Up here in Seattle, we still remember when the King Dome was imploded (March 26, 2000) to make way for the new SafeCo Stadium that is now home to the Seattle Mariners baseball team. Earlier this morning, the old Texas Stadium was finally imploded now that Jerry Jones’ new Coliseum has finally been finished. So here’s a news clip of the Texas Stadium implosion. And with all the serious stuff about Dr. Amen’s brain scan study and concussions, we’re also including a little bit of humor from Mark Gungor on the difference between men‘s and women’s brains. Have a great Sunday!
There were few people who didn’t like Merlin Olsen. He passed away early today in Salt Lake City at the age of 69 after a long battle with mesothelioma, a cancer of the lungs.
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Merlin was a class act and his talents went beyond the football field. He remained a familiar face announcing games for years after playing the game. And he was a Hall of Famer. After playing in Super Bowl XV in 1981, I remember Merlin as one of the announcers! Olson also went on to successful acting career in such television series like Little House on the Prairie. Here are a couple of lead stories in today’s news:Click HERE and HERE.
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And here’s a video tribute to the Fearsome Foursome:
Thanks to the folks over at Hulu, the documentary Blood Equity is now available for viewing online. Read our earlier post about the video – click HERE. (You can expand the video to Full Screen by clicking on the enlarge button in the upper right corner of the screen after the first sponsor clip finishes.)
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You can also purchase your own commercial-free copy of the DVD on Amazon:
We finally have Bernie Parrish’s testimony before the Congressional Judiciary Committee on concussions which was recently held at Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit on January 4, 2010. Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) and his staff did an incredible job of organizing this hearing on such short notice just after the new year. You can still watch the entire 5 hr :22 min hearing in an earlier post by clicking HERE.
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This is a large video file (over 100 Mb!) and we’ve hosted it at online video host eSnips – we’re clipping it here on our blog. You can also download the entire video to your computer for viewing later.
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Bernie makes a strong case for more investigations into the League and the Union’s ongoing efforts against retired players. Be sure to watch the first 5 seconds where the New NEW NFL Alumni Executive Director George Martin gets up and leaves the hearing room before Bernie speaks - and Bernie was gracious enough to sit through his earlier speech.
This blog has only been up for almost two years. But Dave’s been personally at his battle for over 25 years. And guys like Bernie Parrish have been at it for well over 40 years – long before most of today’s players were even born (well, maybe not Brett Favre…). There’s no doubt that this past year has been an interesting one. It’s been full of a lot of ups-and-downs with a lot of side trips that can get a little distracting at times. With the economy tanking and people losing their jobs all over the country, it’s hard not to get frustrated occasionally. Tempers can flare and passions will rise. But there’s no doubt that the issues which have always been most important to the retired players are gaining more visibility than ever because of everyone’s collective efforts.
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Even with the long road ahead of us, there are a lot of things that have happened in 2009 that no one expected to see:
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Congress holds hearings on the impact of concussions in football;
The NFLPA appoint a new Executive Director who immediately settles the Parrish vs. NFLPA/Players Inc. class action lawsuit;
Independent retired football players organize and hold their first Summit in Las Vegas;
Coverage of concussions expands into the mainstream media;
Dr. No resigns from the NFL’s “Mild” Traumatic Brain Injury Committee;
The NFL winds down its brain concussion studies;
The NFL publicly acknowledges the seriousness of concussions and finally begins to develop new rules regarding on-field concussions;
There were few people who didn’t like Merlin Olsen. He passed away early today in Salt Lake City at the age of 69 after a long battle with mesothelioma, a cancer of the lungs.