Voluntourism

A voluntourist is someone like Jack, who wishes to combine exotic vacation travel with volunteer work. For anyone interested in being one, a dizzying array of choices awaits, from building schools in Uganda or houses in Haiti to hugging orphans in Bali. In all of them, the operational equation is the same: wealthy Westerners can do a little good, experience something that their affluent lives do not offer, and, as in Jack’s case, have a story to tell that places them in the ranks of the kindhearted and worldly wise.

As admirably altruistic as it sounds, the problem with voluntourism is its singular focus on the volunteer’s quest for experience, as opposed to the recipient community’s actual needs. There is a cost associated with such an endeavor. A 2010 report by the Human Sciences Research Council, based in Pretoria, South Africa, analyzed the thriving AIDS orphan tourism business in South Africa.

Under this program, well-to-do tourists sign up to build schools, clean and restore riverbanks, ring birds and act as caregivers to AIDS orphans for a few weeks. This led to the creation of a profitable industry catering to volunteer tourists. The orphans’ conditions are effectively transformed into a boutique package in which “saving” them yields profits from tourists. The foreigners’ ability to pay for the privilege of volunteering crowds out local workers.

The White Tourist's Burden

Monday link list

1. Can't remember if we linked GeoGuessr or not, but it owns.

2. Winnie the Pooh and Zombies

3. Schwarzenegger sound board prank friends

4. All of China, IL is online.

5.YouTube numbers stations. Here's my favorite.

MST3K history

When they told me, my only objection was that he was kind of like me—a white doughy guy from the Midwest. But it worked out great. They stuck with the formula really closely. I think they did a really good job.

It began getting difficult when USA Network started exercising more control over the Sci-Fi Channel. And then we picked up these fucking production executives from the network. We had these bitter, dry, humorless trolls in charge of our show. And they were giving us notes. And they were insisting on our having a story arc. What the hell do you want with a story arc? This is a puppet show.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Definitive Oral History of a TV Masterpiece

This is what it looks like when Tha Cap'n makes love

easily my favorite song on the Exit Wounds soundtrack

Surveillance and Language

To Orwell, this threat was not merely that loose and imprecise writing fails to convey one’s real meaning. His more immediate fear was more fundamental: that reliance on vague, “ready-made phrases” would, over time, conceal one’s real meaning even from oneself. Orwell understood that when a population stops “hunting about” for words—when it instead regurgitates the limited vocabulary of those in power—it stops truly thinking. “The fight against bad English,” Orwell wrote, “is not frivolous and is not the exclusive concern of professional writers.” Far from it—it is “a necessary first step toward political regeneration.”

The government’s mass-surveillance apparatus, and the secret legal gymnastics that purportedly justify it, is a chilling expression of Orwell’s worst fears.

Dragnet Surveillance and the English Language

Metal Monday

Press statement

Tri Epsilon can neither confirm nor deny that the image reproduced below, among the documents leaked by Edward Snowden, portrays an invitation to induction in Tri Epsilon.

Here's me and Tha Captain hard at work

yes I am saying that this blog is run by Andrea Bocelli

friday stuff

1. Fun game: Luftrauser

2. Fun game: Mini Metro

3.

This is no time for confessing

I keep up with pop culture enough to know and like about four new songs a year, so I guess this is the first one for 2014.

Vegetarian ancestors

Most primates have the capacity for eating sugary fruit, the capacity for eating leaves and the capacity for eating meat. But meat is a rare treat, if eaten at all. Sure, chimpanzees sometimes kill and devour a baby monkey, but the proportion of the diet of the average chimpanzee composed of meat is small. And chimps eat more mammal meat than any of the other apes or any of the monkeys. The majority of the food consumed by primates today–and every indication is for the last thirty million years–is vegetable, not animal. Plants are what our apey and even earlier ancestors ate; they were our paleo diet for most of the last thirty million years during which our bodies, and our guts in particular, were evolving. In other words, there is very little evidence that our guts are terribly special and the job of a generalist primate gut is primarily to eat pieces of plants. We have special immune systems, special brains, even special hands, but our guts are ordinary and for tens of millions of years those ordinary guts have tended to be filled with fruit, leaves, and the occasional delicacy of a raw hummingbird.

Human Ancestors Were Nearly All Vegetarians

Monday links

1. Well Dressed Animals with Rap Quotes

2. Trees growing in weapons

3. Synthetic Household Population Viewer

4. I am against the Olympics but Olympics Medals per Capita

5. Congrats to Tha Cap'n on his new job

Barbershop Quartet's Ignition (Remix)

I am not really a fan of Jimmy Fallon, but I like him more as a host and a quasi-vaudevillian than as a comedian or actor.

best youtube comment: "To be a good producer u need to be a good dj greats from mexico"

here's me

hey

Schooling

Compulsory schooling has been a fixture of our culture now for several generations. It’s hard today for most people to even imagine how children would learn what they must for success in our culture without it. President Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan are so enamored with schooling that they want even longer school days and school years. Most people assume that the basic design of schools, as we know them today, emerged from scientific evidence about how children learn best. But, in fact, nothing could be further from the truth.

Schools as we know them today are a product of history, not of research into how children learn. The blueprint still used for today’s schools was developed during the Protestant Reformation, when schools were created to teach children to read the Bible, to believe scripture without questioning it, and to obey authority figures without questioning them. The early founders of schools were quite clear about this in their writings. The idea that schools might be places for nurturing critical thought, creativity, self-initiative or ability to learn on one’s own — the kinds of skills most needed for success in today’s economy — was the furthest thing from their minds. To them, willfulness was sinfulness, to be drilled or beaten out of children, not encouraged.

School is a prison

more Winwood

Censored

Time

2013 Movie Year in Review

Here is a list of the films which were both released and seen by me in 2013, in rough order of how much I would recommend them:

STRONGLY RECOMMENDED:
Gravity - In a year without a really great movie (there were at least five movies in 2012 that would have been my favorite movie of 2013 (though I haven't seen the movies which look best of 2013, including: 12 Years a Slave, Inside Llewyn Davis, and Her)), this was my favorite. It's not a good movie in the sense that there's a lot of great acting and characterization and such. But seeing this in the theater was definitely worth the money - it's beautiful to look at, and I was immediately immersed in the story. There are a couple of moments when the movie lost that, just a little; the imagery is a little heavy-handed at times, and the film is too sentimental. But then again, I am dark-hearted and cynical. And sometimes even over-the-top sentimentality is okay, in an over-the-top movie.

Pacific Rim - Look, this is a movie about robots fighting monsters. If you don't like that sort of thing, move on. I love it, this movie was awesome, and if they want to make more Robot Jox meets Godzilla movies, I will pay to go see it.

Much Ado About Nothing - IMDB says this is 2012, but Wikipedia says 2013 for its theatrical release, and I am going with that. Except for the Leo Romeo and Juliet, I always enjoy these "Shakespeare in modern day" adaptations. The most recent I'd previously seen, Coriolanus with Voldemort and 300, owned. Much Ado About Nothing is not quite as good, but it's still excellent: funny and entertaining.

GENERALLY RECOMMENDED:
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - I am glad these movies are all making trillions of dollars, because it increases the chances of a gritty two-part version of The Children of Hurin.

