Posse Incitatus

The zombie paradox - why Goldberg and French are missing the point

Generally, I'm not a fan of zombie movies.  I find the plot holes so vast that I simply can't get suspend disbelief enough to get into the story.

Part of the problem is that everyone has their own favorite "flavor" of zombies and a description of how the virus/contagion/curse is spread.

Is it by bite?  By air?  By touch?

Depending on the answer, the zombie plague is either put down in a matter of days are destroys the human population in short order, both events that make rather poor drama.

Anyhow, I notice that National Review has taken a break from lobbing poorly-aimed slushballs at Donald Trump and embraced something they are fully qualified to opine on:  zombie-themed tv shows.

Combat veteran and Army officer David French lays out a convincing case for how the military would be incapable of stopping zombies but he leaves out the massive 75,000 ton elephant in the living room:  Everyone has heard of zombies already.

The notion that as soon as a mysterious virus starts spreading causing people at act like, er, zombies and no one will know what to do or take countermeasures is simply absurd.

How many times must we be subjected this idiotic idea that characters have never heard of vampires, werewolves or any other mainstream monster that has only featured in numerous films and television shows over the last five or six decades?

I have one word that refutes everything French has written:

Ebola.

As soon as the outbreak got over a few hundred cases and the media started blaring it people began saying:  "Okay, zombie apocalypse time.  What do we do when this goes pandemic?"

French knows that military people are particularly into this mode of thought.  The notion that troops would scratch their heads wondering what this strange affliction that is passing through the barracks could mean before going down to the chow hall and watching their buds try to eat each other is just plain stupid.

The lesson of the Spanish Flu of a 1918-9 has not been lost.  As soon as troops fall ill, quarantines will come down and be ruthlessly enforced - again, just as all troops in the Africa AOR were subjected to observation and isolation before returning.  The first base affected would be screwed and then everyone else would be in chem gear.

Oh, final note (which our long-time readers already know):  Zombies are actually a p.c. cover for Muslim terrorists.  They are the Enemy Within, that infiltrates our society and strikes without warning, destroying our civilization.  We can't know when they will strike, and of course we can't name the enemy, but that is the fear that drives the current fixation on zombies and why the government (including the military) uses them as a convenient (and politically safe) enemy for their planning.

Morons rout Mormons, Posse hardest hit

As I pick through the smoldering remains of my predictions, now is as good a time as any to remind our readers (both of you) that one of the fun things about college football is its inherent unpredictability.  Teams are all over the place, on fire one week, down in the dumps the next.  Consistency is the Holy Grail of the college football coach, and one they rarely attain for long.

Oregon’s rout has caused many observers to argue that they were always overrated.  This is a classic logical fallacy.

Teams are not static entities, and attempts to reduce them to a collection of numbers to be wantonly compared inevitably results in humiliating failure.

Consider just last year.  As a result of both their cupcake games and their total rout at Notre Dame, the Skunk Bears under Dead Man Walking Hoke had a remarkable 100 percent efficiency in the red zone, putting them among the elite teams in the country.

Of course this was the result of pounding chumps and losing to champs:  Against patsies, the Wolverines could score at will; against decent teams, they never even reached the red zone.

In the case of Oregon, the loss to Michigan State clearly stung.  Their electric quarterback went into the game with a sore throwing hand it three sacks only made it worse. 

What is more, Oregon getting routed is hardly unique – it happened last year at Arizona.

As things stand, Utah is the now the Team of the Hour and will doubtless begin a steady climb in the polls.

The Spartans have lost a little of their luster, but this is to be expected.  I find debates over whether they deserve to be ranked 2^nd irrelevant – no one deserves a ranking four weeks into a 12-game season.  At this point it is a combination of reputation and expectations.

SPARTAN CASUALTIES CONTINUE:  MSU’s vaunted offensive line is getting dinged up, which is not a good thing.  Nor are the losses in the secondary.  On the plus side, this team has far more depth than its predecessors. 

The Chips gave a tough fight as was expected – as far as the Central Michigan faithful are concerned, this is a rivalry game, complete with t-shirts (I saw several on and around campus).

When you make a t-shirt, you have yourself a rivalry, even if one side ignores it.

