...And Big Brother Said "Ref, Are you Blind?!"

This past weekend, meaning from Friday Night to Sunday's Conference Championship until Today's Bruin's game, I think that Officials need to be re-educated, and in a large way. Let's start at where I think the conspiracy began. Friday night I went to my friend Sully's house to hang out, watch some hockey, have a beer or two, and play some of ESPN's 21st Century Trivia game. I was pleased. There are many questions ranging from rookie to all-star and were centered around many sports and statistics. Overall, a good time. Until, (and here it comes) I came upon the question that asked "True of False: MLB Umpires are not required to have an annual eye exam?". The answer, to my dismay, was True. Now, reading back the question and answer, I'd imagine your face must look like mine when I read it too.

So I'm okay after this. This probably is just something that the Umpires contracts has in it. I figure, I'll go home and forget this. Maybe the umpires don't eye exams every year. Maybe it's every other year. Who knows?

Fast forward to Travis Reed's house where we watch the Cardinals beat the Eagles, the Steelers beat the Ravens, and Willis McGahee almost die. The play was Flacco passing to McGahee and Steelers Ryan Clark runs into McGahee, HELMET FIRST! That's a link to the video. For those of you that don't know, helmet to helmet collisions are illegal, if done intentionally, and also hurt for a long time. Helmet to Helmet's have ended careers. Ask Bill Romanowski about that one. Everyone in the city of Pittsburgh saw and heard the hit because neither of the players moved for 3 minutes. I think the point that I didn't like was when I heard Jim Nantz-y pants and Phil Simms say it was a legal. shoulder block, but most of all there wasn't a single flag or official call for something that was done intentionally. There are rules and regulations for this kind of thing for a reason. That Steelers-Ravens game was the worst. It was just cheap shot after cheap shot, regardless of whether it was done in front of the refs or not. If I were the Commissioner, I'd fine Ryan Clark for the hit and suspend him from the Super Bowl for such a hit. If McGahee were to die in his condition, which as of a few minutes ago was "movement in his legs and arms, but neurologically intact", I'd suspend Clark until further notice. Plays and hits like that, those effects have no place on the field.

Now sitting on the couch today, I see that the Bruins are playing the St. Louis Blues in the afternoon. Great! I can watch them. The score was 2-1 Blues when I came into the game. But after some great goals by Ryder, Wideman and Chara, the Blues score another goal to make it 4-3 Bruins with about a minute left. The Blues skate up the ice and score a goal but slapping it in, but the puck was above the crossbar when Backes hit it in the goal. My first thought is - what the hell does that mean? Thanks to Jack Edwards and Andy Brickley who said "If the puck is above the cross bar when there is contact made - No goal". Hmm, simple enough. Then the referee will look at the replay and there will be conclusive evidence against it. But what happened? The puck, which is clearly above the cross bar at about the 4 minute mark of this highlights video, is called a goal. This puzzles me because I would think the NHL would not like controversy since it's coming off a very memorable Lockout.

This is the point in my blog where I become a Jack-the-Ripper of ranting. Being a life-long sports fan, I think every sports provider needs to learn two words and two words quick: Tim Donaghy. Remember him? He's the one that fixed the outcome of NBA games to support his gambling habit. Now imagine that there isn't just a Donaghy in the NBA, but in the NHL, NFL, and MLB. Imagine a world where people aren't picketing institutions of government, but are outside of the city stadium, boycotting the sporting events because the outcomes are fixed by officials who need to get paid by their bookie. Where are the government moles? Where are the people that are stopping the fraud that goes on the field? With cameras, sensors, and technology that is available, there is no need for the referee. The referee is the obsolete job of tomorrow. That guy that sits in a high chair at Wimbledon can come down because we don't need him. He's just a human element that distracts the real outcome.

Remember the ref who, to this day, still says that Brett Hull's foot wasn't in the crease in the 1999 Stanley Cup? Didn't that determine the outcome of the winner?

How about Maradona's "Hand of God" in the 1986 World Cup?

And then again in 2007 with Lionel Messi.....

It seems like the only thing that we need officials for is breaking up fights. Their not even that good at doing that. We are in the 21st Century with televisions that can show me a blackhead on Jessica Alba's immaculate face, phones that can turn silent when I walk into a certain area, and cameras that can shoot 1000 frames a second. I think its time we replace the officials with things that can do the job for them without having to take eye exams, without having to worry about whether they are addicted gamblers, and without having to worry about their health after pissing off so many fans. If we can have Big Brother watching every move we make as a society, why not have him watch where it counts?