Land Of The Snakes

    For this post, I wanted to discuss a group of content creators I used to watch before they sold out and ruined friendships for business purposes. The youtube group is known as 2hype. The current members consist of Jesser (Jesse), Jiedel (James), LSK (Kris), ZachTTG (Zach), CashNasty (Cash), and Moochie (Mitchell). Now the reason I stopped watching this group was when they kicked out fellow creator Mopi (Tyler). Tyler had been with 2hype since the creation of the group and had been a lifetime friend of Jesse’s. 

    

    While Tyler didn’t post as much and didn’t have as great a following, he was usually the comedic presence in 2hype videos, commonly making hilarious mistakes and being the target of many friendly insults. Sadly last year Tyler was dealing with a drug addiction and later stated that no one in 2hype except for Mitchell and Cash cared for his well-being. During the height of this 2hype sold out to the group 100 Thieves and in a surprise move, Tyler didn’t join them. Then on a post of 2hype’s celebrating an award, he tweeted “Lhype”, basically stating that he was leaving the group. This seemingly came out of nowhere and many fans were confused about what was happening internally in 2hype. 

    After numerous exposure tweets and videos from Tyler and past members who were kicked out before the group officially formed, it became clear that 2hype had sold out and were no longer a group of friends having fun on youtube. Tyler made an exposure video explaining how no one except for Cash and Mitchell tried to help him with his drug addiction, Members would refuse or dislike being in Tylers videos but always needed Tyler for their videos, and that they had kicked out people before the group formed so they didn’t have to share as much equity in the group. He also disliked the treatment of his lifelong friend Mitchell, who actually joined 2hype later on but received a very small percent equity in the company since other members didn’t want to give up their percentages.

    While there has been debate on both sides, it has become obvious to me and past fans that 2hype chose money over friendship. Since Tyler’s departure and the exposure videos, 2hype is unable to reach a million views unless they have a feature with another creator or famous figure. Again Tyler was the main comedic relief so now their comedy appears very forced or honestly isn’t funny. Cash and Mitchell are still very genuine but Jesse, James, Kris, and Zach appear to be money-hungry YouTubers, mainly focused on paying off their cars and mansions/houses. Sadly Tyler hasn’t had much success on his own but he continues to persevere and conquer his marijuana addiction.

Kyrie Irving: The Most Confusing Player In The NBA

    Now, this post may be slightly biased as I despise Kyrie Irving. He has always been an interesting player in the NBA and in the media. Recently his big news story circles around him deciding not to get the vaccine and the Nets deciding that he will not play until he does. While this may seem normal, he threw the press a curveball when stated in an interview that he is not anti-vaccine. This just infuriated me and many others since once again Kyrie was focused on basketball politics instead of the games. For this blog, I want to analyze his past choices and try to figure out why this great basketball player has had so many issues.

Now early in his career, he expressed his dislike of the media and the spotlight. He even tried to prove how ridiculous the news was by claiming he was a flat earther. Not surprisingly the media went crazy with this statement and to this day people are unsure of his stance. He calmed down with his media antics when Lebron returned to Cleveland. Kyrie was a huge supporting player in Cleveland's chase for a ring, hitting the game-winning three in a game 7 against the 73-9 Warriors team. This was his first and only championship for the Cavaliers. He was expected to be a franchise player but after losing to the Warriors super team in the next finals, he made a huge statement that is the main reason myself and many other NBA fans dislike him. Kyrie claimed that he could be the best player on a championship team and that he didn’t want to be the second option to Lebron. This was his informal way of asking for a trade and this is when his career spiraled out of control.

    Now I would respect his decision if he went on to win a championship for another team but at the end of the day, he proved himself to be a huge hypocrite. So after he made this statement he was traded to the Boston Celtics. While he was the best player on the team and led them to the playoffs, he never won a championship and would eventually leave after two years, even though he promised Boston fans he’d resign. Now I would also respect him signing with another team where he could be the best player but instead he made one of the most hypocritical moves in NBA history. After stating that he could be the best player on a championship team, he and Kevin Durant decided to sign with the Brooklyn Nets. Kevin Durant is currently a top 10 player of all time and was on the Warriors team that beat Kyrie for the championship in 2017. After claiming that he could be the best player on a championship team, Kyrie basically teamed with another Lebron on a better team. Funny thing is, he still hasn’t won another ring without Lebron. So looking back he made a selfish decision and when he couldn’t fulfill his own expectations, he tried to win an easy ring with a stacked team but couldn’t even do that.

