Trolling Twitter: News & Notes on a Saturday

There's a new Bond film coming, and it looks a lot like the original films' ethos, updated with modern production values.  That's not a bad thing, but while I expect we'll continue to see a grittier Bond, the series itself changed a lot when Daniel Craig took over.  Now it seems to be returning to form.

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More European businesses are coming under Chinese ownership http://t.co/4e69hbcjLx pic.twitter.com/AJAvnC57Yd
— The Economist (@TheEconomist) March 28, 2015

This article asks the wrong question.  It's not "Who owns these businesses?", it's "How much did they pay?"  There was an uproar in the States back in the '80s when Japanese interests bought up a bunch of American landmark properties like Rockafeller Center.  But those Japanese interests overpaid badly and ultimately lost huge sums of money, and most of the landmark buildings have since returned to domestic control.

Ultimately, management has a responsibility to shareholders to sell to the highest bidder.  If that bidder is Chinese, then so be it.  As a matter of reality, these kinds of cross-cultural deals have a poor track record because cultural differences can be hard to overcome.  However, it's not like European business is exactly kicking ass right now, so maybe a change of management is in order.  It is at least not something to necessarily fret about.

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Games vs. independents like Army will count towards SEC non Power 5 conference oppoinent. Via ESPN. http://t.co/gBfAKSzYZ9 #goARMY
— Army Football (@Army_Football) March 19, 2015

From the article:

"Games against FBS independents BYU, Army and Notre Dame will now count toward the SEC's requirement of playing one nonconference Power 5 team per season, sources told ESPN.com.

Beginning in 2016, the SEC will require its league members to play at least one nonconference Power 5 team. Notre Dame had always been included as a nonconference Power 5 team by the SEC, but the league recently decided to also allow games against BYU and Army to count, sources said."

Believe it or not, a lot of folks are up in arms about this.  They point out--correctly--that Army hasn't had a whole lot of winning seasons recently.  But Army has a certain place in college football history, and I think the SEC would like to support Army's program, hence the ruling.  As a matter of reality, Army officials know that they will always be heavy underdogs in any game against an SEC opponent, but they still put those teams on the schedule because they want to give their best players a chance to get some tape against the best possible opponents.

No matter the outcome... Blessed to have this opportunity. #PrayersUp #VeteranCombine pic.twitter.com/RlNKm1NBG7
— Trent Steelman (@Trent_Steelman) March 22, 2015

Yes, most of Army's squad will be overmatched against an SEC team.  However, a few may stand out, and those guys--like former Army QB Trent Steelman--may even get a chance to audition for NFL scouts some day.  Even without the NFL, however, Army would still like to give its best players chances to compete at the very highest levels.  This is a lauduble if highly challenging ideal.

On another note, I've started working on a Spring Football report for this year's Army team.  Look for that in the next few weeks.  Spoiler Alert: The O-Line looks much improved, but no one knows who's gonna start at quarterback.

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Neville with the Red Arrow! #NXTSanJose #nxt #superwrestlecation

A photo posted by Pat Loika (@patloika) on Mar 28, 2015 at 1:14am PDT

I have no idea who this is, nor do I remember why I follow this Pat dude on Instagram.  However, this is one amazing picture.  WOW!

I always wonder what's going through the mind of the guy who's about to get get landed on.

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I think I'm done here.  Have a good weekend.