An view of Scottish Football from Ohio

The problems of FC Rangers are making very big news in Europe. My take may not be perfect but here's what I gleaned: the team was sold a couple of years ago and the new owner paid for the team with future revenue. He also promised to put some of his own money into the franchise, which did not seem to happen. There was also a problem of him not paying tax, something the British government does not like. Today the team released a couple of players, more staff and players are expected to be fired.

Last month, the team went into administration, which is essentially bankruptcy. By rule the team was docked ten points by the Scottish Premier League which gave the title, barring massive collapse, to Celtic FC.



If you do not know, the rivalry between Celtic and Rangers, also known as The Old Firm, is one of the fiercest in world sports. I explain it to people here by imagining Ohio State and Michigan football being in the same city, and adding sectarianism.

I'm not qualified to get into the politics behind the Old Firm rivalry. It's been going on for generations. I will be honest and say I chose to support Celtic from thousands of miles away because they never had a policy of firing their employees for simply befriending a Catholic.

The violence, the IRA chanting, not my scene. It was an odd, unsettling experience to walk into an Erin Go Bragh march when headed to Tollcross Park. Not one I wish to repeat.



Back to the teams. I have no idea what is going to happen to Rangers FC. My hope is that a responsible buyer is found who can make the team a fiscal success. Back when the Cleveland Browns were moved to Baltimore it annoyed me, not because I liked the Browns, far from it. They were the hated Cleveland Browns, and you want to beat the teams you despise on the field of play, not due to an accounting farce.

The problems of the Scottish Premier League are numerous, other teams are not in sound financial order. Gretna folded in 2008, Hearts are having problem meeting payroll. There's not much broadcast money coming in and that money is contingent on Old Firm matches happening. As much as others have said the Old Firm does not matter, from my seat on an Ohio couch it sure does. As much as I dislike a two teams at the top league with everyone else fighting for scraps, the SPL needs the Old Firm. Without them a downward spiral would quicken instead of cease.

Can it get any worse? Why yes, it can!

The NHL trade deadline passed yesterday and Rich Nash remains a Blue Jacket. It is understood that the price General Manager Scott Howson was asking was too high, which is all good and fine.

Then Howson had a press conference and announced that Nash was the one who asked to be traded.

I'm still trying to figure out why he did that. To me, this lowers the asking price for Nash. Twenty nine other teams are now certain that the player is the one who wants out, and what team wants a disgruntled player? A franchise player. A team captain.

How does Nash keep the "C" on his jersey after this?

It's going to be another sad ending to a Blue Jackets season, there are still twenty games to go.

How Howson can be given the keys to reassemble a team that is now shattered is beyond me. He is an architect of failure, what type of ownership would let him have the responsibility again?

I think I know the answer to my own question.

Catching up

Had to take my car to the shop this morning, which caused me to miss my son's swimming. Luckily his Mother agreed to take him, can't thank her enough. Very nice thing to do.

Had a lot of time to kill before finding out the diagnosis on the car so I borrowed my wife's bus pass and got to walk around the city on a foggy morning.



Kept waiting for the sun to burn through the fog, but it never did.



Got a lot of walking in, from Buttles and High to the new park being built to the Main Library. There, I waited with others for it to open, and took over a computer to see the score of the Tottenham/Arsenal game while I waited for the mechanic to call.

Finished a book, and a few minutes later, got the call. I expected the rotors and brake pads to be shot, and they were. What was a bit of a shock, but not overly surprising was being told the head gasket is leaking.

It's a 22 year old car, in rough condition, with 241,000 miles on it. The mechanic and I agreed that sinking $1,600 to fix that was not a good idea. So I'll be watching the coolant levels, and hoping the car can hang on through the winter.

Backtracking to Thursday night's Decathlon Slam, team Shake and Bake was defeated. I lost the one minute round, and still do not the the judge heard the cheers properly. had to sit though an excruciating trivia round. Kids these days do not know their history. Then there was the Haiku Death Match which was closer to sitting at lunch in the high school cafeteria. I think the haiku was that old as well.

We did a group piece based on one of Kim Braswell's pieces about being dissed in a slam, complete with accents. I'm still trying to figure out what the accent was but I ended up yelling out in Long Island. Oh, and right as I was starting my first line the bell in the college went off. Nice.

I was representing our team in the Dozens Round, which is essentially - "Your Poetry is so..." Had come up with some solid hits. Your poetry is so bad Sarah Palin quotes your Tweets. Greg Oden's knee is stronger than your poetry. This was the first time I had done this and I was hanging in there.

I was up against Izetta, who beat me earlier this year at Writing Wrongs. She had my poetry being so bad that Kanye would not interrupt it. Finally though she came up with this gem. "Your poetry is so stupid, Fantasia reads it to her daughter at bed time."

Game. Set Match. She owns me, for now.

I Welcome This

This weekend has been a technological ordeal. All is fine, as long as I avoid getting computer parts and attempting a hard drive repair.

The macbook will be taken care of, but not by me.

It felt really good to get out for a couple of hours and write with some friends and strangers. I've had some unpleasant writing group and workshop experience in the past so I was a bit apprehensive giving it another shot. There was some very good prompts handed out, some friendly criticism given and a boat load of ideas were written down. Have not really written in the past few weeks and putting the pen to page in a free write was something that really kicked me in the ass to write. Looks like it's going to be a Sunday night thing.

Now, if I can only decipher my handwriting!

The Bills are now 0-5. I think they have a good shot at not winning a game this season. Sad, but true.