Sports: February 2005 Archives
I got two books and a DVD in a mail from Amazon the other day. I didn't notice the similarities in titles until I opened the box. Believe It, Faithful, and Faith Rewarded. Hm. 
It's odd to me that so many people argue about whether the Patriots are a dynasty.
Does it really matter? They have x wins in the last y games, a certain number of Super Bowl wins, and all the rest. There are numerous factors that can be used to measure the team. The word "dynasty" is merely a word used to simplify all those other factors into a single one. It's a convenience, like all symbols and labels.
So two points follow: the first is that whether they are a dynasty is irrelevant. If you win three Super Bowls in four years, and you're not a dynasty, does that diminish your accomplishments? Of course not.
The second is that because the point of the word is to simplify a complex set of data -- and, by spending a significant amount of time arguing about it, you're only adding to the complexity -- that if you have to spend much time arguing it, the purpose of the word is defeated and the answer to the question is effectively No.
Does it really matter? They have x wins in the last y games, a certain number of Super Bowl wins, and all the rest. There are numerous factors that can be used to measure the team. The word "dynasty" is merely a word used to simplify all those other factors into a single one. It's a convenience, like all symbols and labels.
So two points follow: the first is that whether they are a dynasty is irrelevant. If you win three Super Bowls in four years, and you're not a dynasty, does that diminish your accomplishments? Of course not.
The second is that because the point of the word is to simplify a complex set of data -- and, by spending a significant amount of time arguing about it, you're only adding to the complexity -- that if you have to spend much time arguing it, the purpose of the word is defeated and the answer to the question is effectively No.
The New England Patriots have won every NFL game, since the merger, ever played in February. I don't just mean every game they've played in: I mean every NFL game that's been held in February.
Also, every playoff game Brady's played in, he's won by three, unless the opponent was Pittsburgh (7 and 14) or Indianapolis (10 and 17).
Patriots 24, Eagles 21.
Also, every playoff game Brady's played in, he's won by three, unless the opponent was Pittsburgh (7 and 14) or Indianapolis (10 and 17).
Patriots 24, Eagles 21.
"It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt."
