Teach me how to Twitter, Teach me, Teach me how to Twitter

That video has no relevance to this blog, I just thought I’d try to get everyone in a good mood Monday morning because you can’t not watch this video and not want to #shuffleatwork. If you haven’t noticed lately I have been throwing #ahashtahgonjustaboutanythingandeverything. I’m not stupid and think that it works on Facebook comments, most of my #motivation derives from wanting to piss of @Shukis.

I’ve had a Twitter account for a years but have used it sparingly, not seeing a need for it. I always appreciated its perks of trending topics, following cool people, and retweeting but it wasn’t until the “Facebook to Twitter linkage” capability became available that I really started to utilize it.

As a society, we strive for appreciation and recognition. Facebook acts a forum for people to post whatever they want and have their friends like, bicker, and boast all in one box. Whereas, Twitter was more of a place for straight self-branding with less room for feedback, which is we why post things anyway. If we didn’t want people to see it we wouldn’t post it and we would all be writing in diaries.

You could always “favorite” a tweet, reply, and retweet but those features weren’t as popular as liking and commenting on Facebook. There are a Half Billion people on Facebook so the odds of someone interacting with you are much higher than on Twitter. Twitter is a little more niche, a little more confusing, and took a longer time for people to pick-up on.

I’m all about the here and now, the 15 minutes of fame, and reflecting back on the semi-nostalgic things I can make jokes about that were cool five years ago but really lame now (see Fallout Boy). Twitter provides a great platform for me to conjure up these figments of our recent past and poke fun at how they are no longer relevant.

Most of us peasants have followers that are very similar to our Facebook friends and bots, so why would we post something Facebook for all to see, then go to Twitter and post the very same thing for pretty much the same people to see the same exact thing? But being on a first-handle basis with the world’s most influential people gives us a personal experience that Facebook has yet to conquer.

Twitter gives me that little glimmer of hope that someone like Tony Kornheiser (@MrTonySays) or Gary Vaynerchuk (@garyvee) might catch a glimpse and appreciate one of my @Mackinisms, adopt it virally, spike my followage, and ultimately enable me to become an international social media superhero.

I also recently got a Droid which has allowed me to sync all my accounts much easier than before on the MackBerry. I used to be addicted to the CrackBerry but now I have caught Tydroid (like Typhoid). With everything N* Sync I have am able and willing to post freely, whereas in the past I was willing but less able. Now I’m tweeting, blogging, posting, and check-ining with no regard whatsoever as to how annoying it can be.

How bout Justin’s pants? I remember watching that performance on the Disney Channel right before “Brink.” I used to think Twitter was a fad and I still am not 100% convinced it will be around forever. I think Facebook is eventually going to take over the world with “Branch Out” (Facebook’s Linked in), “Deals” (Facebook’s Groupon), and eventually incorporating a viable music competitor with iTunes or Music Beta.

However, I don’t necessarily think that becoming the Wal-Mart of socialnomics is a good thing. It is a new thing that is still changing everyday and they all have a ridic-a-lic-a-lous amount of room to grow. (I know I’m going back to posting too many videos that I’m probably the one thinks are funny but PLEASE watch this video! It is my second favorite 90s movie, behind “Matilda.”)

Paying College Athletes

I come to you this warm January morning giddy with excitement because I get to ramble on a subject that truly interests me. It involves college sports, politics, economics, and free swag which is right up my alley. The issue of paying college athletes has been up for debate ever since LaLa Bonilla tried to convince her boyfriend, Jesus Shuttlesworth to go to the school of her crew’s choice instead of going to Big State University.

The issue has recently heated back up with National Champion and Heisman Trophy Winner, Cam Newton being involved in the alleged scandal of soliciting schools for the highest “pay for play” scenario possible. There are the traditionalists that believe that college is for students and that they should not be paid. Then there are the people who feel they should be paid just as much as professional athletes if it is equivalent to their value to the university.

