When toilet humor gets serious

A few days ago, as I was surfing through twitter, I bumped on a trend called Nikola Tesla day. Not knowing who he was I went deeper only to realize that the Oatmeal had published it. The Oatmeal being one of those websites where lame humor is appreciated was the last of the sites to know who Nikola Tesla was. Surprisingly, in their way of genital humor and 'we-don’t-give-and-eff' attitude towards the society, they gave me quite information of who he was. To my amazement, when I googled him further, I realized that the person indeed was much underrated for who he was and what he had achieved. However in that way, they produced Nikola Tesla as some kind of a demi god while calling Thomas Edison to be a power hungry , money minded Satan who just is no more than a good marketer

However that didn’t seem to stop there. Apparently, Forbes decided to jump on the bandwagon while calling Edison as less of a devil while talking about the achievements of both of them that changed the world. Although the article seemed quite ok, it was still riddled with loopholes that I certainly didn’t seem to understand. Forbes never studied the story really well which Oatmeal replied back with élan'. Forbes although gave a holistic view of the situation, doesn’t seem to understand the importance of studying facts and figures. What makes it even more interesting is the fact that these are two different genres of writes/thinkers/viewers. Forbes has always been the more serious kind, more like the analysts while Oatmeal is nowhere. It relies on the toilet humor which has made it popular amongst its sets of audience.

The most amazing point that Oatmeal however pointed out was that Forbes had written that both of the thinkers were appreciated. I had never heard of Tesla during my school years and every time it was Edison who took the light bulb credit of my ideas and this is what we are being taught right from the start. What Forbes did was simply layered out the achievements of Edison and said; maybe he wasn’t a devil after all. I take nothing away from Edison personally, but both the sides highlight a situation which Oatmeal says it better: Edison was a marketing guy who could afford a bunch of scientists and then take the credit. It’s as similar to Microsoft saying that the inventions done by the small agencies were their idea, so what if they bought them out?

Moreover in a purely media sense, the war between two genres comes alive. Forbes could have always gone the other way and never would have taken them seriously. They did take them in the first place to jump in the running train but what they did later was completely out of mocking terms. What they simply did was simply publish a link of Oatmeal on their page of the retaliation of their article with facts and figures. However they seemed to have placed it in such a way that they don’t care about what Oatmeal has said. Rather it was like saying, 'we said what we wanted to say, now deal with it.'

Tesla should have been appreciated right from the start. It was only through Oatmeal and the power of social media that one came to know about Nikola Tesla and highlight the deficiencies of Thomas Edison. Which Forbes would never thought in the first place.  #respect.

My weekend with EPL

First of all, a hearty congratulations to Manchester City. Finally a cup final and probably the cup itself will ease down the pressure on the big money spenders. What made me congratulate City? It is due to the sheer annoying press conferences given by the United team members. Every press conference they have to take a dig at someone or talk about how they are better than the rest. Sometimes you have to be humble to gain respect and hence they arent respected on or off the field by most of the teams. Take for example degrading City in the pre press conference only to eat their words later. And when you lose, you order a complete blackout of the media. So much for maturity.

It looks as if Chelsea's reign of supremacy is almost over this year. They started out as untouchables and are ending up half what the champions look like. Wilkins (believe it or not) has been the reason for their downfall, while Torres is the right man at a very wrong time for the Blues. The moment he scores and everyone is going to talk about him being the successor to Drogba. However until he atleast scores 20 plus next season, he will be just another striker. However sacking Ancelloti isn't the solution; consistency is. Keep him for another year cause anyways nobody is going to give instant results at a time when the younger teams are rising out of their ashes and stealing the spotlight. Blackpool and Bolton just goes to show the passion necessary in the world of football.