Iron Man 3 - I liked the second Iron Man best of the three RDJr ones. This one is a fine superhero movie, well-acted and all. It feels long, though, and I was ready, by the end of the movie, for it just to be over. There are several scenes, especially at the end, that clearly were put into the film just for trailers.

Oblivion - Pretty good! Remember when sci-fi action movies were all Real Dumb? They aren't anymore, and I like that. Oblivion doesn't do anything special, but it doesn't dick anything up, either. People are critical of Tom Cruise, and he seems like a bad person, but I almost always like the movies in which he stars. Cruise is not a great actor, but he's competent and generally seems to know his limits. This is one reason War of the Worlds worked - Cruise as a smug semi-loser who doesn't really know what's going on? Believable!
 
RECOMMENDED, WITH CAVEATS:
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - At points I found myself not really caring what happened to most of the characters, which is a bad sign, but it's overall a pretty good movie. Most of the actors in this are strong, which is surprising since it is a movie made from a series written for teens and pre-teens.

Star Trek into Darkness  - This is basically the first Star Trek reboot movie, but with Sherlock as the bad guy. Somebody (Mobute?) said that the bad guy is basically Sideshow Bob, and the movie works much better that way. It's too bad that the main actor who plays Kirk is such a weak imitation of world-crushing hero Shatner, because everyone else is pretty competent. I never quite, in terms of plot or characterization, understood why anyone in this movie did anything.

The Place Beyond the Pines - This is a not terribly compelling but generally watchable generational drama about secrets and crimes and connections. I was really excited about it, because the movie looked like Drive but with motorcycles and bank robberies. It isn't.

The Great Gatsby - This movie runs into the same problem as the next one, which is source material. Why make this movie now? If it's a portrayal of the failures of the rich and the inherent corruption of great wealth, something we had in the 1920s and today, why make that great wealth look so awesome? I have suspicions this will be the problem with The Wolf of Wall Street - allegedly an indictment of excess and criminality which ends up glorifying it. Leonardo DiCaprio does not pick movies which best suit his acting.

Man of Steel - I liked this movie, I guess, except for the Superman part. The fight scenes are cool and the actors (except for the guy who played Superman, Handsomey McStrongWhiteJawline) are all better than this movie deserves. The plot mostly makes sense, at least as far as stupid superhero movies go. Still: Why make an angsty Superman? Star Trek sort of had the same problem: if your film relies on people knowing things about the character because of previous incarnations, and not because of things which the film or its immediate predecessors explain, then you are failing. I really wish the movie had just been a space political drama starring Jor-L and Zod.

This Is the End - If you like those Pineapple Express/Superbad kind of comedies, this is an entirely competent (if self-indulgent) version.

Ender's Game - Not a terrible movie, and they do some things right I didn't expect to work (like portraying the Battle School formations in a way which makes sense), but this movie was rushed and, as a result, lacked emotional impact. Except for some parts of the fighting in Battle School, this movie looked cheap: there were about four different sets, total, plus a lot of obviously-CGI space ships. The main actors are mostly fine, but this movie had some poor casting, too: the kid who plays Bonzo was a terrible, terrible choice because he's not intimidating. Harrison Ford doesn't try acting anymore. The book Ender's Game is really a dark subject, and it's got some difficult themes that the movie can barely address.They really should have made this at least two films, and probably a trilogy (everyone loves trilogies). A trilogy would allow three films to each have a slightly different feel and address some of the larger themes the movie just misses.
  
MAYBE ON CABLE?: 
The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia - Fun to watch, but dumb. 

Elysium - I was super pumped about this movie, made by the guy who made District 9 (which I really liked). But this is the dumb version of District 9. It's absurdly heavy-handed, the plot does not make sense, and the world is not believable. It's never clear why, in an obviously post-scarcity economy, the economic and social distinctions remain. Given that it's obviously easy to land a ship on the space station thing, why not put a bunch of diesel-filled barges around it in space and hold the rich people hostage? Why don't the rich people on Elysium throw asteroids into earth, killing all the poor people? That said, the effects and action were good, mostly the acting is fine, and I actually cared what happened to a couple of people.

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues - It's like the first one, but not as good.

World War Z - This is nothing like the book World War Z. It's a stupid plot. Brad Pitt is irritating in this movie (usually I think he's pretty good). The zombies are not scary or interesting (I Am Legend, another movie which entirely misses the point of its source material, had a similar problem).

NOT RECOMMENDED:
Oz the Great and Powerful - Dumb and tiresome. I am sure everyone involved made a billion dollars. You can often tell when people make a movie because it's a lot of money, and not because, say, there's a story they want to tell or a character or situation they want to explore. I will say, it was fun watching this movie in 2-D and seeing all the tossed hats and such which were clearly designed for 3-D.

Gangster Squad - This movie has a fascinating subject and a great cast. It's really terrible, though, and I can't quite put my finger on why. I think part of it is that everyone is too much, if that makes sense -- the heroes too heroic, the villains too villainous, the fights too astounding. The plot is dumb and writing lazy: The movie ends with a fist fight between the main good guy and the main bad guy. Everyone involved in this was a pro, and I wonder if there was a point when they all realized that they were working on a crap movie.

Olympus Has Fallen - Woof, what a terrible movie. The plot is ridiculous, the acting terrible, the special effects laughable. Nothing redeems this movie.

yeaaa

 

here's a video of tha captain celebrating his inevitable pick them victory

good thing we both have a gimme tonight

so close!

pretty good records, imo

yep

here look at this shit

The premier league season is halfway over. You can see how it's going here. I made this thing to illustrate how it's spread out. Truly, the middle class is dead.

i figured out how to make the picture full size

charles why did you go to bed

after the northrop grumman military bowl because i am going to dinner and i wanted a scoreboard

CRISIS GAMES

Cap'n's selections first:

Dec 21:
Washington State v. Colorado State
San Diego State v. Buffalo
ULL v. Tulane

Dec 24:
Oregon State v. Boise State

Dec 27:
Maryland v. Marshall
Washington v. BYU

Dec 28:
North Carolina v. Cincinnati

Jan 1:
North Texas v. UNLV
Wisconsin v. South Carolina

Jan 3:
Missouri v. Oklahoma State
The Ohio State University v. Clemson

Jan 6:
Florida State v. Auburn

Tie-breaker: Combined national title game score
Cap'n: 69
Charlie: 72

tha captainz choices

Gildan New Mexico Bowl
Colorado State vs. Washington State
Dec. 21
pretty good matchup, imo
tha captainz choice: wazzou

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl
Fresno State vs. USC
Dec. 21
lane kiffin has the boys of troy playing pretty good, imo
tha captainz choice: usc

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Buffalo vs. San Diego State
Dec. 21
the boys from down south will be just giddy to play around in the snow and you don't lose when you're giddy, imo
tha captainz choice: teks

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Tulane vs. UL Lafayette
Dec. 21
this one's gonna be spicy, imo
tha captainz choice: cajuns

Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl
East Carolina vs. Ohio
Dec. 23
figured urban's boys would be in a better bowl than this after winning 24 straight. probably a little to bummed to show up for this one, imo
tha captainz choice: ecu

