Thursday, March 02, 2006

Public Relations for the USA

Read this. We need to understand something here people. The good old US of A needs some international branding that doesn’t come from us blowing things up. We need some press that shows a bunch of Americans kissing babies and building homes and helping people around the globe. We need these things in order to open markets to sell our goods. I work in the manufacturing world and it has been booming lately. We need to expand our markets. Countries that are buying things from each other have a lot less interest in shooting at each other than countries that are not involved in commerce. Yes, there are inherent problems with this but eventually it all boils down to this. Free trade stops wars. It doesn’t stop them immediately or even soon, but long term free trade can solve a lot of problems for our global village. Free trade doesn’t mean exploitive trade. Free trade also needs to be fair trade.

We have a group of selfless, giving, honorable people that are out there right now. They are on the ground in some of the worst and most downtrodden places on Earth giving everything they can to bring up the standard of living for those in need. We should hire a global PR agency to make sure that stories about the Americans who give and sacrifice make their way into every newspaper on the globe. It might help some of the people that don’t really like us, like us a little bit more. It night not, but in my opinion it is worth a try. We need some better press. We have some great humanitarian stories to tell, we should be telling them.

In other news:

Apparently your college stats professor knows more about situational decision making in the NFL than most coaches do.

Youth sports in the US can be ridiculous. Youth sports in France, off the charts insane.

The religious right continues its attack on women. How any woman could vote for a republican, ever, is beyond my understanding.

No 1 of Consequence

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Regarding not going for it on 4th and goal:

The reason coaches don't do this is because they don't want the heat. No one blames the coach for kicking a field goal on a 4th and goal. It's what you're supposed to do. But if don't kick, and it doesn't work out, it's the coach's fault.

Consider that game in November when the Bucs beat the Redskins, 36-35. The Bucs could have kicked the extra point to the tie game, or gone for 2 to win take the lead. They went for 2, made it, and won the game.

Do you think, if the Bucs had kicked the extra point and missed, anyone would have blamed Gruden? No, you blame the kicker.

On the other hand, if you go for 2 and don't make it, does anyone blame Alstott? No, you blame Gruden.

I think most coaches know it's often better to go for the TD -- if you make it, hurray, if you don't, you have pinned your opponent in his own end zone.

But you have to consider the off-the-field ramifications, too. If you go for it and don't make it and lose the game, the coach gets blamed.

Gruden had the sack to go for 2, but most coaches would rather let the blame fall elsewhere.