GuidoWorld

Depression and Society

In the last post I described the societal factors which are making depression an overused term in the US. In many cases depression is used when sadness would be a more apt term. Yet, depression is a lucrative term with professional standing and, therefore, used both to sell drugs and meet insurance companies standards for benefits (therapy).

The diagmosis of Depression is overused and misused leading to thousands of people to be unnecessarily labeled clinically depressed. Yet, the very mechanisms used to sell antidepressants and have therapy be covered by insurance do have an impact on the actual number of people with clinical depression.

Daily people see ads which ask them vague questions which almost any person on the planet would answer in the affirmative which they are told “might” be a sign of depression. In these ads people are told to consult their doctors about taking such and such antidepressant. Doctors are more vulnerable to law suits if they underservice rather than overservice so they will often prescribe a medication to see if the patient reports feeling better. If the patient does not feel better some doctors will stop the medication, yet more often then not they will instead raise the dosage or try another antidepressant. Since many antidepressants have a side effect of depression the medications may cause a level of depression not previously experienced by the patient.

While Clinical Depression is over diagnosed in our culture I do believe that the percentage of people in our culture who are truly depressed is growing. The feelings of helplessness and hopelessness endemic to depression are fostered by our culture in a number of ways. First we live in a capitalistic consumer culture which perpetually tells us that we want and need more. It says happiness is always in the next purchase and that we can never be satiated.

We live in a society that markets fear. Fear is used to muster public support of international policies as well as foster our loyalty to our government. Our news is filled with fear and danger and this wears on the mass and individual psyche.

Studies have shown that a lack of certain basic positive feelings over a length of time can be a precursor to or a cause of depression. A few of these basic psychological elements include feelings of safety, trust and constancy. A consumer based culture endangers all three of these basic anchors.

The fear culture endangers are sense of safety.  The communist scare of my youth has been replaced with the war on terrorism. The news focuses on crime, war, disease and disaster. We must forever be on alert against germs and routinely get medical tests for various silent assassins.

Our consumer culture makes constancy an endangered species. We are forever demanded to buy the new, to keep up with the times. Cars, furniture, toys, TV’s, etc. must forever be updated.  Being behind the times is a source of potential embarrassment. Your child’s ability to have friends and receive a good education are dependent on your getting the latest toys, clothes and gadgets.  Their present and future success are dependent on your ability to buy them everything you can afford.

Our sense of trust is that which is most attacked by our consumer culture. Being told the truth is a rare event in our culture. Spin, misrepresentation, exaggeration, omission, deflection and provocation are the basic tools of communication in our capitalistic Democratic/Republican society.

We all know we are being lied to. Some of us think we are only being lied to by half the people, others feel that they are being lied to by everyone. Most people feel that a certain amount of dishonesty is necessary to be successful or just plain nice.

While it may be true that a little dishonesty is almost inevitable, one must agree that the level of functional dishonesty in our culture is quite extreme. It is the pervasive level of dishonesty in our society which I see as the main reason why depression is so common in our society. Nothing is more paralyzing or disheartening as not feeling capable of discerning what is real and true. One could make a rather honest argument that dishonesty is the largest resource in our culture.

Here are a couple of my songs which echo some of these concerns

Lies (lyrics/reveries)

Pander (lyrics/reveries)

Jim Guido

Sadness and Depression

Over the last couple of decades the tendency to make these words interchangeable has grown. Depression, once a clinical term, has now become the more popular and used term in lay as well as professional conversation.

Yet, sadness and depression are not synonyms. They are vague terms which refer to experiences which lie on the same continuum and meet at the far end of their boundaries.

At their centers sadness and depression have defined differences. Sadness is a feeling, and in most cases a very strong and powerful feeling. The feeling of sadness can be painful and full of regret, but it can also be a rich and fulfilling experience.

Sadness is the root emotion of much popular music and art. Sad love songs and movies are not only popular but often cited as individual’s favorites. One could make a case that the realms of poetry and dramatic theater are dominated by the emotion of sadness. Entire forms of visual art and music such as the blues are centered around the experience of sadness.

