soapbox

Vince Young, look out. “Winning” the cover role as a longshot, the Titans QB’s appointment leaves Peyton, LT, LJ, Tom Brady, Reggie Bush, etc breathing easier.

Who knows, maybe this will be the year to break the jinx, but given the efforts of Chargers fans to save Ladanian Tomlinson from the Madden curse, it’s not something I would want to mess with. Consider the evidence:

• Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander (2006): He broke a bone in his left foot early in the season and finished with 896 rushing yards.

• Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb (2005): Eagles started out 4-5, and McNabb missed the final seven games because of a sports hernia.

• Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis (2004): Suffered wrist injury, which caused him to miss a game and limited his production. It was the only season of his career in which he had no interceptions.

• Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick (2003): Suffered a broken right leg during an exhibition game, causing him to miss the first 11 games of the season.

• St. Louis Rams RB Marshall Faulk (2002): Missed two games with an injured ankle.

• Minnesota Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper (2001): Missed the final five games with a knee injury after throwing almost as many interceptions (13) as touchdown passes (14).

Here’s a question raised by today’s news: is it ok to say that the Nazis had some great ideas about how to show their public image?

I’d say that it’s definitely part of history. The Nazis were really great on a PR front. They convinced the British that they weren’t going to move into Poland and basically kept all of Europe off their back during the late ’30s by making earnest-sounding promises even though they were making plans for genocide. Then they got involved in the Spanish civil war basically as a training exercise. How did they manage to cement power well enough to do all this while keeping the morale high at home? With huge rallies full of striking images and forceful speeches.

When Shindler’s List came out, Liam Neeson even went so far as to say that the recreation uniforms they wore made everyone feel powerful.

So, I’d say that the Nazis used some amazing iconography to do horrible things. Unfortunately, saying things like that will apparently get you in trouble.

Bryan Ferry apologizes for Nazi remarks - Yahoo! News