Benster and D Pick Your Games -- Desperation Time Edition

Old dude, the Vikings and the Packers both need a win badly this weekend, and I am going to examine why one team is getting an unfair amount of praise.

Fair, as always, is a relative term. But this is your show, so go on.

Also, it is rivalry weekend, so we get to enjoy the extra helping of hate that your grandmother never offered to serve yesterday. I hear hate goes well with turkey.

That stuffing takes on a whole new and sinister meaning sometimes.

Excellent point, Geritol Fan!

If I wear a hat, it doesn't show.

That explains your penchant for ball caps.

I've been wearing 'em since I was little. You have, too.

I appreciate your Hallmark Channel nostalgia trip, but we have games to pick and bile to flow. So it is time to watch me work and discuss these games.

Minnesota Golden Elite Rowers of the Boat (-12) vs. Beloved Wisconsin Badgers. P.J. Fleck is a man who seems to make millions of dollars despite not focusing on his actual job. The U is employing Fleck to coach football games, not to sell merchandise with oars on it. What has Fleck actually accomplished on the football field that merits the attention he gets? Paul Chryst never is outspoken, but he has delivered results and provided his university with tangible values. Minnesota is not very good, and it's clear that Fleck cares more about coming up with stupid phrases that some intern can slap on a shirt and make a quick buck. The Badgers should win the Axe yet again and then Fleck can continue to make up silly slogans while flushing his reputation down the drain, hoping he can rip off some other university into caring more about stupid puns you can put on a shirt, compared to results on the field. Badgers 35, Gophers 0.

Merch, baby! Gotta love the merch! I actually think Fleck got the first shot across his rowboat yesterday, when Patrick Reusse of the Star Tribune game him the annual Turkey of the year award. That's usually an early warning for most Gophers coaches that their act is getting stale. The issue for the Gophers is simple -- you can't win in the Big Ten with freshman walk-on quarterbacks. It hasn't been that stellar a year for Bucky Badger, either, but they won't relinquish the Ax in this game, to this Gopher team, especially in Madison. Badgers 31, Gophers 17.

Michigan Wolverines (-5) vs. A School In Columbus. As much as I have no love lost with Row The Boat, at least Row the Boat didn't do what Urban Liar did. The winner of this game will get to play Northwestern next week for a chance to go to the playoff. Michigan has impressed me, though the trademark Wolverine bandwagon arrogance is back, too. A School in Columbus would love nothing more than to spoil Michigan's ambitions, though at the end of the day Buckeye fans have to defend their school keeping a coach that enabled someone on his staff to do horrible things to a family member. Michigan 20, A School In Columbus 0.

I would not be surprised if Urban Meyer steps down at the end of this season; he looks physically ill on the sidelines. His moral sickness aside, that's what will end his career in Columbus. Having seen both teams play on television multiple times, it seems clear that the Wolverines are the superior outfit. The game is in Columbus, which makes it tough, but I'll pick the better squad. Michigan 27, Ohio State 21.

Glorious Green Bay Packers (+3.5) vs. Minnesota Vikings. Gather around kids, we are going to discuss the concept of media bias in football reporting. The Packers are getting slammed everywhere you look, and a lot of it is fair. The coaching staff is playing too conservatively at times, and the coaching staff arguably caused the loss last week. However, the Packers are only a game out of the playoffs and have played the hardest schedule in the league without backing down. The Vikings got overrun in LA, the Packers did not. The Packers beat the Bears, the Vikings did not. The Packers killed Buffalo at home, the Vikings got beat badly. The Packers have the easiest schedule in the NFL the rest of the way, while the Vikings have the hardest schedule in the league down the stretch and the Kirk Cousins gamble is still questionable, even by the cheerleader local media. The national media will not admit this, because the media is desirous that the Vikings do well because last year was a great story, though it was built on a myth. Aaron Rodgers understands the situation well, since he knows this team is very close to greatness. Aaron also wants to humiliate the Vikings because they ended his season last year on the very field the game is being played on. In addition, the Packers should have won in Week 2, and the Vikings missing that field goal is evidence that the football gods knew it too. Time for the Packers to put the fear of God into the rest of the league. Packers 31. Vikings 27.

A stirring defense! I don't believe a word of it, though. As Bill Parcells says, you are what your record says you are, and the Packers are 4-5-1. There are no moral victories in football and playing top opponents well, but losing, means losing. It does not matter whether the Rams were worried, or if the Patriots had to break a sweat, or if the Seahawks were squawking. The losses are losses. As for Sunday night, I think the Packers could absolutely beat the Vikings, but they will have to prove they can stop the Vikings running game. The jury is out on Dalvin Cook, but the record indicates that other running backs have performed well against the Green Bay defense. I also seem to remember you counseling that it's always a good idea to pick the desperate team at home. I am hopeful you've noticed both teams are pretty desperate. Vikings 27, Packers 24.

Enjoy your football this weekend, and hopefully you didn't get into a fight about Trump yesterday at your dinner table. Ben out!

OMG TRO MOA BLM WTF #belaborthepoint

The holiday season is upon us and as always, there are plenty of returns:

With a planned demonstration by Black Lives Matter at the Mall of America less than two days away, a Hennepin County judge on Monday heard arguments over whether the shopping complex has the right to a restraining order against protesters.

In its request, the mall named four leaders of Black Lives Matter and asked Judge Karen Janisch to prevent them from encouraging people to demonstrate Wednesday and to take down any social media messages about the event.

The mall also wanted Black Lives Matter to post a social media message canceling the demonstration and to post a copy of the judge's restraining order, if one is issued.

Attorney Jordan Kushner, representing the named Black Lives Matter leaders, said the mall seeks to restrict the constitutional right to free speech.

I don't have a dog in this fight, but I suspect the entire BLM movement is running out of gas. The Jamar Clark case gave them an excuse to continue protesting, but it's difficult to see the point of returning to the Mall of America, other than to be irritating. And while you can argue that BLM is championing free speech, they aren't necessarily fans of due process, as the Star Tribune reports:

Organizers have no plans to halt the demonstration, they say, unless authorities release the tapes related to Jamar Clark's case, prosecute police by special prosecutor without a grand jury and bring federal terrorism charges against those accused of shooting five protesters in November near a protest at the Fourth Precinct police headquarters.

Can't have a grand jury involved, because they might not reach the decision that BLM wants. Actually, my favorite novel legal theory from BLM is this one, also from the Star Tribune article:

This isn't just about Black Lives Matter, Noor said, but for everybody's free speech.

She said the mall is the "people's space" because of all the taxpayer subsidies it has received over the years. She said Janisch appeared open and fair during the hearing.

So, if a homeowner takes out an FHA loan, which is ultimately subsidized by the taxpayers, does that mean BLM has the right to start chanting in your breakfast nook? And next year, do you suppose that BLM will be able to march out on the field during the middle of a Vikings game because their new stadium will also be subsidized by the taxpayers? Good luck with that one.