#like i dont support guns. or the fbi. but these two are interesting with how they use those things

[saltlickmp3]

scully waves a gun around generally because she thinks she is actually in danger & needs to defend herself and to be fair she is a lot of the time, & mulder waves a gun around because his first instinct is to fight & threaten & intimidate his way into finding out what he needs to

[yournewapartment]

YNA, I need help or advice or something: there's this video going around Facebook, that my cousin just sent me, from a woc who is saying that "racially motivated police brutality is a myth" and I'm so angry like how can she say that? "White men are more likely to be killed by cops," "cops are more likely to be killed by black men," and crap like that. I dont believe any of it but how do I prove to my cousin it's bs? The woman was citing figures and yelling "look it up!!" Was she bluffing?

I recently listened to a wonderful podcast from In The Dark about the case of Curtis Flowers, a POC who had to endure an unprecedented number of murder trails in Mississippi for a mass murder he did not commit. The prosecutor on the case, an asshole named Doug Evans, was a racist, and tried the case six times. There is only one other case in all of United States history, to have been tried even close to this many times. One other case! Curtis’ case kept getting overturned because his defense team was able to prove time and time again, that Evans and his team were racists. They used their legal power in the courtroom to strike as many black people from the jury pool as possible. Out of the six trials (think 12 jurors and 3 alternates), I believe only eight POC made it onto the jury. That’s 8 out of 90 possible! My memory might not be 100% correct, but you get the point. 

It’s a wonderful podcast and I highly recommend you listen if you’re interested in true crime. BUT, my point...

During several of the trials, Mr. Evans used jail-house informants who were POC. All of them have since recanted their testimony and have said that Evans paid them to testify or helped them get lesser prison sentences. But this is after the fact. In the Dark investigators interviewed different jurors who sat on different juries (the jail house informants were used at almost every trial). Many of the white jurors said that they gave the jailhouse informants more credence than they normally would have, because they were POC. They said that they did not think that POC would turn on other POC if it wasn’t for a good reason. Which is, my friends.... wait for it... just another form of racism against POC! 

The few black jurors that made it to juries did not give the jailhouse informants more credence at all. Several even said that they found the jail house informants very untrustworthy and unreliable. Because the court literally tells you: “Hey, these are jail house informants, you have to take their testimony with a grain of salt.”

I haven’t seen this video and I obviously don’t know the background of it or of the POC on it. But it sounds to me like white people are watching this video and thinking: “Well, this is a POC saying these things, so this video has to be an honest take on the situation.” It’s sounding like they’re giving this video more weight and importance than they would a video of a white person saying the same exact things. 

Which is... racism! 

Racism is not always brutality and violence, thought it often times is. 

Racism can be your white grandmother saying: “I don’t have a problem with black people, their music is just too loud.” 

It can be your friend saying the n-word when she’s singing along to a Kendrick Lamar song: “He said it first, so why can’t I say it?” 

It can be a co-worker assuming a POC co-worker speaks a different language based on their skin color. 

It can even be you! If I’m walking around at night by myself, and I see a group of black men hanging out in a park, doing their own thing, why am I uneasy? I have to ask myself- if this were a group of white men, would I still feel uneasy? Why do I feel this way? Do I carry inherent racism with me as a white person, just based on the way I react with society as a white woman? 

Guys- I definitely do! And if you’re a white person reading this, I bet you do too. My parents are die-hard liberals who have always touted equal rights for everyone. In my education, I never had a teacher spout openly racist view points or try to “brain wash me” into being racist. It was a default. A default, because every interaction I’ve had with everyone I’ve ever met, has in some part been a judgment based on my appearance. It’s not a conscious thing, it’s what we as humans do, we take in our surroundings. Living life as a white woman has granted me invisible privileges that POC do not share. 

And... that’s a hard pill to swallow. I’m sure that I’ll get comments on this post and asks in my inbox with angry white people criticizing what I’ve just said. Because nobody wants to be called a racist! White people who spend their whole lives with POC, who have never intentionally said anything negative about POC, do not want to hear that they were essentially born into racism. Fam, I didn’t want to hear it either! But it is not enough to “not be a racist”. We’ve come too far as a species to sit back idly and occasionally tweet “Black Lives Matter” and congratulate ourselves for the effort. As a white person with my rights and privileges, it is my duty to society to be actively “anti-racist”. 

It is my duty to educate myself. It is my duty to stand with POC. To amplify POC’s voices. To listen when POC talk. And most importantly- to not make it about myself! Which I have in this post, I know. But as semi-popular blogger who is white, I feel that I needed to write this out to help other white people.  White people- get angry! Be the change you wish to see in the world. Step up and do what you can to support POC. 

I know I’ve somewhat indirectly answered your question, so more to the point. I don’t know who this POC is in the video. But on a very basic level, I know that you know, that what the woman in the video is saying is not the truth. It’s been proven time and time again that POC (particularly black POC), have been murdered by the systemic racism of our justice system. Just scroll back on my blog and check out the posts I reblogged #blacklivesmatter for more specific details. This is not to say that the justice system magically works 100% if you’re white, it clearly doesn’t. But as a white person, you have a much better chance of getting a fair shake of things. Whether that’s being pulled over by a cop, being arrested, or even getting an impartial jury. These are basic human rights that we should all enjoy! 

Anyone can hop on the internet, record a shitty video, and act like it’s the truth. I can record a video stating that I’m an FBI agent who has been hunting serial killers using the nanotechnology of gusher candies, but nobody is going to fucking believe me. Every video on the internet needs to be treated with scrutiny, and frankly, your cousin is a fool if she’s willing to end her education on racism just because she watched one video with a POC condemning it.

In this case, I would message your cousin the following resources on racism and police statistics so that she can educate herself. There are countless articles all over the internet:

https://mappingpoliceviolence.org/

https://www.citylab.com/equity/2019/08/police-officer-shootings-gun-violence-racial-bias-crime-data/595528/

Also important resources:

https://blacklivesmatter.com/

https://www.aclu.org/

How to be anti-racist: https://weedmaps.com/news/2020/06/where-to-start-being-anti-racist-educate-yourself-with-black-voices/

https://medium.com/wake-up-call/a-detailed-list-of-anti-racism-resources-a34b259a3eea

Check out the case of Curtis Flowers on all your favorite podcast streaming services: https://www.apmreports.org/in-the-dark/season-two/curtis-flowers-updates

I appreciate everyone who read this. I feel a little uneasy posting this if I’m being honest. I am white, this isn’t about my voice. So if you are a POC and have feedback for me, please let me know. I will keep on keeping on, and will do my part to support #blacklivesmatter.

