#which makes it superior bc i miss the 2000s

[everythingsinred]

im so terrified that nobody but me or zoe will ever fully understand this but the MOST natsumikan coded media outside of ga that exists is keith (2008) directed by the co-creator of blue's clues and starring 2000s heart-throb and pop star jesse mccartney who does not contribute any music to the soundtrack at all and is simply there to act, which he does surprisingly well.

if i were to explain why.... the only spoiler-free way of doing so is saying.... assigned school partners to lovers. anyway

[mayorofclowntown]

I'm dying my hair soon and realized that I'm embracing my inner raccoon bc I'm doing the raccoon hair thingy but also, in passing thought,

ghost would get a kick out of the fact raccoon, not on field, has (had) raccoon dyed hair. Like he's learning about his apprentice and it was brought up that raccoon had to dye his hair a natural color (black) because he had funky dyed hair. Should I write a thing about it?

The answer is Yes enjoy my writing.

--

Ghost sat there while Raccoon trimmed his hair- he wasn't ready to get rid of the longer frames that sat on the sides his face. If Ghost had a choice (which he does), he could take a razor and buzz all the hair off. "Get rid if it all together," His rough voice echoed in Raccoons ears. "Problem solved."

That only gets Raccoon to respond with, "Easy for you, you're probably bald under that mask." Every time, too.

Ghost, this time, watched him. He was staring directly at the back of the kids head, watching him turn his head every now and then before staring at the mirror- at himself. With how tall he was compared to Raccoon, Ghost could see where his hair started to grow- noticing the way that lighter brown hair peered through black hair. It only took Ghost a solid second to realize that his hair was dyed. "You dyed your hair."

Raccoon flinched at his voice, looking at Ghost through the mirror, behind him. His eyebrow raised before he nodded, "I needed to dye it a natural color- only natural colored hair, nothin' funky." He put the scissors down- fully turning himself to face Ghost. "Personally, if I had the choice, I'd have bright pink hair."

Ghost huffed, before tilting his head. "You had unnaturally dyed hair, then?" Raccoon nodded. "I assume, then, pink?"

"No, I don't look good in pink," He said dryly. Ghost watched as Raccoon twirled the longer pieces, hands trailing down to scratch his jaw as he looked up. "I've had a multitude of colors. I dyed my hair before the military to like... Purple and Black." His hand ran down one half of his head, as if he were flattening his hair down. He then futzed with the long framing pieces. "You ever dyed your hair, L.t.?"

"Once. Didn't like it."

"Boring." His hand that wasn't messing with the layers of his hair gave a thumbs down, and Ghost glared at him through the eyes of the mask. Raccoon flipped his hair, "You should try it once your outta here- it's addictive."

"No, thanks," Ghost watched as Raccoon put his hands back in his lap, legs crossed uncomfortably in the chair (Soap once asked him if he needed to stand, to which Raccoon said "I'm comfy like this.").

"Suit yourself." Raccoon shook his head, feeling the weight of less hair on his head as it weighed in that he cut it before looking up. "I had a funky hairstyle- same with this but the sides were longer." One hand measured it down: from the side of his head down under his chin, closer to his shoulder. "I had alternating colors."

"Seems like a lot," He tried imagining Raccoon with the hair: Half black hair, the top bit black, the longer side purple. The opposite side... The opposite. "Black to purple, purple to black?" Ghost tilted his head back, chuckling. He didn't miss the way Raccoons eyes lit up (Raccoon prides himself for making Ghost laugh.) before squinting at him. "Top to bottom- Black to purple. Purple to black."

"No, no like- You were around during the late 2000s, the raccoon hair!" He exclaimed, before grabbing his right frame, his fingers cutting at the top, "Purple," he scissored downward, "Black. Purple, Black. You know what I'm talking about, right?"

Ghost stared at him before closing his eyes. Then, a sudden jolt from him- a chuckle. A longer, more pronounced chuckle than before. Raccoon stared at him before tilting his head up, keeping his eyes on his superior. Ghost's chuckle faded into a laughter, quiet, raspy. Barely even there, which made Raccoon almost proud of himself- The Ghost, laughing. It dawned on him that, well, Ghost was laughing at him, so he sat up in the chair, "What are you even laughing at?!"

