Todd's Mischief Blog

I know nothing about this other than it exists.

Is JoePa guilty of being too human? I would like a little help understanding something. Joe Paterno did a) nothing wrong, b) not nothing, c) not too little, but d) exactly what he was supposed to do and still has been fired. What am I missing? I'm not saying Joe shouldn't have retired years ago--he should have--but his ousting yesterday strikes me as having more to do with finding a scapegoat than anything to do with misconduct. Shouldn't it be Jerry Sandusky receiving everyone's ire? Yet I hardly hear his name. And how does Mike McQueary keep his job if he is held to anything resembling a similar standard that which Joe is being held to? I don't even care about Penn State except for next weekend's matchup with Nebraska— Go Big Red! — but this sorta throws a pall over that. I just can't help but see JoePa as a fall guy.  First, I take issue with the notion that we have rules we are expected to follow, but when those rules prove insufficient for w...

Christina Aguilera did not ruin the national anthem. I, for one, feel bad for Christina Aguilera. What should have been the highlight of her singing career (yes, even above five Grammys) has instead become a launch pad to criticize her beyond her lyrical flub and into her singing-style, preparation, and even her patriotism. I'm sure she is feeling beyond embarrassed, today. For any American singer, being requested to perform the “Star Spangled Banner”—a notoriously difficult piece besides being the national anthem—is a great honor at any event. For the Super Bowl, the most viewed television program annually, the honor is magnified beyond calculation. Whatever one thinks about her music or singing style, Christina Aguilera takes her musicianship seriously. So it is an honor that I doubt she took lightly, as is being supposed by so many. By all accounts, she was devastated after botching the performance. But in the moment, she did what any good performer is trained to do: she kep...