The Death of Andrew Breitbart and Other News

March 9, 2012

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Media personality Andrew Breitbart gives a spe...

Who Killed Breitbart?  His Heart.

It’s been a week since conservative leader Andrew Breitbart died.  At the time, I asked a friend of mine how long it would be before conspiracy theories started circulating about his death.  It took only a few days before people were saying that the Obama administration had Breitbart whacked.  While it’s fun to spin the theories, sometimes 43 year old men simply die.  My brother was only a bit older when he died due to heart issues.  It happens.

Now, if Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly both turn up dead in the next week, then I’ll agree that we should be taking a long hard look at this.  But until that happens, I’d suggest that Breitbart’s fans celebrate his life rather than trying to indict the president for murder.

The Billionaires Club

Mitt Romney picked up six wins on Super Tuesday, Rick Santorum picked up three, and Newt Gingrich won Georgia (the state he represented in congress).  It’s interesting to note that Santorum and Gingrich each have their own person billionaire funneling tons of money to them via SuperPACs.  This is completely legal.  However, the existence of the SuperPACs means that both can stay in the race even if they aren’t receiving decent fundraising support from anyone else.  In previous years, lack of funding likely would have pushed one of them out of the race by now, leaving the other to go head to head with Mitt Romney.  Head to head with Romney, either of them would have a chance.  But as it stands, they are splitting the non-Romney vote and are coming up short.  Romney can get a plurality in a three candidate race, but would likely have problems gaining a majority in a two candidate race.

Peyton Manning

After 14 years in Indianapolis, the Colts cut Peyton Manning.  The Colts are catching a lot of flak for this move, with many saying that they haven’t been loyal to the player who had built the franchise.

It’s true that Peyton Manning took over a team that sucked and turned it into a great team – largely due to the fact that he’s a stud quarterback.

But bear in mind that the Colts paid Peyton $26.4 million last year – when he didn’t play a down.  He was due to get a $28 million roster bonus if he wasn’t cut.  This isn’t some sort of pro-rated amount that would allow the Colts to wait around a month or two to see how Manning was doing – it was $28 million all at once.  If Manning didn’t play in 2012, this would have meant the Colts has paid $54.4 million for absolutely no on-field production.  Even if money wasn’t an issue, NFL teams are bound by a salary cap, and that sort of a cap hit would make it very hard to maintain a successful team.

If I were Irsay, I’d try to sign Manning to a one year deal with a low base salary and hefty incentives.  If he plays, he makes decent money.  If he doesn’t, then the cost is minimal.

Are the Colts right to go after Andrew Luck in the draft?  Certainly.  Even if Manning were to play this year, at some point soon he’ll be at the end of his career.  There’s no guarantee that the Colts will be able to get a player of Luck’s caliber in a later draft (in fact, it’s very unlikely, as a healthy Manning means a better team and a worse draft pick).  You need to take the bird in the hand.  I also tend to be a fan of having a young QB carry a clipboard for a year or two,  While a handful of recent QB have had success being thrown into the fire, historically, this has burned a lot of teams.

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3 Comments (+add yours?)

  1. zarberg
    Mar 09, 2012 @ 09:52:29

    Calling Breitbart a conservative “leader” is a bit of a stretch. We’re talking about a man who was proven to have decietfully edited things to put others in a bad light and then resorted to mud-slinging when called on it.

    Reply

  2. kosmo
    Mar 09, 2012 @ 09:57:33

    I couldn’t really think of a better term, and since many conservatives seemed to follow him, I’d argue that he was at least nominally a leader.

    Reply

  3. Martin Kelly
    Mar 09, 2012 @ 16:23:40

    I have to agree with Zarberg. Just because someone spouts off a lot and gets the attention of the media, he is not necessarily a leader. He was a show man. That many conservatives seemed to follow him is not necessarily accruate either. He provided topics but no leadership. What is sorely lacking in our society today is recognition of true leadership. We recognize rudeness as depth, loudness as intelligence and bullying as debate.

    On the billionaires, yes it is sad. I don’t understand why everyone wants the nomination process to be over already. In 1960 the democrats did not make up their minds until after several ballots at the convention. I would remind everyone that their nominee won in November over the vice president of an extremely popular president. Predictions of dire consequences for the republican nominee if the race is not decided soon are unsupportable.

    On Manning, it is a sad day for Indianapolis. I think your plan would be great for the Colts, but Peyton is not likely to take the offer. I predict that there will be a lot of money out there for him somewhere. He will not have enough years to bring a bottom feeder like the Browns to the top, but he will bring ticket sales and TV opportunities. Like Brett Favre, but with a chance to win.

    Reply

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