[arcticdementor]

In the David Fincher produced, 2017 Netflix series, Mindhunter, two FBI special agents travel the country interviewing serial killers in the 1970’s. The series, based on the non-fiction book “Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit” by John Douglas, chronicles the beginnings of advanced criminal profiling techniques developed by the FBI in response to a number of high profile, and gruesome crimes carried out during the era, beginning with the Manson Family murders of 1968. Throughout the show the fictional special agents Holden Ford and Bill Tench meet with frequent resistance from other law enforcement personnel as they attempt to unravel the minds of the serial killers they meet. Everyone from their bosses in the agency to the local police officers they encounter along the way express extreme discomfort at the thought of empathizing or attempting to understand the killers Ford and Tench interrogate. These men are just evil. There’s nothing more to it. Nothing can be learned from them. No insight can be gained. They’re simply, purely evil, and attempting to say anything more on the subject is an affront to the victims, their families, and to human decency and capital-J Justice in general.

Fictionalized though the series may be, in our own time, in the era of mass shootings, one doesn’t have to go far to find similar responses to this uniquely contemporary category of violent crime. Media coverage of the killers oozes sensationalized language that depicts them as dark, evil, twisted, vile, abhorrent, insane. The public, in internet comment forms across social media, offer up their thoughts and prayers, and inevitably, the discussion devolves into a debate on the second amendment and the merits of gun control as politicians and journalists quickly move to steer the national conversation to more politically fruitful areas in order to amass momentum in passing various pieces of long desired legislation targeting gun owners or the NRA. The killers themselves, their personalities, their motivations, their worldviews, the experiences that shape them, every time quickly slip through the cracks of the conversation and are forgotten long before their respective cases are ever brought to trial.

…

Over the course of hundreds of hours beginning in 1959, Ted Kaczynski, the future unabomber, participated in an intense psychological experiment conduced at Harvard by Dr. Henry A Murray. During World War II, Murray had worked for the Office of Strategic Services in developing personality assessment techniques designed to test potential recruits on how well they would endure interrogation and torture by the enemy. At Harvard, Murray went on to further develop his method, transforming it from a diagnostic assessment of mental anti-fragility, into the basis of a radical personality modifying procedure he hoped could be used to forcibly evolve human consciousness in order to prevent the nuclear annihilation he feared was inevitable in light of mankind’s petty national prejudices and self-interest during the period of the Cold War. Kaczynski was among his unwitting test subjects, and though his personal, radical Luddite beliefs would ultimately diverge from the kind of technocratic globalism Murray intended to inculcate in Kaczynski, in a strange way, Murray was also more successful than he could have possibly anticipated.

…

No case provides better evidence of this possibility than that of Adam Lanza, the 2012 Sandy Hook shooter. After years of denied requests, more than 1,000 pages of evidence relating to the Lanza case were finally released to the Hartford Courant in December of 2018. Lanza, who killed himself following the attack, left behind no manifesto. He had even taken the precaution of smashing his devices’ hard drives prior to the shooting. In the end hundreds of pages worth of Lanza’s writings were ultimately recovered by the police, and it’s only from these scattered fragments that his beliefs and opinions emerge. Like Holmes in the weeks and months leading to the Aurora massacre, Lanza was no stranger to psychiatric evaluation. Throughout Lanza’s entire life, from the age of 3, when he was first diagnosed with speech and developmental problems, he knew little else but the offices of therapists and counselors and psychiatrists. A rotating cast of mental health professionals drifted in and out of his life. They all recognized the so-called ‘warning signs’ all too well, but even with a lifetime’s worth of treatment, they completely and utterly failed to prevent his transformation into mass murderer.

…

Lanza goes even further, and characterizes the years of psychiatric treatment he received since childhood explicitly as abusive: “I was molested at least a dozen times by a few different adults when I was a child. It wasn’t my decision at all: I was coerced into it… What do each of the adults have in common? They were doctors, and each of them were sanctioned by my parents to do it. This happens to virtually every child without their input into the matter: Their parents sanction it.”

…

The United States spends more per capita on primary and secondary education than almost any other country. As of 2014 the U.S. is in the top 5, below only Switzerland, Norway and Austria. Despite this however, year after year, a majority of Americans report dissatisfaction with the quality of K-12 education in their country. Alternative education remains a persistent source of controversy within the public consciousness. Private schools, charter schools, school vouchers, homeschooling, all are topics that filter in and out of the national political conversation. Democrats, on the whole, maintain an unyielding support for the compulsory nature of public education in America, while practices like Homeschooling are largely written off as the exclusive province of religious fundamentalists and political separatists. The same goes for the diverting of public resources to charter schools by means of a tax exemption or credit. The argument that has formed over time to circumvent these controversial alternatives boils down to a single word: Socialization.

Public schools not only educate students in facts and skills, the argument goes, but also serve to socialize children by serving as a microcosm of the pluralistic, diverse society in which these students will one day have to live and contribute to. A private, all male school, for instance, will fail to prepare its students for the modern workplace, where they’ll have to cooperate and even take orders from female colleagues or superiors. Likewise, desegregation busing is required to ensure students experience a sufficiently diverse environment. When it comes to a wide variety of controversies in public education, the socialization argument continues to form the backbone of liberal resistance to conservative attacks on the public schooling monopoly.At the same time, as liberals defend the practice and theory of socialization, the scourge of bullying has, on-again off again, served as a cause célèbre among many of the same people. Since 2010, October has become National Bullying Prevention Month, a campaign by the non-profit PACER organization in coordination with companies like CNN and Facebook, among others. Television shows and documentaries have tackled the subject, and celebrities like Ellen regularly champion anti-bullying causes. But what is bullying but the core of Socialization? In a sense the two can almost be considered synonymous. Bullying is, after all, the school of hard knocks which children undergo to learn the complex, unspoken rules of social game playing. Socialization is about instilling conformity, and bullying remains the core experience for many children in learning about all the ways the deviate from the norm. When children are unresponsive to bullying, that’s when things are kicked up to the teachers and administrators and school counselors, and that same unpliability and unresponsiveness is re-conceptualized by well-meaning adults as developmental disorders.