Upset-minded and close to home, the Chippewas brought everything to the game and the Spartans were conversely tired and a little sore.  Play calling was conservative and as a result, the game lasted far too long.  It should have been over by the early third quarter at the latest.  At least this time the Spartans finished strong.

MEANWHILE, HARBAUGH MANIA BLOOMS:  Well, the Skunk Bears surprised on the upside didn’t they?  Who saw BYU’s collapse coming?

While the trolls are now out in force (having gone into hiding after the lost season opener), the fact remains that the Wolverines are still a great unknown.  They demolished the Cougars 31-0 but despite keeping the starting quarterback in the game, were scoreless after the second quarter.  Their starting running back may have been injured as well.

This leaves the Shouting Harbaughs 3-1 and once again part of the top 25 since technically they beat a ranked team at home.

I fully expected them to be 2-2 by this point, but there is a lot of football left.  The question I have is whether St. Harbaugh will continue on an upward trajectory or whether road games and the grind of the season will stunt the team on its way to a national title.

Post-Pope Analysis

I hesitated to write about Pope Francis' recently concluded visit to the United States, as the media has already beaten it to death. However, I must take issue with a couple of points my co-blogger raised in his recent post imploring everyone to "lay off the pope."

My main beef with the pope during his whirlwind tour of the eastern seaboard is not so much his failure to visit Cuban dissidents while taking time to meet with the Castro scum, nor his global warming pleas and class warfare (these are to be expected from someone who grew up in totalitarian Argentina under dictator Juan Peron´). 

No, my major concern was the pope's stark failure to speak out against the barbarism and carnage that goes on every day; a holocaust so great in scope it dwarfs the atrocities of ISIS: Abortion. Especially partial-birth abortion. And the cavalier, ghoulish attitude of so many abortion practitioners, as captured on videotape by the Center for Medical Progress. 

Of course the pope's admonitions about abortion would do little or nothing to change the minds of Nancy Pelosi and her comrades in the Party of Death. But at least he could have inspired millions of generally uninformed people who tend toward apathy and lack critical thinking skills to, perhaps, take a closer look at this largely unreported horror, and probe their consciences.

And yes, the Vatican's United Nations diplomat did advocate war against ISIS (BRAVO!!!), but the pope should have seized upon the opportunity to castigate the vicious extremists who kidnap, kill and plunder: They kill and torture with unspeakable actions -- crucifixions, beheadings and brutal, repeated rapes. They violate girls as young as 8 years old.

Christians are being tortured, murdered and routed from their centuries-old homes in Iraq and Syria. Yet there is little mention of it. Aside from the human carnage, ISIS destroys timeless works of art, shrines, temples and sculptures. This bunch is every bit as bad as the Nazis, but just not as powerful or well organized.

In today's world, many Americans -- young people especially -- are distracted by social media, video games, multiple forms of entertainment, not to mention the age-old temptations of sex-n-drugs-n-rock&roll... It is rare that one person holds as much sway, exerts as much influence or inspiration, as does Pope Francis. He missed a golden opportunity to bring abortion and the savagery of the Middle East to the forefront.

Yes, these things are all over the Internet and on TV, but the chance of either issue grabbing the attention of today's typical sated American is minimal compared to if the pope provided a platform.

I still have my doubts about this pope, but my co-blogger is right that we don't know what's going on behind the scenes or in the pope's mind. The benefit of the doubt comes in to play here, but it doesn't satisfy me totally.

Chippewas vs Spartans; Mormons vs Morons

While it’s been fashionable to deride Michigan’s State’s non-conference schedule as weak, in fact this year is unique insofar as there are no cupcakes –no Division I-AA teams, no bottom-of-the-MAC punching bags or distant mid-majors paid to take a dive and pad the win column.

Oregon was of course a major contending and the conclusion of last year’s series. Air Force is the strongest of the service academies (look it up if you don’t believe me) and its triple-option threat gives other teams fits. Finally both of the Directional Schools are rising programs spoiling for an upset and have posted good numbers to date.

In short, none of these contenders could be called cupcakes.

As the Spartans close out their non-conference play, Central Michigan offers perhaps the most conventional opponent to date, and an opportunity for the Spartans to perfect their game. No more cut-blocks or insane Oregon speed offense – this week it is back to a conventional MAC offense.