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Boise State vs. Oregon State
Dec. 24
where do you think they came up with beavers? probably a lot of beavers around, i guess.
tha captainz choice: beavers

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
Bowling Green vs. Pittsburgh
Dec. 26
pizza, pizza! or in this case pitt-za, pitt-za! lmao, they'll lose.
tha captainz choice: bg

San Diego County CU Poinsettia Bowl
Northern Illinois vs. Utah State
Dec. 26
the "cu" up there stands for "credit union" but it could stand for jordan lynch and the boys sayin "c u later" to the boys from utah!
tha captainz choice: niu

Military Bowl
Marshall vs. Maryland
Dec. 27
i would trust randy "dirty randy" edsall with my life, much less beating a 1AA team like marshall.
tha captainz choice: terps

Texas Bowl
Minnesota vs. Syracuse
Dec. 27
minnesota misses their dome, i bet. they'll be in high cotton inside the houston dome, imo
tha captainz choice: gophers

Fight Hunger Bowl
BYU vs. Washington
Dec. 27
the boys from seattle will be galvanized after losing head coach tyrone willingham to notre dame, expect them to take the boys from provo behind the woodshed!
tha captainz choice: udubs

New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Rutgers
Dec. 28
in 1869 these two teams played the first ever game of college football at the old yankee stadium. the boys in the golden domes took that game 5 - 2. it's like all real historians say: history repeats itself, imo.
tha captainz choice: irish

Belk Bowl
Cincinnati vs. North Carolina
Dec. 28
i can't remember tuberville winning a single belk bowl at auburn.
tha captainz choice: heels

Russell Athletic Bowl
Louisville vs. Miami, FL
Dec. 28
the boys from "the ville" will say "we must protect this house!" in the russell athletic bowl!
tha captainz choice: the lou

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
Kansas State vs. Michigan
Dec. 28
wings, beer, sports!
tha captainz choice: kstate

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
Middle Tennessee vs. Navy
Dec. 30
middle tennessee is the second worst third of tennessee, imo
tha captainz choice: america's navy force

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl
Georgia Tech vs. Ole Miss
Dec. 30
hugh "the riddler" freeze is the best recruiter in the nation, literally every player on the team is a 5 star freshman sensation that has lived up to every iota of hype, imo
tha captainz choice: old mist

Valero Alamo Bowl
Oregon vs. Texas
Dec. 30
will the boys in green be able to slow down mack brown's vaunted "mack attack" offense? always bet on green, imo!
tha captainz choice: ducks

National University Holiday Bowl
Arizona State vs. Texas Tech
Dec. 30
expect points when these two high flying teams collide, imo. a fun game is to change the first letters of "kliff kingsbury" from a "k" to any other letter and get a star wars character's name.
tha captainz choice: asu

AdvoCare V100 Bowl
Arizona vs. Boston College
Dec. 31
catholics vs convicts! teams coached by rich "the mexican taco" rodriquez are notoriously felonious, imo.
tha captainz choice: zona

Hyundai Sun Bowl
UCLA vs. Virginia Tech
Dec. 31
hokie hokie hokie hi? more like hokie hokie hokie bye! expect the boys from bel air to leave "fresh prints" all over the corpses of the boys from blacksburg.
tha captainz choice: ucla

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Mississippi State vs. Rice
Dec. 31
dan mullins has the boys in maroon trending up, up, up.
tha captainz choice: the people's university

Chick-fil-A Bowl
Duke vs. Texas A&M
Dec. 31
when you're talking chick-fil-a, expect the more bigoted bunch to "bring home the chicken."
tha captainz choice: tamu

TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl
Georgia vs. Nebraska
Jan. 1
my favorite new years tradition is junior driving his taxslayer race car onto the field during halftime. the fans go bonkers, the players sneak peeks from the locker rooms. makes you proud to live in this great land, imo
tha captainz choice: uga

Heart of Dallas Bowl
North Texas vs. UNLV
Jan. 1
what
tha captainz choice: unt

Capital One Bowl
South Carolina vs. Wisconsin
Jan. 1
can't wait for all of steve spurrier's jabs about bert bielema's weight! but they'll only serve to fire up the boys in red. jadaveon clowney? more like jadaveon downey because he is soft! lmao
tha captainz choice: 'consin

Outback Bowl
Iowa vs. LSU
Jan. 1
the boys from the bayou remember the last play of the '05 citrus bowl, so watch out hawkeyes, it's payback time!
tha captainz choice: lsu

Rose Bowl Game
Michigan State vs. Stanford
Jan. 1
neither team will score an they'll call the game on account of darkness.
tha captainz choice: trees

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
Baylor vs. UCF
Jan. 1
since usf is in tampa, ucf should be in pensacola or something, imo
tha captainz choice: baylor

Allstate Sugar Bowl
Alabama vs. Oklahoma
Jan. 2
might need two traditionometers for this bad boy.
tha captainz choice: tide

AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic
Missouri vs. Oklahoma State
Jan. 3
these two teams know each other all too well, the kids grew up playing each other. and like the old saying goes: familiarity breeds content... hot web content, that is! expect content about this game.
tha captainz choice: the zou

Discover Orange Bowl
Clemson vs. Ohio State
Jan. 3
dabo will be off to texas by the time this one kicks off
tha captainz choice: america's ohio state university

BBVA Compass Bowl
Houston vs. Vanderbilt
Jan. 4
they should play the pizza bowl at the new barons stadium, imo
tha captainz choice: vando

GoDaddy Bowl
Arkansas State vs. Ball State
Jan. 5
can't wait for the racy godaddy commershes and the even racier unrated web versions! probably some filthy innuendo about "balls" state and how arkansas state are the "red" wolves (red is the color of period blood).
tha captainz choice: balls state

BCS National Championship Game
Florida State vs. Auburn
Jan. 6
gus will be off to texas by the time this one kicks off
tha captainz choice: noles 
pointz: 69

C picks the games

so many bowls

Gildan New Mexico Bowl
Colorado State (4.5) vs. Washington State
Dec. 21
I like Mike Leach, a lot, but I feel like his offense is easier to stop when you've got time to prepare for it. Plus, Washington State seems to be one of those teams that hasn't gotten better during the season. I feel like (although I will not go back and check) Leach lets me down in bowl games.
My Pick: COLORADO STATE

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl
Fresno State (7) vs. USC
Dec. 21
USC is free of the Kiffin burden, so they're better than the record indicates. I am also (without a shred of evidence) a believer that teams play better when they know they have to impress a new coach.
My pick: USC

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Buffalo (1) vs. San Diego State
Dec. 21
Buffalo lost to Ohio State by 20; San Diego State lost by 35. I am comfortable predicting a 15 point Buffalo win.
My pick: BISON

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Tulane (-1.5) vs. UL Lafayette
Dec. 21
Both of these teams lost handily to South Alabama.
My pick: TULANE

Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl
East Carolina (-13.5) vs. Ohio
Dec. 23
ECU has the best midfield logo in sports. Did you know they were moving to the AAC? I didn't. Ohio seems like a team on the decline, losing three in a row before their season-ending win over noted rival UMass.
My pick: EAST CAROLINA, COME ON NOW RAISE UP

