Of course I got in trouble with the club for setting up an unofficial site that is easier to use and find than the official site but I can't and won't be stopped.

Click a link if you've got a minute, I'm sure you'll be disappointed.

http://somertonyouth.org/default.aspx

http://somertonyouth.org/Football.aspx

http://somertonyouth.org/Little_Guys_B.aspx

http://somertonyouth.org/Suggestions.aspx

http://somertonyouth.org/contactus.aspx

If you must leave a nasty comment then use the Suggestions link that will be emailed to me and not the Contact Us link that goes to a nice lady at the club house.

Delete this post if you must.

Love,

~Denny

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It's a great line from the movie Billy Madison.

I'm going to use it for a different purpose here.

I'll use it to describe Mass. Representative James Fagan.

He's ranted, in the Mass. House debate on Jessica's Law, that he would destroy a child victim of rape on a witness stand if the law passed.

He actually said he'd "rip apart" 6 year olds on the witness stand and "make sure the rest of their life is ruined".

Classy guy, right?

He went even further saying that he'd grill victims so that, "when they're 8 years old they throw up; when they're 12 years old, they won't sleep; when they're 19 years old, they'll have nightmares and they'll never have a relationship with anybody".

Jessica's Law, is the name given to legislation aimed at keeping repeat sexual offenders off the streets and unable to commit crimes again.  It's aimed more specifically at those sexual offenders who prey on children.

Why "Jessica's Law"?

Well, in Florida, 9 year old Jessica Lunsford was abducted, raped, and brutally murdered by a convicted sex offender.  She was actually still alive, after being raped and held in a closet for three days, when the guy put her in two plastic bags and buried her alive. (Another class act who doesn't even deserve to have his name mentioned here.)

So, there's you're little bit of history on the case and the laws name.

Back to Fagan.

He's a married man with 6 sons and no daughters.  He's probably grooming 6 future rapists and wants to make sure that they can live productive, fun-filled, raping lives without being sent to jail or being put to death.

Ooops.  I've made a mistake.  One of Fagans 6 rapists, actually died this past February when he fell from a bridge.  Did he fall or was he so distraught that there were no 6 year old girls outside, late at night, waiting to be raped that he jumped off the bridge?

Maybe, just maybe, someone knew that Kevins father loved rapists and they pushed him off the bridge in order to save a young child from being raped by Fagan or as a lesson to their father for supporting the rights of rapists.

A boy can dream can't he?

Either way, one less rapist in the world.

So, every February 3rd, we should gather together the parents of children who've been the victim of sexual assault and hang out in the front of his house and hold up pictures of all those children. 

We could hold up pictures of his son, Kevin, and remind him that the pain he felt having his son die at 25 is nothing compared to the pain parents of sexually assaulted and possible murdered children feel every day. That the pain of his child dying is nothing compared to the pain a child will live with for the rest of their lives after being sexually assaulted.

Here's another idea.

We find a released sexual offender who doesn't really have much to live for and have him rape Fagans wife.

Would that work? I wonder how Fagan would feel then? Would he change his mind on the rights of sexual predators?

***I don't advocate any type of violence against women, but I don't think that anything except that would bother Fagan.***

If you think that this guy is a little messed up in the head, feel free to contact him and let him know. I'm sure that you won't be the first person, and hopefully until he can be removed from office and raped in a back alley somewhere, you won't be the last.

James Fagan

State House	District Office
Room 163	26 Dean Street
State House	Taunton, MA 02780
Boston, MA 02133
Telephone: 617-722-2040	508-824-7000
Facsimile:	508-823-9892
E-Mail: Rep.JamesFagan@hou.state.ma.us

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The wife dies underwater, the husband supposedly kills her.  He denies it, obviously, but the picture show his drowned wife lying on the ocean bottom as he swims away.

Seems a little "fishy" to me…

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Shameful.