The big match will start in a few hours and two teams will clash like their entire life depends upon it. Both have different personalities, both have so much to give and achieve. Arsenal have stuck by their ethics and philosophy but its time to present the fans with something that they have been patient for a very long time. Its time to show the fans that a great team doesnt have to have a tag of chokers at the end of every season and bring a trophy home. Liverpool have been breathtaking ever since the arrival of Kenny Dalglish. His presence brings out the best in everybody: from the players and the fans. A passionate group of players that i think could have achieved so much more if Dalglish would have arrived at the start of the season. Nevertheless i feel that a small slip up by City or Spurs and they would be smelling blood in no time...

Enjoy the game tonight....

For the love of the Game
Sagar Karande

Arsenal vs Barcelona- A new chapter is written tonight

Sometimes you know that the past is so overwhelming that you might be the best side in the world and yet you cant get that loss out of your head. Ask me, I am a gunner who faces that past. I still remember that my team was overpowered in the second leg by a maestro named ‘Messi.’

But then, is this actually the same Arsenal side that faced Barcelona last year? The team that started in the 2-2 draw was Almunia, Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Clichy, Song, Fabregas, Nasri, Diaby, Arshavin and Bendtner. Only six of those can start on Wednesday and the actual figure may be more like four.

Meanwhile the bench at the Nou Camp included Eastmond, Merida, Traore, Eduardo and a semi-fit Sol Campbell while the out-of-favour Mikael Silvestre was left to face Messi (highlight Mikael Silvestre). The little maestro had been quiet at Emirates but transformed like a phoenix at the Nou Camp and, in all honesty, toyed with an injury-ravaged Arsenal in the second half which I would say was the weakest side that faced them till date.

The problem with Arsenal last year was that they depended on one man only- Cese Fabregas. I still remember how Arsenal missed his goal scoring capabilities and the only striker available was Niklas Bendtner (highly overrated by Wegner). This year seems a bit different. You start with Jack Wilshere who has been a revelation following his loan spell at Bolton, you have the under-rated Alex Song who has been like a rock for us this season, you have Nasri who may or may not play but if he does can give the toughest of defenders nightmares. Add to it its Theo Walcott who has improved from being just a Fast Boy to a highly rated defender. Cese Fabregas is by far the best and might be only second best to Xavi while Robin Van Persie is in the goal scoring form of his life. The dark horses however remains to be in the form of two people: Koscielny and Wojech Szezesny who have been wonderful in their debut seasons this year. Moreover finally Wenger has found a team that has co-ordination and consistency to reach to the top.

I wouldn’t take anything away from Barcelona. The reason why any fan would love to see them is their discipline in passing and their attacking ability. As Mourinho has stated, ‘these guys can play blindfold and still manage a comfortable win’. Barcelona has everything by its side and yet being over-hyped can be their biggest downfall. Their defense is still the weakest and Arsenal with their first team can expose them the moment they get attacking football on their side.

Barcelona may be the overwhelming favorites but then in football, anything can happen.

-Sagar Karande

THE BIG 4 FAILURE

This week has truly been a week of ups and downs. While it has been a week of mostly upsets, it still gives us a glimpse of what is there to be seen in the future.

To start, it was the match between Manchester City and Chelsea that captured the headlines. They really ran riot over the champions. While they may claim to be a superior side (which they actually are in many ways), Manchester City is just beginning to dominate, especially the top four. Maybe it’s just a new side which is coming up and I will agree that many of the supporters of the traditional teams will pass it off as a lame joke, but I feel that given time this team has the potential to squeeze into the top four with ease. They are just like …ummm…Real Madrid….they get the best new players every year so to gel up as a team takes a lot of time but nevertheless, if they do, they will be a force to reckon with. But it highly seems unlikely. Next year a new batch of players will be storming into the Eastlands while the older batch will be moving out. But the next three years they are bound to win something if not a lot of things.