"Raccoon. Raccoon tail," Ghost put his hands out, boxing his words as he added another invisible box next to the other. His hands found his thighs as he controlled himself. "You really live up to the raccoon lifestyle; Aggressive, baggy eyes, your hair-"

"Oh Come on! It's just cool!"

---

Did

Did you read it. It's probably all over the place but I don't care. I'm slaying in my silly little self insert and I don't CARE put me in a room with Ghost and I can make him laugh trust me.

[shamemp3]

can ihave a peter parker reading list?

yes! there’s obv a lot of peter comics so i’ll try to only include important/good storylines (but sometimes the important stories are not good). also im so sorry if this got messy i am not the best with organization. and if i miss anyth important someone let me know!!!

his first appearance is in amazing fantasy #15! 

amazing spider-man volume 1, tbh it is good and very fun but also incredibly long so if you don’t want to read the whole thing you should look for specific arcs/characters you want to see. if you need help singling out issues you need then let me know and i can make a specific list for characters/arc but i’ll just list some issues that i think are important: 

#1-6: first appearance of some major spidey villains like the chameleon, vulture, doctor octopus, sandman, lizard. you also see spidey’s first interaction with the f4.

#9, 13-16, annual #1, 17-21, 24-25, 31-33: first appearance of electro, mysterio, green goblin, kraven the hunter, scorpion, mj watson, harry osborn, and gwen stacy. spidey and dd also team up for the first time

#39-42, annual #3, 46, 50-56, annual #5, 77-79, 88-90: first appearance of shocker and the prowler, as well as some really important spidey arcs.

#95-98, 119-122, 129-131, 136-137, 142-151: first appearances of the punisher and the jackal. some important doc ock and green goblin arcs. the original clone saga

#182-183, 194-200, 204-205, 238-245, 248-251: first appearance of the black cat and the hobgoblin. some important petermj issues, and aunt may issues. for issue 248, just read the second story (the kid who collects spider-man)

#252, 257, 258-261, 275-277, 279, 290-292, annual #21: first appearance of the symbiote suit, petermj comics

#299-300: first venom appearance

kraven’s last hunt

the clone saga

the spectacular spider-man (1976): #107-110, 134-136 (the death of jean dewolff arc)

the spectacular spider-man (1976): 178-184, 189-190, 199-200 (harry osborn storyline)

amazing spider-man volume 2: okay the best part of vol 2 is definitely straczynski’s run, which i recommend you read all of it, but if you don’t want to do that i’ll recommend just a few issues down below. warning, this is also where sins past and one more day happen but yeah:

#30-35, 37-39, 49-50, 55-56: first appearances of ezekiel and morlun. important aunt may and mj storylines, also shows peter as a teacher.

(starting here, we are still in stracynski’s run, but the issue numbers start at #500 instead, which means you would probably find these issues in the original 1963 run) #501, 505: not incredibly important to the overall plot, but still meaningful issues.

sins past: #509-514 (u rly dont have to read this lol im just putting it here cuz it’s considered important but it’s rly shitty and def can be skipped)

#519-524: peter, mj, and may living with the avengers

spider-man/human torch (2005) (one of my all time fav comics)

the other: evolve or die

#532-545: the war at home, back in black, and one more day. these events are all connected to each other and also to the civil war event so it would be helpful if you have knowledge of what that event is about. this is a really really crappy storyline but also crucially important. this is where stracyznski’s run ends

#587, 590-592, 600, 606-607: petermatt teamup, fantastic four teamup, return of mj and the black cat.