In 1975 Autism was diagnosed in children at a rate of 1 in every 5,000. Today that number has soared to nearly 1 in 100. This has ignited a public controversy over the source or cause of what by every definition deserves to be called an public health epidemic. 75% of children diagnosed with Autism today are boys. There’s no need to go searching for a cause. Vaccines aren’t behind the explosion in Autism rates. Teachers and school psychologists are. School psychology today is a booming industry, one which the US Department of Labor identifies as having some of the best employment opportunities across the entire field of psychology. 75% of school psychologists are women, with an average age of 46. It is this same group of people most empowered to conduct psychological monitoring of children across the country, and over the last 30 years, they have come to classify a larger and larger percentage of young boys as having developmental issues, to the point where it’s not clear whether there is anything wrong with these children at all, or if school psychologists have simply written off a wider and wider range of behaviors which they find problematic or incomprehensible as constituting autism.

…

In 2013, a Texas teenager named Justin Carter was locked up for threatening a school shooting. Whether or not the threat was legitimate is another matter entirely. In a bout of online shit talking over League of Legends Carter wrote ��Oh yeah, I’m real messed up in the head, I’m going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts…” in response to a quip by a fellow gamer calling him crazy. He quickly rejoined: “lol jk,” likely realizing the fact he could get himself in trouble saying such things. Whether or not it was a good idea for him to make such a comment is immaterial, what matters is the violent, disproportionate response that followed. A Canadian woman, thousands of miles away, reported Carter. He was arrested and locked in jail. Bond was set at half a million dollars, which his family couldn’t afford to pay. He languished in jail, was assaulted by fellow inmates, and then locked up in solitary confinement for his own safety. After 4 months in jail an anonymous donor paid to have Carter released on behalf of his family. The state dragged out the matter for years, delaying the trial as long as possible on tenuous grounds. In the interim Carter was banned from using a computer. It wasn’t until spring of 2018 that a plea agreement was finally reached and Carter was let off with time served.

This is the paranoid system which today we entrust with rescuing at-risk young boys. This is what stands between us and more school shootings. Never mind the fact that as this system has grown, it has only led to a rise in mass shootings. Maybe the real cause of such cases is not guns, or a failure to identify and treat students, maybe the cause is these same students, following a protracted process of isolation and attempted psychological modification, learning to play the part the system has assigned to them, that of the security threat. When schools spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on active shooter drills and security systems, isn’t it just wasted money until someone comes along and gives them an excuse to use it? The complicated apparatus of psychological surveillance and socialization that prevails among schools today is, like the TSA checkpoint at the airport, nothing more than an elaborate piece of (psychological) security theater, and theaters require drama, and more importantly, villains. People like Adam Lanza and James Holmes are certainly killers of the very worst kind, guilty of evil, but on a larger scale, their evil is a only a reflection of our own, of the perverse societal mechanisms we’ve developed to give ourselves piece of mind, regardless of the children that must be fed to the machinery for it to function.

[shervonfakhimi]

The Annual Gasbag, Totally Wrong 2019 NCAA Tournament Bracket

The sun is out. The birds are chirping. Spring break is approaching. Gasbags on television are absolutely positive the Anteaters of UC Irvine will beat the Kansas State Wildcats despite never seeing them play. That’s right, get a whiff of it all and inhale. March is here ladies and gentlemen, which means people will finally begin watching college basketball and maintain that they have been watching all season long trying to win their bracket pools (I somehow won mine last year after years of trying. Shoutout Moe Wagner and Donte DiVincenzo!) pretending to know everything in the process, when we all know nobody knows anything at all. Who the hell is Gardner-Webb? Wait, they’re a team, not a player? What? So with that being the backdrop, let’s run through my picks and all laugh at how horribly wrong I will be in three weeks. As the late Heath Ledger said as the Joker in ‘The Dark Knight,’ “Here. We. Go.”

EAST

Round of 64

1 Duke vs 16 North Dakota State/NC Central: Zion smash. Duke wins.

8 VCU vs 9 UCF: VCU lost to Rhode Island in the A-10 tournament, losing one of their guards in the process. UCF has guards in BJ Taylor and Aubrey Dawkins to match a talented frontcourt headed by the giant Tacko Fall. Look man, I haven’t seen VCU play so I don’t have much to work with. They’re havoc style of play may work, but probably not against an experienced team. I’ll take UCF.

5 Mississippi State vs 12 Liberty: Liberty’s coach comes from the Virginia Cavalier school of strategy, playing at a snail pace and making it a halfcourt game. MSU has the guards to beat that style, and I think they’ll prevail. I’m always here for a 12-5 upset, but don’t think this is the place to look.

4 Virginia Tech vs 13 St. Louis: A Billiken is a mythical good-­luck figure who represents "things as they ought to be." That’s all I got for St. Louis. And that sounds about right because they ought to take an L to a really talented, versatile Virginia Tech getting their point guard Justin Robinson back. I’ll take the giant, ‘Family Guy’-esque fighting chickens over whatever the heck a Billiken is.

6 Maryland vs 11 Belmont: Good on the committee to put Belmont in the dance, and good on Belmont to prove them and all their supporters right, taking down Temple. They have a wide range of guards and playmakers, most notably future pro Dylan Windler. But for Maryland’s purposes, Belmont has a couple bigs to throw at Bruno Fernando to at least make him work. With Windler’s ability to rebound and good guard play, I think Belmont will keep on keeping on.

3 LSU vs 14 Yale: How remarkable is it that *these* two teams are currently embroiled in NCAA/FBI scrutiny? Hilarious. Anyway, buckle up, ya’ll. We got an upset here. Get this: Yale is 42nd and 29th in the country in 3 point field goal percentage and 3 point field goal percentage defense, respectively, per Kenpom. LSU is 276th and 179th, respectively in those areas. Add to it Yale has played the role of Cinderella spoiler before 3 years ago when Taurean Prince taught us what a rebound is, Yale arguably may have the best player on the floor in future NBA draft pick Miye Oni and LSU doesn’t have their head coach right now, this has all the makings of an upset special. I’ve never seen Yale play. Instead of watching their conference tournament championship game, I chose to watch ‘Desus & Mero’ before Tennesee-Auburn tipped off (shoutout the brand). But, I’m taking them anyway. Let’s go Yale!

