirk’s Enterprise???&#160 Try a cold restart on a Worf-class bird-of-prey.&#160 Threw us all the way back to…well, you didn’t think Merlin signed on of his own accord, did you?)

MERLIN:&#160 And I’ll have you know I still&#160 feel it in that knee when the weather changes!!!

LSIK&T:&#160 Shut up or you’re feeding K’hadibak’h’s pet Ferengi tomorrow.

MERLIN (cringing):&#160 Ew.

Anyway, y’all have to put up with me for a while longer.&#160 So there.&#160 Plbsthhhhhhh!!!!

(Hat tip to LC MoMinuteMan.)

As much as it does pain me to admit it – yes.&#160 I used to be a…a…telemarketer.&#160 (hangs head in abject shame)

And I’m damned glad this didn’t get pulled on me.&#160 (Spew warnings in effect!)

&#160&#160 &#160&#160 &#160&#160 &#160&#160 &#160&#160

(Hat tip Hot Air.)

Oh, this is good.&#160 This is damned&#160 good.&#160 This is fist-pump-in-the-air, ROFLMFAOASTC good.

Have a look:

GodBlessDennisMiller&#153.&#160 Thatisall&#153.

UPDATE:&#160 Okay, looks like I’m having trouble keeping it online.&#160 The Hot Air link should have it.

UPDATE the 2nd:&#160 YouTube to the rescue!&#160

(Crossposted at the Rott.)

Okay, so two weeks ago or so, I stepped in front of a wedding-qualified official-type person for the (mumble mumble)th time (&#160 &#160 ), engaged in a private little ceremony, and am now planning on where to go have dinner with two of my bestest friends in the Blogosphere and some of my Beloved Bride’s Buds&#153.

At this point, I’m thinking On The Border&#153.&#160 Festive, there’s margaritas there, relatively inexpensive, there’s margaritas there, cozy, there’s margaritas there…did I mention that there’s margaritas there?&#160

La Reina Espatula&#153 is advising caution, however, as she’s not sure if her friends already have a bistro in mind.&#160 “No worries”, I’m thinking, “I’ll just use my powers of persuasion…

(there will be a short pause here as BC finishes up with his sudden coughing fit)

…to talk ’em into OTB.&#160 Okay?&#160 Okay.

So our little two-vehicle convoy – myself, the SpatulaBride&#153 and the SpatulaGoddess&#153 – pull up at Ana’s former place of employment, a little school called Descubrir, I and my new wife walk inside while the SG waits in her van, so that I can announce Our Plans&#153 for Ana’s pals for the next four hours.

Before I can utter a word, however, they open the door to their main classroom…and both my jaw and that of the SpatulaBride&#153 hit the floor at warp speed.

For this is what awaited us…

(Click on the pic to take you to the rest of ’em.)

Needless to say, a bodaciously fun time was had by all (though probably the most fun was had by the Royal Heirs&#153, who were bouncing like Super Balls&#153 all over the place all night long).

And, as soon as we secure our house, we’ll have our own little homewarming shindig in the form of Texas Blogfest ’07:&#160 Spats Can BBQ, Too!!!.&#160

Enjoy the pics!

If you send a link to one of your posts to another blogger, don’t request that you be linked – that’s already implied by the email.

Oh, is that&#160 what that was for?&#160

Denizens, one of the culprits the ones who need to be frog-marched those responsible for me getting into blogging in the first place celebrates his fifth blogoversary today.&#160 Hie thee hence and give Alan K. Henderson a pat-on-the-back for all his hard work.

Yes, that’s an order.&#160