I think that there are a lot of idiots that don’t pay a fucking penny in taxes that are more than happy to have other people finance the local stadium.

I dunno. If Grantland was filled with such brilliant people, why did it not make money? I know that’s hard to confirm, but I think that if the site had been profitable, it would still be there.

I liked Simmons at first because his writing was funny. I never thought he was very insightful, or at least as insightful as others. His writing just cracked me up. But his style never changed and, after awhile, all the Shawshank Redemption references, etc. just got stale.

I can’t say because I don’t give a shit about the Ringer. I didn’t like Grantland, either, except for Barnwell and the Game of Thrones recap so I never checked out the new site.

Swans are probably the most territorial animal on the planet.

Hey, your headline misquotes Simmons. What the piece has him saying is ““ESPN has now gotten rid of everybody who is a little off the beaten path. Ask yourself this: ‘Who could work there that you respect right now?’”

Think about it: The only time anyone cares about Simmons anymore is when someone writes a piece about him getting canned from ESPN. That’s the only way the guy can get press. IMO, his new site isn’t worth visiting and the promos for the HBO show are not exactly enticing, either.

My take on Simmons is this: When all the Boston teams sucked, he was hilarious to read because he had the same bitches every suffering fan has and he wrote about them very well. The Red Sox Grady Little era was prime Simmons.

Barnwell is; other than that, I’m not sure. Barnwell and the guy that did the Game of Thrones recaps were the only regulars I really liked at G-Land.

I don’t know, but they’ve had Olbermann on-and-off over the years and I’d say he’s way more well-known than Simmons.

Nah, you just have to give the jackass a mike and let him shit all over himself and laugh. It’s probably his biggest talent.

Please. Everyone bags on Goodell. Everyone. The fact Simmons did it too doesn’t make him a martyr or a hero.

That’s a cold, well-reasoned, largely agreed upon take, Sir.

True, but he’s beat the living shit out of the same pop culture responses for about a decade.

I agree. I can’t see The Ringer getting the traffic that Grantland got solely because it was plastered on ESPN’s landing page. Barnwell was awesome at G-Land and I liked the Game of Thrones recaps but a lot of the other regulars kinda sucked, IMO.

I don’t agree with that. To believe in God, you must have faith. To believe God does not exist does not require faith because there’s nothing to indicate that God exists.

No, I think people that genuinely believe what is in the Bible are truly deranged. Dracula is more realistic in many ways than the Bible and if I believed in vampires you’d be right to think I’m not quite right in the head.

Generally, I don’t disagree with anything you’ve written but I tend to look at it slightly differently.

We’re talking in huge generalities, but I disagree with you. I think Rand is well known in conservative circles. Her books still sell today.

That’s my experience as well. A strange thing about Rand is that all these religious conservatives love her and guess who else did?