Now in his third season, he just downright refuses to play. While the NBA doesn’t have a vaccine mandate, cities mainly decide if their teams need a vaccine to play and unfortunately for Kyrie, New York is very strict on their Covid policies. He still refused to get the vaccine so the Nets decided that he cannot play until he gets one or maybe if New York lifted their mandate. Now people were outraged at this decision and many thought he was an anti-vaxer like shooting guard Bradley Beal. When Kyrie was interviewed by the press he dropped a bombshell stating he didn’t support either side of the debate. He claimed that he just made the decision that felt right for him. Again Kyrie completely shocked the media and I still don’t understand his decision. If I could bet, I'd bet money that he did this to avoid injury and that he will return in the playoffs to try and get a free ring. I honestly think he doesn’t care for the sport of basketball and sees it as a tedious job.

Honestly, I could never predict what's going on in the crazy mind of Kyrie Irving but I will likely continue to dislike his decisions. I have a huge love for basketball and at this time it seems Kyrie doesn’t care for the sport at all. In the past, he’s been very hypocritical and has deliberately tried to throw off the press due to his dislike of them. Kyrie, if you're making over $30 million a year in the greatest basketball league in the world, the media is gonna bother you. At this point, I honestly hope he never picks up a basketball again since he wants to make the sport political when it’s supposed to be entertainment for millions of NBA fans.

Number 2 In The East?!

    I cannot believe that after years of watching terrible Chicago basketball, the Bulls are now one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. Looking back on my expectations the Bulls have far exceeded them and I am fully confident that the Bulls are title contenders. The Lakers are a train wreck holding a record of 9-9 and the Nets are without one of their best stars in Kyrie Irving. These were the favorites going into the season and while these teams are struggling, Zach Lavine and Demar Derozan are averaging over 25 points per game, leading the Bulls to a 12-6 record. Looking back on my expectations I want to analyze the Bulls signings this offseason and our rookie's involvement.

    First off I have to tip my cap to the Bulls General Manager, Marc Eversley. He came in and made some big moves but boy have they paid off. I was ecstatic when we signed Demar Derozan but many fans felt the Bulls had paid too much for the aging veteran. DeRozan has adapted quickly to the new environment and fits perfectly in Billy Donovan's offense. He is now the leading scorer for the Bulls and at this time he is in high consideration for the MVP award. I was also happy with the Bull's signing of Lonzo Ball. While I was expecting his main attribution to be playmaking, he has actually become a great 3 and D player. Lonzo is averaging about 2 steals per game and has a higher three-point percentage than Steph Curry. Also, Alex Caruso has been a very impactful player for the bulls, covering for an injured Coby White, bringing a great defensive presence and playmaking ability.

Now sadly while the Bulls are playing at a great level, our rookies have not been heavily involved. Marko Simonivic has only played in one game even though the Bulls heavily hyped him up while he played overseas and our starting center Nikola Vucevic is currently injured. One rookie that has seen some playing time is Ayo Dosunmu. He has actually been a solid backup but overall I don’t see him developing into a star player. Likely he will be a career role player like Shaun Livingston or Kirk Hinrich. One young player I hoped would develop this year was Patrick Williams. Sadly he suffered torn ligaments in his wrist and will miss a huge portion of the season. This will likely stunt his development, but in all honesty, in the few games he played this season he did not look promising. He seemed afraid to shoot the ball and on the defensive side, he was very lacking in interior defense, rebounding, and help defense. I would scream at the TV many times as he let an offensive player cut the basket and put in an easy layup. Overall the Bull's younger players are obviously not a focal point for the team which in reality means the Bulls are pushing for a Championship this season instead of focusing on the future.

    

    The Bulls are looking very promising so far and I am glad that they are pushing for a championship instead of giving rookies starting opportunities. Zach Lavine finally has some weight lifted off his shoulders and the offseason signings have fit tremendously in Billy Donovan's revitalized offense. Demar DeRozan immediately became an MVP candidate and players like Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso have become elite role players for the Bulls. Overall I am very pleased with the team's success so far and the near future looks very promising. Also, I am slightly nervous since I made a bet that if the Bulls won a championship I’d get a Bulls tattoo and surprisingly, that has become a great possibility.

