The Larry Kane Report

The Super Bowl was not super, although Prince stole the half time show with his unique presence. There were so many things missing from the big game, the crowd being one. The Chicago Bears were missing for most of the game, but the Colts showed up with impressive results. I’m glad Peyton Manning won because I am so tired of these self-styled experts who say you are not a great one unless you win the Super Bowl.

That is a lot of hot air. Many players have been great ones without winning the big one. Now Manning has won the ring. Was it inevitable? No. With all those teams and all that talent, it is very possible for super stars not to win it all.

About the commercials: Did you notice that almost all of the commercials had people striking each other, crashing vehicles, squishing mouses and otherwise engaged in hostile activity. Some of them were fun, but enough is enough.

Please note my comments in the NFL in the previous entry.

This will be the week when the gloves come off in the Philadelphia Mayor’s race. The first target will be Tom Knox, whose ad campaign has propelled him into second place. The other candidates will try to stop the Knox momentum.  Watch for some accusations in the race, and the first  commercials for some of the other canidates. Before Valentine’s Day, there will be some not-so-loving brickbats flying around Philadelphia.

Crime is still issue number one and look for the fingers to be pointed at City Hall for a lack of progress, If there are some new federal indictments coming down, as suggested by the Inquirer (click on Philly.Com), corruption could once again emerge as an issue, as it did in 2003.

Comments(1)

It is Super Sunday. Enjoy the game and dream about the Eagles next year. But. in the meantime, a little comment about the audacity of some people in professional sports.

While driving to do some errands yesterday, I was listening to KYW Newsradio, and heard one of the best writers in Philadelphia broadcasting. Dave Madden, KYW’s all around broadcaster, delivered a fascinating story. Here’s what Dave said:

TALK ABOUT PROTECTING A COPYRIGHT. THE N-F-L IS -REAL- SENSITIVE ABOUT HOW THE SUPERBOWL IS USED. ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF CHICAGO, THE POPLAR CREEK CHURCH IS BRINGING IN A BIG SCREEN T-V SO PEOPLE CAN WATCH THE GAME.

THEY’RE NOT ALONE, EITHER.

SEVERAL CHURCHES IN BOTH CHICAGO AND INDIANAPOLIS ARE USING THE GAME TO HELP BRING IN POTENTIAL WORSHIPPERS.
WHICH IS FINE WITH THE LEAGUE…AS LONG AS IT’S FREE.
AND THAT’S CAUSED SOME CHURCHES TO CANCEL THEIR PLANS.
AFTER ALL…OFFEND GOD…AND YOU’VE SINNED.
OFFEND THE N-F-L…AND YOU’RE SUED.

There’s an interesting sidebar to this story. THE NFL warns churches not to sell tickets for a good faith fundraiser, but doesn’t admonish bars from charging drink minimums to watch a game on a big screen TV.

All this underscores a bigger problem. The National Football League is an anti-trust suit waiting to happen. Pa. Senator Arlen Specter is already investigating whether it is a major anti-trust violation for the NFL to televise its games on its own network, although a feeble one at that. WILL THE NFL EVENTUALLY TRY TO SELF BROADCAST ALL OF ITS GAMES, AND STIFLE COMPETITION?

This is the same organization that files more lawsuits than any professional sports organization. This is the same league that encourages teams to take municipal money. your money, to build stadiums and make themselves richer in the process. And what did the fans in Philadelphia get? Seat licenses, that’s what they got.

No, I’m not cranky because the Eagles are not in the big game. I’m rooting for the Colts. But I’m also cheering for the churches and non-profit groups in Chicago and Indianapolis who want to raise a little money for a good cause by charging admissions to a party.

The NFL has a great product, but the NFL is not God. And it should pay more attention to the retired players of the sixties who are living in poverty, and to its own business practices.

This is the same NFL that tried to cheat the family of the late-great John Facenda by trying to use his magic voice without paying for it!

I close this story by reminding everyone that the most charitable , giving sports owner in Philadelphia is one Ed Snider, who built his own arena with his own funds, and although his teams are not currently winning, Snider continues to be the gold standard for thoughtful, caring owners. The NFL, in its policies and with its power, should take a cue from Snider, stop its competition-busting practices, and stop picking on non profits that it should be helping.

Comments(5)

It is Super Bowl weekend. Weeks ago, Philadelphia Eagle’s coach Andy Reid may have been daydreaming about a flight to Miami and a chance to win it all. Instead he and his wife are facing an apparent family crisis, where two sons face possible criminal charges involving road rage, firearms violations , driving infractions, and drug possession. I say possible because we don’t know all the facts yet, even though the picture portrayed by police and witnesses does not look good.

Members of the news media can have a herd mentality on stories like this. You and I know that if it was anyone else’s kids, this might have been a story not even reported in the news. But it is Andy Reid’s sons, and although the sons may have committed illegal activity, they are in the spotlight because they have a famous father. That is the dark side of celebrity. Celebrities and their families are treated differently, but Reid and his wife seem like very down to earth people. And that’s why these episodes may be very painful.

I may look at this story a lot differently than many of you. I see it as a story with real victims. First of all, there is a woman who went through the trauma of a serious accident, and a man who says one of Reid’s kids pointed a gun at him. No one should ever have to face moments like those, moments that can cause emotional distress for a lifetime. Can you just imagine how terrifying those episodes were?

After the victims of physical pain and terrifying threats, there are the silent victims. The families of those who were hurt share the pain. The people who imagine themselves in the same situation.

And of course, there are all the millions of parents from thoughtful families who wonder if this could ever happen to them.

I don’t know the Reids personally. Like all of you, I know them from television and newspapers and radio. I do know that they have been extremely generous in the community and in fund raising efforts. Their family life is their own private domain, but it is no longer private. So, they too, are probably suffering. It is certainly not the pain of physical injury or the threat of a gun in your face, but it is also painful.

In the meantime, treat this story with caution. All the facts are not in. No one has been charged. Until and if that happens, we should all have sympathy for the victims, and reserve judgment, until justice is served and a family tries to heal its wounds.

Comments(8)

Some political egos may have been shattered in the early Keystone Franklin and Marshall poll released by the Philadelphia Daily News. (Click Phlly.Com in Right Column). This is a very early poll but it reports that between 40 and 50 percent of the voters don’t know enough about Bob Brady. Dwight Evans and Michael Nutter. This is extraordinary because all three have been involved in city life for decades. And here’s another astonishing figure – a full 44 percent don’t know enough about Tom Knox who has surged to second place after a multi million dollar ad campaign. That would make it appear that Knox’s support, now 23 percent, is strictly from name recognition on his several million dollars in campaign advertising. Apparent frontrunner Chaka Fattah, with an estimated 26 percent of the vote, has the most name recognition.

There’s also good news in this survey. Pollster Terry Madonna says that compared to earlier years, there is much less racial polarization in the early stages. 33 percent of white voters plan to vote for a black candidate and 22 percent of black voters say they will vote for a white candidate. If these figures hold up, it will signal a major shift away from the divisive racial climate that has existed for years in Philadelphia mayoral politics.
The survey is a real alert to Brady, Evans, Nutter and Fattah, that it is time to begin rapid-fire campaigning. All this means that you’ll see a TV and radio ad war that may make the Bob Casey-Rick Santorum race for the U.S. Senate pale by comparison.

Look for this campaign to be sizzling. It will be a campaign of personal attack, and I predict that nothing in the candidate’s records will be spared. This is, after all, Philadelphia politics

Comments Off