#648-656, fantastic four #588, asm #657-662, 665: peter working at horizon labs, and other important arcs.

spider-island: #666-673 (also not that great but a big spidey event)

#680-681, 698-700: spideytorch issues, and then the beginning of superior spiderman (you dont have to read 699.1)

superior spider-man: hnnnnergh this run got annoyingly long and otto was in peter’s body for a while and i understand if you dont want to read every issue of this so here are a few:

superior spider-man #1-2, 4-5, 9-10, 13-14, 20, 30-31

amazing spider-man volume 3 (if you want to skip over superior spidey come here): tbh a lot of this is just peter fixing his life after all the issues doc ock caused, but it’s not that bad. there are only 20 issues so you can probably read all of them. this run features the debut of cindy moon and also the spiderverse event!

amazing spider-man volume 4: okay tbh probably my least favorite asm run. it’s boring and treats mj badly and aside from a few issues i really do not care for it at all. it’s only 32 issues, so it’s also short enough that you can read it on your own, but yea :’). if u want just completely skip over clone conspiracy there is no point to it

amazing spider-man volume 5 (current run) this run is still ongoing and tbh it’s not that great but it seems to be leading up to something big and it does have nice petermj moments so!!

friendly neighborhood spider-man (2019): my favorite spidey run of all time it is so good in every way you can imagine. if you were to read one spidey run i would definitely recommend it to be this one

spider-man: blue (it focuses on gwen so!!! it’s very emotional)

spider-men (2012): this is when peter and miles meet! i think it’s rly cute and i do like it a lot

you can also check out the gauntlet and grim hunt arcs but i dont care much for them tbh so i didnt rly include them earlier

these aren’t in 616 but i also definitely recommend ultimate spider-man (2000) and (2009). they’re definitely long so if u need a reading guide for them let me know!!

also just bc i Need everyone to love spideytorch here is a spideytorch reading guide bc i included some of their issues but def not all of them so! this is a small list but it links the like Major list with every spideytorch issue so!!

also bc i love petermj here is a reading guide for them as well!

ALSO bc i love peter and matt’s friendship here is a guide for them as well!

i think im done but if u need any specific recommendations for peter regarding relationships/arcs/anything really let me know!! i hope this helps!! 

[vitosscaletta]

🍓 🍓 🍓🍓🍓🍓 for ALL your vampire kids! 🦇

AIRIKA..TY FOR MY LIFE! ok this is gonna be long 

CHRISTIAN

🍓 — he’s over 300 years old (that technically makes him an elder according to the lore book… overpowered king) & was embraced in the 1600s, he was the son of a french marquis back in the day 😳 He lived in Versailles for a long time & considered it his home even though people would literally shit in the corners there -_-

🍓 — has NO idea how technology works… he has one of those ugly early 2000s flip phones because he saw other people having those but has absolutely no idea how to use them, much less a computer. Most people just think he’s ~romantic or something for writing letters but he really has no idea how to write an email :(

🍓 — He’s the baron of Bel Air.. has a nice mansion there bc living for over 300 years gives you time to hoard that much money ig. 

🍓 — His grand-sire (??) is Helen of Troy 😳 overpowered af bloodline

🍓 — He doesn’t care about vampire politics in the slightest and is sort of aligned with the camarilla bc he has power within them but there’s no loyalty or conviction.. the main reason he’s in it is to start drama and watch it unfold 💅 He and La🥐 can’t stand each other but also can’t do anything about it… Strauss is okay with him but they’d also sell each other out for one corn chip.. He’s sort of frenemies with Gary, they hate each other because… yknow toreador and nosferatu but they’re equally shady so there’s mutual respect… in an odd way 

🍓 — He doesn’t have any other childe..r… whatever the term is except miss Helena.. he hangs around humans a lot but has no real attachment to them (except being kind of a hoe and.. yknow.). She’s the first mortal in a long time he felt anything for which was mostly just good old toreador obsession but he thought it was love.. she vaguely resembled a lost love of his. and had potential I guess so he actually got permission for embracing her babey… just not from her bc he didn’t even consider someone wouldn’t want to be a vampire.. 🙄

HELENA

🍓 — Having OP Christian as her sire did have its perks even though she hates his guts for embracing her… She automatically had a pretty good position within the camarilla through connection alone :^) she works as sort of an informant/spy for the prince directly.. which puts her at odds with a bunch of people - they either think she’s an inexperienced little girl who doesn’t know what she’s doing and works for an incompetent prince OR hate her for being in his sort of inner circle without having to work for it (like Victoria. she thinks that)

🍓 — CRINGE but it be like that sometimes… she’s descended from a looong line of vampire/witch hunters on her dad’s side - he’s from a catholic german family who was largely involved with the society of Leopold. Michael himself wasn’t overly religious (still studied theology but didn’t actually care) and left all of this behind when he moved to america & got married but after he and Jenny divorced he was like “know what… time to become a zealot again”. His ex-wife and daughters are completely unaware of that of course 😳 dunno if Helena sees him again after becoming a vampire 🙄 but yknow.