Normally this might be somewhat of a trap game, since it will lack the excitement of the season opener, the thrill of Oregon and the trickeration of Air Force. However, the Spartans know that Central is not a foe to be taken lightly. This game will be a good test to see if the Spartans can hammer an opponent throughout the game.

It will also test both the pass defense and the running game– two areas of concern. Was the sluggish rushing game against the Falcons a result of being outnumbered at the point of attack or something else? Will Connor Cook finally put together a solid second half drive? Will MSU have enough of a lead for the backups to get some playing time?

What about the secondary? With injuries and inexperience, this game will be a critical test against a pass-happy team that knows how to win in East Lansing (or at least knows their school can do it).

I am as curious as anyone else and while my sense of it is that MSU will step up and finally put together a complete game, I think there will still be breakdowns here and there.

MSU 42, CMU 17

MEANWHILE, IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST WALMART KHAKI TROUSER DISPLAY: When I watched Brigham Young fight it out with Nebraska, I thought to myself (and posted here) that the Mormons were going to destroy the Skunk Bears.

I stand by that prediction.  The Wolverine running game remains a question mark, happy talk about “coming together” against a winless Mountain West team notwithstanding.

Indeed, both the Skunk Bear running game and especially its passing game are suspect. 

Meanwhile the Cougars have a talented and impressive QB who has tremendous potential.  He’s won close games and his only loss (by one point, on the road to ranked UCLA) is proof of his mettle. 

BYU will need to take control early and frustrate the Skunk Bear running game, leaving them lobbing haphazard bombs over the field in the waiting arms of their defensive backs.

BYU 38 – UM 12

Lay off the Pope already!

I was trying to ignore the conservative hand-wringing over the Pope’s visit but it’s become so stupid that I have to throw a few well-deserved bricks.

First, I must begin by noting (as sane observers have noted) that Pope Francis is his own man.  He does things his own way and sometimes his reasoning seems odd.  He speaks more freely than maybe he should, but he also knows things that we don’t – not just spiritually, but politically as well.

For example, people are hyperventilating that he didn’t make a show of visiting dissidents in Cuba.  This supposedly shows he’s a Communist. 

Or maybe he has something else in mind.  I’d rather he did speak out forcefully against the Castro brothers and talk to dissidents, but I also don’t know what he knows.  For many people, it was enough that he was able to visit Cuba and help stir the faithful.

Look, I know Reagan said “Tear down this wall!” but that wasn’t the only thing he ever said.  He also held summits with the Soviets.  The Blessed Pope John Paul II spoke out against Communism but he also failed to aggressively flush out the pederasts.  Frankly, I’d rather Francis pursue the latter at this point than the former.

Now on to the serious nit-picking:

The Federalist is whining that His Holiness didn’t try to proselytize Congress.

Seriously?  Does anyone with a brain in their skull think that Chuck Schumer and Debbie Wasserman Schultz are suddenly going to demand baptism?  What a stupid, empty criticism.

Here’s Ace yammering about how the speech didn’t spend enough time carping about abortion.

Right, because Nancy Pelosi would totally change her vote on Planned Parenthood funding if he told her to.

Nowhere do I see the fact that he made a visit to the embattled Little Sisters of the Poor, you know the ones suing over Obamacare.

Yep, he’s a total Democrat/Liberal shill.

I saw a few days ago Mark Steyn complaining that he hasn’t done enough to stop the slaughter of Christians in the Middle East.

Clearly Steyn missed the Vatican’s call for military action (!) some months ago.  That is a huge departure from normal Vatican policy which is basically to pray for peace.

I suppose Steyn would feel better if he called for a new crusade, but given Obama’s still using the previous ones to excuse doing nothing, I’m not sure how that would help things.

I preferred the style of Benedict XVI, partly because I’m of German extraction and am more sympathetic to his Teutonic reserve than Francis’ outgoing Latin extrovert personality.

Still, on the important things Francis is getting it right.  I mean, for all the people whining about him not addressing the family and gay marriage thing, er, what’s he doing here?

Geez, this is worse than the Trump hysteria.

Oh, and a final note on the immigration/refugee issue:  There is a thing called Catholic Relief Services.  Look it up before claiming that the Vatican is hypocrites for not packing St. Peter's Square with migrants.