One of the teams who have the money but don’t want to spend is Arsene Wenger. This guy has created two groups in the Arsenal fan-base: one who loves him and the other who hates him. He is a manager who can turn a stone into diamonds. But Alminia, Fabianski? These are players who are of no use and should be thrown away. Arsene Wenger had more than six months to find a really good replacement and he came out with nothing. Till the time they don’t find a good goalkeeper, they won’t win and it is an honest statement from an Arsenal fan. And some day Arsene’s stubbornness with the money will have to give in. This year he knows that he doesn’t have any reasons left unlike 5 years ago. The club has earned record profits so money issues don’t seem to be the problem anymore. I can’t seem to understand how a team likes this goes down whenever they seem to have everything by their side. Nevertheless it’s a wakeup call before the ‘BIG 4 ‘clash against Chelsea.

Chelsea has finally found a team that they can expose their weakness every year with ease and they have a lot of tougher tests ahead. They have been having some bad days since last week and as the competition heats up even more. They have arsenal. Manchester, Tottenham and Liverpool all to contend with and they will be pushed further their limits. I don’t agree with Mancini though: Chelsea can be frustrated on their best days and last week was a shining example.

Manchester united again went down to a draw and they were surpassed by a much superior Bolton team who made sure that the former champions stayed with a draw. How this will impact the rest of their future prospects are yet to be seen. Talking about their arch- rivals, nothing seems to be going the Liverpool way as every frustration is slowly building up into something or the other. From losing to a fourth division team in Carling cup to the mass movement against the Yankees, Liverpool is like a ticking time bomb ready to self destruct.

Until next week……

Karma

If there is one thing that i certainly believe more than anything else in this whole world, Karma would top my list. And Tuesday night was another day when i got to witness one...

France were eliminated out of the world cup in the worst of ways. But even though i knew that these team was showing lack of form or consistency, i couldn't help but go back and remember the manner in which they qualified for this tournament: a handball from Henry in the dying moments which led to Ireland's downfall. Even if France would have won the Holy Grail, they would have been just known as 'lucky' qualifiers rather than heroes. And did somebody see Domenech? Goodness me, he was arguing with the South African coach as if his team played the best football and lost. People like these are a real pain and i am happy i wont be seeing that guy anymore.

Argentina are in 'pole' position to win the cup. Messi played beautifully and they deserved to win. Although i feel that these guys weren't even challenged in the first round like like the 2006 world cup. No disrespect to the other teams, but these aren't Spain, Brazil or Italy. The journey for the Argentinians begins now and i wish them all the luck possible.

England may not be having the same problems as France did however they are also on the verge of an embarrassing exit from the world cup. Fabio Capello knows what is at stake and he will be fighting for the last spot. The entire team has been unimpressive till date and two years of hardwork will result in nothing. Fabio simply knows that.

Germany's earlier defeat will be a wake up call to them if they take it in a positive way. They played well against Serbia, but they weren't great as the Germans should be. I would love to see the Germans prove the critics wrong. They will be attacking from all sides possible and it would be a treat to watch them, if of course they don't panic/ get overconfident in the end.

To sum up, today two huge matches will be played. Just for the sake of heavy competition i hope both the teams survive, although i fear that an upset might take place.

Enjoy the beautiful game.

Now it gets interesting.....

The game between Brazil and Ivory coast was simply a tough game to predict. Even though i had my money on Brazil, i knew that the 'Elephants' were not a cakewalk. In the end though, it was Brazil simply outperforming their rivals although i would love to see more flair and more style that only the Brazilians can offer. Remember the class of 82? They were the best team to have never won the World cup and yet they were so awesome!Socrates, Falcao and Eder are still some of the best players in Brazilian footballing history and i would want this generation to adapt more of their style and their hunger to win. Once they do that, it would be hard stopping this team which has everything their way. I am putting my money on them after the Germans.

I am still surprised at the way people are discounting the Germans as the favorites to win the holy grail. yes, they have goofed up at a very wrong time but according to me it still can be a good omen. One should remember that Germans had not lost any of their opening games but they have somehow choked up in the end. this can be a reminder that anything can happen in this game and the Germans can be more cautious at a later stage. Only their next battle can decide whether they are ready for a bloodbath or not.