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Boise State (3) vs. Oregon State
Dec. 24
Boise State hasn't really beaten anyone, but Oregon State's best game is probably their one-point loss to Oregon, which is not a lot to hang your hat on. If Boise were a state, it would have a population smaller than all fifty states, DC, and Puerto Rico. Among American territories, only Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Northern Mariana Islands would be smaller. So, the chances for Boise's statehood are, in my mind, very low.
My pick: BOISE STATE

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
Bowling Green (-5) vs. Pittsburgh
Dec. 26
I am deeply, deeply disappointed that Pitt is not playing in Birmingham. Bowling Green is pretty good. Pitt, less so.
My pick: BOWLING GREEN

San Diego County CU Poinsettia Bowl
Northern Illinois (-1.5) vs. Utah State
Dec. 26
Northern Illinois will be disappointed to be in this game. But Utah State is still without their starting QB. Theory: NIU plays hard anyway, to be the school record winners.
My pick: NORTHERN ILLINOIS

Military Bowl
Marshall (-2.5) vs. Maryland
Dec. 27
I was kind of surprised Maryland had bowl eligibility. I do not think Andy Redsall is a particularly good coach. Plus, Eddy Randsell will probably have trouble keeping his team's head in the game, since this isn't exactly an exciting trip from College Park (which is a cool town). But it's hard to say either one of these is a particularly good team. I don't have a good reason to pick anything, either in this particular Pick Them selection or in life in general.
My pick: MARSHALL

Texas Bowl
Minnesota (-4) vs. Syracuse
Dec. 27
The seizure guy. Ol' Seizy.
My pick: MINNESODA

Fight Hunger Bowl
BYU (3) vs. Washington
Dec. 27
I believe I'm on record as being against this bowl name, not because I disagree with the goal of fighting hunger, but because the name is stupid. BYU is pretty good. Bronc(Obama) Mendenhall is a good coach.
My pick: BYU

New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Notre Dame (-15.5) vs. Rutgers
Dec. 28
Rutgers is statistically one of the worst pass-defending teams in the country. Notre Dame's not great, but they're not as bad as Rutgers, who is just barely better than Arkansas (a bad team who is bad at football).
My pick: NOTRE DAME

Belk Bowl
Cincinnati (3) vs. North Carolina
Dec. 28
Tommy! UNC just drilled right through five mediocre ACC teams in a row, which impresses me not a whit. It seems like people are expecting UNC to win this, and our boy Tommy does best as an underdog.
My pick: CINCY

Russell Athletic Bowl
Louisville (-3.5) vs. Miami, FL
Dec. 28
Teddy Bridgewater wants to look good for the pro scouts. Miami has shown themselves vulnerable to competent passing attacks and also Virginia Tech. I don't think either team is as good as their records indicate.
My pick: LOUISVILLE

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
Kansas State (-3.5) vs. Michigan
Dec. 28
Bill Snyder, I would hazard to offer, is the best coach in college football, or at least, he's done as good a job in the last few years as anybody else in American anywhere else has. Neither one of these teams has a big win; probably for Michigan, the best game is probably losing to Ohio State (?). I do really like Michigan's "A Bunch of Big Fat Guys Coaching Staff" strategy, but Snyder vs. Hoke is no contest.
My pick: KANSAS STATE

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
Middle Tennessee (6) vs. Navy
Dec. 30
My dad was in the Navy. So, there's that.
My pick: NAVY

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl
Georgia Tech (3) vs. Ole Miss
Dec. 30
You gotta give this one to old misty. I think Hugh Freeze is familiar enough with read offenses, and has enough time to prepare, that he can handle the option. I would hesitate because Ole Miss seemed to close the season poorly, but Georgia Tech did the same thing.
My pick: OLD MIST

Valero Alamo Bowl
Oregon (-13.5) vs. Texas
Dec. 30
Just eyeballing it, this should be the biggest blowout besides the Baylor-UCF game, right? Oregon has had kind of a disappointing season, but, that's nothing compared to what Texas had.
My pick: OREGON

National University Holiday Bowl
Arizona State (-14) vs. Texas Tech
Dec. 30
Arizona State scores more points and allows fewer per game than Texas Tech. TTU, on a big losing streak, is also prone to turnovers.
My pick: ARIZONA STATE

AdvoCare V100 Bowl
Arizona (-7.5) vs. Boston College
Dec. 31
Was Arizona's surprise Oregon blowout more a sign that Arizona could be a good team, or that Oregon was reeling? I incline to the latter. Still, that's better than BC, who managed to beat the middle of the ACC road. I can see plenty of reasons to pick Arizona in this game, and few for BC.
My pick: ARIZONA

Hyundai Sun Bowl
UCLA (-7) vs. Virginia Tech
Dec. 31
I cannot pick a team which willingly hired Scot Loeffler, after watching what happened to Auburn last season. It indicates, I can only assume, sabotage or perhaps suicidal thinking.
My pick: UCLA

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Mississippi State (-7) vs. Rice
Dec. 31
I think the middle of the SEC is better than the top of C-USA.
My pick: MISSISSISSISSIPPI STATE

Chick-fil-A Bowl
Duke (12.5) vs. Texas A&M
Dec. 31
My inclination is that none of the New Year's Eve bowl games will be close. I expect TAMU to win handily. Duke is pretty good for Duke, and I like David Cutcliffe, but Texas A&M has so much better an offense. The worst team that Texas A&M lost to is either LSU or Missouri.
My pick: TAMU

TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl
Georgia (-9) vs. Nebraska
Jan. 1
I remember this game! My inclination is to pick Georgia to win 45-31. I do not like Georgia. Bo is on his way out. He could be proverbially coaching for his life, but I think he's more the type to get self-destructively angry in those circumstances.
My pick: THUGA

Heart of Dallas Bowl
North Texas (-6.5) vs. UNLV
Jan. 1
pretty quotidian match-up, imo
My pick: UNLV

Capital One Bowl
South Carolina (1) vs. Wisconsin
Jan. 1
Wisconsin hasn't had as good of a season as I thought, and I am surprised they are favored. They mostly beat the teams they were better than in the Big 10. South Carolina mostly beat the teams they were better than in the Southeastern Conference. S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C!
My pick: YEAH CLICK CLACK

Outback Bowl
Iowa (7) vs. LSU
Jan. 1
LSU is both more talented and better coached than Iowa, and they play in a tougher conference.
My pick: LSU

Rose Bowl Game
Michigan State (5) vs. Stanford
Jan. 1
I think I've made it clear, by this point, that I don't think the Big 10 is a very impressive football conference this season. Stanford has a couple of surprising losses, but MSU lost to Notre Dame. I think Arizona State and Oregon are probably either one as good as Michigan State, though in very different ways.
My pick: SAMFORD

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
Baylor (-16.5) vs. UCF
Jan. 1
If Baylor takes this remotely seriously: bloodbath. Even if they don't take it seriously at all: likely bloodbath.
My pick: BAY, LORD OF THE BEARS