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It was a nice thought and he specifically mentioned his father.  Very touching.He brought up that his thoughts and prayers were with the Americans who’ve been affected by the floods in the Midwest, but that there was “love from a higher being” looking out for them.
I’m sure that comforts them after seeing how much love he showed the Gulf Coast region after Hurricane Katrina.
That’s not the point of this though.
Here’s what has me puzzled.
Is he wishing Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers in the USA or just a select few that still have their children with them?
Since 2003, and the start of George Bush’s war in Iraq, 13 different men have been killed on Father’s Day.
How do you wish Cameron Payne’s father, a Happy Fathers Day, when his son was only 22 at the time he was killed in Baghdad by an IED? (Improvised Explosive Device) How do you explain to the two young children that Cameron Payne left behind that the day they will think the most about their dad is also the day he died?
Cameron Payne’s family will spend every Father’s Day at a cemetery, planting flowers and thinking about the young man that was taken from them at his gravestone.  His children, too young to know any better, will wonder what kind of man was their father. They’ll wonder why he was taken from them so early in their lives. 
Can George Bush wish them a Happy Father’s Day?  Can he explain to them that we’re fighting a war to make him and his friends’ money?  Can he tell them that their father died so that we could keep the freedom that was never really threatened to be lost in the first place?
How do you wish Daniel Gionet’s father, a Happy Father’s  Day, when his son was killed at the age of 23, by a roadside bomb in Baghdad?  What does his wife Katrina do, knowing that Daniel was never given the chance to become a father? 
Does George Bush tell Daniels father that he’s sorry that his son is dead, but that America is safer because of it? Does he say it with a straight face?  Does he say it to his face?  Can he look him in the eye, knowing that he’s killed this mans son?
Glade Felix’s family will remember every Father’s Day because that’s the day that their father, son, and husband, was taken from them.  His wife, Cathie, and his six children can now gather on Father’s Day and try to take solace in the fact that he was thinking about them, on Father’s Day, when he was killed, in Iraq.
It seems like everyday that we have another father, son, daughter, brother, sister, or mother, killed in a land that we shouldn’t be in, in the first place.
Were you ever really threatened by Al-Qaeda? Were you ever really afraid that you were going to die in the mall when you were shopping for shoes?  Were you ever afraid that someone was going to be able to take over your country and government?
I wasn’t.
Not once did I think that I wouldn’t be able to go to The Gap and buy an overpriced T-shirt, if I really wanted one.  I could still spend $4.79 for a large coffee at Starbucks.  I never feared that I would lose that.
September 11, 2001 was a tragic day and it was painful to watch everything unfold on television the way that it did.  It was painful to know that so many people lost their lives in a senseless act of violence.
What is more painful than that?
Knowing that more Americans have died in Iraq than in the events of 9/11.
Knowing that the President of the United States had it’s armed forces invade a country that is roughly the size of California, with a population about 1/10th the size of ours. 
Knowing that the people that have benefited from George Bush’s war are people that are friends with George Bush. 
Knowing that while you’re enjoying your Father’s Day, having a couple of beers, sitting on the beach,  watching the U.S. Open, or whatever you were doing, that there were parents, spouses, and children thinking about their loved ones who’ve died.
Knowing that somewhere in the United States a child is missing their father. That a father is missing his son. 
Knowing that while you’re relaxing and feeling good about yourself and your family, that there’s someone who’s mourning the loss of a member of their family.
Next year, on Father’s Day, enjoy your time with your family.
Enjoy it as a father.
Enjoy it as a son.
Most importantly, enjoy it because the families of the following will be mourning the loss of their sons and fathers.
KILLED ON FATHER’S DAY
6/11/07 – Glade L. Felix, 52 years old
               Cameron K. Payne, 22 years old

6/6/06 – Richard A. Blakley (34)
             Mark T. Smykowski (23)
             Andy D. Anderson (24)
             Carlos E. Pernell (25)
             Ryan Sanders (27)
             Daniel Gionet (23)
6/16/05 – John W. Maloney (36)
               Erik K. Heldt (26)
               Anthony S. Cometa (21)
6/19/04 – Sean Horn (19)
6/13/03 – Andrew R. Pokorny (30)

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But…

I can't resist this little bit of information.