🍓 — Doesn’t have any of the “vampires are better than mortals” superiority complex that a lot of the others seem to have.. does think thin-bloods are losers though kjdkjdfnms

🍓 — Only video game she plays is the sims!! she bought ts1 when it came out for fun and got hooked.. ts2 is even better!!!!! first thing she did was make a sim that resembles her and marries a business tycoon 💅💸

🍓 — owned one (1) YSL dress she bought from her savings (which was USED)  but she couldn’t afford anything else so she just wears it with something she found at hot topic every time she goes out with her rich fake friends pre embrace. When she works for La🤡 and actually makes some money she can afford a SECOND dress babey! with shoes!!!

🍓 — She’s actually really into some standard 2004 radio pop songs but also emo songs at the same time.. except the genre didn’t have anything good in 2004 except three cheers for sweet revenge (she’s also really into evanescence, green day and blink 182 which isn’t really emo but it was still part of the experience™ nfdkjdf) - which is also her entire aesthetic summed up, emo meets theatre kid prep.. Helena: *googles “how to look like Gerard Way and Britney Spears at the same time makeup tutorial”*

ERIN

🍓 — sdjhsdh cringe but she’s always been kind of a weirdo but was pretty good at hiding it/acting normal & was part if the prep gang in her high school days (not the leader, more the kind of the replaceable third wheel), she always preferred hanging out with the weirdos though. Post-embrace everyone just thinks “lol crazy malkavian” so she’s just like 🤷‍♀️.. 

🍓 — Her sire, Ray, was suuuch a freak but she liked him because he was something.. different in her sheltered, dull life and made her feel excitement she hasn’t felt in a long time. He bails on her after embracing her bc he sired her without permission & fears execution (even though literally no one cares or even knows he sired someone) but has letters delivered to her from time to time instructing her what to do lol

🍓 — Actually enjoys the freedom vampirism gives her? She’s officially dead so she has the option to start again and be whoever she wants to be… it’s scary at first bc she has no idea what’s going on and where these voices come from but she gets used to it, also the voice of her late grandmother in her head is a comforting presence for her… I imagine she’s actually in there kinda like the heart in dishonored, afterlife isn’t her granddaughter’s mind but it’s sort of an echo of her? IDK she tinkered with magic in life so supernatural schizophrenia added that to Erin’s mind.

🍓 — She loves early 2000′s radio pop (yknow.. Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson… etc) but also classical music, stuff from the 20′s, alternative rock, the early 2000s goth music that’s playing in L.A.’s nightclubs …. she’s gonna thrive in 2006 when a fever you can’t sweat out drops!!!

🍓 — She’s part of the anarchs but mostly hangs out in hollywood or downtown (only goes to santa monica to visit the asylum (BEST nightclub ever in her onion. isolated SLAPS)

🍓 — yknow in the 2000s when people had invader zim merch from hot topic.. she owns this backpack 🤦‍♀️ it clashes with the rest of her style which is already a horrendous mix of victorian/early 20th century gothic and 2004 prep style 

VICTORIA  

🍓 — her background is still a BIG wip but she was born at some point in the late twenties/early thirties and embraced in 1954 :^) she was a bit of a workaholic and had an intense work ethic but never made it far within the company she was working for because it’s the fifties (thinking maybe it was her father’s company bc she was RICH.. there was a feud between her & a few male relatives on who’s gonna lead or something)… She was eventually noticed by a ventrue businessman who thought her ambition and no-nonsense attitude would be a great addition to the clan - She was promised a opportunity to rise within a different society without le sexism. Go white feminist queen!

🍓 — her embrace wasn’t really what she thought it would be.. drinking other’s blood REPULSES her and she has a hard time adjusting to it, plus kindred society isn’t really what she imagined - by the time she’s embraced L.A. has no camarilla presence so there’s really nothing for her to do so she moves to New York to join them there.. except she’s stuck with a shitty job and no one taking her seriously because of her age 😒 When they establish a presence in Los Angeles she’s the first to suck up to the prince & be assigned a somewhat high position (I guess adviser to the ventrue primogen and also being tight with the prince is good!!)