In sum, sadness can be a very powerful and oddly fulfilling emotion, which a person can use to enrich their lives.

Depression, on the other hand, is often the absence of feeling rather than a feeling itself. Clinically it often involves a sense of hopelessness and helplessness. It can make one numb, and leave one paralyzed. When accompanied by a feeling it is usually a feeling of pain or dread.

Where sadness can make you feel so alive, depression can suck the life completely out of you.

Yet, since depression has become the popular term many people and professionals missuse and overuse the term. Even when referring to a young child you will frequently hear people describe the child as depressed when they are just a little down spirited or sad.

Our society often states as a goal for all people to be happy. Emotions such as sadness are often viewed in a negative light. Yet, in reality, happiness and sadness are not necessarily antonyms nor mutually exclusive. I can experience sadness while being in a general state of happiness. I can use sadness to actually increase my general sense of happiness and my infatuation with life.

Yet, our general strategy is to try to repress or overcome sadness. I believe one of the reasons we do this is due to our tendency to equate sadness with depression.

The question then becomes why do we overuse the term depression?

Well for one thing it just sounds more adult like and professional. It also has one take notice and listen to you. Since depression is a diagnosis and sadness is not, one cannot get medication for sadness and generally will not qualify for professional services for being sad.

Since drug companies advertise everywhere we are bombarded with the term depression. The sale of their product depends on your experience being defined as depression and not as sadness. Likewise even talk therapists have a tendency to speak in diagnostic terms and labels. This makes it likely they will describe someone as being depressed rather than sad. Also, therapist often are paid through insurance companies and government agencies who will only reimburse for labels such as depression and would deny payment for any other terminology.

The result of our society’s obsession with labeling so many people as being depressed, is that the distinction between depression and sadness has been removed. In general, the entire concept of sadness has been replaced with a preoccupation with depression. This has only exaggerated our unrealistic expectations of our maintaining only one acceptable mood (happiness), while making any deviation from this one mood life damaging or threatening.

In the next post I will discuss some of the ways our growing emphasis on depression is being played out in our society.

Below I’ve pasted a few of my songs and their lyrics which deal with aspects of sadness and depression.

She’s Not Here (lyrics/reveries)
Haunted (lyrics/reveries)
Grieving (lyrics/reveries)
Mundane Blues (lyrics/reveries

Again you are invited to listen to more of my songs in the music section of this site. I feel many of you will find my ideas easier to feel when they are expressed in song.

Jim Guido

Political Guise/Guys

In a couple of my more recent posts I explained why I am unlikely to vote in the upcoming presidential election. To sum up, I won’t vote until there’s a real candidate to vote for and I don’t want to support a corrupt political process in dire need of an overhaul.

I also mentioned that it appeared to me that anyone truly espousing policies which were different from the status quo was being marginalized and posed as a fool by the corporate media (Ron Paul and Kucinich this election and Dean in the last). In other words no candidate is able to get a nomination by the two parties unless he/she is deemed acceptable by the military/industrial complex as LBJ warned.

Candidates must tow the line even if it means losing the election. John Kerry’s decision to support the Iraq war in 2004 despite an overwhelming majority opposing the war is a perfect example. How else can you explain a Democratic candidate who willingly supports a botched war started by the incumbent despite over 2/3 of Americans saying they wanted out.

Some of Obama’s stances smack of the same political realities of playing the game. First Obama has stated the need for us to cut our dependency on foreign oil (think Arabs) despite the fact that the current bubble in the price of oil is speculative in nature, just like every other bubble. The net if full of reports and footage which shows oil tankers just sitting in the gulf. The corporations making record profits in oil are American owned, and the supply and demand figures don’t reflect any need for high oil prices. Both in terms of production and supply figures we are at levels similar to when oil was well under $40 a barrel. Greenspan and the policies of the Federal Reserve have more to do with the inflated price of oil than any foreign entity. Just as those same policies led to the real estate bubble and the bull market (bubble?) in commodities.