With 11:00  left in the 3rd period of tonight Flyers/Penguins game, there was a stoppage of play. Sidney Crosby immediately went to the referee behind the Flyers goal and looked to be talking about what the reason for the stop in play was. As Jason Smith, the Flyers captain, came into the picture the linesman and referee all blocked Smith from getting very close to Sid the Kid.  

Here's where I have a problem.  You can very clearly hear Crosby complaining to the ref that he was hit in the chest area by Smith and that they should call something. Smith could be heard saying that he didn't hit Crosby and that there was just contact on the play. As Smith, who can throw with anyone in the league, got closer, he was pushed away to make room, obviously for Sid to plead his case and not be in danger of getting hit by Smith.

It's a disgrace that the NHL is going to continue to let this go on with Crosby.   

After years in the NHL, earning respect of your fellow players and the officials, you should earn the right to talk to the refs during games in the manner that Crosby has been used to.  He's treated as if he's Wayne Gretzky at the very end of his career.

It's obvious that Crosby is talented, but he doesn't deserve the extra mile that the refs give him and the length they go to protect him.

While I'm not a fan of Malkin, the kid plays hard and will go in against anyone.  I know that his blatant elbow to Briere's head was a definite penalty, he gets it as good as he gives it and he doesn't seem to embellish or cry.

Now, for our beloved FLYERS.

Steve Downie is hearing some blame for a bad pass at the end of game three that eventually led to the Penguins 3rd goal.  

Why would Downie make such a pass?

Because he's the only player on the ice for the FLYERS that actually charged into the offensive zone after making a great defensive play and stealing the puck. The only bad part about Downie's play was that there were FOUR Pens players waiting for him to enter the zone.

Once he did, two players pressed him and he was forced to do something.

This is where it gets frustrating.

Most people would say that he should have dumped it in.  That's because we've watched the John Stevens Flyers play the old dump and chase for the whole year.  But, as Downie turned around to see if someone was following him into the zone, he saw not one player.  He was stuck and had on man come late into the zone on the far side of the ice.

He was left with one play and that was to try to get the puck across ice.

It didn't work.

Not because of a lack of effort on Downies part or a poor decision, but rather an instictual play by a talented hockey player that was let down by his coaches poor choice of hockey styles.

The FLYERS play the game of hockey as if they're not allowed into the center portion of the offensive zone.

Mike Knuble and Scott Hartnell are the only two players that seem to know that you're allowed to be in front of the goalie.  You don't have to score all of your goals from the sides of the net.  

I'm not knocking Richard, Carter, Umberger, Lupul, Upshall, or any of the other players, because I think that FLYERS have the best young team in the league.  

But…

Stevens style is the dump and chase and try to protect your goalie.  The only problem with that is that the team is not at all aggressive in the offensive zone.  They dump, chase, and then retreat.  

 It's a poor choice of a way to play in today NHL. We have enough talent, speed, and depth to charge the net every minute of every game.  We have three really, really good lines, with a fourth line that is very good in it's own right.  

Hopefully, Stevens realizes next year that he has the talent to keep up with these other teams.  It's ok to give up three or four goals a game if you're going to score four or five.  We can do that with the talent we have on this team.

So let's look forward to next year.

Who do you keep and what should the roster look like next year?

Defense?  Hatcher is the one player that has caused me heartache all year. In the playoffs, he's obviously too slow to play this game.  But, he's been knocking the hell out of everyone within reach and taking the best players off of their game. We have an old defense that doesn't have to be old.

You're able to play with the following six:

Kimmo Timmanen, Jason Smith, Braydon Coburn, Randy Jones, Lasse Kukkonen, and Ryan Parent.  

Your defense is fater, younger, and ultimately more skilled and able to play with the new breed of NHL players.

Offense is easy.

Re-sign Jeff Carter and RJ Umberger.  That's the first priority. Secondly, re-sign Vinnie Prospal. I know that a lot of people don't like Prospal because he was here before, but he's a talented player that can feed Briere the way that Gagne can't.