7 Louisville vs 10 Minnesota: Brace yourselves, good people of Des Moines, Iowa. Wear turtlenecks, stay in bright areas, dress in layers to be extra cautious. The fact this is the first game on Thursday’s slate means it may be dark enough for a vampire named Count Pitino to sneak into the arena. No one should be bit in the process. All I want is safety for those who just want to enjoy some hoops. Is that too much to ask for? I’m taking Louisville, but that’s not what’s important here. Stay safe, Iowa. We don’t need any accidents here.

2 Michigan State vs 15 Bradley: Don’t worry, Bradley. You won’t be in the tournament long enough for any actual, respected journalists to have to worry about your supposed ‘brand.’ Sparty rolls on.

ROUND OF 32

1 Duke vs 9 UCF: The classic mentor vs mentee matchup. Mike Krzyzewski being the Obi-Wan to Johnny Dawkins’ Anakin Skywalker. While Coach K might not have the high ground since UCF has towering Tacko Fall, it still won’t matter. UCF has enough shooting and wings to make it a game, but Zion, RJ and Cam Reddish should be able to get through relatively unscathed. Duke wins.

4 Virginia Tech vs 5 Mississippi State: Virginia Tech’s versatility should be a bad matchup for MSU. VT plays 4 perimeter players around big man Kerry Blackshear, who is a big with perimeter skills with his ability to shoot 3s, attack a closeout and pass. Potential possible lottery pick Nickeil Alexander-Walker should be able to defend and attack Mississippi State’s smaller guards. Since MSU isn’t particularly gigantic on the frontcourt, Virginia Tech should be able to play their game without a ton of concern, though MSU is a good offensive rebounding team. Virginia Tech hangs on and gets to the Sweet 16.

11 Belmont vs 14 Yale: Yale may have pulled off the bigger upset, but Belmont is still the better team. I’m thinking Windler and crew slow down Oni and the Bulldogs and advance to the Sweet 16.

2 Michigan State vs 7 Louisville: These two teams met earlier this year in Louisville, with the Cardinals winning. While the Cardinals aren’t bulky in the frontcourt, they have options to throw at the multitude of bigs Michigan State trots out in Nick Ward, Xavier Tillman and Kenny Goins. Maybe I’m underestimating the chemistry and spirit of this Spartans team (one that has withstood multiple injuries), but I believe Christen Cunningham can match up well against Cassius Winston, Louisville matches up well with Michigan State as a whole, Jordan Nwora is perhaps the most talented player on the floor that Michigan State doesn’t quite have an answer for, and Chris Mack knows his way around an NCAA Tournament too. Though Michigan State is a good 3 point shooting team (38.2%), they surround the floor with shooters who teams are willing to let them beat them rather than let their bigs dominate inside and have been inconsistent hitting big shots in tense situations. I believe Louisville will be able to get better offense, though they’ll have to avoid collapsing late like they did against Duke when they blew a 23 point lead. Perhaps Louisville gets some home cooking too with this game being played in Big 10 country. Louisville ranks in the top 30 in both offensive and defensive efficiency in Kenpom, so they are more than capable of taking Michigan State down. I’m rolling with Louisville in an upset to get to the Sweet 16.

SWEET 16

1 Duke vs 4 Virginia Tech: This is a dangerous spot for Duke. VT defeated Duke in Blacksburg, while the Hokies were without Justin Robinson and Duke was without Zion Williamson. Zion aside, Virginia Tech has the length and athleticism to match up somewhat with Duke’s perimeter athletes and their 3 point shooting prowess (7th in the nation at 39.8%) could make things interesting. If Zion Williamson wasn’t on Duke, this could be a trendy and real sleeper pick. Zion could end up being the difference, thus Duke moving on to the Elite 8.

7 Louisville vs 11 Belmont: Belmont matches up with Louisville fairly well. But the same applies the other way and I think Louisville has the versatility to defend Belmont’s motion-centric offense and out-gun them with Nwora leading the way. I like Louisville to move on to the Elite 8.

ELITE 8

1 Duke vs 7 Louisville: As mentioned earlier, Duke nearly lost to this Louisville and required a colossal comeback to defeat them in Louisville. Louisville managed out-rebound Duke and hold them to 36.5% from the field. And yes, this was with Zion Williamson playing. However, Duke got 24 trips to the Free Throw line, nine of which from Zion, who made eight of them. The lack of size in the backcourt means Cam Reddish could be more of a factor should the Cardinals elect to have Dwane Sutton guard RJ Barrett, who went only 4-14 from the field in their previous affair. I’m not expecting an utter meltdown from Louisville in this rematch, but I also don’t think Reddish, RJ Barrett and Tre Jones will go 13-45 from the field either. Duke wins a close on to get to the Final 4.

SOUTH

ROUND OF 64

1 Virginia vs 16 Gardner-Webb: You want to know what I said last year about Virginia in their first round matchup? Well, here ya go: ‘UMBC is named the Retrievers. That’s about all I got here. Shoutout them & Jarius Lyles, who averages 20.2 PPG, but nah this ain’t happening. UVA wins.’ It can’t happen again, right? RIGHT?

8 Ole Miss vs 9 Oklahoma:

Could this Oklahoma team be any more of a polar opposite than last year’s squad headlined by Trae Young? Nope. Last year’s team was more of an offensive oriented team, while this year makes its hey on defense. While Ole Miss has some legit guards in Terence Davis and Breein Tyree, they’re not good defending 3s and can be had defensively. We’re going with the more tournament experienced Sooners here.

5 Wisconsin vs 12 Oregon: Ethan Happ is *still* in Wisconsin after debuting for the Badgers 10 years ago. Seriously, he’s still there? Anyway, Wisconsin drew a really bad matchup against a super hot Oregon team who has multiple bigs, primarily Kenny Wooten, to throw at Happ and stick to Wisconsin’s shooters. Louis King, who Bill Walton calls ‘Louie the King’ is a potential 1st round pick (maybe next year) with a very tantalizing skillset at 6’9” 205lbs. Payton Pritchard can control the pace and bring a scoring punch in his own right. Speaking of Bill Walton, I’ll let him announce who my pick is for this game.