So instead of talking about the truth regarding inflation Obama points the finger at Arabs. Similarly he takes the low road regarding exploiting the fear of terrorism. I saw a piece in which he stated that the greatest threat to our national security is in the possibility of “terrorists” getting possession of a nuclear bomb. Now, how could that be the biggest threat.

A nuclear bomb is not much of a threat without a delivery system. Very few nations have a military and missile program capable of attacking the US. At best a terrorist group could sell the bomb to a nation who could execute an attack. Yet, to say terrorists groups are the real threat is disingenuous fear mongering at best and truly destructive of the culture of hope and trust Obama claims to want to foster.

Obama likewise has found a way to continue our paranoid war like stance with the rest of the world. He has been quoted as saying that he favors a “slow drawdown” of troops in Iraq and poses Afghanistan as the area of real concern. As the area in which we should be increasing the number of troops.

Those advocating an increase in military presence in Afghanistan point out that the Taliban is taking back control of the country and that the opium supply is back to record levels. I listened to a report on NPR that insinuated that both the government and the Taliban are the cause of the sharp rise in the amount of poppy plants in the area.

Yet, that report and any other I’ve seen over the last number of months seems to ignore a couple of important facts. First, we installed the current government and have been highly influential in all their policies. Second, the Taliban has been very successful at squashing the production of opiates in Afghanistan, and had essentially eradicated the crop before we took over. Therefore, to insinuate them as the cause while refusing to mention their previous successful actions appears to be nothing more than blatant propoganda to incite ill based support once again for aggressive policies in the Middle East.

I personally find Obama very endearing, and I’d like to see a culture of hope replace one of fear and blame. Yet, I refuse to continue to vote for the lesser of two evils. We need to demand a certain level of honesty out of our political process and the candidates who supposedly represent us. How can we put our trust into people who are not trustworthy and who routinely tell us lies and propoganda?

Ron Paul was the closest thing to a real person and candidate I’ve seen in a long while. I was willing to vote for him despite the fact I disagreed with some of his policies, because he seemed honest and caring. Such a person seems willing to acknowledge and correct their mistakes and in the end may be able to do the right thing. Those who lie for a living never have sufficient reason to do the right thing or to change their course of action. All they have to do is find the right words to gain our support or foster our dependence on them.

Here are a couple of my songs dealing with this topic. I hope you enjoy them.

Political Guys (lyrics/reveries)

Mob Rule (lyrics/reveries)

Click on song to listen, click on lyrics to read. Political Guys is from the Opportunity Lost CD, and Mob Rule is from Edge of Eden. Got to Music tab to hear more.

Jim Guido

Turning Silver Into Gold

On July 31st we celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. The theme of the occasion was turning silver into gold. And to commemorate the event I wrote a song of that name.

So for today’s post I will print the lyrics to that song, a long wih a couple of others which dealt with hallmarks of our relationship. I will also include a list of songs from my CD’s which mos deal with our relationship through the years.

Turning Silver Into Gold 6/14/08

My search ended long ago
My heart no longer beats alone
Meaning entered into my life
The moment you became my wife

I wept when I realized
We were about to share all our time

The years have treated us well
We’ve been lovers, friends and co-casters of the spell
Each night I lie with you
I drift so calm, feel grateful too

Giving you pleasure fills my days
Making you happy I’ll forever seek new ways
For 25 years we’ve lived beauty
Keeping our eyes kind and our hearts true

Though thankful I hope for so much more
The coming years hold such promise to uncork
Our early years we climbed now we can coast
Spend even more time with whom we love most

I cherish all that we create
Our endless conversation stimulates and soothes
Living beyond my dreams
Is still what you have me do

Turning silver into gold
Turning silver into gold

This song was written for our engagement. It is on the Ambivalence CD.

Beyond My Dreams

There is a woman how unfolds my heart
She came like a whisper the song of a lark
Her way is patient, delicate and brave
I only pray my love’s that wayIf I could only give her what she give to me
Could I ever give her what she gives to me?