🍓 — She dresses very business-y BUT always designer bc she got money 😳 her wardrobe is chic but also minimalist, also with a hint of fifties design because fashion peaked then in her opinion.. mostly in dark colors, reds, browns and mostly black combined with minimal jewelry and high heels… very very elegant

🍓 — genuinely loves romcoms from the 50s and 60s (doris day & rock hudson movies b*tch!!) but also “newer” one from the 90s and 2000′s.. notting hill, pretty woman and 13 going on 30 are her favorites that she watches when she’s off duty, cozy in her downtown apartment.. but don’t tell anyone 😤

🍓 — She’s THE queen bee within the L.A. camarilla… doesn’t have any friends in her workplace but she’s respected by everyone and that’s what matters to her (it does get lonely sometimes but it be like that. She’s not gonna give up her status for shallow friendships 😒)

🍓 — loves those ugly small 90s/2000s glasses but they clash with every outfit she has so she doesn’t wear them

[thecollegefootballguy]

Bizarro Football: An Alternate History of College Football in 2016

Welcome back to Bizarro Football, a look at what would have happened if conference realignment never happened from 2010 onwards.

Check out the previous seasons first if you’d like to catch up: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015

This post is basically an amalgamation of the various other conference posts I’ve made throughout this (and part of last) off season. Check those out here:

ACC: 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Big East: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Big Ten: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Big 12: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 PAC-10: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 SEC: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

I’ve made some adjustments for games that were never played as well as incorporating the G5 and Notre Dame, but otherwise things haven’t changed from these earlier posts.

So far, the College Football Playoff era has been a mixed bag for Bizarro Football. 2014 went even worse than real life because even fewer deserving teams made the Playoff. Conversely, 2015 went exactly right, picking the 4 most deserving teams to make the field. Let’s see how 2016 stacks up.

-

ACC

Atlantic Division

Clemson 13-0 (8-0) Florida State 11-1 (7-1) NC State 8-4 (5-3) Boston College 7-5 (4-4) Maryland 5-7 (1-7) Wake Forest 4-8 (1-7)

Coastal Division

Virginia Tech 9-4 (6-2) Miami FL 9-3 (5-3) North Carolina 7-5 (4-4) Georgia Tech 8-4 (4-4) Virginia 3-9 (2-6) Duke 4-8 (1-7)

ACC Championship Game: Clemson over Virginia Tech

The ACC really hasn’t been altered all that much by conference realignment. I guess because Pittsburgh and Syracuse really didn’t do much outside of 2018, and Louisville just was in the wrong division to matter. I mean, Clemson has had two back to back undefeated regular seasons in this universe, so things have changed a little thanks to avoiding Pitt and Syracuse. Florida State remained rock solid right behind the Tigers, but this was the last year that Jimbo Fisher’s Seminoles would fly so high. As usual, the rest of the conference wasn’t that impressive. Virginia Tech won the Coastal carousel this time around, but the Hokies weren’t impressive enough to seriously threaten either Clemson or FSU.

-

Big East

Pittsburgh 9-3 (6-1) Louisville 10-2 (6-1) West Virginia 10-2 (5-2) South Florida 9-3 (5-2) Cincinnati 5-7 (2-5) Syracuse 4-8 (2-5) Rutgers 3-9 (1-6) Connecticut 3-9 (1-6)

Another year, another mediocre Pitt team somehow beats out better Louisville and West Virginia squads to claim the Big East title. God this conference is so depressing. It was a good thing that they lost an automatic bid. Or maybe it’s just a shame that they didn’t get UCF or Houston in this version of the league.

