Your “Back To School” Tuesday Evening Open Thread

NFL News:

• Drew Brees (pictured) & the Saints are talking about contract extensions. I guess being 30% of the Saints’ salary cap isn’t enough.
  • I sure hope he doesn’t starve on that $19.75 million he’s making this year. Maybe he can feed his family using some budget tips from LaTrell Sprewell.
    • FYI: here’s how well that turned out. Bet you’ll be shocked.
• As expected, Justin Forsett re-signed with the Ravens. NFL bookkeeping regulations forced them to drop him for the weekend so they could IR other players and then resign him. But it’s too hard to study concussions.
• Jarvis Landry said he’s not afraid of Richard Sherman. I bet Ryan Tannehill is, though.
• Why does the NFC love building up the Patriots? The Eagles have traded Eric Rowe to The Empire in exchange for help on the offensive line, because Carson Wentz is gonna get killed without it.
• Some former LA City Councillor is suing to force someone other than the city to pay for policing at Rams games. Or, y’know, they could just ask the Crips & Bloods to play nice on neutral ground.
  • In documents, they claim that the police presence at games constitutes an “unlawful gift of public funds“, estimated to be worth up to $2 million/year.
• Keeping with the Rams – Jared Goff is officially inactive for Week 1. So…BUST!
• Troy Aikman is some pissed at FOX for hiring Skip Bayless. Drama queen.
• The 49ers released Bruce Miller after he got into a fight with a 70 year-old man over the weekend.
  • no official reason has been given, but given how he looked, getting trucked by an old man doesn’t bode well for your chances against the Rams’ front four.

Finally, ESPN has their ranking of which games will be most watchable opening week. (Here.) I’m not sure how Cam Newton versus Trevor Siemian comes in at Number 1, unless it’s to watch Luke Kuechly break the single-game sack record. But I totally get why Browns-Eagles is dead last.

NOTE: I will be in Seattle Sunday and will provide a report next week on all the promised “improvements” to the “game-viewing experience”. Anyone else attending a game is warmly invited to prepare their own report for publication right here on this very site. Just drop us a line, and we’ll tell you what we’ll need to make you internet-famous (sex tape optional).

Today was the first day back at school in BC. The school year runs from the day after to Labour Day to June 29th. It’s always fun to sit and look out my window at the police radar trap, catching people who forget that the speed limit dropped from 50 to 30 km/h overnight. In Vancouver, fines “range between $196 to $483 if you’re caught speeding in a school zone.” _{(news1130.com)} One school district in PEI rang up 22 offences in one day today.

I work in an alternative program, based out of the adult division. That means, to get to me, you’ve been kicked out of a regular high school and at least one alternate program. Getting me as your teacher means you’ve achieved “last exit” status before expulsion, and because it’s the adult division I don’t have to talk to any parents about how wrong their precious little snowflake has been treated.  It’s actually quite nice, because it eliminates all the bullshit that comes with having to find an answer for all of God’s special little creatures.

It also affords me the opportunity to run a bare-bones program – self-directed learning; one-on-one discussion; no giant lectures which bore kids; non-mandatory attendance – that focuses on helping kids just take courses without all the “emotional IQ” and “subtlety” that a regular school is mandated to provide. I hold no illusions – I’m preparing kids for either the trades or college – but at least I’ve given some of them that one last chance they needed to smarten up before a lifetime of limited options came upon them.

Last year, out of 50 registered kids, I had 13 graduate, and 35 complete something towards graduation. I had a better success rate than 75% of other programs, with fewer staff and approximately half the funding.

There are a few of us who people the site that are educators and/or public servants. For every one jackass the media talks about (rightfully) that do exploit the system – don’t fucking get me started on seniority vs. job performance – remember that the vast majority of us choose such a career from an innate desire to give back or help up.

Plus summer vacation – screw that July job shit.

Tonight’s sports: (all times Eastern)

• U.S. Open Tennis: Women’s and men’s quarterfinals – 7:00 | ESPN
• CONCACAF 2018 World Cup Qualifying Soccer:
  • U.S. vs. Trinidad and Tobago – 8:00 | FS1
  • Mexico vs. Honduras – 10:00 | FS1
  • El Salvador vs. Canada – 10:00 | TSN
• WNBA Basketball: Minnesota at Los Angeles – 10:00 | ESPN2

Enjoy your evening, for in 48 hours WE FOOTBALL!