It's tough to say, but you can't count on Gagne next year.  He could come back and score 50 goals, he could come back and be a solid player on your 4th line, or he could come back and have a scrambled head in the first few games again.  Hell, he could miss the whole next year.

So, where does that leave you in terms of four lines that can play and win for the team? 

1st line: Prospal, Briere, and Knuble. Let Prospal and Briere work around the net, trying to create plays.  Knuble will park in front of the net and wait for either a pass or a rebound, but make no mistakes, he'll put htem in the net.

2nd line: Richards, Lupol, and Hartnell. This line was fantastic, but they were broken up by injuries to players and Stevens constant changing of lines.

3rd line: Carter, Thoreson, and Claude Giroux.  Thoreson is fast and pretty skilled, but he needs to be with better players than Kappanen and Cote in order for him to be effective.  Claude Giroux is ridiculous.  Plain and simple, he'll score a lot and help this team.  Carter will benefit from having these two guys on his line, because they're both talented and fast, which will open up the ice against other teams 3rd lines.

4th line: Umberger, Upshall, and Gagne.  This is a line that will let Gagne, if he comes back, play a relaxed game against other teams 4th lines, but he's playing with Umberger who is 1st line material and Upshall who should be on a #2 line.  This would give the Flyers the best 4th line in the NHL.

You can keep Biron and Nittimaki in goal, unless you have the chance to pick up someone that would put you over the top. There's not really anyone that comes to mind, so I say that wee keep these two and know that are team will be scoring in bunches and taking the pressure off of the goalie to pull a shutout every night.

It's late, I'm tired, and the FLYERS have lost again, so I'm not in a good mood.  I'm finishing this knowing one definite truth.

Next season, the FLYERS will own the Penguins and most of the NHL.  

I can't wait.

But…

There's still hope for the rest of this season. It all starts on Thursday night in Philly. 

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Every year, I get excited to watch the NFL draft, hoping that the EAGLES will do something amazing and draft a great player.

Every year, I'm left sad and disappointed. 

This year is no different. Why would it be? 

There's nothing special about Andy Reid.  He's not a genius.  He's not one of the All-Time great coaches.

What is he?  An arrogant and selfish man who likes to think that he is all knowing.  HE wants everyone to trust his ideas and coaching ways.  He wants us to pay good money for tickets to see the same team every year.  

I know that Jeff Luria is fond of saying that he doesn't want a "one and done" season where the EAGLES win the Super Bowl and then are crap for another few years, but he has to be getting sick of Reid's ways. I know that I am.  I'm pretty sure that most of the fans are as well.

I'm all for having a consistantly good team, but I'd also like to have a team that stands a chance of winning the Super Bowl.  When the QB says that he needs better weapons on offense, then you go out and get him the damn weapons.

I still believe that Donovan McNabb is an elite QB in this league, but I'm not so naive to think that he will remain so for the next 10 years.  HE probably has about four, maybe five years left in him.

When McNabb last complained aboutnot having any r weapons on offense, the team went out and got TO.  We all know how that wound up.  In the Super Bowl.  

There's only so much that Brian Westbrook can do.  Reggie Brown is not a top line, #1 wideout.  Kevin Curtis is not that guy either.  There aren't many guys in the NFL that do fit that label, but at least try to get one of them or something close.  

This year, the EAGLES will be doing the same thing I do towards the end of January… getting ready to watch the Super Bowl on TV.

I hope that I'm wrong, but I'd be willing to bet DeSean JAcksons contract on it.  I'm glad that for the second year in a row, the EAGLES traded out of the 1st round of the draft in order to get later round picks.  

Now, I understand that Carolinas 1st round pick next year could wind up being a very high pick, but more than likely, it'll be around 10-17. That's not enough for me to pass up on a good player this year.

It's almost like Reid doesn't want to draft high picks because if they don't pan out, they'll be saying he doesn't know what he's doing.  He'd rather draft 13 players in rounds 2-7 and stand a better chance of having one of them become a good to very good player in a few years.  The more late round picks you make, the higher the chance of looking like a draft genius.