4 Kansas State vs 13 UC Irvine: Similarly to Yale, instead of watching UC Irvine’s championship game, I chose to watch ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ instead. So I don’t really have much here. All I know is this game is going to be an ugly, low scoring brawl since these two teams make their hay. Dean Wade may not play for Kansas State, so I’m rolling with the Anteaters despite never seeing them play. Surely that’s a recipe for success, right?

6 Villanova vs 11 St. Mary’s: I don’t think Villanova could’ve gotten a better draw. If you sense a theme here with this bracket, St. Mary’s wants to play at a snail’s pace with scoring being at a premium. That’s good for a Villanova team without many offensive creators outside of Phil Booth and Eric Paschall, who are a little over their heads for their roles anyway while keeping this team afloat. Had Nova gotten a team that can go up and down and get buckets, I’d be a lot more pessimistic about their chances. But St. Mary’s isn’t that team, so I’m rolling with Booth, Paschall, Jay Wright and Villanova to advance.

3 Purdue vs 14 Old Dominion: I totally have never seen Old Dominion play so… yeah. Carsen Edwards should be able to get at least one game for Purdue. Boiler up!

7 Cincinnati vs 10 Iowa: If ever there were a game that will break out in an Anchorman-type brawl with brass knuckles, grenades and a trident, this would be it. Coaching staffs, players, everybody. And let me tell you, no one is more ready to fight like Mick Cronin. For that (and the fact this game will be in Columbus, Ohio) reason alone I’m going with Cincinnati.

2 Tennessee vs 15 Colgate: Tennessee should be able to *brush* off the competition in the first round. I’ll show myself out…

ROUND OF 32

1 Virginia vs 9 Oklahoma: If Oklahoma is a defensive-minded squad, then give me the team with three potential NBA 1st round picks. Virginia advances.

12 Oregon vs 13 UC Irvine: Again, another defensive-minded affair. Oregon has been locking teams down in their late season push into the NCAA tournament. Irvine can win this game, but I think Pritchard will be able to get Oregon better looks and close out another win. Cue Bill Walton again.

3 Purdue vs 6 Villanova: Villanova’s hellacious draw continues. Purdue is similar to Nova in that they have a player that has to do more offensivey than he probably should be doing. Carsen Edwards is a volume scorer, but that can lead to loud off nights as well. Without another go-to option on offense, Villanova is sound and disciplined enough to be able to take away Purdue’s complementary shooting and put multiple defenders on Edwards to tire him out. It also helps Villanova’s cause they’ll be a de facto home team in Hartford, Connecticut. As mentioned before, I think Villanova is prone to a loss here, but I’m not sure Purdue has the firepower to knock them out early. I’m guessing this will be another close, low scoring game with the defending national champs eeking out another one to get to the Sweet 16.

2 Tennessee vs 7 Cincinnati: So, it’s a little bullshit that Tennessee, a 2 seed in the *South* region will basically have a road game in the middle of Ohio. Maybe it could end up being a factor, but with how constipated an offense Cincinnati has and that Tennessee can throw multiple defenders at Cincinnati’s best offensive threat in Jarron Cumberland, I think Tennessee wins this out pretty handily.

SWEET 16

1 Virginia vs 12 Oregon: Oregon has put the clamps on teams, but the run ends here. Virginia has Ty Jerome to throw at Pritchard and De’Andre Hunter to throw at Louis King. While a fun NBA draft matchup, Oregon’s lack of explosive offensive firepower will finally come back to bite them here with Virginia’s 2nd most efficient offense in the country. I think Kyle Guy will have a field day here. Sorry Bill Walton, but I’m going with Virginia here.

2 Tennessee vs 6 Villanova: Villanova can make this interesting. Eric Paschall, Saddiq Bey, Jaylen Samuels and Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree are big and versatile enough to make Tennessee’ versions of the Incredible Hulk in Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield work. However, the play of Tennessee��s guards Jordan Bone, Jordan Bowden and Lamonte Turner I think will be the difference and lift Tennessee into a dream Elite 8 matchup.

ELITE 8

1 Virginia vs 2 Tennessee: Virginia *beep* Tennessee *beep* collision course. That’s what it feels like in this South region, honestly. These two match up really well with each other. Either squad could take it. I think this is going to be the breakout game where everybody in the country sees how good De’Andre Hunter really is. Sure, Virginia’s got Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy, who have to play well and defend Tennessee’s guards, but Tennessee’s bread and butter is in the paint, and there may be no player better served to defend Schofield and Grant Williams than Hunter, a potential Top 5 NBA pick this upcoming draft. Not only that, but he can hit 3s at a very high clip (45.7%). Tennessee got exploited by Auburn bombing away from 3 and stretching their bigs out, an achilles’ heel for Tennessee, as they rank 151st in the country in 3 point defense. Virginia is 4th in the country in 3 point offense. Look for Hunter, Braxton Key and Mamadi Diakite to make life difficult on Tennessee’s brutes down low and for the Cavs to beat Tennessee from deep. I’m rolling with Virginia and for Tony Bennett’s squad to finally make the Final 4.

MIDWEST

1 North Carolina vs 16 Iona: The ceiling is the roof for one of these teams, and it ain’t Iona. Sorry Gaels. UNC wins.

8 Utah State vs 9 Washington: Utah State is a good team led by Sam Merrill and a future pro in Neemias Queta. Washington struggles to score, but can make things interesting playing a Syracuse-esque 2-3 zone and ballhawk Matisse Thybulle making plays. I just don’t think Washington scores enough. Utah State moving on.

5 Auburn vs 12 New Mexico State: Auburn destroyed Tennessee from 3 point range in the SEC championship game. New Mexico State can make things interesting, but think Jared Harper and Bryce Brown make enough shots to let Auburn advance.

