The NFL, HD GBs, and the SCOTUS

I didn't have time to log yesterday, but I have time for some stored up thoughts today:

+ First: the NFL playoffs.

I was pretty happy to see the Steelers win, not least of all because Eric's such a big fan. I like Rothlisberger and Cohwer. I really like the city of Pittsburgh. And, as much as the reporters hyped it, I wasn't surprised to see Pittsburgh win. They were on a roll and Indy hadn't played 'a meaningful game' (as the talking heads kept harping) in a while.

My only disappointment was for Coach Dungy. He's such a great guy, all the more confirmed by this quote [ source]:

When pressed on the one missing link from his resume, a Super Bowl title, Dungy said he could walk away from the game without it.

"That's one of the blessings from my son's situation is that it puts everything in perspective," he said. "I'm sure I'll get over this a lot quicker than I will my son. It's a tough deal, but there are a lot more important things in scope of it than us not winning a Super Bowl."

I hope he comes back for the sake of the game, but I hope, more than that, that he'll do what's best for his family.

That Pittsburgh-Indy game was crazy. Up and down and up and down. Rothlisberger has a great game. I think it's safe to say the Steelers didn't know how much they were getting when they drafted him and Willie Parker.

I did think the officiating in that game was pretty iffy, not least of all the no-call when Indy rushed across the line saying someone had flinched. If you stop play in that situation, there should be a call.

The Panthers really dropped the boom on Chicago. We took a break from football to play a little GameCube and by the time we got back to it, Carolina was up 20 to 0 (or something like that). There's no way the mediocre Bears offense is coming back from that against a good Carolina defense.

On to next week:

I think Pittsburgh's luck's about to run out. They've had to play two weeks on the road, and now they go into Denver. Denver had a week off and looked the best of all the bye teams. I'd like Pittsburgh to win, but I don't see it happening. There's no doubt they could get it done. I hope they do. But I don't think they will.

But I'm going to pick Carolina again. They've really been on a roll. I think they'll keep getting it done, even with their injuries (especially if Julius Peppers can come back). Steve Smith is amazing right now. On the Seattle side, I don't see them beating Carolina without Shaun Alexander at full strength. Maybe he'll get there. Plus, Carolina's streaky, and they could fall flat on their face again. But they seem to get up for these Super Bowl runs pretty well these days.

On pure talent and consistency, I think Denver's the best team left. And I'm sorry to say that, because they're my least favorite team. I respect Mike Shanahan, but I don't like him. I think his elite O-line is, without a doubt, the best way to build a football team. But, at the same time, they play right on the edge of dirty with cut blocks and salary cap cheating. If it comes down to talent and consistency, I pick Denver to win it all. But if Pittsburgh or Carolina can stay hot and lucky, they could win two more. Seattle's the dark horse, in my view, unless they all of a sudden catch fire.

+ New hard drive technology will continue to drive up capacity and drive down cost. doing the math on this article, we could be looking at 800 GB in a 2.5 inch drive for 325$ in five years. Need that much space? ;-) Of course, more and more, we'll transition to wireless and storing data on the internet instead of locally. I love thinking about this stuff (though I don't have the discretionary income to buy much of it).

+ Here's a fun little article on the Roberts Court. (Remember that part in Two Weeks' Notice when she names the Sup.s to show she's in her right mind? Funny.) What can I say? I like Judge Roberts.

My only concern so far is his support for judge pay raises. I suppose it's just economics, that we want to keep good judges and not lose them to more lucrative jobs. I think this is Roberts' main motivation. On the other hand, $162,500 and $175,100. seems like plenty of money to me. I'd especially be interested in your take on this, Paul.