Back from the weekend and hours of Live Earth listening and watching. I think overall the performances were pretty run-of-the-mill if not dull. I think the effect this event will have on people may be their awareness of their everyday decisions that could effect the environment but that can’t be the only residual effect. That concert was supposed to be about widespread, global policy change at the highest level. Not just me making sure my lights are off when I leave my apartment in the morning or buying non-toxic, biodegradable dish soap at Publix (which I did yesterday, I’m answering the call). The genius of Live Earth was that it let everyone know, myself included, that there are so many things you can do to lessen your environmental impacts but isn’t that a little like rummaging through couch cushions for loose change? The only way the global climate crisis (if you believe it to be such) is going to be impacted in any significant way is if governments (like ours) get involved and gets concerned. Then and only then can real, substantial changes be made.

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No, seriously…

Man assaults brother with lawn gnome.

Boy named Hell barred from Australian catholic school.

A man in New Hampshire robbed a bank dressed as a tree.

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The Detroit Free-Press offers ways to rebuild Michigan State football.

The Tennessean answers some burning pre-season SEC questions.

The Oklahoman says the Sooners have to hitch their wagon to wideout Malcom Kelly if they want to win the Big 12.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer’s Ted Miller takes on LSU’s Les Miles’ comments about the Pac-10. And then follows up today after being bombarded with e-mails. SEC fans are as defensive of their schedule as Notre Dame fans are about how weak the Irish’s schedule is annually.

Major League baseball is not letting Worldwide Leader broadcast from the site of this week’s All-Star game. Finally a baseball story I can get behind.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wonders how hard it would be for the Falcons to move Michael Vick.

New York Magazine on how best to get your mug on television at a game. Here’s a hint: bring a kid, preferably your own or one that you know. Kidnapping is a felony.

West Virginia running back Noel Devine: The next Reggie Bush or the next Pacman Jones?

Brian Dawkins is saying that if all the Eagles’ playmakers play at their highest-level, the Birds can pack their bags for Glendale. Your lips to God’s ears, Brian.

New York Magazine on how not to get beat up at a baseball game.

The story out of Buffalo keeps getting more bizarre. Daniel Briere’s agent is refuting the claims made by Sabres management about negotiations between his client and the team.

The Buffalo News’ Jerry Sullivan says Sabres management need to take some responsibility for how poorly handled this off-season has gone for the team.

Dan Patrick is leaving the Worldwide Leader to pursue “new endeavors.” These endeavors will include looking at himself in the mirror for a minimum of three hours a day, erect a Taj Mahal-like shrine to himself in his backyard and, of course, writing love notes to Keith Olbermann.

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Well-rounded news…

Mark Cuban’s spat with the Dallas Morning News.

Live Earth expected to break records in internet streams.

Facebook to go public?

Sony cuts the price of the PS3 by $100. Microsoft to follow suit?

Northwest Airlines has announced that it is now accepting Paypal as a valid form of payment for airline tickets. Great news for consumers. Now you can buy that $2.25 autographed 8×10 glossy of Pauly Shore and a trip to see your mom the same way.

Voters are already showing signs of fatigue from the ‘08 presidential race and the election is still 16 months away.

Variety’s Steven Mirkin takes the Live Earth telecast to task.

Jim Carey will play Ebeneezer Scrooge in an upcoming Robert Zemeckis version of “The Christmas Carol.” According to reports, Carey will play at least four roles in the film, which will utilize performance capture technology similar to those in the Zemeckis/Hanks Christmas vehicle, The Polar Express.

Voting has wrapped up on Time’s New Seven Wonders of the World.

One of my favorite authors, Chuck Klosterman, talks to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Time Magazine’s Bryan Walsh on what Live Earth really meant.

Newsweek wonders just how green Live Earth really was.

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Inside baseball…

Slate’s Jack Shafer says the new color of sensational journalism is green.

(photo: Mark Mulville/Buffalo News)
With the start of pro and college football a month away, and the NBA draft over and baseball… well forget baseball.. I’m left to blog about NHL free agency. Hey it’s either that or more stories about the iPhone.

The Buffalo News has dubbed July 1st “Black Sunday.”

I’m not going to say that Buffalo Sabres management low-balled captains Daniel Briere and Chris Drury but regardless of how you feel about the deals offered to Briere and Drury, as the Buffalo News put it — they’re history.