If I be granted one talent beyond my strength it would be
To have her feel the beauty that she is
All thru life I have dreamt how I want to love
She puts those dreams to shame

You have me live beyond my dreams
Love beyond my dreams
Beyond my dreams where we belong
The land of love beyond song

The goal of the poet is in her eyes
Her beauty as natural as a harvest sky
My words too frail my heart too crude
My voice too clumsy to fashion you

All my life I will strive to be my very best
For only then will I be deserving of your love
Help me find within myself the beauty that you are
Help me show the world our sacred love

You have me live beyond my dreams
Love beyond my dreams
Beyond my dreams where we belong
The land of love beyond song

This was a honeymoon song. It’s an island piece from the Take Me CD.

Dance For Me

Dance for me
I would like to see you move so free
The movement of your hips sends waves thru me
You could be my raft, take me out to sea
When I see you move, I’m all with you
Your rhythms take me away

Dance for me, dance for me
Show me love and give me pleasure
Give me life so I need no other
Move like lightning and I’ll supply the thunder

Dance for me
I just have to reach out when you encircle me
It’s so very hot in this tropic zone
I’m feeling weak from the heat

Woman be my island, I lap at your shore
These rhythms keep demanding more

Dance for me, dance for me
Show me love and give me pleasure
Give me life so I need no other
Move like lightning and I’ll supply the thunder

Dance for me
You are the one, you are the one
My little island
Dance for me

The last song I’m printing the lyric to is from the CD entitled Mortal Joy.

10,000 Miles

I’ve walked 10,000 miles with you, each day brings something new
I’ve held you 10,000 times, each morning and every night
I feel your heart beating and hear your soft breathing too
Time begins and ends with you

I build on history and play on the rhythm of the day
This is where I want to stay, I’ve no urge to go away
Moment have meaning when we are sharing our view
Finding words which capture and sooth

Walking down the winding road with you
So much we’ve accomplished so much left for us to do
Keep me laughing keep me seeking truth
Keep me bursting keep me loving you

I’ve talked 10,000 times with you about feelings as clues
I’ve watched you 10,000 times to understand or just admire
Aging is easy when history is split in two…
Between the world and me and you

Walking down the winding road with you
So much we’ve accomplished so much left for us to do
Keep me laughing keep me seeking truth
Life is magic to denude

I’ve walked with you 10,000 miles
I’ve searched with you 10,000 miles
I’ve talked with you 10,000 times

The above songs and the following one’s can be heard by going to the music section of this site. I’ve listed the CD titles for our convenience.

It’s been a great 25 years and look forward to as many as our bodies will allow.

Our songs include:

Take Me  -  Take Me
Metaphysique  - Take Me
Loving You   -  Take Me

Horizontal Hold   -  Gotta B Funky
Swells of  Passion  -  Gotta B  Funky
Easy Prey  -   Gotta B Funky

Take Hold  -  Edge of Eden

Excite Me  -  Mortal Joy
Keeping Up  -  IRock Therefore I Am
Hold On -   Ambivalence

Enjoy.

Jim Guido

Eros and Erosion

Eros and Erosion

We have come from the eagles and the larks
To encounter some age old taboo
The steel chains that bind give off their sparks
Dissipated disarray our milieu
Complacent little one in the dark
It’s a shame you give me no more fuel
My ambience is not too marred
Harboring the dissonance of youth
You give my life no articulation
I refuse to speak in ejaculations
Our love stained by indecision
Self-induced malnutrition of mind

You don’t know how it hurts me inside
When you feel there is nothing to do
Concrete and secure you automaton
Whether you be mortician or shrew
Decayed and petrified is our love
No zest or vigor to enthuse
I’d strip the galaxies from within
If you could be so imbued

The alchemist of my affliction
Her vile root caused my hazard condition
The catacombs of my affections
Lies below the weeping willow

Harken to the ancient sounding lyre
To the wailings marooned
Beware of harpies in the sky
A sure portent of doom
Beware of harpies and their cries
Mutilating limbs of sinew

I fear the guardians of my chest have lost
Thumos

I wrote the above song near three decades ago. My band was performing out at the time. The band was named Ekstasis after title given to the Dionysiac cult ceremony that combined, theater, song and ponding rhythms designed to induce its participants into a ecstatic trance state.

