Today I am forcing myself to write. Its been close to a month since my last post. I've just been too uninterested to keep up.

I just wanted to start off by saying, yesterday was a very moving day. The City of Philadelphia said goodbye to a fallen hero, Officer Chuck Cassidy, who was killed in the line of duty on October 31, after walking in on a armed robbery at a Dunkin Donuts. This was in my neighborhood, a place I ride by every single day. Every murder is senseless, but this just really struck a cord in the city.

I made it my business to be outside to see the motorcade yesterday pass through our streets and it was pretty rough.

A few hours later, two more innocent lives were taken. Both victims were shot in the head in two separate incidents in two separate parts of the city. One was a heating oil delivery man, the other a man inside of a corner store. In both incidents there were no motives and no suspects. I just wish more could be done in solving murders of those that are not police officers, maybe reward money could motivate a lot more people to speak up. Officer Cassidy's killer was an #### and confessed to his family. A family friend tipped off police. More than likely he was motivated by the $115,000 reward money which rose to $153,000 and will be split 3 or 4 ways with some tipsters in Miami.

So while some of us need money to prompt doing the right thing, the second lead story has been about Andy Reid and his family. Coach Reid was so moved by this tragedy he reached out to Officer Cassidy's 16 year old son and invited him to the Eagles v. Cowboys games last Sunday. He even told him if he ever needed to talk, he would be there for him.  Is he trying to make up for something he didn't do with his own sons? I mean, that sounded all good, but the question is how long were his sons up to no good before getting caught with guns, drugs, waving guns at old ladies, and crashing into cars?

Its too late for Andy Reid to give up his coaching job. He should have done that about 10 years ago when he could have made a difference. His sons have no respect for him. At 22 and 24 years old, they're old enough to suffer the consequences. But honestly, they could care less. So this won't be the last incident. Anyone that would sneak 89 pills into jail is in need of more than rehab or months in prison. That is where race comes into play, like Jason Whitlock wrote about today. That's why crack gets you more time than powder. But this isn't forum for that conversation.

So in NBA News:

Another NBA season has started and I have no interest yet. I started my fantasy basketball over on NBA.com and now I don't even care. I see why I never did it before. I can't stay on top of it.

But on the real, this is really bothering me.

Its been a year or almost since Allen Iverson was traded, and I've been noticing a lot lately that the Philly media is starting to address Andre Igoudala as A.I. This must stop immediately. Yeah they share the same initials, but come on people, he needs another nickname, that's just wrong. Andre will never be Allen, no where near it, so he needs to have his own identity and that's just out of respect.

I read an article from the Seattle Times and came across an interesting tidbit....

"Before last season, each team presented a version of the same slide show. The first slide depicts rap mogul Jay-Z seated courtside in an oxford shirt, sweater and necktie. "I'm not a businessman," a caption on the slide show reads, "I'm a business, man." The slide show preaches the importance of image and the need to change the public perception of NBA players." (Source)

Who in the hell left the gate open?

Today, Sandra Rose, pointed out the discrepencies that are Shawn Carter's grill.

"They can spend money extravagantly on unnecessary things, but can't spend a couple of dollars to fix their teeth? No wonder Jay Z rarely smiles - and for that we are grateful."

"Not only can you see his crooked front tooth, but are those weed stains on his teeth? Wow, has Jay ever sat in a dentist's chair in his life?" - Sandra Rose

In spite of having more than enough money and making the Forbes list, Mr. Carter chooses not to take care of his teeth. And neither does Sean "Diddy" Combs. 50 Cent got shot in his mouth and has great teeth. Even Kanye has nice teeth.

I have no real point.

I read Sandra's blog and then read the article that mentioned Jay-Z on a NBA slide show about image.

And it made me laugh.

I thought about the NBA players I've seen over the years with bad teeth (Reggie Miller) and bad skin (Dennis Rodman) and it never was an issue.

And I noticed its because they are men.

If Beyonce was sporting Jay-Z's grill would he still be interested in sporting her on his arm?

Can a woman have acne and blemishes and still be considered sexy, like Diddy works so hard to perserve and maintain?

I noticed Alicia Keys has some acne problems, but she wears make-up so you would never know it.