4 Kansas vs 13 Northeastern: This is arguably the worst Kansas team I’ve ever seen. Part of it is because they’ve been hampered by injuries (Udoka Azubuike), Lagerald Vick leaving for personal reasons and the feds tapping Bill Self’s phone (Silvio De Sousa). Regardless, this team is overly reliant on Dedric Lawson, who couldn’t get the job against Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament. Northeastern can stretch Kansas out similarly to how the Cyclones did and have arguably the best guard on the floor in Serbian guard Vasa Pusica. While Devon Dotson is a solid floor general, he, Quentin Grimes and Ochai Agbaji haven’t necessarily proven to be consistent scoring threats. I already picked one Husky team to lose; I don’t think the other will. Upset alert!

6 Iowa State vs 11 Ohio State: If Ohio State big man Kaleb Wesson can stay out of foul trouble and punish the Cyclones down low, this could be a game. But Iowa State may have the best collection of guards in the entire country, and have at least 3 solid options down low to bang with Wesson in Michael Jacobson, Cam Lard and George Conditt IV. I’m betting on Iowa State’s guard play to advance.

3 Houston vs 14 Georgia State: I know D’Marcus Simonds is good for Georgia State. I’m not sure what else they got. Houston should win this game. Dejon Jarreau and the Coogs hold on.

7 Wofford vs 10 Seton Hall: I don’t think there’s a more underrated guard to go on a Kemba Walker-esque run than Myles Powell of Seton Hall. He is an unconscious chucker who won’t stop until he gets hot. I think he outguns Fletcher Magee for Wofford and Seton Hall advances with tough defense to run Wofford off the 3 point line.

2 Kentucky vs 15 Abilene Christian: Does this man look like he’s worried about Abilene Christian? Hell nah.

ROUND OF 32

1 North Carolina vs 8 Utah State: Utah State has some guys, as mentioned earlier, but I don’t think they have the firepower to deal with Coby White, Cam Johnson, Luke Maye, Nassir Little and crew. UNC goes to the Sweet 16.

5 Auburn vs 13 Northeastern: Similar to Utah State, Northeastern has some firepower and can make this interesting, but don’t think they have enough. The numerous attacking guards Auburn has runs in contrast to what Kansas has. Regardless of whether Northeastern or Kansas actually plays this game, I’m taking Auburn to move on.

3 Houston vs 6 Iowa State: Houston has some guards in Dejon Jarreau, Galen Robinson and Corey Davis Jr. They’re tough and versatile defensively and have enough to score efficiently. Had they gotten Villanova as their 6th seed, I’d be more willing to pick Houston. But Iowa State’s guard-play in the form of Virginia transfer Marial Shayok, potential first round pick Talen Horton-Tucker, Tyrese Haliburton and 6th man supersub Lindell Wigginton I think will shine through. Houston can beat Iowa State, but I don’t think they will end up beating them. Gimme Iowa State.

2 Kentucky vs 10 Seton Hall: Myles Powell and Seton Hall beat Kentucky once already. But, as all Calipari teams, this Kentucky team has improved as the season has gone on. I’m not sure Hall has enough juice to pull this off. Going with Kentucky.

SWEET 16

1 North Carolina vs 5 Auburn: This game will be the closest thing to an NBA in terms of space and 3 point shooting. Auburn can shoot themselves into a win or out of a game into a major loss. North Carolina is one of the few teams in the country that can keep up with them whether Auburn is hitting shots or not. I think Coby White and Kenny Williams would outplay and defend Jared Harper and Bryce Brown. Cam Johnson going up against Chuma Okeke makes for a nice NBA draft matchup. UNC has an answer for all of Auburn’s primary weapons. I’m taking the Heels.

2 Kentucky vs 6 Iowa State: So remember all that talk about Iowa State’s guards? Well, Kentucky has Ashton Hagans, Tyler Herro and Keldon Johnson to throw at Iowa State, along with a multitude of bigs, most notably PJ Washington and Stanford transfer Reid Travis. I think Kentucky can neutralize Iowa State’s guards while simultaneously punishing them down low. It’ll be a de facto road game in Hilton south in Kansas City, but think Calipari and crew will get the job done.

ELITE 8

1 North Carolina vs 2 Kentucky: The Luke Maye avenge game! De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk and Bam Adebayo aren’t there, but Maye still is after debuting for the Heels 20 years ago. Ashton Hagans is a bulldog defensively who can hound Coby White all game long. Keldon Johnson can defend Cam Johnson. They have the athletes and girth in the frontcourt to not just pester Luke Maye, Garrison Brooks and Nassir Little, but get the best of them too. However, with PJ Washington in a boot, he may not be 100% if he can even play in the game. For that reason, I’m rolling with North Carolina to get back to the Final 4.

WEST

ROUND OF 64

1 Gonzaga vs 16 Fairleigh Dickinson/Prairie View A&M: Yeah, Gonzaga.

8 Syracuse vs 9 Baylor: Another should-be ugly game with a lot of zone and offenses not knowing how to deal with zones. Syracuse announced they have suspended starting guard Frank Howard. With that news, for an already struggling Syracuse offense, I’m going with Baylor to take this one.

5 Marquette vs 12 Murray State: HELL. YES. Inject this game into my damn veins. Ja Morant and Markus Howard are two of the most explosive scoring guards in the country. Ja carried the Racers into the tournament. Markus made it a habit to drop 50 on fools. The difference is: Ja is a Trae Young type of playmaker put into De’Aaron Fox’s gifted athletic frame, whereas Markus is a talented bucket getter who can be forced into low efficiency shots and turnovers. Howard is a stud, but Ja is better, and Murray State has guards in Shaq Buchanon and Tevin Brown to make Howard work offensively. Where is Ja? The round of 32, Mr. Dave Chappelle.

4 Florida State vs 13 Vermont: Vermont is good. They also aren’t very big or deep. Florida State is the exact opposite. I’ll take the Seminoles.

6 Buffalo vs 11 St. John’s/Arizona State: Regardless of who plays this game (I think it’ll be Arizona State), I’m taking Buffalo. The Bulls have good guard play headlined by CJ Massinburg and Jeremy Harris. The Sun Devils match up fairly well, but I’m thinking those two and big man Nick Perkins stretching the floor will make the difference in the Bobby Hurley revenge game.