This may come as a shock to conservatives, but the Catholic Church has absolutely no investment in the survival of the nation-state.  None.  As far as the Church is concerned, they are a new-fangled thing that popped not quite 400 years ago as part of the Lutheran unpleasantness. 

Spoiler alert:  Nation-states may not survive and the Church has zero investment in preserving them.  Christianity came into a world of empires, kingdoms and tribes and so expecting the Pope to endorse shutting people out of (from a historical standpoint) arbitrary lines on a map is not logical.

As an American, I disagree with unlimited migration, but the Church sees things differently.  One of the great flaws in American thinking is that we assume everyone acts and thinks like we do and has the same goals and objectives.  They don't.

The survival of individual nations is immaterial so long as the faith survives.  Tough for us patriotic Americans to accept, but there it is.

 

Here's to a Part-Time Legislature

The Michigan Legislature is fast becoming a total joke.

For years, disgruntled residents of the Great Lakes State have clamored for a part-time legislature, believing that those elected to represent Michiganders spend way too much time and money without accomplishing much. The lawmakers' utter failure to fix Michigan's horrendous roads, despite many failed attempts to do so, is but one example of glaring ineptitude, gross incompetence, permanent fiasco.

But on top of the legislative failures, Michigan lawmakers have embarrassed themselves time and time again with unethical, illegal, stupid and shameful activities. In the past couple months, two Republican representatives, Todd Courser and Cindy Gamrat, were expelled from the Legislature after engaging in an extramarital affair, then misusing state employees and equipment to attempt a cover-up.

I won't recount the entire sordid affair, but this one aspect ought to underscore how twisted these two cretins are: Courser attempted to have an underling send out an email alleging that Courser was caught having sex with another man outside a Lansing building. In his warped mind, Courser thought that something so outrageous and shocking would A) cast doubt on his affair with Gamrat; and B) make a heterosexual affair, even if people believed it happened, be so tame in comparison that few would be upset by it. You can't make this stuff up!

And here's the coup de grace: After being humiliated in the public eye, disgraced, discredited and booted from office, these two delusional hacks are both going to seek re-election to their old seats. Narcissism, brazenness, gall and probably a sickening sense of entitlement are apt descriptors for these two pathetic individuals. I feel sorry for their spouses and children; I really do.

The Democrats have also had some very bad actors of late. State Rep. Brian Banks of Detroit was re-elected last fall despite having eight felony convictions and being under fire for alleged sexual harassment involving a staffer who claims he performed oral sex on Banks. The fact that such a degenerate could get re-elected speaks to the apathy and downright stupidity of too many voters in his district. Now we know why a failure like Barack Obama was re-elected despite his miserable economic record and widespread incompetence throughout his administration.

In the Michigan Senate, Sen. Virgil Smith of Detroit is charged with beating his ex-wife and firing an AR-15 at her Mercedes-Benz. I guess this is a case of "you can take the Democrat outta the 'hood, but you can't take the 'hood outta the Democrat."

It would take too long and use up too much space to detail the many other outrageous doings of Michigan lawmakers of both parties. But suffice it to say, if ineffectiveness, a waste of taxpayer dollars and an utter lack of urgency in addressing Michigan's problems weren't enough of an impetus for a part-time legislature, criminal and unethical behavior add fuel to the fire.

Michigan is one of only 10 states with full-time legislatures, defined by the National Conference of State Legislatures as those in which lawmakers devote at least 80 percent of the hours required in a full-time job to their legislative duties, including committee hearings, listening sessions, constituent services and campaigning. 

My co-blogger and I each worked for the Michigan House back in the early 2000's. We saw first-hand how much these hacks lollygag around with lengthy caucus meetings, frequent recesses, summer, spring and Christmas breaks (oh, and let's not forget the annual week off for deer hunting season).

The fact is, when people feel time pressure to achieve something, whether it's executives conducting an important business meeting, a student completing a term paper, or a writer finishing a manuscript with a publisher breathing down his neck, they get focused and tend to produce a fairly good product in short order. But when they know they can take their time  hemming and hawing and excuse-making, they do just that.