What he doesn't understand is that most of the picks that are taken in the 1st round of the draft are taken there for a reason.

THEY'RE BETTER DAMN PLAYERS THAN THE PEOPLE TAKEN LATER.

I like the Trevor Laws pick.  I put that in my pre-draft writeup.  What I dont' understand is trading out of the 1st round to take an undersized WR because he can return kicks.  You passed on much bigger and better receivers. I understand the problem with 1st round picks and their contracts, but I'm not concerned with that. I'd rather have a guy that I could count on.  

Here's an ideal scenario.

Take the New Orleans Saints offer of a 2nd round pick for Lito Sheppard.  That would give you the follwing results in the draft.

1st round Pick 19: Mike Jenkins CB University of South FLorida

2nd Round Pick 40: Trevor Laws DT Notre DAme

2nd Round Pick 49: Limas Sweed WR Texas

3rd Round Pick 80: Tom Zbikowski FS Notre Dame

That is a ton better than the EAGLES did over the weekend.  Let's look at where that would leave the EAGLES.

You rid yourselves of the Lito Sheppard cancer, and it will be a cancer the longer he stay with the team.  You get a premier young CB in Jenkins that will be there for the next 10 years.  You move Sheldon Brown to the safety slot and let Zbikowski learn the game from Dawkins and Brown in order to replace Dawkins next year. Oh yeah, did I mention that Zbikowski is an above average kick and punt returner? That shores up the part of your game that really stunk last year.  Sweed, gives you a big, strong, fast wide receiver that McNabb can find down the field, but also can run the routes over the middle and make the same types of plays that TO used to make.  All of these players were available and easy to envision in an EAGLES uniform on draft day.   

So why are we forced to take this draft from Reid?

Because he's the coach and he's been doing a good job so far?   

Playoffs? Nice.  Super Bowl appearance? Nice.

Other than that? Nothing.  We have nothing to show for his time here.

A bunch of Pro Bowl players that have had to pay for the rings on their fingers.  

Everyone is comparing DeSean Jackson to Steve Smith of Carolina.  Here's a question for you.

Besides Steve Smith, name me another small WR that is considered to be one of the best in the league?  Can you do it?

I look at players like TO, Chad Johnson, Roy Williams, Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Randy Moss, Reggie Wayne, and Braylon Edwards. These are the best receivers in the NFL and they're all tall, fast, strong.  Steve Smith was the 23rd ranked WR at the end of last year. I know that he didn't really have anyone throwing him the ball and that counts for a lot, but I'd much rather have a guy that's 6'3" or taller going up against a cornerback for a catch than a guy that's only about 5'9". You tell me who's going to come out on top of those battles 9 out of 10 times.

After all of this and being completely frustrated over this whole draft, let me give you one last piece of information from someone who lives in South Florida.  Mike Jenkins is a just below great CB.  He's going to be very good in the NFL.  You''ll see him a lot, because the Cowboys traded up in the 1st round to get him. He'll be the guy running back the interceptions McNabb throws when his receivers are too small to go up and get balls.

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Everyone anticipates that first day and I know that I could hardly sleep, waiting to see who signed immediately at 12:01 a.m. last Friday.

There was nothing.  The next morning? Nothing. I had to wait until later in the day to hear that the EAGLES had signed Asante Samuel.  

Is he a good signing?  Who knows. He seems to look good, on paper.  He was real good on the field, but who's to say.  Javon Kearse was a monster when we signed him.  We all know how that turned out.  Although, he seemed to be damaged goods when he left Tennessee, the EAGLES still threw a ton of money at him and brought him in as the savior of the defense.  Injuries took their toll on Kearse, so I think that he would get an incomplete as a grade for his overall signing.  He wasn't disappointing, when he played, but he seemed to miss too many plays.  It's hard to be a stud defensive lineman when there's nobody on the other side of the line to keep the double-team off you.  Oh well, he's back in Titanville.