-

Big Ten

Ohio State 11-1 (7-1) Michigan 11-1 (7-1) Wisconsin 10-2 (6-2) Northwestern 8-4 (6-2) Penn State 8-4 (5-3) Minnesota 8-4 (4-4) Indiana 6-6 (3-5) Iowa 6-6 (3-5) Michigan State 5-7 (2-6) Purdue 3-9 (1-7) Illinois 1-11 (0-8)

I’m really getting sick of the Big Ten’s antics. For the third year in a row, the league has had two 11-1 co-champions. I’m starting to see the utility of the conference championship game. And the Big Ten was GOOD in 2016. Michigan, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Penn State all landed in the AP top ten. In this scenario, the Wolverines went 11-0 but just couldn’t close out (and really got jobbed) by the Buckeyes. OSU went unbeaten aside from an upset on the road to Northwestern. This scenario is really unkind to Penn State. The Nittany Lions lost to Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio State in back to back to back weeks, and they lost to Pitt because somebody has to get upset by Pitt. That’s enough to knock one of the hottest teams at the end of the year out of the NY6. What a shame.

-

Big 12

North

Colorado 10-3 (7-1) Nebraska 9-3 (5-3) Kansas State 8-4 (5-3) Iowa State 4-8 (2-6) Missouri 3-9 (1-7) Kansas 2-10 (1-7)

South

Oklahoma 11-2 (8-0) Oklahoma State 9-3 (6-2) Texas A&M 8-4 (4-4) Baylor 7-5 (3-5) Texas 6-6 (3-5) Texas Tech 6-6 (3-5)

Big 12 Championship Game: Oklahoma over Colorado

After a decade of futility, Colorado once again had their moment in the sun. The Buffaloes tore through the North and briefly became America’s Team. Then Oklahoma came in an rained on their parade. OU was once again the premier Big 12 team, but the Sooners’ 11-2 record likely keeps them out of reach of the Playoff. The league as a whole was down outside of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, so an at-large bid is somewhat unlikely.

-

PAC-10

Washington 11-1 (8-1) Washington State 9-3 (8-1) Stanford 10-2 (7-2) USC 9-3 (7-2) Oregon State 5-7 (4-5) California 5-7 (3-6) Oregon 5-7 (3-6) Arizona State 5-7 (2-7) UCLA 4-8 (2-7) Arizona 3-9 (1-8)

The PAC-10 went from being one of the most consistently good conferences in college football to the bottom of the Power 5 barrel (though thankfully the Big East keeps them from being the absolute worst in this universe). It also kinda sucks not having Utah and Colorado this year. Washington and Washington State both staged uprisings against the previous conference overlords: Oregon and Stanford. The Apple Cup ended up deciding the conference and the Huskies, playing their best season since 2000, take the league crown with their tie-breaking win. USC was the league’s hottest team by the end of the season, but the Trojans’ early struggles will likely keep them out of the Rose Bowl in this scenario.

-

SEC

East

Florida 7-5 (5-3) Vanderbilt 7-5 (4-4) Tennessee 7-5 (3-5) Georgia 6-6 (3-5) Kentucky 6-6 (3-5) South Carolina 6-6 (3-5)

West

Alabama 13-0 (8-0) Auburn 10-2 (7-1) LSU 7-4 (5-3) Arkansas 7-5 (3-5) Mississippi State 5-7 (3-5) Ole Miss 4-8 (1-7)

SEC Championship Game: Alabama over Florida

My word the SEC East just did not matter in 2016. It’s not like they were better with Missouri, the Tigers completely collapsed as well. Florida again makes it to Atlanta but they didn’t need to play that Championship Game. In what was probably the league’s weakest season since 2007 or 2006, Alabama just smokes the rest of the conference on their way to the Playoff.

-

Notable non-BCS Conference Teams

Memphis 12-1* Western Michigan 13-0*

*conference champions

Row the Boat! Aside from Memphis no other G5 team really mattered aside from Western Michigan. Timing plays a big part in breakthrough seasons, and WMU timed their undefeated run really well.

-

Projected CFP Rankings

#1. Alabama 13-0 (8-0) #2. Clemson 13-0 (8-0) #3. Ohio State 11-1 (7-1) #4. Washington 11-1 (8-1) #5. Michigan 11-1 (7-1) #6. Florida State 11-1 (7-1) #7. Auburn 10-2 (7-1) #8. Oklahoma 11-2 (7-1) #9. Wisconsin 10-2 (6-2) #10. Stanford 10-2 (7-2) #11. USC 9-3 (7-2) #12. Oklahoma State 9-3 (6-2) #13. Washington State 9-3 (8-1) #14. Colorado 10-3 (7-1) #15. Western Michigan 13-0 (8-0)

There is a pretty big drop in in quality after the top five or so teams. That and some of the best teams at the end of the season (USC and Penn State) don’t get the proper recognition.

