WHY LOVE SPORTS?

We all are obviously here for one reason, to express our love for what we love; sports. We also want to meet people that share what we love, I've met some great people here who love sports and are not afraid to showcase their opinions. But when I was writing my mega fantasy football series, the question dawned at me; why do we love sports?

Yeah, good question, why do we love sports? Is it because of the joy it brings? How about watching the team you loved for so many years become one of the best (White Sox fans)? Or is it just because we can watch it and relax from everyday troubles?

I don't have the answer why the world has fallen in love with the sport. It's not an easy answer, though, I do know why I love my sports and there is not one single reason. Why do I watch the Indianapolis Colts? I've been a fan during the Jeff George, Jimmy Harbaugh and now the Peyton Manning days. I remember the 3-13 season of 1998 to the AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. While I can't remember much of the George days, it must have been painful to watch. Now, why do I enjoy the Colts? Easy, I've fallen in love with the team, I want my wife's hair dyed white and my hair blue on the day we get married. Though that's a long way from now (I have to find someone willing to first) but it goes to show the lenghts people go for sports.

Why do I like the 3 Philly teams (Phills, Sixers, Flyers)? They are hometown and I have an affliation with each of them. The Phillies have been inconsistent since '93, but it's fun having that feeling each year thinking; "This has to be the year". The Phillies have brought in Kevin Millwood, David Bell, Jim Thome, Billy Wagner and Jon Lieber in the last few years and you are always thinking that, "This is the year". But when September comes, the choking begins and we prepare for our year in 2006.

So what about the Flyers and Sixers? I was suffering during the lockout days and even though my favorite NHL player, John LeClair, is now gone, I still love this team. Peter Forsberg is great to have and Simon Gagne has been a favorite the past 3 seasons. We always feel the need that we have to have a good goalie. Hextall was great, John Vanbiesbrook was good at times, then came Brian Boucher/Roman Cechmanek and Jeff Hackett who did not provide the long-term spark we needed. Robert Esche seemed like "The One" but now Antero Niittymakki is the one who needs it.

So why do we love sport? You are the one who has to answer that question but while some may be front runners, we are all a part of the Best Damn Sports Nation (sorry jbold)!

NASCAR sport

As the proud owner of a Honda and a Toyota, I've been following the to-bail-or-not-to-bail dance between the federal government and the Big Three automakers from a slight reserve. Forgive me, but as I've worked as a producer on a television show about NASCAR and written lots of articles about the sport in recent years, I'm most concerned about the fate of Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Given the brutal financial climate, I should, out of pure self-interest, support whatever measures will preserve NASCAR. Nevertheless, I can't help but think that Detroit's version of the Troubles is the right time to put the sport out of its misery.

I don't recommend euthanizing NASCAR lightly. This is the sport that gave us sporting icons like Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough, and the King, Richard Petty. I appreciate NASCAR's cutthroat competition, consider it a major sport, and think of the drivers as world-class athletes. But let's face facts—even if Ford, GM, and Chrysler get the cash they want from the taxpayers, they are going to have to pull back heaps of sponsorship dough from stock-car racing. Brian France, the CEO of NASCAR and grand pooh-bah of the sport, wrote a letter to Congress lobbying for the bailout, but that won't be nearly enough to win favor with the automakers, who will be slashing costs with a band saw, not a scalpel.

The Big Three and NASCAR have a symbiotic, deeply intertwined relationship. The adage "Win on Sunday, sell on Monday" has defined the way Detroit views NASCAR—as an extension of its core business. Roughly 75 percent of Sprint Cup teams—NASCAR's top division—drive American brands (the rest are with Toyota), and that percentage increases further down the NASCAR ladder. Beyond outfitting the race teams with chassis and souped-up engines, Ford, GM, and Chrysler provide manpower, technical support, and—the plasma that courses through the sport's veins—sponsorship: at the tracks, at media/marketing events, and everywhere else that NASCAR touches down. There is a simple cause-and-effect in the automaker/motorsports relationship. Poll after poll shows that there's a huge overlap between racing fans and buyers of American cars. Both tend to be fiercely loyal to preferred brands, which is a big reason why NASCAR shot to the top of the sporting food chain not so long ago.

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Palestine vs. Israel as the Name of the Holy Land

During the last few centuries, the world, Christians included, has fallen into a bad habit. We have bought into some early Roman propaganda. We have used the name Palestine, which Roman Emperor Hadrian placed on the country of Israel in 135 A.D., for so long that it has become common usage. This would be as incorrect as calling the Russia of today the “Soviet Union” or referring to Berlin as “East Germany.” The thoughts below by our ministry’s senior theologian, Dr. Thomas S. McCall, completely explore the subject. If you know somebody who’s fallen into this habit, please share this article with them.

History of the Term Palestine

Where did the term Palestine originate from? How did the world and the church get into the habit of calling the land of Israel “Palestine”? One of the guides we use in our tours to Israel is Zvi Rivai, an Israeli Messianic believer, who has done considerable research on this subject. Zvi informs us that before 135 A.D., the Romans used the terms Judea and Galilee to refer to the Land of Israel. When Titus destroyed Jerusalem in 70 A.D., the Roman government struck a coin with the phrase “Judea Capta,” meaning Judea has been captured. The term Palestine was never used in the early Roman designations.

It was not until the Romans crushed the second Jewish revolt against Rome in 135 A.D. under Bar Kochba that Emperor Hadrian applied the term Palestine to the Land of Israel. Hadrian, like many dictators since his time realized the propaganda power of terms and symbols. He replaced the shrines of the Jewish Temple and the Sepulchre of Christ in Jerusalem with temples to pagan deities. He changed the name of Jerusalem to Aelia Capitalina, and changed the name of Israel and Judea to Palestine. Hadrian’s selection of Palestine was purposeful, not accidental. He took the name of the ancient enemies of Israel, the Philistines, Latinized it to Palestine, and applied it to the Land of Israel. He hoped to erase the name Israel from all memory. Thus, the term Palestine as applied to the Land of Israel was invented by the inveterate enemy of the Bible and the Jewish people, Emperor Hadrian.

It is interesting to note that the original Philistines were not Middle Eastern at all. They were European peoples from the Adriatic sea next to Greece. It may have pleased Hadrian to utilize this Hellenistic term for the Jewish land. In any case, the original “Palestinians” had nothing to do, whatsoever, with any Arabs.