I normally tend to side with the old school conservatives with my mentor, Tony Kornheiser but his predecessor, Bill Simmons has led me to new water. I don’t think student athletes should be negotiating contracts with schools and they should not deal breakers on why a student chooses a particular university. However, I do feel as though students should be compensated for the amount of time they put into their sport.

Many student athletes are recruited to go to college to play sports and for many of those students it is the only way they can financially attend college, by means of athletic scholarship. They are sometimes given free room and board which covers tuition, dorm, and a meal plan. In most instances students have to come out-of-pocket for other necessities and small luxuries that they cannot afford on their parents’ low income. Things as simple as books, a computer, school supplies, and even a new first day of school outfit become hard to come by for some families.

I certainly am not one for another form of socialized welfare for families to be able to afford their child’s tuition. Financial Aid is available to millions of people who do not take advantage of it and drawing from that pot doesn’t solve the issue. I believe that if student athletes should be paid a monthly stipend for their time and contributions to the university. Some students bring in millions of dollars in revenue to a particular school and are given nothing more than free swag.

While every young athlete loves free stuff, it is not liquid, you are not allowed to sell or trade any university given products. You cannot go to a tattoo artist and say “how about I pay you in jersey”? Oh wait…With a T Mobile Sidekick cell phone bill to pay, many of these athletes have no income of which to draw from to pay for simple amenities. If they were compensated around $2,000 a month they would have plenty of money to go to In-N-Out every once in a while instead of eating at the DC. They could afford to take that flu honey they’ve been trying to holler at in Dayton to a movie and maybe even spring for Yogurtland to seal the deal.

Now, where does all this money come from? Whether the school is privatized or a state-run institution, I feel the money should come from their schools general athletic fund. If a school has a sport that generates revenue and is profitable than it should pay its employees. If the women’s field hockey team lost money than it should be cut from being a Varsity sport and if students want to play, they can revitalize it as a club sport with paying dues.

College athletics are a business and any successful business knows it is only good as its employees. If employees have financial issues where they cannot fully focus on “work” then the odds are against them to perform at their highest ability. That then hurts not only the student but affects the school’s success as well. Obviously, higher education isn’t in the best economic state right now but if school’s want to profit from their students’ talents they should show them some good faith.

Here’s is where my idea can possibly turn into a successful slippery slope. If students from lower-income households are able to get a college education and come out of college with money saved, there is a better chance they will be successful in the workplace than if they were to come out of college with nothing but a University Studies degree, a bunch practice gear, and the pressing temptation to start “slangin’ rocks on the cona with the rest of dem boyz.”

We are all naive as to think that many top collegiate athletes are not recruited without adding in some extra incentives into the picture. It may not be cash for the student but it may be a rent-free house or car payment for Reggie Bush’s parents that would allow Reggie’s parents to buy him some Air Max 95s for his birthday (I also have a birthday coming up 😉 if they so wanted to.

Or in some blatant cases it may be “straight cash homey.” Where the student or a family member negotiates on the student’s behalf for X amount of dollars. With these types of conversations occurring every day it only hurts the team as a whole. If Cam Newton is getting paid $250,000 to come to play football, how does his walk-on offensive lineman feel when he is barely on scholarship scraping by at a private school that he really cannot afford?

This is my biggest issue. I am all about fairness and leveling the playing field and I don’t believe it is right to pay some athletes and not others. That is like Pat Riley saying “we are going to pay LeBron, Bosh, and Wade all of our money and if anyone else wants to come play, we’ll hook you up with some sweatpants.” By the way, I don’t like them but “The Heatles” nickname is genius.

Even if a student wanted to get a job while in college it becomes nearly impossible with time restrictions limited to going to school full-time and playing a sport full-time. If they cut back on their studies and their grades drop they cannot play. If they skip practice, then they can’t play. If they decide not to sleep and work instead, then all three areas drop significantly. It is the age-old double edged sword where they are damned if they do and damned if they don’t.

Now that I think about it, this is one of my more professional blogs, if anyone wants to site me in any papers feel free to do so and I will buy you a beer.