Oh yeah, and with the Rose, Sugar, and Orange Bowls all falling outside of the Playoff rotation, there is only one at-large bid to go around.

-

Projected NY6 Games

Orange Bowl: #6 Florida State vs #19 Pittsburgh

This is gonna be a bloodbath. The Panthers have no business being here and Florida State would have a lot of frustration to work out having been outdone by Clemson again. I don’t think Pitt does their Pitt thing in this game and upsets the Seminoles. In real life, FSU did beat a superior Michigan team to end their last good year under Fisher so I can’t imagine the Panthers put up a fight.

Cotton Bowl: #9 Wisconsin vs #15 Western Michigan

This matchup actually took place in real life. Western Michigan’s dream season ended under the crushing heel of a well oiled Wisconsin machine.

Rose Bowl: #5 Michigan vs #10 Stanford

Michigan didn’t get into the Playoff, being passed over in favor of PAC-10 Champion Washington. Instead, the Wolverines get to take it out on Stanford. The Cardinal probably would not have done well in this game, they had a good enough year but USC would have been the proper choice. However, the Trojans’ resume just wasn’t enough to put them ahead of Stanford and so the Cardinal get to represent the PAC-10 in the Rose Bowl. I assume UM wins this one, but it could have been a fun game if Stanford’s offense doesn’t get totally corralled early on. 

Sugar Bowl: #7 Auburn vs #8 Oklahoma

As SEC runner-up, Auburn has the tough task of facing off against Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl. The Sooners were the better team but this could be a pretty wild game based on the offenses and defenses involved.

Peach Bowl (semifinal): #1 Alabama vs #4 Washington

lol

Fiesta Bowl (semifinal): #2 Clemson vs #3 Ohio State

LOL

Oh hey, the Playoff perfectly matches what happened in real life 2016. Maybe that means it’s working. Not that it would have been too difficult to choose the top 4 teams in this situation.

Clemson wins the national championship I guess.

-

So far Bizarro Football is 2 for 3. 2015 and 2016 perfectly match the real life top 4 which also happened to be the 4 correct playoff choices. 2014 was a mess but that whole year made it pretty difficult.

[islamic-art-and-quotes]

Salam Alaykum. By reading books and listening to informative lectures, I’ve come across quiet many bible verses. There are a few verses like the story about the tower of Babel & Noah’s Ark that are used for general research, which can be useful. There are also stories I’ve never heard of as a muslim. So, how should a muslim really react to biblical studies, and know which verses is to believe?

Alaikumassalam wa rahmatullah,

We can read the Bible as an interesting historical artifact, but we cannot take any religious guidance from it unless it is strongly confirmed by the Quran. Our attitude is that while the Bible contains many important truths, 1. we can never be sure which parts are really true and which parts are later additions, and 2. the Quran contains everything beneficial that is contained in the Bible, so a person who only relies on the Quran is not missing out on anything they need.

Islam’s view is that the Quran is the “Final Testament”. Similar to the way a new version of a software program replaces an older version, the Quran replaces the Bible. The Bible, in the Islamic view, holds the corrupted version of God’s religion. The Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament) were given to the Jews as God’s guidance to them. Many prophets were sent afterwards to correct their errors and guide them back to God’s path, the sayings of some of these prophets make up some of the other books of the Old Testament, such the Book of Isaiah by the Prophet Isaiah who lived in the 8th century BC.

Jesus was the final Jewish Prophet who came to reform Judaism and ease some of their religion’s difficult laws.

47. She said, “My Lord, how can I have a child, when no man has touched me?” He said, “It will be so. God creates whatever He wills. To have anything done, He only says to it, ‘Be,’ and it is.”

48. And He will teach him the Scripture and wisdom, and the Torah and the Gospel.

49. A messenger to the Children of Israel: “I have come to you with a sign from your Lord. I make for you out of clay the figure of a bird; then I breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by God’s leave. And I heal the blind and the leprous, and I revive the dead, by God’s leave. And I inform you concerning what you eat, and what you store in your homes. In that is a sign for you, if you are believers.”