The lyrics do pay homage to the time period by its references to alchemy, lyres, harpies, and the term thumos.

It is interesting to note that Eros and Erosion follow themselves in many dictionaries.

The song is about love (eros) and its decay (erosion). The singer describes the complacency and staleness that has entered the relationship and exhorts his lover to dig deep and resurrect the passion and intimacy they once shared.

The song begins with images of strength and power (eagles) and sweet, beautiful song (lark). It then mentions the taboos of intimacy which repress and cause tension. It moves on to the deadness caused by complacency, and the lack of intimate conversation.

At the end of his description of the erosion of their love the singer states that “I’d strip the galaxies from within, if you could be so imbued”. This line shows both his determination and hope despite the current stagnant state of their love. The following images depict the dangers and obstacles that await lovers on their journey to deeper levels of intimacy and self-disclosure. It is only one’s commitment to self development and endless disclosure and passion which keeps eros from eroding.

Any thoughts?

As I approach my 25th wedding anniversary (July 31), I am so thankful that someone heard my call, accepted my challenge and has filled my life with unrelenting passion and growth.

To hear song press here Eros and Erosion

Jim Guido

PS Listen for the Mission Impossible theme in the second half of the song.

The Brett Favre Saga

I realize that a vast number of you who read my posts do not live in the US. Yet, today I want to write a short post regarding a current national sports issue. I have been a fan of the Green Bay Packers since before I started first grade. So, the Brett Favre story is one that I have an emotional investment in as well as a logical one.

Brett has been the Packer quarterback for some 17 or so years. He has set record upon record and has been the face of the organization for quite some time. His energy, sense of humor and personality have made him a fan favorite for people who otherwise couldn’t care less for the Packers.

The personal and family losses and tragedies which he has allowed us to share in have only made him all the more worthy of our praise and support. The last few years the talk of his imminent retirement has been a constant American soap opera. Some months ago he made it official and said it was time for him and his family to move on.

Though many of us Packer fans were saddened that he didn’t leave in John Elway fashion winning the Super Bowl in his last two years, we were proud of the way he left the game. The Packers had a great season and were one game away from the Super Bowl. Brett had one of his best seasons and showed that his skill level was still at a very high level. It was nice to see a football warrior leave the game without any overt disability.

Yet, now Brett says he wants to return, and before anyone could catch their breath he quickly upped the ante and said that he wants his release from the Packers so that he can play elsewhere. Brett and much of the media are painting a picture of the Packer management as being disloyal and unappreciative of Brett’s talents.

My take of the situation is a little different. I think the Packers are doing the honorable thing of trying to be loyal and honest to a number of people. Over the last couple of years they have been grooming Aaron Rodgers to take Brett’s place as the quarterback of the Packers. When Brett announced his retirement they had Aaron be the guy during their mini-camp and used two of their draft picks to find one or two back-ups for the future.

When Favre said he had the itch to play and then quickly added that he wanted to return, the Packers should have been given some time to talk things over with some of the coaches and key players. The Packers eventually went in the direction of my immediate reaction. As a Packer fan my initial response was that they needed to keep their word and let Rodgers be the starting quarterback.

Favre has always said that records meant nothing to him and that winning and the joy of playing football were what motivated and rewarded him. It would seem that at 38 years old he would appreciate the benefits of not having to play every down and endure the danger and grind of the long season.

What is wrong with coming back with less pressure and making sure that one is healthy and relatively fresh for the playoffs? What is wrong with being the star who can come in and alter the direction of any game, or fill in full time if Aaron gets injured?