3 Texas Tech vs 14 Northern Kentucky: Unless Thor is suiting up for the Norse of Northern Kentucky, then I’m taking Jarrett Culver and Tech. I’m told he’s being rested for load management so he can take down Thanos. Sounds like the right decision. Texas Tech wins this one.

7 Nevada vs 10 Florida: So, here’s a question: Is Nevada good? Arizona State and Utah State are the only teams worth a damn they’ve beaten this year, neither of which being a true road game. They split with Utah State and lost 2 of 3 to San Diego State. Not great for the Muss Bus. The Martin twins and Jordan Caroline are good enough to go on another one, but I’m thinking Florida puts the clamps on them and Arkansas’ own KeVaughn Allen helps close them out. Florida moves on.

2 Michigan vs 15 Montana: I have no idea why and how these two are playing in the first round again, but I’m guessing it’ll end similarly to last year. Michigan wins.

ROUND OF 32

1 Gonzaga vs 9 Baylor: I can’t think of any two players more suited to bust a 2-3 zone (yes, Baylor runs it too) quite like Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke. Well, there was Jaren Jackson Jr. last year for Michigan State but Tom Izzo somehow decided he was only worth playing 13 minutes. Yeah… Mark Few isn’t going to make that mistake (I think?). Gonzaga moves on.

4 Florida State vs 12 Murray State: I hate this draw for Murray State. Loathe it. Despise it. I just want to pick Ja Morant to go the Elite 8 at the very least, why do you have to do this to me, committee? Florida State has multiple guards in Terrance Mann, Trent Forrest, MJ Walker, David Nichols, PJ Savoy and Devin Vassell that can not only make Ja Morant work offensively but have to guard defensively. Not that he’s a bad defender, but he typically likes to chill a little bit on that end to store his energy for carrying Murray State’s offense. Ja is good enough to pull this off; I’d probably pick him to do so against any other 4 seed (or even some 3 seeds). I just don’t see it happening against this Florida State squad.

3 Texas Tech vs 6 Buffalo: Both of these teams are sized fairly evenly across the board and play similarly. Both grind defensively and let their multiple guards on the floor carry them. One team has a potential Top 5 pick in Jarrett Culver; the other doesn’t. I’m taking him to carry Tech to a victory.

2 Michigan vs 10 Florida: These two teams are similar as well. Both teams are stout defensively, but leave more to be desired offensively, to put it kindly. Without Moe Wagner (at least someone knew how to use him right), the Wolverines have been more reliant on their guards to create with less spacing. Swaggy Jordan Poole made arguably the biggest shot of the tournament last year with his halfcourt buzzer beater against Houston, so if he gets hot, all things are off. But I like the way Florida executed offensively in the SEC Tournament against Arkansas, LSU and Auburn. Think this will be another low scoring affair, and that Florida will find a way to squeak out a close one to get to the Sweet 16.

SWEET 16

1 Gonzaga vs 4 Florida State: It’s all about matchups. Gonzaga has arguably the best frontcourt in the country, headlined by future potential lottery picks Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke, along with Killian Tillie coming off the bench. So no problem, they’ll just plow through Florida State, right? Not so fast, my friends. Florida State is one of the few teams that can match up with the Zags, with ACC 6th man of the year Mfiondu Kabengele (here’s a drinking game for ya: take a sip every time it gets mentioned he’s a nephew of Dikembe Mutombo), 7’4” goliath Christ Koumadje, Phil Cofer and Raiquan Gray. Yeah, Leonard Hamilton’s team has depth for days (side note: you all realize Leonard Hamilton is *only* 70 years old? He’s 22 months younger than Coach K. It truly is amazing). We already talked about FSU’s guard play, so let’s talk about the Zags’. It was a little alarming to see Zach Norvell Jr. and Josh Perkins look shook in their championship game vs St. Mary’s. They’re going to need solid play from Perkins and scoring from Norvell to pull this off. I think FSU can match up with them and out-gun their perimeter play. I’m taking Florida State to move on to the Elite 8.

3 Texas Tech vs 10 Florida: I think this is where Florida’s lack of scoring will come back to haunt them. Texas Tech can defend just as well as Michigan and has a little more of a scoring and shooting punch. I’m taking Jarrett Culver to get the Red Raiders back into the Elite 8.

ELITE 8

3 Texas Tech vs 4 Florida State: Florida State has guards and size. Texas Tech doesn’t quite have the number of them FSU does, but they have enough in Tariq Owens, Deshawn Corprew and Norense Odiase. I think Tech has more shooting and star power to get past Florida State. I already am looking for property on Culver Island. I’m banking on him to carry Tech on a big time run, and think he’ll follow through. Tech to the Final 4.

FINAL 4

1 Duke vs 3 Texas Tech: These two already met in Madison Square Garden where James Dolan wasn’t throwing fans out for pointing his gross incompetence. Culver can go toe-to-toe with either RJ or Reddish, but (I hope you’re sensing a theme) I’m not sure they have a match for Zion. Tre Jones can pressure Tech’s guards as well and come up with the scrappy 50-50 balls Tech lives off of. I think Duke moves on to the championship game.

1 Virginia vs 1 North Carolina: These two teams met in the regular season and Virginia won in Chapel Hill. I think De’Andre Hunter proves to be the difference and Virginia moves on to the championship game.

CHAMPIONSHIP

1 Duke vs 1 Virginia: Duke isn’t a great shooting team (and it come into play as to whether or not they actually make it this far), but Kentucky isn’t either. I think Tre Jones and Cam Reddish will be big factors slowing down Jerome and Guy. While it is hard to beat a team three times in a row, it isn’t impossible. Virginia doesn’t quite have an answer for Zion and Duke’s athleticism, and I think that leads Duke to another championship.

So there you have it. It took me basically two days to write this, a shit ton of words and little research looking up guys I’ve never heard of and will likely forget the second they will be eliminated all for Duke to lose in the Sweet 16 (an outcome I surely wouldn’t mind either!). Thanks for reading this everybody. Hopefully I’ll look at least decently smart three weeks from now.

[trendingnewsb]

Parkland Students to President Trump: Stay Far Away From Us

PARKLAND, FloridaTwo days after enduring a horrific school shooting, students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and parents of the victims have one request for President Donald Trump: stay away.