I believe I can speak for many fellow Michiganders when I say, I am sick of the joke our State Legislature has become, and the millions of dollars it wastes on staff and resources. Regrettably, an effort to get a part-time legislature on the ballot fell short last year. Let's hope the effort is revived.

 

 

 

We're Number Two! We're Number Two!

I’ve often noted that the football polls are nothing more than popularity contests that trade upon name recognition and reputation as much as actual performance on the field. 

Consider:  Northwestern is undefeated, and has beaten a ranked opponent - Stanford.  Yet the Wildcats are in 17^th place.

Stanford beat USC, but is now ranked behind the Trojans because…well because it’s an opinion poll.

Michigan State’s position behind Ohio State is significant insofar as it demonstrates that after years of excellence, the Spartans are finally gaining national credibility.  Last week two lonely columnists gave them first-place votes.  This week seven did.  If Ohio State continues to sputter along against feeble opponents, the much-anticipated matchup of No. 1 and 2 in Columbus may end up with the Spartans being the favorite.

Amazing, when one considers how things were only a few years ago.

HOW ABOUT THOSE ZOOMIES!  Air Force looked solid.  They were fast, relentless and confusing.  Some critics have issues with MSU’s performance, but the Falcons are a legitimate threat.  After MSU took a commanding lead, Dantonio (as is his wont) took his foot off the gas and tried to get the running game going.

It didn’t work because without a credible pass threat, the Zoomies kept 8-9 players in the box.  Good as it is, it’s hard to create a hole when you are outnumbered 2-1 in the trenches.

The secondary remains a concern but here again, the triple option left MSU spread very thin.  In addition, the cadets aren’t known for throwing deep balls, which clearly caught the Spartan defenders off guard.

All in all, given the let-down after Oregon, the Spartans didn’t look half bad.

Contrasted with the Buckeyes, they looked positively great.

MEANWHILE, IN THE BIG CUPCAKE HOUSE:  Just as I was noting how things have changed in East Lansing, it’s also interesting to see the once-miiiiighty Skunk Bears reduced to celebrating home victories against winless Mountain West squads.

It is strange to see the ESPN/ABC/SEC ticker offer top 25 scores and then note that Jim Harbaugh successfully routed a patsy in his second home game.  I’m reminded of the way toddlers are potty trained, with each successful excretion treated as a cause for joyful celebration.

Clearly Harbaugh is able to make da poo-poo in the pot-pot, and it speaks volumes that the college football industrial media complex regards this as breaking news.

SEC?  WHAT SEC?!  Oh my goodness the most overhyped conference in the land is making utter fools of themselves.  Louisiana State might be legitimate, but it’s hard to know given how overrated Auburn was coming into the game.

Kudos to Texas Tech. for twisting the knife on Big Ten apostate Bret Bielema.  The only thing that would make this even more fun would be if Arkansas then goes on a tear through the SEC West and proves that Toledo is the dominant team in the conference.

And who didn’t enjoy watching Nick Saban’s opening fail against Ole Miss?  It has long been rumored that Saban’s success was the result of a Faustian bargain one cannot help but wonder when the payment is due.

Reservations of a Lifelong Catholic

Like my esteemed co-blogger, K.N. McBride, I am a Roman Catholic. As time goes on, I feel increasingly ambivalent about my faith.

Make no mistake, the church has a great tradition of missionary activity, ministering to the poor, overseeing effective charities, educating poverty-stricken inner city students of all faiths, and engaging in rigorous intellectual dialogue regarding doctrinal, philosophical and theological questions and how they relate to our culture. (Thomas Aquinas, Sir Thomas More, Cardinal Avery Dulles and many other deep thinkers have contributed to the rich Catholic intellectual tradition -- a tradition that seeks to probe the meaning of life, humanity and creation.)

The Catholic Mass and sacraments are powerful, deeply meaningful elements of the faith. I believe the church has helped me in my spiritual journey, as grace, faith and prayer have undoubtedly saved me from some destructive impulses that could have harmed me in the past -- especially in my younger days.

Reasonable people can disagree on whether the Catholic sacraments are based in scripture. But there is no question that some -- indeed, a considerable portion -- of Catholic theology and practices stem from sacred tradition as opposed to scripture. That is an eternal sore point with many Protestant denominations, but let's face it: Even a church that goes strictly "by the book" (i.e., the Bible), is basing its foundation on a product that was assembled by flawed human beings over the period of many decades, with the inevitable politics and self-serving agendas coming into play.