Though Brett has the record for most consecutive starts he has not been without injuries. He has played through many significant injuries, especially to his hands. One could make a strong case that his relatively poor showing against the Giants in the title game had to do with his 37 year old partially arthritic hands failing to grip the football in the frigid cold. Sure he’s always played well in cold temps, but he hasn’t always been 37 with a long history of hand injuries.

Brett appears insulted and indignant with the Packers offer to come back as Rodgers back-up. He is not being the loyal Packer we all grew to love and admire. Instead he’s talking of calling managements bluff and coming to camp, and saying he love’s his teammates while being critical of management.

Instead of coming back and slowly getting himself in peak condition during a long and grueling season, instead of being a leader in team spirit of a potential Super Bowl quality team Brett is choosing the low road of making divisive public accusations and engaging in a childish temper tantrum far beneath his legendary classy demeanor.

I don’t want to choose between Brett and the Packers organization, and I am disappointed in Favre for pressing us to make this choice. I think it is ridiculous to suggest that management wants Favre out or is unappreciative of what he has meant to the organization. I do not think it is unfair to want to keep one’s word, or try to act in ways which are keeping the longer term goals of the team in mind.

I sincerely hope that Brett allows the Packers management to be honorable men and to try to keep him a life long member of the Packer family. I would love to see Brett come in and be he hero the way greats such as George Blanda did in the past.

Jim Guido

Joy and Meaning

Too, often people talk of the search for meaning and happiness. They make these things goals to accomplish. Yet, are joy and meaning objects to be found, won or acquired? When I look at these experiences from a practical viewpoint, I once again am struck with how simple life is, and how difficult most people make it.

My daily senses of joy and happiness come from simple events. Each time I learn something new, or improve my ability to do a skill I find both joy and satisfaction. Self improvement and personal development are two areas which provide me with substantial happiness. Any area of accomplishment and improvement provides my life with joy and adds to my sense of personal history. My sense of time and personal development also give meaning to my life.

My connections and bonds to others likewise are an endless source of joy and meaning. At some moments I relish my individuality and uniqueness and find joy in my specialness. At other times I feel cradled in the care and respect I feel by my friendships and sense of community with others.

I find it is easier and more fulfilling when I make my goals in life practical and attainable. I am baffled by people who structure their goals and quests out of ideals and absolutes. They base their hopes for joys on unearthly and inhuman concepts such as perfection, freedom , eternal life, cosmic consciousness, etc. I am always befuddled by people who try to find meaning in life by concepts which transcend life or are contrary or beyond the normal scope of human experience.

I myself find joy and meaning if the very process of human experience. Everyday human experience, perception and consciousness is full of endless mystery and magic. Life is an endless puzzle and process. The irony is in the fact that the imperfection of life is the very thing which makes it possible for us to grow, develop and learn. It is our limitations which make sensory experience and conscious thought possible. Though some look at the ego and objective life as something to overcome and transcend, I find meaning and joy in the very experience and process of life.

For me those who aspire to overcome life are doing so to avoid pain and suffering. And yes transcending life can be an effecive anesthetic. Yet, one who is under an anesthetic is numb, and therefore unable to experience joy, happiness and passion.

Absolutes, ideals and the need for perfection are contrary to human experience. Our senses exist because they only can process a narrow band of stimuli that is flooding us at each moment. If one heard every sound being made by the universe and one’s immediate environment and internal body functions one would never be able to enjoy a baby’s laugh or the song of a bird.

Yet, despite these obvious facts of human existence, it is the rare person who not only accepts but revels in the finitude of human thought and perception. The fact that there is no completion or perfection makes it possible for me to develop and grow each day. The fact that I am an ongoing process makes it possible for me to make discovery and invention daily events in my life. Likewise, it makes joy and meaning daily events and not end goals.

Instead of finding meaning by overcoming our humanity I suggest we find meaning and joy in our very humanity and finite experience.

Below are two songs from my CD Priorities which echo some of the sentiments of this post. Click on title to listen, click on lyric to read.