Samuel is actually about 3 months older than Lito Sheppard and hasn't been to the Pro Bowl as many times, but he does have a few Super Bowl rings and he picks off passes very well.  As far as Lito is concerned, I don't really know what should be done with him.  Instead of trading him, I think the best plan would be to take him and make him the starting Free Safety.  You could move Dawkins over to the Strong Safety spot and give us a spectacular defensive backfield.  Moving Dawkins over to SS might actually give him some more time at the end of his career.  

So, you don't trade Lito, you move him over.  Now, you've solved the defensive backfield issues, where do we look next?

Defensive line? OK.  Is there really a problem here?  I'm pretty happy with the defensive tackles we have in Patterson, Bunkley, and Ramsey.   The ends, with Cole, Abiamiri, Thomas, Howard, and newcomer Chris Clemons should be alright.  I think if they use Howard at DT this year teamed with Bunkley, who is faster and stronger than Patterson, they would be able to put out four guys that can bullrush to the QB.  The Giants had this work for them all year.  I'm ok with the defensive line, although I'm fairly certain the EAGLES will pick another lineman in the draft and probably a high pick will be used for them.

Linebackers? I'm ok with Gocong, Bradley, and Jordan.  Since the day he was drafted I thought that Omar Gaither would be a stud.  I'm a bit upset that they let go of Trotter, but Gaither is going to be here for a long time.  He's going to be a dominant player this year, and probably for years to come, although, I'm sure a few of those years will be with another team because the EAGLES won't want to pay him what he's worth.  I'm torn on the issue of releasing Takeo Spikes.  I didn't get overly impressed with him last year, but he's a veteran leader at a position where we definitely could use some veteran leadership.   I think they made a mistake in letting him go, but I have to give Reid the benefit of the doubt on this one, because he doesn't make to many mistakes when it comes to releasing players.

Let's go to the other side of the ball.

Offense?  What do we need? Hmmm…

Oh yeah.  A stud receiver. I was impressed to hear that the EAGLES tried to land Randy Moss, although I believe that they only made the offer when they knew he'd be signing back with New England.  It seems to be a move to appease the fans and McNabb and Westbrook.  But, it was an offer that they knew wouldn't get accepted.  It's an offer that they can use to justify bringing in a couple of less talented WR's and making it seem like they tried for the big play type of guy, but couldn't land him. 

So where do we turn?  I think you have to go for Bryant Johnson of the Arizona Cardinals.  He's big, strong, fast, and runs great routes.  He was drafted ahead of Anquan Boldin the year they both came into the league, but Boldin blew up.  He actually should have never dropped to the Cards in the second round, but I'm not concerned with the Cardinals.  Johnson is an above average WR on a team that has two superstars.  There's no way that he shines on that team, but if he had the chance on a team, like the EAGLES, that has a great QB and a couple of other good WR's to work with, he could be a great WR.  You could make him your #1, with Curtis and Brown splitting the #2 and #3 duties, like the Pats did with Stallworth and Welker.  It would open up the field completely.  With a healthy LJ Smith and Brian Westbrook in the backfield, you'd ahve an offense that would put the Patriots of last year to shame. 

Neither Brown or Curtis is a #1 wideout, but they are both good enough to play the #2.  Johnson is good enough to be a #1 and would thrive in the EAGLES system.  The only thing that the EAGLES would have to do is commit to throwing the ball about 35 times a game.

Wait a minute, they do that already.

After that you give the ball to Westbrook about 25 times a game and that takes up your average of 60 plays a game.  

I'll be willing to put money on the EAGLES having the most potent offense in the NFL if they sign Bryant Johnson.  

I don't really have many problems on offense, as long as the line can stay healthy.  Winston Justice is a stud, he just has to get time at the RT spot, instead of the LT where he has no idea what to do.  Runyan could stand to take a few plays off this year.  He's getting up there in age. I'm also happy with Andrews and Herrimans as OG's with Gilles coming to back them up.  I'm also ok with Jackson as your center with Cole as the backup.

So, we're set.

The EAGLES only have to follow my advice and sign Bryant Johnson, move Dawkins to SS, Lito to Free Safety, and we'd be a Super Bowl winner, not just a contender.

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