Too, scripture has undergone numerous translations: from Hebrew and Aramaic to Greek to old English to modern English... Many believe it was not written to be interpreted literally, as it is chock-full of metaphorical and allegorical prose. And even if it were written in today's English, languages evolve over the centuries, and statements people would have understood 2,000 years ago would often be misconstrued today, just as today's language would befuddle those of Jesus' era. I realize there are plenty of people in the world who interpret the Bible literally, but I certainly am not one of them.

But I digress. My first few paragraphs were intended to convey my respect for the church in which I was raised and still participate. But my nagging doubts about the church -- beginning with the destructive liberation theology of left-wing clergy in South America during the 1970s and 1980s, the callow and gullible actions/statements of Pax Christi and its anti-nuclear arms stance during the Cold War, and continuing through the disgraceful and shameful pedophilia scandal that burst wide open about 15 years ago -- have only intensified of late.

A few years ago, the naive Catholic bishops supported Obamacare as this awful legislation slithered through Congress. Then, after the albatross was enacted into law, the church realized this statist piece of work trampled on First Amendment religious rights (i.e., forcing religious organizations to pay for abortion and contraceptives in health care coverage). DUH! What did you expect? Were you gullible enough to believe the promise of a pathological liar that he would respect your religious rights? This whole affair speaks to the Catholic Church's naivete´ when it comes to the cancerous, odious force of progressive politics and its lead practitioner, President Barack Hussein Obama.

Pope Francis, who has been in office for about 2 1/2 years, has also been naive with regard to the horrendous track record of progressivism. In recent months, he has bashed capitalism, spoken out in favor of income redistribution, and spouted off about the alleged dangers of global warming. Secular, leftist media types, normally antithetical toward the pope and other religious figures, are bowing down to Francis, worshiping and adoring his every word, for the simple reason that he is espousing left-wing policies. Ditto for the Democrats of the U.S. House of Representatives, who are going ga-ga about the upcoming address the pontiff will make to Congress. Let's put it this way: If it had been the more conservative Pope John Paul II, I don't think Nancy Pelosi and her ilk would be so gung-ho.

On top of all of this, it has long irked me that the Vatican is filthy rich with gold, works of art, real estate and other assets. But the church is always pleading for its flock to shell out the money when the collection basket is passed, and complaining about its liabilities. Transparency has never been a strong point, so it is difficult for the average Catholic to know whether his or her contributions are being well-spent. The huge payouts the church accepted to compensate victims of child sexual abuse were substantial, but probably not enough to do serious damage to the financial state of this 2,000-year-old institution.

Far more concerning are A) the untold number of lives that have been shattered and hideously warped by child sexual abuse perpetrated by priests; and B) the utter, appalling arrogance and cruel callousness of bishops who covered up the transgressions of their priests when they learned of their atrocities, and simply sent them on to other parishes to further spread their poison. 

Frankly, despite being born and raised a Catholic, I have a lot of anger and disgust toward the Roman Catholic Church. But I also have met many, many excellent priests, deacons, nuns and parishioners whose hearts are undoubtedly in the right place. I recognize that the church is largely a force for good in the world, and appreciate the good things it has done. I am leery of "throwing out the baby with the bath water," as the expression goes.

But, like a troubled marriage, my membership in the Roman Catholic Church is strained. It's a day-by-day thing. Perhaps I should pray about it, but even that might be difficult.

I don't have the answer right now. But I will say that I seriously considered leaving the church when the pedophilia scandal broke, and I haven't ruled out that course of action in the near future. But it's not yet time to decide. I'll wait a while. This is a weighty decision, and the passage of time ought to lend solidity to my verdict.

 

Week three: More of the same?

The first two weeks of college football have been unusually interesting this year and as conference play gets underway, the likelihood of one of those clunker weekends where every game is a blowout is fading fast.

In fact, there are quite a few good matchups this weekend.  Of particular interest to me is Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech. and Stanford vs USC.  In the former, I want to see the Irish lose (basically like every other time I watch them play) but in the latter a Stanford win would provide instant credibility for the Big Ten thanks to Northwestern’s earlier upset.  Go Cardinal!