The Sad Truth About Sports Pawns

    The reason I am making this post is because of the recent injury of one of my favorite NFL players, Dj Chark. He is a wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars and in his last game against the Bengals he, unfortunately, suffered a terrible injury. The Jaguars ran an Hb Toss and while blocking a corner, his teammates crashed into him landing on his left ankle. This ended up breaking his ankle and he will likely undergo surgery and miss the rest of the season. While injuries are common in sports, the impact of the injury is huge to Charks’ career. 

    This season was actually his contract year, meaning this offseason he will become a free agent. Now most players play their best during contract years because obviously, they want to make the most money they can with their new contracts. Dj Chark was on the right path to getting a big contract with the Jaguars or another team, already having two touchdowns in just three games this season. While he isn’t a Tyreek Hill or Davante Adams-like player, he has been the best wide receiver for the Jaguars the past couple of seasons at just 25 years old. The sad truth now is that Dj Chark will not receive his big contract but instead will likely receive a really cheap contract and there’s even a chance he may not be signed at all. Imagine that, your about to get a huge payout for your hard work and after one injury you’d be lucky to get a minimum contract.

    This is why I titled my post ‘The Sad Truth About Sports Pawns’. The sports industry isn’t just a way for skilled players to make some money, the sports industry is an entertainment business. While I’m sure the Jaguars would never wish an injury on any of their players, the reality from a business standpoint is that the Jaguars Manager is probably excited since they can give Dj Chark a huge pay cut. This is why I label sports players as pawns. They are at the front line taking the most damage and in the grand scheme aren’t seen as most important for the business. I would say the Kings would be the owners, sitting in the back not doing as much, just reaping the benefits since they are the cornerstone of the business. Then I would say the Queens are the Managers of the teams, the powerhouse that has complete control over the business, hiring and firing whoever they please. It’s a sad truth but in the sports industry, players are not seen as human beings but as pawns that can help teams win so the fans are happy and so the team can make revenue of products with their name or likeliness on it. 

     Sorry if that impacted the way you look at sports but again, that’s why I titled my post ‘The Sad Truth’. Hopefully, Chark is able to recover from his injury and suit up again on a decent contract. I realize these players make a lot of money even on minimum contracts, yes, but maybe the huge contracts are the reason the public doesn’t scrutinize the business aspect of sports. Overall I’ll continue to pray for Dj Charks’ recovery and in the future, I will look at players’ injuries in a much different light. 

A Healthy Soda?

    For this post, I wanted to help my fellow classmates because I believe I found a great alternative to pop. While I know the best substitute is probably water, I’m pretty addicted to pop so cutting it out isn’t so easy. I have tried other alternatives in the past but always just went back to the great taste of Dr. Pepper. Eventually, I found a soda called Zevia through some random health app. 

    This growing brand offers zero sugar soda alternatives that also don’t use the harmful diet substitutes for sugar that can cause cancer. Instead, they use stevia leaf extract that so far scientists haven’t discovered any negative side effects. As I said before I have tried other alternatives but this is by far my favorite. There is no gross aftertaste and while it isn’t as cheap as a normal soda, your not gonna be paying hundreds of dollars on a 12 pack. Usually, when I purchase mine I receive a 24 pack for $20 on Amazon. Another interesting thing about their drinks is that they are zero calories, gmo-free, and vegan. While I wasn’t looking for a drink with all these benefits, it’s cool to know this drink is pretty pure. 

    Another reason I love Zevia so much is the huge variety in flavors. Personally, my favorite regular sodas are Black Cherry, Grape, and Orange. While they don’t exactly taste like Crush or Fanta, it’s still a pretty good drink. If I had to recommend one of their specific products, I would actually recommend Zevia Kidz. While these cans are smaller the flavor is actually more profound and taste like an actual soda. I would recommend trying the variety packs they offer to find your favorite alternative but I personally love Strawberry Lemonade and Fizzy Apple. 

    While this may seem like an ad for Zevia, trust me they are not sending any money my way. I’m just so excited that theirs an alternative that's affordable and actually tastes good. If you try it please let me know what you think, again don’t expect it to taste like regular sodas but the flavors are pretty good. I believe Zevia has a website where you can buy their products but I usually buy them on Amazon or at Target. Also if you try their energy drinks or tea products, please let me know your opinion as I haven’t tried those yet. 

The Sneakerhead Dilemma

     During my teenage years, I joined the booming sneaker market and purchased many different Jordan and basketball shoes. If I had to guess, I have probably bought over a hundred pairs of sneakers. With most sneakers being over a hundred bucks, that means in my lifetime I’ve probably spent at least $10,000 on shoes. Looking back this looks ridiculous but to this day I still have a love for good-looking sneakers. With my sneakerhead experience, I have many regrets but I’m sure I will continue to buy sneakers during college and after.