Bath of Joy (lyrics/reveries)

Gaps (lyrics/reveries

Jim Guido

Twin Spin

I thought I’d just post a couple of my songs for your listening pleasure. These both are from the CD Take Me which can be found in the music section of this site. After reading and listening to these please visit the music section for more.

The first song is energetic thrash and the second is island ska.

Take Me Press highlight at left to play.

Take Me

Come here and touch me honey
There’s nothing more left to say
I’ve used all my cunning
Yet there you stay
I’ve assaulted you with emotion
Left you to yourself
Provided all the motion
You’ve watched me like a cat

Scenes like this really cause me pain
For I want to hold you, but I just refrain
I’ve never been the type to take the lead
Only with words can I state love, and how I feel

I’m spooked by you
Take me within yourself

Spent days in your basement
Exposed goblins for what they are
Set you free from your nightmares
Yet my monsters still get in the way

I’m spooked by you
Take me within yourself

Press highlight below to play Dance for Me

Dance For Me

Dance For Me

Dance for me
I would like to see you move so free
The movement of your hips sends waves thru me
You could be my raft, take me out to sea
When I see you move, I’m all with you
Your rhythms take me away

Dance for me, dance for me
Show me love and give me pleasure
Give me life so I need no other
Move like lightning and I’ll supply the thunder

Dance for me
I just have to reach out when you encircle me
It’s so very hot in this tropic zone
I’m feeling weak from the heat

Woman be my island, I lap at your shore
These rhythms keep demanding more

Dance for me, dance for me
Show me love and give me pleasure
Give me life so I need no other
Move like lightning and I’ll supply the thunder

Dance for me
You are the one, you are the one
My little island
Dance for me

Stern Fortune

David Stern’s rule as NBA commissioner has truly been an example of the right person (wrong person) at the right time. Mr. Stern basks in the good fortune of leading the NBA during a time when its global popularity has grown substantially. Yet, if one takes a closer look at what truly contributed to pro basketball’s rise in popularity, Mr. Stern looks more like a fortunate beneficiary and less like a business genius.

Most major sports have enjoyed a rise in popularity since WWII. One would have to say that both a rise in the standard of living and the birth of national television coverage gave people the time and resources to become more avid fans.

The exposure to the daily world of sports has exploded with each advance in new technology ever since the ticker tape and radio became common tools, and the newspaper became a daily consumable.

Yet, the explosion of sports coverage and its general exposure really took off with live television coverage of major sporting events. Of the major three sports baseball was most understandable by radio coverage. The speed and focused almost linear action of the game was easy to depict through radio play-by-play. An announcer could give a fair description of the action by following the ball during each pitch and play. I remember feeling quite comfortable following the action of a game when listening to a broadcast on my transistor radio.

Basketball and football, on the other hand, had far more complex action which made it hard to follow and get an accurate image of while I listened to a play-by-play. In the early days of professional sports television coverage baseball still enjoyed a slight advantage. Though the cameras had difficulty covering the actual flight of the ball the cameras easily tracked the action by following the movement of the players on the journey to the ball and the action of the players as the went around the bases.

Early black and white television coverage did not initially improve the accessibility of football and basketball. The instability of the early cameras made the action jump around a little and could leave a viewer a little dizzy. The black and white cameras had the football too often blend in to the field and to the darker uniforms. The dim lighting of indoor arenas doomed much of the early attempts to capture basketball action on camera. The screen was often dominated by shadows with occasional glimpses of players leaping out of the shadows. Though baseball could have used more cameras the lack of cameras was more profound to football and basketball telecasts.

The advent of color cameras and TV’s produced a dramatic improvement in live sports coverage and greatly enhanced a viewers ability to follow the action. The color differentiation greatly enhanced one’s ability to follow the complex action of basketball and football. The enhanced clarity of each new generation of camera made it possible to see players faces and even their expressions.

In the long run it was the improvements in technology which allowed football and basketball to become fun spectator sports. Techniques such as instant replay, slow-motion and stop action highlighted the artistry and athleticism of the two sports.