Briere signed a massive 8-year, $52 million deal with the Flyers and Drury inked a 5-year, $35.25 million deal with the Rangers.

What sticks in my craw as a Sabres fan is not that the Sabres let Briere and Drury go, the Buffalo News’ Tim Graham said the franchise was never in the running to resign either player, it’s that they went to Eastern conference foes. With Drury in New York and Briere in Philly, Sabres fans will be able to get an up-close and personal look at what used to be and what might have been.

But this is the reality of the modern day NHL, the Sabres had to part ways with J.P. Dumont last year and the departure of Briere and Drury will make them better able to make long-term commitments to Thomas Vanek, who’s emerged as one of the league’s most exciting young players and goalie Ryan Miller, the Sabres’ franchise player.

So what’s next for the franchise? The team has been a non-factor in free agency the past two seasons and still managed to rack up the league’s best record last season and make deep playoff runs but it also hasn’t sustained a personnel hit of this level before. Someone in that locker room is going to have to step up and become a leader.

The Buffalo News coverage of the story:

Sabres’ captains now part of Buffalo’s past

Drury goes to Rangers, Briere settles on Flyers

They’re history

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No, seriously…

Inmates communicate to each other through the toilet.

Domestic cats once roamed wild in North Africa.

Someone updated the wikipedia of wrestler Eric Benoit about the death of his wife — 13 hours before police arrived.

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The Worldwide Leader Andy Katz on players that were rewarded in last night’s draft for staying in school.

Are Knicks fans really betting on the low-post combination of Eddy Curry and Zach Randolph?

Shelly Anderson of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette telling the world that Amanda Beard posed in Playboy for the money… talk about burying the lead.

The Buffalo News is reporting that Daniel Briere has rejected the offer made by the Sabres earlier in the week.

Congratulations, Bulls! You now have the worst offensive frontcourt in the NBA. I’m going to make a wager that the combined PPG for Noah and Ben Wallace is under 20.

No more Berlin Fire/Hamburg Sea Devils instant classics… (cue emoticon: sad face)

Interesting headline on this story about the Mavs taking Nevada’s Nick Fazekas.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has a great piece on Atlanta native Pacman Jones and “where things went wrong.” Despite the claims of some of the dopes in this piece, it seems Jones had a history of being a malcontent.

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Well-rounded news…

Myspace is for dorks.

 I had to come in late this morning because watching Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann on Letterman last night caused me to OD on smarm. But alas, I’m at my desk and here’s Today’s Line.

Denver Post sports writer Adrian Dater rips apart the Worldwide Leader, calling its talking heads, “a bunch of made-up clowns with microphones in hand.”

SI’s Richard Deitsch has an interesting Q&A with actor and Chicago sports nut John Cusack.

The Buffalo News is reporting that the Sabres have made an offer to free agent forward Daniel Briere. There is no word yet on whether the club is attempting to re-sign free agent and former captain Chris Drury.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is reporting that Fox Sports Net has no intention of airing footage of a planned walk-out by fans at Saturday’s Pirates game. The fans are protesting management as the Bucs are well on their way to their 15th consecutive losing season. Hey Bud Selig, you wonder why baseball has become irrelevant, it’s because you’ve allowed the owners to get filthy stinking rich while the product on the field for most MLB teams stinks.

The Washington Post’s Michael Wilbon encourages NBA teams to draft big.

Georgia coach Mark Richt remembers a mission trip he and his family took to Honduras.

Ever wonder why sportswriters say hockey players are the easiest athletes to get along with? It’s because of stories like this.

The Dallas Morning News’ David Moore questions the plausibility of Kevin Garnett moving to Phoenix tonight in a draft day deal.

IGN explores one of Madden 08’s new features, Weapons.

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Well-rounded news..

Wired Magazine blog The Underwire wonders how good the new Disney/Pixar animated flick “Ratatouille” will be. If the review discussed in this post is any indication, it could be a good one. I’m planning to check it out Friday or Saturday night and could have a review up over the weekend or Monday morning. I do more than sports here, people.

Here are some reviews of the flick, none of which I will be reading prior to seeing the film.

Variety

Associated Press

Hollywood Reporter

Entertainment Weekly

Chicago Tribune

Seriously, who’s watching According to Jim?