Allstate Sugar Bowl
Alabama (-15) vs. Oklahoma
Jan. 2
we all know how this goes
My pick: ALABAMA

AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic
Missouri (-1) vs. Oklahoma State
Jan. 3
Despite puzzling losses to Oklahoma and West Virginia (!), I think OSU is the better team in a median game. Then again, Missouri only lost while heavily injured and closely to South Carolina, and to an Auburn team playing perhaps the best game of rushing offense in recent history. Of the teams I have watched with any frequency or interest, this is the game I am least sure about.
My pick: OKLAHOMA STATE

Discover Orange Bowl
Clemson (2.5) vs. Ohio State
Jan. 3
So I went into this pick thinking Clemson was pretty good, but, looking at their schedule, they only played strong teams - UGA (at the beginning of the season, before all the injuries), FSU, and South Carolina. They went 1-3, and the two losses were both pretty big. That said, Ohio State has close wins against the Big 10's middle class and a loss to Michigan State. So who the heck knows. I think Ohio State is the better team, but they'll be emotionally volatile after not playing for the national title. Clemson has more to gain from a redemptive bowl performance.
My pick: CLEMPSON

BBVA Compass Bowl
Houston (2.5) vs. Vanderbilt
Jan. 4
Houston's best win is probably Rice. Eh, whatever.
My pick: VANDY

GoDaddy Bowl
Arkansas State (8.5) vs. Ball State
Jan. 5
Ball State won a bunch of games, some of them against teams better than Arkansas State.
My pick: Ball State

BCS National Championship Game
Florida State (-8.5) vs. Auburn
Jan. 6
Either outcome will end up being a surprise to me. On paper Florida State is the better team by some margin. But Auburn has an apparently unstoppable rushing attack and has that "team of destiny" feel to it. I am doing it, I am going with my heart.
My pick: AUBURN!
O/U: 72

What happened during the hiatus?

These are the only thing meaningful things you missed:

1.


2. CVS Bangers

WE BACK HOES

We're also backhoes.

Gildan New Mexico Bowl
Colorado State vs. Washington State
Dec. 21

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl
Fresno State vs. USC
Dec. 21

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Buffalo vs. San Diego State
Dec. 21

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Tulane vs. UL Lafayette
Dec. 21

Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl
East Carolina vs. Ohio
Dec. 23

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Boise State vs. Oregon State
Dec. 24

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
Bowling Green vs. Pittsburgh
Dec. 26

San Diego County CU Poinsettia Bowl
Northern Illinois vs. Utah State
Dec. 26

Military Bowl
Marshall vs. Maryland
Dec. 27

Texas Bowl
Minnesota vs. Syracuse
Dec. 27

Fight Hunger Bowl
BYU vs. Washington
Dec. 27

New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Rutgers
Dec. 28

Belk Bowl
Cincinnati vs. North Carolina
Dec. 28

Russell Athletic Bowl
Louisville vs. Miami, FL
Dec. 28

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
Kansas State vs. Michigan
Dec. 28

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
Middle Tennessee vs. Navy
Dec. 30

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl
Georgia Tech vs. Ole Miss
Dec. 30

Valero Alamo Bowl
Oregon vs. Texas
Dec. 30

National University Holiday Bowl
Arizona State vs. Texas Tech
Dec. 30

AdvoCare V100 Bowl
Arizona vs. Boston College
Dec. 31

Hyundai Sun Bowl
UCLA vs. Virginia Tech
Dec. 31

AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Mississippi State vs. Rice
Dec. 31

Chick-fil-A Bowl
Duke vs. Texas A&M
Dec. 31

TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl
Georgia vs. Nebraska
Jan. 1

Heart of Dallas Bowl
North Texas vs. UNLV
Wed., Jan. 1

Capital One Bowl
South Carolina vs. Wisconsin
Jan. 1

Outback Bowl
Iowa vs. LSU
Jan. 1

Rose Bowl Game
Michigan State vs. Stanford
Jan. 1

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
Baylor vs. UCF
Jan. 1

Allstate Sugar Bowl
Alabama vs. Oklahoma
Jan. 2

AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic
Missouri vs. Oklahoma State
Jan. 3

Discover Orange Bowl
Clemson vs. Ohio State
Jan. 3

BBVA Compass Bowl
Houston vs. Vanderbilt
Jan. 4

GoDaddy Bowl
Arkansas State vs. Ball State
Jan. 5

BCS National Championship Game
Florida State vs. Auburn
Jan. 6

who will shaaAAaave your hole

if you won't shave your own?

Myself, from head to toe, I'm Doug E. Fresh

Wednesday Links

1. Divoshi is a sort of chess or checkers kind of game

2. Useful information

3. More useful information

4. Winning solitaire is what the internet's all about

JPMC*

Pretty good, but it's no JPMC**.



*Jurassic Park Metal Cover
**Jurassic Park Melodica Cover

One by one I'll knock you out

Execution and crazy people

Certainly there were other details that made the crime uniquely memorable. For one thing, Andre had cut out the children's hearts and returned home with the organs in his pockets. For another, he was careful to use three different knives so that the blood from each body would not cross-contaminate, thereby ensuring that the demons inside each of them would die. He then stabbed himself in the chest, but he did not die as he had hoped. In fact, he was well enough to leave a message on his wife's parents' phone explaining that he thought he was in hell, and he managed to confess to the police what he had done before they took him in for emergency surgery.

The entire episode had biblical overtones—Andre had convinced himself that his wife was Jezebel, his son the Antichrist, and her daughter just plain evil. In short, the case had enough spectacular aspects to keep the most jaded of court watchers buzzing for months, but it was the eyeball issue that garnered most of the attention. And that was only the beginning.

How Crazy Is Too Crazy to Be Executed?

Oh, every week there's a canal

Alternate title: "Quiet! I will not hear another word against the boat."

Friday links

1. Fantastic Contraption is great and I like the original best.

2. Neat story

3. Ant comics

4. One tiny hand I do not know why this is so funny.

5. This is a good list thought by no means perfect.

here's me

I'm pretty sure we've played this before, but somebody was talking about WindowsXP

Dr. Hook

I'm not saying this little live DVD by a largely forgotten band is better than the abovementioned films by the likes of Scorsese, Godard, Pennebaker, and Bogdanovich. What I am saying, though, is that none of these films has provided me with the same feeling of entertainment verging on sheer life-affirming joy as has Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show: Live, and that none has so consistently reminded me what playing music onstage should, at its very highest point, feel like.

I want to explain why to you but, before writing another word, I'd like to promise you something: At no point will I make any kind of postmodern bid to revise the 1970s rock canon to place Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show anywhere remotely near its creative center. A strained case could be made I guess, but to make such a case would involve a kind of pretense that is the direct antithesis to the music of Dr. Hook, which is possibly the most unpretentious rock music ever recorded. Furthermore, I promise to make no attempt to paint Dr. Hook as anything other than what they were: a down-and-dirty Jersey bar band whose tunes more often than not crossed the line into novelty rock, an outlet for the pop-lyrical efforts of countercultural humorist and children's author Shel Silverstein, and, later, a banal disco band specializing in workmanlike ballads such as "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman."