Is Jay-Z really a good example of image?

All he really has is stylist.

Business-wise, he's overrated. (Rihanna and who else?, What's his percentage of the Nets, and does he really own the 40/40 Club?)

And he's 40.

Why tell 20 somethings to portray the image of a 40 year old man?

Do you know what Jay-Z was in his 20s?

Allegedly a drug dealer and but realistically a starving rapper.

There are better examples.

Diddy never sold drugs, why not show him instead?

And he really did start his own empire.

Maybe he was the next slide.

Then came Usher.  

I guess Jay is more relatable to the players now, but I would never want to see my employer do a presentation on image and use Jay-Z as an example.

Am I supposed to take that seriously?

Should I be offended?

It's just ridiculous!

I call this the Question of the Day. I may or may not have one EVERYDAY, but I will try to keep up on it, lol!

So here goes....

Is there anyone else that reads Gilbert Arenas' blog?

Seriously, I look for it every two weeks, but I check every few days just in case he sneaks one in, lol. I find them to be very amusing, informative, and at times ridiculous. Overall, it helped me view him as a complete person and not just an athlete.  

After reading this latest one, I wanted to pose this question:

Does knowing more about an athlete's personal life make a difference in how you view them as a player?  

I've been reading a few blogs and comments on the Isiah Thomas situation, its ridiculous how some people think.

I just wanted to say this before I move on:

For most of my life whenever there is discussion about Isiah, his comments about Larry Bird being overrated gets brought up. How long ago was that? Damn near 20 years and white people are still mad like that statement was detrimental to their future. Get over it. Larry got his revenge and that's how Isiah landed in New York.

So on with this testimony from the accuser, Anucha Browne Sanders....

To me she should have reached a settlement and wrote a book. I would have brought it. Marbury getting serviced by an intern after leaving a strip club, Isiah hates everybody and uses #### like its Miss or Mrs, and him professing his undying love for her. I really would have brought that book.

I know Isiah is married to a woman, but he's on the rumored to be #### list. And where there's smoke, there's fire. So I never doubted the rumors.

And judging by Ms. Browne Sanders appearance from the pics I've seen of her, she's not what I expected. So maybe that's where the joke comes in.

 After reading snippets of her testimony, I did indeed laugh and so did my mother. So I wasn't alone. My mother always instructed me to kick him in the nuts if a boy ever tried something funny.

So if this was in fact a painful experience, I apologize. The "Love & Basketball" reference made me bend over. I mean really what's the harm in that?

I also laughed thinking about Isiah's voice making these statements: "He was always starting sentences with the word '####,' "####, I don't give a f- - - about the sponsors. ####, I don't give a f- - - about ticket sales. That's your job."

And the kicker, "Sanders said that when she asked Thomas at one point to hand-sign letters to season-ticket holders, he spat, 'I don't give a f- - - about these white people."

See first of all, he wouldn't be calling me no ####. She should have nipped that in the bud from the door. Being that she was so offended by it to bring it up in court. Even Marbury called her a ####.

Which is probably something she basked in. When you work in a male dominated environment sometimes you have to be a ####. I know she didn't get ahead because of her charm and good looks. She's a smart woman capable of doing the job. She didn't lay on her back to get the job, so why should she lay on her back to keep it?

Or is it really what it seems?

This could all be a bunch of office jokes being used to slander Thomas and the Knicks' organization.

Even Stephon Marbury viewed the suit as a joke. He testified to that in court yesterday. Along with the fact he engaged in sex with a MSG intern who was dating his cousin at the time according to Browne Sanders' testimony. That's quite trifling, Mr. Marbury.

And judging from Sanders' recounting of what this intern told her, the intern tried to imply force but admitted it was consensual because she got into his vehicle. Quite trifling indeed, Mr. Marbury.

But as always, Steph was honest. When he took the stand, Marbury admitted pulling up and asking the intern, "Are you going to get in the truck?"' He said she answered, "Yes."

Who hired a groupie as an intern anyway?

This case is just a prime example of the crack house the Garden has become.

The Nets moving to Brooklyn isn't such a bad idea after all.

NY fans will have a closer alternative to the madness.