    So one of my main regrets about buying sneakers is the waste of money. Most people probably think I mean wasting money on things you wear on your feet, but in reality, I am talking about selling all of my sneakers. I went from buying over a hundred pairs to having only four and a pair of slides. I had countless interests growing up and whenever I needed money to buy something, I would always just sell a pair of sneakers I didn’t wear as much as the others. The problem with that is that sneakers are like cars, as soon as you start using them the value depreciates. Basically, I was buying shoes at about a hundred bucks, wearing them for a month or two, and then selling them for $50 if I was lucky. Not the best concept and that’s coming from a business major. 

    The crazy thing is, I still consider myself a sneakerhead and one of my life goals is to buy all the shoes I sold so I don’t feel like such an idiot. This plan is probably stupid too but at least I can look at them and recollect on my past. I think the reason I developed a love for sneakers is the props you get for wearing a fresh pair. You may be the ugliest or weirdest kid in school but you come in wearing a new pair of jordans peoples eyes are gonna turn. As a guy, I don’t receive many compliments during the day but one of my favorite feelings in the world was having a cool kid say “I like your shoes.” While that probably started my sneakerhead journey, I actually developed an interest in the art involved and the history of certain shoes. From Michael Jordan’s banned colorways to Kyries Spongebob-themed basketball shoes, I became fascinated with the sneaker culture. 

    Overall my sneaker journey has taught me a lot about spending money wisely but I’m sure in the future I will continue to purchase sneakers. Below is a collage of all the sneakers I have owned in the past or at least the ones I can remember.

Herbert Terrace: The Selfish Professor

    After watching 'Project Nim' for my summary assignment, I kept thinking one thing over and over again, Herbert Terrace is a real a-hole. He is the professor that started Project Nim, an experiment that asked “Can a chimp learn to communicate with humans after being raised as a human child?” Now you may be wondering why I have such a distaste for this professor. Herb Terrace is a disgraceful professor that doesn’t take blame for his actions and doesn’t care for anyone but himself. During this project, he sexually manipulates one of Nim’s teachers and when the experiment ends, he has no care for Nim’s future treatment. 

Ok, so one of the main reasons I dislike this guy is how he manipulates one of Nims handlers, Laura-Ann Petito. She was a student at the University and after meeting Herb she decided to join the project. She began helping teach Nim sign language and when Nim began living at the college, Laura becomes Nim’s main handler. Now through various interviews, Herb and Laura hint that they had some kind of relationship. Eventually, Laura describes how she and Herb had sex but after Herb wished to have no relationship. Herb is dismissive of the topic so I have no doubt in my mind that Herb used his position and manipulation to hook up with Laura. When Laura quits Nim attacks her as she’s leaving so all in all Herb caused a lot of unnecessary damage just for sex with a student. 

After Nim attacks more teachers, Herb decides to end the project to avoid legal trouble. Another reason I dislike Herb is that he deems the project a failure even though Nim had a huge sign language vocabulary. He deemed it a failure because Nim couldn’t use proper grammar. For example, Nim would sign “Give Nim Banana” instead of “Give me the Banana.” Sounds good professor, many teachers wasted their valuable time teaching Nim sign language every day and got bit constantly so you can deem Nim a failure. So after the experiment, instead of finding a proper home for Nim to adapt to, the professor convinces the Doctor he bought Nim from to take him back. Nim had never seen another Chimp in his life and now he’s being sent to live in a cage surrounded by hundreds of Chimps. Herb admits to “feeling bad” for doing that but I just can’t believe him. If you feel bad now then you definitely knew that was the wrong situation you were putting Nim in the first place. Eventually, Herb actually visited Nim at the Institute but that was purely a camera stunt since he brought an entire crew for one day of filming. When Nim saw him he started hugging him and screaming joyously, thinking he was finally going home. Nope, Herb left the very next day on a plane and Nim became more depressed. 

So yeah I think these are pretty good reasons to deem this guy a selfish a-hole. He sexually manipulates people, ends a project because he’s scared of being sued, and gives no care for the monkey he forced to be raised by humans. Herb obviously started this project on a whim, didn’t carefully plan out situations that might occur, and when he got scared he just deemed the project a failure and used it to make money through books and television. I know I have no room to talk but I believe this is not how a Professor should conduct his projects.