“Dennis, We’ve Been Crying Too Much”: Dr. Hook and the Untold Story of the Best Rock Movie Ever | Part Two

this is a fun song to put people's names into the lyrics

WESLEY.

WESLEY ROBERT.

*********

Somehow, Foghat has led me to this.

Worth reading, post-Super Bowl

What happened next was the strangest encounter of Lemming’s 28-year career as a football scout. Michael Oher sat down at the table across from him. . .and refused to speak. “He shook my hand and then didn’t say a word,” Lemming recalled. (“His hands — they were huge!”) Lemming asked a few questions; Michael Oher just kept staring right through him. And soon enough Lemming decided further interaction was pointless. Michael Oher left, and he left behind blank forms and unanswered questions. Every other high-school football player in America was dying for Lemming to invite him to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Michael Oher had left his invitation on the table.

What never crossed Tom Lemming’s mind was that the player he would soon rank the No. 1 offensive lineman in the nation, and perhaps the finest left-tackle prospect since Orlando Pace, hadn’t the faintest notion of who Lemming was or why he was asking him all these questions. For that matter, he didn’t even think of himself as a football player. And he had never played left tackle in his life.

The Ballad of Big Mike

WITH GASOLIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNEE

Moon hoax

Pulled one over but I stole her fair and square

Moooooonday Links

1. Free language lessons 2. Free college courses 3. Vintage booze 4. Long Tarantino interview 5. Sloth attack

"Killing in the Name of" in a major key

Fake girlfriend

Upon receiving the news of the two deaths, Te'o went out and led the Fighting Irish to a 20-3 upset of Michigan State, racking up 12 tackles. It was heartbreaking and inspirational. Te'o would appear on ESPN's College GameDay to talk about the letters Kekua had written him during her illness. He would send a heartfelt letter to the parents of a sick child, discussing his experience with disease and grief. The South Bend Tribune wrote an article describing the young couple's fairytale meeting—she, a Stanford student; he, a Notre Dame star—after a football game outside Palo Alto.

Did you enjoy the uplifiting story, the tale of a man who responded to adversity by becoming one of the top players of the game? If so, stop reading.

Manti Te'o did lose his grandmother this past fall. Annette Santiago died on Sept. 11, 2012, at the age of 72, according to Social Security Administration records in Nexis. But there is no SSA record there of the death of Lennay Marie Kekua, that day or any other. Her passing, recounted so many times in the national media, produces no obituary or funeral announcement in Nexis, and no mention in the Stanford student newspaper.

Manti Te’o’s Dead Girlfriend, The Most Heartbreaking And Inspirational Story Of The College Football Season, Is A Hoax

this just in

I'm hated, confrontated for the juice that I have

hey i'm still over .500

I'm 16 - 14, which I guess makes Choorles 22 - 8. Pretty spiffy, bud. Vegasbot, btw, is 17 - 11 - 2, straight up.

Robots

We have preconceptions about how an intelligent robot should look and act, and these can blind us to what is already happening around us. To demand that artificial intelligence be humanlike is the same flawed logic as demanding that artificial flying be birdlike, with flapping wings. Robots will think different. To see how far artificial intelligence has penetrated our lives, we need to shed the idea that they will be humanlike.
Consider Baxter, a revolutionary new workbot from Rethink Robotics. Designed by Rodney Brooks, the former MIT professor who invented the best-selling Roomba vacuum cleaner and its descendants, Baxter is an early example of a new class of industrial robots created to work alongside humans. Baxter does not look impressive. It’s got big strong arms and a flatscreen display like many industrial bots. And Baxter’s hands perform repetitive manual tasks, just as factory robots do. But it’s different in three significant ways.

Better Than Human

we'll get 'im next year, boys

smell the inevitablity

alright

Malls

There are very few thriving physical retailers these days outside of the daily consumables markets. I did a quick analysis on the high-level health of the National Retail Federation’s list of the Top 100 retailers in 2012, focusing on merchandise retailers that would likely be located in malls (removing grocery, drug, restaurant and online retailers). I looked at three measures of retailer health: total sales growth, comp store sales growth and number of stores.
The analysis doesn’t paint a very pretty picture regarding the health of the leading physical retailers in the United States. Total sales growth is mixed and is negative for 20 percent of the sample. Comp store sales growth—arguably the key measure of retailer health—is also mixed and a quarter of the sample is negative. And note that many of these sales results include the retailers’ online segments, so the picture for their physical stores is even worse. Lastly, store counts are simply stagnant—about as many top retailers shrank their store count as expanded it, and precious few are expanding aggressively. The largest retailers in the U.S. do not look very healthy. And if they’re struggling, it’s likely that their more marginal physical competitors are struggling even more.

The Death of the American Shopping Mall

angry!

haha

but now help is its way, I hear him coming in his sleigh

sheeeeeesh

it begins!

a few notes

I did actually simulate the first two games and nevada and toledo won them.

I picked Syracuse just so i could say 'apple pickers.'

I meant to pick the B1G to win every game but I forgot about Purdue and now I don't care.

Imagine being a senior at Pitt. Three straight PapaJohns.com bowls. Plus all the coachdickery.

Correct my math, but that looks like a bunch o' crisis

Tha Captain first, befitting the elder

Nevada vs. Arizona
Toledo vs. Utah State
Central Michigan vs. Western Kentucky
Bowling Green vs. San Jose State
Duke vs. Cincinnati
UCLA vs. Baylor
Minnesota vs. Texas Tech
Air Force vs. Rice
Syracuse vs. West Virginia
Texas vs. Oregon State
Clemson vs. LSU
Michigan vs. South Carolina
Nebraska vs. Georgia
Wisconsin vs. Stanford
Oregon vs. Kansas State
Oklahoma vs. TAMU
Kent State vs. Arkansas State

Charles picks bowls

Gildan New Mexico
Nevada vs. Arizona (-9.5)
Dec. 15
This should be a fun start, right? Two high-powered offenses, bad teams, etc etc? I'm not quite sure why Arizona is such a big favorite, but I do expect them to win.
My pick: ARIZONA

Famous Idaho Potato
Toledo vs. Utah State (-10.5)
Dec. 15
It's famous! It's in Idaho. It's a potato? Utah State is pretty good.
My pick: UTAH STATE

S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia
BYU (-3) vs. San Diego State
Dec. 20
I like Bronco Mendenhall, and I think BYU is pretty good, too. I like how ESPN, in the little Matchup things, lists BYU as 0-1 in their division.
My pick: BYU

Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg
UCF (-7) vs. Ball State
Dec. 21
My natural inclination is to pick the upset, since UCF lost the CUSA title game. But! Nobody cares about the CUSA title game, and Ball State is pretty mediocre. UCF is too, but less.
My pick: UCF

R+L Carriers New Orleans
East Carolina vs. Louisiana-Lafayette (-6)
Dec. 22
I'm kind of surprised that both of these schools' coaches are still around, especially ULAF. East Carolina is not a good football team.
My pick: ULL

MAACO Las Vegas
Washington vs. Boise State (-5.5)
Dec. 22
Boise State's pretty good; Washington is less so.
My pick: BOISE STATE