The speed of life was greatly increasing for the average American, and many wanted their sports to be faster and more action packed. Football and basketball filled the bill.

I believe changes in lifestyle and technology had more to with the growth in popularity of football and basketball than did marketing and advertising. While both sports benefited from advances in modern television cameras the poor lighting of the average basketball arena made it the last to be visually appealing.

I believe that one could make a strong case that David Stern’s tactics have done more to squander the opportunity that laid before him, than capitalize on it. I do acknowledge he has done an admirable job of marketing a product, yet in my estimation he has injured the very product he has marketed. In the long run I think the popularity of basketball would have been better served by having a commissioner who understood and valued the integrity and artistry of the sport.

J im Guido

Stern Consequences

In my last post I presented my case of how David Stern’s control freak nature and his apparent obsession with packaging basketball into “boffo” early Hollywood  like entertainment  has injured the integrity and beauty of the sport. He has encouraged the game to be called in favor of superstars and even modified rules to create a freakshow mentality.

If today’s big man (Shaq) friendly rules existed in the 60’s, then Wilt would have won a lot of championships and Bill Russel would be the visual recipient of poster dunks and have many fingers free of those cumbersome championship rings he won. Could you just imagine what a true athletic big man like Wilt could have done if he were allowed to bulk his way to the basket and play defense with no fear of fouling out?  Remember that after a long grueling career in the NBA Wilt retired and played professional level volley ball, he truly was a freakish athletic specimen and a carnival huckster like Stern would have savored the entertainment value he offered.

Another example of Stern’s control freak style is in how he has recast the role of NBA refs as the extension of his iron rule. Refs routinely give technicals to players who “show up” the refs. Freedom of speech and expression might be acceptable for US citizens but not to the totalitarian rule of the basketball Czar. Players and coaches who make any comments which could be construed as critical of the league, Mr. Stern or the refs can be finded and suspended with no real recourse.

Now, Mr. Stern is considering extending his iron rule to the Orwellian world of thought police. The NBA announced plans to begin to fine players who apparently flop on the court trying to draw a charging foul. This will entitle Mr. Stern and NBA officials the freedom to divine the intentions of a basketball player. I would like to point out that players would prefer to stay on their feet when someone charges into them, but if they kept standing the refs usually wouldn’t blow their whistle and call a foul. Players only began routinely falling down to try and force the ref to make the call they should have made in the first place.

The current scandal involving the supposed one bad apple of a ref that bet on and fixed over a hundred games he officiated in a three year span, is a natural outgrowth of Stern’s tendency to modify the rules to assist in the entertainment value of pro basketball. It’s not too far to go from not having stars foul out to creating the best storyline insuring fan interest. Why shouldn’t a series go a couple of extra games to maximize profits and keep fans wanting more? Why shouldn’t good win over evil, or evil sometimes have its day if it makes for good entertainment? Gosh, look how profitable it has been for pro wrestling.

I’m not at all surprised to hear the accused ref admit that he was often told by league officials to call a game a specific way. Ralph Nader was not the only basketball fan who thought the playoff series between Sacramento and LA was fixed. I know many fans such as myself who were neutral o even pulling for LA who immediately smelled something fishy. For Stern to deny even suspecting something only makes him look all the more guilty.

Stern looks even worse when he says the matter has been completely investigated and one of the other officials who worked that series publicly states that the league never questioned him. It also seems beyond reason that one ref working on his own could fix so many games without arousing suspicion by his colleagues or the league office.
Years before this scandal broke a majority of my friends began losing interest and trust in the NBA. I must admit I still watch an occasional game of my favorite team the Bulls, and I do watch a few of the playoff games. Only when Stern is removed and the integrity of the game is somewhat restored will I and my friends become frequent watchers of NBA basketball.

In my next post I will debunk the Stern generated myth that his tenure has made basketball a more popular sport.  For Stern to take credit for the popularity of NBA basketball is like Jed Clampett saying his millions were a natural outgrowth of his great business acumen.

Jim Guido