MSU RETURNS TO NORMAL:  There’s a lot of chatter on the webs about the Spartans hosting Air Force and while I’m as pessimistic as the next MSU fan, I just don’t see the reason to hit the “UPSET ALERT” button.

As someone who follows the Falcons reasonably closely, their triple-option offense can often pile of yards but it is both time-consuming and spatially limited.  Once the cadets start to fall behind it is almost impossible for them to catch up.  The loss of their starting QB is of little consequence as (like all the service academies) they rely on a system rather than players.

At the same time the Spartans are under a little less pressure at the moment, going from bright lights and a national audience to a sedate noon kickoff.  In fact this is MSU’s first daytime game of the season (crazy, that). 

Far from being a let-up, I think the players will be more relaxed and play with greater confidence.  Additionally the weather will be wet which makes option football a little trickier.  MSU’s power running game, on the other hand, should dominate.

Spartans down Falcons, 35-17.

MEANWHILE, IN THE ARMPIT OF THE STATE:  If you thought the excitement over last week’s third-rate PAC 12 opponent was out of control, wait until the Shouting Harbaughs take on a third-rate Mountain West team!

UNLV lost its starting quarterback in the first quarter of its rout by UCLA and even with him back, they still will be overmastered and undermanned. 

The trailer-park-dwelling minions of the Skunk Bear nations will rise up from their naugahyde couches, cheering on Big Blue as it vanquishes yet another cupcake and the story line of MICHIGAN IS BACK! will resonate from Roseville to Flat Rock.

Shouting Harbaughs 24, Running Rebels 6.

Of pressed duck and smoked beaver

My predictions were not as accurate as they could have been, so I think it useful to point out the two key criteria I use in all prognostications on the blog.

1.  Always go big.  Looking at what the assembled media forecast for Saturday, it was like watching contestants on the Price is Right guessing the price of dish detergent – everyone was within a few cents of each other.

How dull.

The Posse’s only reason for existing is to provide unique insights – the kind of thing you won’t find anywhere else.  If we just turn into cut-rate mlive, why bother to visit?  Not only do we strive to be creative, but we strive to be bold and fearless in our predictions.

2.  The conventional wisdom is always wrong.  I’ve noted before that there are matchups where everyone is in agreement and the entire universe of sportswriters thinks a certain thing will happen.  Again, what point is there in the Posse repeating that?  Who needs to read it?

Thus, seeing the universal view that MSU and Oregon would play close and that the Skunk Bears would vanquish the Purdue of the Pac 12, we went big and against the grain on both.

ABOUT THAT MSU GAME:  I stand by my prediction.  Looking at the game, it was clear that MSU left a lot of points on the field – points that could easily have been converted by execution.  Don’t take my word for it, ask MSU QB Connor Cook. 

Had MSU executed (particularly on punt coverage) the game would have blown open.  MSU played a brutal, stubborn defense and made Oregon earn every yard. 

Many wags have argued that with a couple of extra feet on the pass, Oregon would have won the game. 

True, but that ignores the fact that the quarterback was busy pulling grass out of his grill from the previous sack.  As the Cotton Bowl demonstrated, one doesn’t have to hit the quarterback on every single play to rattle him and throw off his timing.   That’s what happened on that crucial fourth down.

BEAVERS GET STUFFED BY SKUNK BEARS:  One of the amusing things about watching the perpetual reboot in Ann Arbor is seeing how low they have set the bar for the Winningest!  Program!  Ever!

Oregon State is a lackluster team that rises up from time to time to win upset victories.  Clearly this was not one of those times.  They got rattled and came apart, which is what these teams do.

However, to hear the heralds of the Fighting Harbaughs tell it, this was a win for the ages, a Milestone in the Path of Glory for U-M Football.

Seriously. 

This is why the U-M fan base is the laughing stock of college football.  They claim wins by non-students before the invention of the forward pass and want to ignore that the same man who brought them their most recent national title also lost to Appalachian State (though at least the Skunk Bears have now tied the series.

This fun article notes that U-M is rather unique among Big Ten teams in this regard.  Leaders and the Best indeed.