Sheraton Hawaii
Fresno State (-12.5) vs. SMU
Dec. 24
It has been years since I have watched an SMU football game.
My pick: THE REAL FSU

Little Caesars Pizza
Western Kentucky (-5.5) vs. Central Michigan
Dec. 26
If CMU weren't so thoroughly uninspiring a football team (according to the Football OUtsiders rankings, CMU is worse than Auburn (so is East Carolina; see above)), I would pick the upset. But even with all the whatnot going on at Western Kentucky, with the stench of Petrino, I can't pick Central Michigan to win this. I do like the regional face-off flavor of this game.
My pick: WESTERN KENTUCKY

Military Bowl Presented By Northrop Grumman
San Jose State (-7) vs. Bowling Green
Dec. 27
I was just telling my wife there's not enough militarism in America today. Bowling Green: also not terribly good at football. Let's see if San Jose State plays hard for their interim coach.
My pick: SAN JOSE STATE

Belk
Cincinnati (-7) vs. Duke
Dec. 27
I notice the defensive line coach is the interim coach for Cincinnati, that's neat. I assume that, just as I would, they will play real hard to impress Tommy Tuberville.
My pick: CINCINNATI

Bridgepoint Education Holiday
Baylor vs. UCLA (pick'em)
Dec. 27
This is the first decent game, isn't it? What a crap bowl lineup we have. But this one is pretty good, two improving teams. It's also real tough to pick! I am going with the coach I like better.
My pick: BAY, LORD OF THE BEARS

AdvoCare V100 Independence
The Ohio University vs. Louisiana-Monroe (-7)
Dec. 28
Ohio is slightly overrated, LA-MO slightly underrated.
My pick: LA-MO

Russell Athletic
Rutgers vs. Virginia Tech (-2.5)
Dec. 28
Woof. Virginia Tech's best win, I guess, either pasting Bowling Green or Duke? Rutgers beat a bunch of nobodies, and they're sad about not going to the BCS. Va Tech doesn't want to go out with a losing record.
My pick: VA TECH

Meineke Car Care of Texas
Minnesota vs. Texas Tech (-13)
Dec. 28
TOMMY! Another line coach, this time TTU's offensive one, is the interim coach. This is the dumbest bowl season ever.
My pick: TEXAS TECH

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces
Rice vs. Air Force (-1.5)
Dec. 29
This is really an unfair advantage, for the Air Force to get to play in the Helicopter Bowl. My favorite line in the STATS LLC bowl preview: "Rice has split two bowl games since a postseason drought from 1962 to 2005." Even though they finished with a bunch of bad teams, Rice has the Big Mo Mentum. I think this is my first upset pick so far.
My pick: RICE

New Era Pinstripe
West Virginia (-4) vs. Syracuse
Dec. 29
It's a new era of distinctly flawed football! We live-tweeted a Syracuse game, that was fun. It would also be good to the Belk Bowl teams, but their basketball teams, and then have those four play. Last year I picked Clemson to beat West Virginia, and I was (to put it gently) wrong about that.
My pick: WEST VIRGINIA

Kraft Fight Hunger
Navy vs. Arizona State (-14.5)
Dec. 29
The dumbest bowl name of them all returns to grace for another year with its stupidity. I tend to think the option is less of an advantage with plenty of time to prepare. If nothing else, I think ASU can just outscore this game.
My pick: ARIZONA STATE

Valero Alamo
Texas vs. Oregon State (-2)
Dec. 29
Remember the Alamo Bowl is a thing I would say a lot if Auburn ever went to bowl games ever again. I think Oregon State is pretty good, and Texas lost their offensive coordinator.
My pick: OREGON STATE BEAVERS

Buffalo Wild Wings
TCU (-2.5) vs. Michigan State
Dec. 29
I hadn't realized how close Michigan State was to a much better record. Only one of their losses was by more than four points. I like TCU and I think Patterson is a better coach, but Michigan State looks like the better team.
My pick: Michigan State

Franklin American Mortgage Music City
NC State vs. Vanderbilt (-7)
Dec. 31
Vandy is dandy, and Doeren is scorin'. Uh, yeah. I was surprised that NC State fired Tom O'Brien. NC State got beat handily by Virginia and Tennessee; Vandy was competitive against everybody not in the top five, and they beat (an admittedly much worse, much later in the season) Tennessee.
My pick: VANDY

Hyundai Sun
USC (-10) vs. Georgia Tech
Dec. 31
Georgia Tech should not be in a bowl game.
My pick: USC

AutoZone Liberty
Iowa State vs. Tulsa (pick'em)
Dec. 31
Iowa State should not be in this bowl game.
My pick: TULSA

Chick-fil-A Peach
LSU (-4) vs. Clemson
Dec. 31
Hot Tiger on Tiger action. Do you remember when Auburn used to play in bowl games, like the Peach Bowl? I do. Anyway, I think LSU can slow down Clemson's offense. I do not think Clemson can slow down LSU's offense.
My pick: LSWHO?

TaxSlayer.com Gator
Mississippi State (-2) vs. Northwestern
Jan. 1
Mississippi State didn't beat anybody of note. Northwestern didn't really, but they got closer. Mississippi State is coming off a disappointing season close-out.
My pick: NORTHWESTERN

Heart of Dallas
Purdue vs. Oklahoma State (-16.5)
Jan. 1
I like Oklahoma State, big. They didn't just fire their coach and they're actually a good team. If it comes to a shoot-out, OSU is much better positioned to win. This might be one of those 45-28 kind of games, in Oklahoma State's favor.
My pick: OKLAHOMA STATE

Outback
South Carolina (-5) vs. Michigan
Jan. 1
I'm surprised this line isn't bigger. South Carolina lost to better teams, beat better teams, and has been more consistent doing so.
My pick: YEAH CLICK CLACK SOUTH CAROLINA

Capital One
Georgia (-10) vs. Nebraska
Jan. 1
Georgia comes out of the SEC Championship game feeling like they were a play away from beating the defending (and soon to be) national champions. Nebraska does not come out of their conference title game feeling good. I would be very sure about this pick, except for the possibility that Georgia will be overlooking Nebraska. It's been a really long time since I picked against Nebraska in a Pick Them.
My pick: UGA

Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio
Wisconsin vs. Stanford (-6.5)
Jan. 1
Stanford is good, Wisconsin is out a head coach. If Beliema were still around, this might be an upset pick:  Wisconsin's losses were all pretty close, big win over Nebraska, etc etc, but the way it went down, I feel like Wisconsin will not be 100% mentally, which they would have to be to win this game. I'm interested to see how Barry works out, though.
My pick: SAMFORD

Discover Orange
Northern Illinois vs. Florida State (-13)
Jan. 1
Other than FSU overlooking Northern Illinois, is there any reason to pick the upset? Maybe NIU playing to prove they can win without their head coach? MACtion? The only thing is, FSU may have heard all that "NIU shouldn't be here" talk. Plus, if any team is going to have a pointless upset against an inferior team, FSU would be that team.
My pick: FSU

Allstate Sugar
Louisville vs. Florida (-13.5)
I think Louisville has more going for them than NIU -- better coach, better team -- but they're also playing a better team. This might look close in the first half, and then not at all at the end.
My pick: FLORIDA