"In my opinion I do not want Trump here at all," Ameer Hussain, a 15-year-old freshman at the school told The Daily Beast.

Trump is scheduled to be at his resort in Mar-a-Lago this weekend. And reports on Friday said that he would be paying a visit to Parkland, Floridathe site of the shooting that claimed 17 lives on Wednesday while wounding 15 othersto, in his words, "meet with some of the bravest people on earth."

Its common for presidents to visit the sites of national tragedies and, while there, meet with the affected. But Trump is neither a conventional president nor one whom many people here particularly want to see.

Hussain imagined that Trump would use this event to make himself look better politically.

"It's not meaningful, he added. He's the president and he should be speaking on what he's going to do to make it better for next time. My friend group, Hispanic kids, black kids, they're not caring for this at all. My dad is of the same idea."

Another student who participated in Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) with Florida shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz, but asked that he not be named, said most kids and people in town agree that Trump should not swing through.

"One big reason people don't want him here was his speech yesterday and tweet of his," the student said. "Apparently [the president] said it was the kid's responsibility to report Nikolas Cruz so in a way it was our fault. A lot of people aren't happy about his visit."

Emotions remain raw among students in Parkland, especially after President Trump tweeted on Thursday that Neighbors and classmates knew [Cruz] was a big problem" and that, in such cases, people Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!

The missive left several students at the school livid, with some angirly responding to the president with tweets of their own.

"How is this our fault?" one student said on Twitter on Friday. "We cant even vote and when we say something its usually pushed aside. Dont you dare say that it is our fault, unless you were there, unless you tried your best you have no right to tell anyone what to believe."

The FBI did receive a tip about Cruz in January, but failed to transmit the warning to its Miami field office.

On Thursday, Trump made his first public statement on the shooting, saying that his administration was committed to working with state and local leaders to help secure our schools and tackle the difficult issue of mental health.

It is unclear how far Trumps outreach to the Parkland community has or will progress beyond that. No parent or students who spoke to The Daily Beast said they had heard about Trump reaching out to bereaved families. The Trump White House, meanwhile, has yet to confirm any details related to a potential trip or meetings with survivors and their families.

Were still working on that, White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley told The Daily Beast Friday afternoon when asked if Trump is meeting with mass shooting survivors or their family members in Florida. The White House also would not confirm to The Daily Beast if the president had already called any of them, yet.

I cant believe that pig is coming down here," said Kylan Reynolds, 23, a graduate of Florida Atlantic University in South Florida. The man is a coward.

Not everyone is demanding that Trump stay away, however. Some, like Nikhita Nookala, a 17-year-old senior at the school, are eager for him to come to Parkland so that he can, in her words, "learn a lesson."

"If Trump comes down I think it's important that he shows us he's with us," Nookala said to The Daily Beast. "I think the death of 17 people should encourage the president to consider [gun] restrictions There's been too many school shootings and we don't need kids to die before they go to college. "

She said that for the president to come down and not take any direct action to limit guns in the country would be "hypocritical."

"By action I mean urging legislators to stop listening to interest groups like the NRA and stop considering the rights of people to keep guns as a hobby over the lives of kids who just want to go to college and get a job and be Americans," she said.

Amos Fernandes, whose daughter is a junior who survived the shooting, also feared that Trump would exploit the tragedy with a visit. But he also imagined that a such a trip could provide piece of mind.

"I think right now, people really really don't want to see him here. But we need to show him that everybody is angry. It's crazy," Fernandes said. "I am so angry and a lot of parents are angry like myself. The whole city is angry."

Fernandes, who lived in Connecticut during the Sandy Hook school shooting, said he was outraged that Congress had done nothing to restrict gun ownership.

"These politicians like Trump are getting paid, and while they're getting paid people are getting killed," he said.

Fernandes' daughter, 16-year-old Kathlyn, said that if Trump does make the trip to Parkland, she hopes it will change his mind about gun control.

"What happened at my school could have been prevented if he had supported gun control," she said. "It makes me feel bad he hasn't done anything. At the end of the day, if you're 18 you shouldn't be able to buy a gun."

One of my former students, shes a junior at the high school went to therapy today, she told me I dont think I will get the memory of gunshots and people screaming out of my head, said Catherine Kuhns, who was standing with fellow protesters calling for common sense gun reform two days after the shooting.

I dont understand why in the State of Florida, you can get an assault rifle at 18 but have to be at least 21 to purchase a handgun. Its just absurd," said Kuhns, who has been teaching since 1975 and at Country Hills Elementary since 1992. In 1998, she received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching from President Bill Clinton.

She added: "We will be back on this corner protestingtomorrowstarting at9 amhoping to gather a crowd and hoping President Donald Trump travels past our pathtomorrow.

White House officials have undoubtedly become aware of how fraught a potential swing through Parkland would be. Trump has had mixed results in similar situations before. He did pay a visit to Las Vegas following the massacre of 58 people in October and called the shooting an act of pure evil," but that event was far less politicized. Earlier last year in August, the president botched his response to Charlottesville when he failed to condemn white supremacist James Fields, who drove a car into a crowd of counter protesters, killing 32-year-old activist Heather Heyer.

Several senior Trump aides expressed concern to The Daily Beast that Trump could potentially find himself in a situation in Parkland where he is trapped with grieving parents or students who harangue him about his administrations position on guns, creating horrible optics and more negative press for the president. The same officials also voiced worry that the presidents response to such a situation could potentially make the situation on the ground worse, unintentionally. Asked for an explanation, one White House official referenced the incident when President Trump ended up making a widow cry when he meant to comfort her.

The fact that Cruz wore a pro-Trump "Make America Great Again" hat while making racist remarks to his fellow classmates makes a visit all the more complicated.

Still, some allies of the president publicly maintain that he could indeed rise to the occasion.

Weve had many presidents in the past who have gotten into emotional exchanges with distraught parents and siblings and others in times of, for example, returning the remains of someone who died in warThis challenge is not something unique to the Trump presidency, Michael Caputo, a former Trump campaign adviser, told The Daily Beast. I know President Trump well enough to know that in a situation where hes met with an emotional response, he canrespond appropriately.

Hes a compassionate person, Caputo added.

Read more: https://www.thedailybeast.com/parkland-students-to-president-trump-stay-far-away-from-us

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