Thursday Throwdown (Couldnt think of a better title...)

Welcome back to the Drill!! Where the motto is: No shoes? No shirt? No Credit? No problem!!! Lets begin shall we?

-Rudy Tomjanovich stepped down as coach of the LA Lakers today. Tomjanovich described his reason for leaving as just being physically and mentally burned out. He felt that he could not devote his entire attention to the team and that it was time for him to take another break from the game. He stated that his decision  had nothing to do with his recovery from Bladder Cancer. Lets hope Rudy T can get some much needed R & R and that he can make a return to coaching someday.

-With Tomjanovich stepping down Assistant Coach Frank Hamlin will coach the team on an interim basis. But what about a permanent replacement? There is already talk swirling around that former coach Phil Jackson will be brought back into the mix. As cool as that would be, I dont see it happening. Phil and Kobe arent exactly on the best of terms and it would take some major a$$ kissing on the part of the Lakers to get Phil back on that bench. Should be an interesting next couple of weeks.

-President Bush delivered his State of the Union address Wednesday. He outlined his agenda for his second term and focused mainly on domestic issues. Chief among them, Social Security. Bush's plan call for younger Americans to open up private SS accounts to set aside part of their earnings in. Its a very risky plan and one that in all likelyhood won't be implemented. Bush also spoke about the ongoing war in Iraq and how even though their elections have been held, it is much too soon to set a date for the withdrawal of US Troops. Overall, Bush tried to sound positive and upbeat about the future of the country. We're just going to have to wait and see what this second term means for all of us.

-Super Bowl News: (More like ONE news item) Despite doctor's objections, Terrel Owens will suit up and play this Sunday. Owens suffered a broken leg and a severeley sprained ankle only 6 weeks ago. But he feels that he is well enough to help his team out. This could change the outcome of the game and certainly gives the Eagles a HUGE morale boost. This game suddenly got a whole lot more interesting.

-Its official: No matter what it takes, Space Mountain will re-open at Disneyland July 17th. The actual day of Disneyland's 50th Birthday. Disneyland Park President Matt Ouimett has told Imagineers to get this ride open and that money is no object. Its great news for fans of this classic attraction, that originally had been slated to stay closed until Thanksgiving later this year. This ride has been closed since mid 2003, so its been a long time coming!

Well thats all for this post. One more day til Friday!! Til next time..

DQ