Tostitos Fiesta
Oregon (-9.5) vs. Kansas State
Jan. 3
Maybe the only thing, as an Auburn fan, that I have really liked about this season is seeing a bunch of other teams feeling like they got screwed out of a national title shot. What's neat about this game is, it's two teams that are a bad match-up for each other. I also want to see if Klein had a concussion, and if so, if he's better now. This is the pick, of teams that I have seen play a good bit, that I am least sure about.
My pick: KANSAS STATE

AT&T Cotton
Texas A&M (-4.5) vs. Oklahoma
Jan. 4
I'm a little surprised TAMU is favored, not for my pick but for the national perspective. If it comes to a shoot-out, I like TAMU's chances. They're two teams that have had great offensive numbers, but Texas A&M has done so against better teams.
My pick: TAMU

BBVA Compass
Pittsburgh vs. Ole Miss (-3.5)
Jan. 5
Both of these teams actually closed out pretty strong. Looking over the season, though, Ole Miss has clearly played the tougher schedule. Also, I like that Blind Side guy.
My pick: OLD MIST

GoDaddy.com
Kent State vs. Arkansas State (-4)
Jan. 6
Even without a coach, Arkansas State is better and they've been here before.
My pick: ARKANSAS STATE

Discover BCS National Championship
Notre Dame vs. Alabama (-10)
Jan. 7
Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick.
My pick: alabama

THA CAPTAINZ PIX

The blurb for every single bowl is: This matchup really made me think... that God has truly abandoned his creation.

Nevada
Holy Toledo
bYu
UCF
UL-Laffs
Boysy
Fresno
Chips
BG
Dook
Ucla
War Hawks
Hokie Hokie Hokie Hi
Minny
Hair Force
THE Arizona State University
Apple Pickers
Horns
Spart-tee
Blanderbilt
USC
Tesla
Clempson
Pokes
Purple
Mitch Again
Nerdbraska (owned)
Wiscuntsin
Knolls
go gata
quack
Broklahoma
Old Mist
Kent read
tahd

i got ncaa football 13

and i'm going to make all my picks via simulation

UPDATE: NO I'M NOT.

Bowl Schedule

Gildan New Mexico
Nevada vs. Arizona Albuquerque, N.M.
University Stadium Dec. 15
1 p.m. ESPN

Famous Idaho Potato
Toledo vs. Utah State Boise, Idaho
Bronco Stadium Dec. 15
4:30 p.m. ESPN

S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia
BYU vs. San Diego State San Diego
Qualcomm Stadium Dec. 20
8 p.m. ESPN

Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg
UCF vs. Ball State St. Petersburg, Fla.
Tropicana Field Dec. 21
7:30 p.m. ESPN

R+L Carriers New Orleans
East Carolina vs. Louisiana-Lafayette New Orleans
Mercedes-Benz Superdome Dec. 22
Noon ESPN

MAACO Las Vegas
Washington vs. Boise State Las Vegas
Sam Boyd Stadium Dec. 22
3:30 p.m. ESPN

Sheraton Hawaii
Fresno State vs. SMU Honolulu
Aloha Stadium Dec. 24
8 p.m. ESPN

Little Caesars Pizza
Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan Detroit
Ford Field Dec. 26
7:30 p.m. ESPN

Military Bowl Presented By Northrop Grumman
San Jose State vs. Bowling Green Washington, D.C.
RFK Stadium Dec. 27
3 p.m. ESPN

Belk
Cincinnati vs. Duke Charlotte, N.C.
Bank of America Stadium Dec. 27
6:30 p.m. ESPN

Bridgepoint Education Holiday
Baylor vs. UCLA San Diego
Qualcomm Stadium Dec. 27
9:45 p.m. ESPN

AdvoCare V100 Independence
Ohio vs. Louisiana-Monroe Shreveport, La.
Independence Stadium Dec. 28
2 p.m. ESPN

Russell Athletic
Rutgers vs. Virginia Tech Orlando, Fla.
Florida Citrus Bowl Dec. 28
5:30 p.m. ESPN

Meineke Car Care of Texas
Minnesota vs. Texas Tech Houston
Reliant Stadium Dec. 28
9 p.m. ESPN

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces
Rice vs. Air Force Fort Worth
Amon G. Carter Stadium Dec. 29
11:45 a.m. ESPN

New Era Pinstripe
West Virginia vs. Syracuse Bronx, N.Y.
Yankee Stadium Dec. 29
3:15 p.m. ESPN

Kraft Fight Hunger
Navy vs. Arizona State San Francisco
AT&T Park Dec. 29
4 p.m. ESPN2

Valero Alamo
Texas vs. Oregon State San Antonio
Alamodome Dec. 29
6:45 p.m. ESPN

Buffalo Wild Wings
TCU vs. Michigan State Tempe, Ariz.
Sun Devil Stadium Dec. 29
10:15 p.m. ESPN

Franklin American Mortgage Music City
NC State vs. Vanderbilt Nashville, Tenn.
LP Field Dec. 31
Noon ESPN

Hyundai Sun
USC vs. Georgia Tech El Paso, Texas
Sun Bowl Dec. 31
2 p.m. CBS

AutoZone Liberty
Iowa State vs. Tulsa Memphis, Tenn.
Liberty Bowl Dec. 31
3:30 p.m. ESPN

Chick-fil-A
LSU vs. Clemson Atlanta
Georgia Dome Dec. 31
7:30 p.m. ESPN

TaxSlayer.com Gator
Mississippi State vs. Northwestern Jacksonville, Fla.
Everbank Field Jan. 1
Noon ESPN2

Heart of Dallas
Purdue vs. Oklahoma State Dallas
Cotton Bowl Jan. 1
Noon ESPNU

Outback
South Carolina vs. Michigan Tampa, Fla.
Raymond James Stadium Jan. 1
1 p.m. ESPN

Capital One
Georgia vs. Nebraska Orlando, Fla.
Florida Citrus Bowl Jan. 1
1 p.m. ABC

Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio
Wisconsin vs. Stanford Pasadena, Calif.
Rose Bowl Jan. 1
5 p.m. ESPN

Discover Orange
Northern Illinois vs. Florida State Miami
Sun Life Stadium Jan. 1
8:30 p.m. ESPN

Allstate Sugar
Louisville vs. Florida New Orleans
Louisiana Superdome Jan. 2
8:30 p.m. ESPN

Tostitos Fiesta
Oregon vs. Kansas State Glendale, Ariz.
U. of Phoenix Stadium Jan. 3
8:30 p.m. ESPN

AT&T Cotton
Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma Arlington, Texas
Cowboys Stadium Jan. 4
8 p.m. FOX

BBVA Compass
Pittsburgh vs. Ole Miss Birmingham, Ala.
Legion Field Jan. 5
1 p.m. ESPN

GoDaddy.com
Kent State vs. Arkansas State Mobile, Ala.
Ladd-Peebles Stadium Jan. 6
9 p.m. ESPN

Discover BCS National Championship
Notre Dame vs. Alabama Miami
Sun Life Stadium Jan. 7
8:30 p.m. ESPN

Bill bale pale mayo

McGurk effect