Here is a fact: the team that has won the euro championships since 2000 have not scored in the following world cup and have exited in the opening round itself. We start with France who won it in 2000 and lost to Senegal in the opening round, they couldn't score in a single game. The same happened with Greece when they became the euro winners and headed for a first round exit in Germany 2006... so will it happen to Spain? Although it would be foolish to make any kind of statement, history has a funny way of repeating itself. Spain can blame the goalkeeper's girlfriend which can show what kind of a maturity they have while accepting their mistakes. Maybe the coach and the players should simply grow up and see what went wrong against a team like Switzerland.

New Zealand were like a surprise package and they were very good against Italy. The Italians may still make it to the round of 16 with their experience, but i seriously don't know how is this kind of experience going to help them in the later stages.

France and England don't even want to play like headless chickens anymore. The Golden generation of England would have never expected such a performance. For a team that has been over hyped by the media as if they already have won a trophy, this team is below par with it's coach who thinks it is easier for him to bow out rather than infuse a rush of blood among its players. France have been at an all time low. the only solution is find a better coach and come back in Euro 2012. They should actually refund the money to the fans who have paid to watch them play. Hopefully we will see more of Nasri's and Benzema the next tournament is played.

Argentina were fantastic and should stick to the same style. I cannot imagine what would the press say when Messi scores. Maradona was a great player and is a great coach. But the post match kissing is well, disturbing to say the least.

And oh yeah, before i run out of words, a special mention to the Nigeria versus Greece match. It was an exciting game. If you have missed it, watch the highlights.

Until then, enjoy the beautiful game! The upsets have just begun.......

GERMANS steal the show!!!

I have been a fan of Germany since the time I started watching football and till today, I have never been disappointed. The Germans are like a well oiled machine. With the introduction of youngsters mixed with the experienced players, they have made sure that they take the center stage. No more are they the dark horses as many pundits predicted, they have made everybody take notice of their football. And it isn’t the same anymore with a rugged styled of German play as seen from the past few years. It is more of a systematic and an intelligent game play. They are probably the first team whom I feel have known to use the ‘Jabulani Football’ to the optimum. As one of my best buddy says; Germany will always remain my default best team to win the world cup and I will surely be looking forward to their next game. As of now, the person more happier than me will be my girlfriend cause she knows that she is going to get a treat for sure tomorrow. Finally this is the first time that she is smiling after I was diagnosed with high ‘football fever’

Speaking of that, tomorrow ‘TOTAL FOOTBALL’ takes over and everybody in the stadium will be as ORANGE as ever. Holland will probably showcase one of the best styles of attacking football and attacking formations ever. If you are new to the game of football, I would want you to see the match tomorrow at 5 pm. You can expect to see a lot of goals in that match although Denmark obviously will be a tough nut to crack. Cameroon versus Japan in my case will be a lopsided affair. Cameroon probably has too many good players with them and Japanese have not been convincing in their qualifying stages. I would go for a 2-0 win for sure.

Call me biased but I really don’t favor the Italians this time around. They are very old, very predictable and with the newer stars shining in the world of football, I cannot see how a world class goalkeeper like Buffon or a defensive power like the Azzurris can manage to stop youngsters like Messi, Torres or Ronaldo. But then again, Italians have always known to find a solution out of every problem. They relatively have an easier group but Paraguay is looking like a dangerous team to me. I will go for a draw because Italians are yet to convince me on the big stage this time around. With the average age way beyond their prime, Italians have a tough task ahead of them

To end this conversation for today, heard this ridiculous press conference where Fabio Capello was defending his England side by saying that he was convinced by their performance. Yeah right! England was just like France: all stars and no show. The USA was miles ahead in their performance against them. Fabio Capello needs to take his players back to the woodshed.

Viva la football… and looking forward to Cameroon celebrations if their players score a goal