50. “And verifying what lies before me of the Torah, and to make lawful for you some of what was forbidden to you. I have come to you with a sign from your Lord; so fear God, and obey me.”

51. “God is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. That is a straight path.”

52. When Jesus sensed disbelief on their part, he said, “Who are my allies towards God?” The disciples said, “We are God’s allies; we have believed in God, and bear witness that we submit.”

53. “Our Lord, we have believed in what You have revealed, and we have followed the Messenger, so count us among the witnesses.”

54. They planned, and God planned; but God is the Best of planners.

55. God said, “O Jesus, I am terminating your life, and raising you to Me, and clearing you of those who disbelieve. And I will make those who follow you superior to those who disbelieve, until the Day of Resurrection. Then to Me is your return; then I will judge between you regarding what you were disputing. (The Quran, verses 3:47-55)

According to the Islamic view, Jesus was meant as a reformer of Judaism rather than the founder of a new religion. The Christians were meant to follow Jewish law as reformed by Jesus, and there are theories that the early Christians did follow Jewish law until Paul’s anti-law attitude (antinomianism) took over. There was a Jewish sect known as the Essenes which may have been the remnants of Jesus’s original followers. In the Dead Sea Scrolls we have documentation of this group’s beliefs; they continued to follow parts of Jewish law and continually referred to a false teacher who was corrupting Christianity (probably Paul).

While Jesus was a Jewish Prophet sent specifically to the Jews, Prophet Muhammad PBUH was a gentile (non-Jew) sent to all of humanity as God’s final prophet. Muhammad is descended from Abraham just like the Jews, but while the Jews are descendants of Isaac son of Abraham, Muhammad is a descendant of Ishmael son of Abraham (in Jewish literature Muslims are sometimes called Ishmaelites for this reason).

Just like Jesus, Muhammad was not meant to found a new religion exactly, he was meant as a reformer who brings back God’s true teachings as taught originally to Abraham:

67. Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was a Monotheist, a “Muslim” (”one who submits”). And he was not of the Polytheists.

68. The people most deserving to be associated with Abraham are those who followed him, and this prophet [Muhammad], and those who believe. God is the Guardian of the believers. (The Quran, verses 3:67-68)

In chapter, after narrating the stories of the Biblical prophets, the Quran tells us that we Muslims and those prophets are all part of the same community:

89. And Zechariah, when he called out to his Lord, “My Lord, do not leave me alone, even though you are the Best of heirs.”

90. So We answered him, and gave him John. And We cured his wife for him. They used to vie in doing righteous deeds, and used to call on Us in love and awe, and they used to humble themselves to Us.

91. And she who guarded her virginity. We breathed into her of Our spirit, and made her and her son a sign to the world.

92. This community of yours is one community, and I am your Lord, so worship Me. (The Quran, verses 21:87-92)

According to the Quran, all of the prophets are part of the same story, and the coming of Prophet Muhammad PBUH was not something out of the ordinary, it was an answer to a prayer by Abraham and his son made 2600 years before (around 2000 BC):

127. As Abraham raises the foundations of the House [the Kaaba in Mecca], together with Ishmael, “Our Lord, accept it from us, You are the Hearer, the Knower.

128. Our Lord, and make us submissive to You, and from our descendants a community submissive to You. And show us our rites, and accept our repentance. You are the Acceptor of Repentance, the Merciful.

129. Our Lord, and raise up among them a messenger, of themselves, who will recite to them Your revelations, and teach them the Book and wisdom, and purify them. You are the Almighty, the Wise.” (The Quran 2:127-129)

Some verses after the above, the Quran tells us that the Prophet PBUH was the answer to that prayer by using the same words to describe Prophet Muhammad that Abraham and Ishamel used in verse 129 in their prayer for a prophet:

151. Just as We sent to you a messenger from among you, who recites Our revelations to you, and purifies you, and teaches you the Book and wisdom, and teaches you what you did not know.

152. So remember Me, and I will remember you. And thank Me, and do not be ungrateful.