I'd like to thank all my readers in the greater Tufts community for viewing this heartwarming column each week. This week, we'll quickly visit a dog-loving athlete and then head to Dallas and never look back.
3. Clever canine. World renowned soccer star Ronaldinho finally unleashed his secret to the public this week. The one who trained the Brazilian phenom and taught him to dazzle opponents with the arts of passing, shooting, scoring and going by a Madonna-like single name is none other than... a dog?
Goal.com recently exposed a revolutionary report in which Ronaldinho explained that during his youth, a dog in his Brazilian town would often stay behind when the other humans had finished kicking the ball for the day. Ordinarily, releasing information this startling wouldn't harm anyone, and this would therefore go off as neutral.
However, Ronaldinho's football future is currently up in the air, as a possible sale to AC Milan was recently backed off when Barcelona asked for too much moolah. It seems that if Ronaldinho wants to sell himself, he shouldn't go around saying he learns from dogs, and that's why I'm going to saddle him with an error. But that's just my view.
2. A pointless confession. Josh Howard likes to get high every now and then - and it's not a crime! Actually, by U.S. law it is, and this may yet be a problem for the Dallas Mavericks forward, who openly admitted to smoking marijuana periodically during the offseason on Dallas talk radio last Friday.
Now, I'm not even going to touch any of the moral or legal issues associated with smoking weed. If Howard wants to smoke on his own time after the season, he's most likely not alone among professional athletes. But, as the hosts of Dallas' Michael Irvin Show explained, Howard's admission gives the media a scapegoat for anything that goes wrong with the Mavs in the quarterfinal series. It also means that Howard could be entered into a league substance abuse program or be subject to supplemental drug testing.
Josh, we all appreciate your honesty, but why not just tell a little white lie this time? You could've saved yourself a lot of trouble - admitting to smoking weed was a big mistake.
1. Cowboy up. Several issues ago, much to the chagrin of a few lonely Cowboys bloggers who referred to our paper as "something called the Tufts Daily," I dubbed the Dallas Cowboys' consideration of adding troubled cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones to their roster a calamity.
This week, Jerry Jones' actions spoke louder than my words, as the Cowboys agreed to a deal that has been gaining strength for many rumor-filled days: a trade that brings "the Pac" to Dallas and continues a long Cowboys tradition of putting criminal players on the field. Pacman's value was clearly recognized by the Titans, who only asked for a potential two relatively late draft picks in return!
I hope the Dallas fans enjoy what Jerry Jones has given them - indeed, a very talented player, but also one who has partaken in 12 police-related situations and been arrested six times, someone who wasn't allowed to play last season and who currently awaits commissioner Roger Goodell's approval to play at all this season.
Think about it this way: Until Oakland stepped up to the plate last weekend, teams were afraid to draft Darren McFadden simply because of what Wikipedia labels "character concerns." If Pacman Jones can prove me wrong, more power to him. However, for now, Jerry Jones and Cowboys have earned the calamity of this week.
Jeremy Strauss is a sophomore majoring in environmental studies. He can be reached at Jeremy.Strauss@tufts.edu.
