Eli-te has nice ring to it

23.02.12

Four years ago, after Eli was named Super Bowl XLII MVP following the Giants’ 17-14 upset of the previously undefeated Patriots [ team stats ] , his older brother warned the world, “Mark my words, I promise you this will not be Eli’s last Super Bowl. The Giants are a young team, and they’re going to be in the mix for a long time.”

What Peyton never assumed was that he might not be. After three neck surgeries and a year in street clothes, the Dan Marino of his day (big numbers, small jewelry collection) is facing his football mortality in the very town where his little brother could surpass him as a producer of championships. If he does, will that alone reverse the perception of the two Mannings?

Last August a clearly peeved Eli pronounced himself an elite quarterback who should be considered the equal of his brother, Brady, Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers. At the time his comments were dismissed as the rants of a little brother looking for attention.

Source: Boston Herald

Lucky star: Brady takes shot at fourth Super Bowl ring

23.02.12

Once upon a time, he was new to this Super Bowl business … like a virgin.

Now he is the grand old man of the Roman numerals, in his fifth Super Bowl at the age of 34, and it has grown to feel something deeper. Like, say, a … holiday.

"I think you have more perspective," he was saying Thursday. "I think you become much more appreciative of this."

Would a fourth championship — matching Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw but done in the free agent age of fluid rosters — brand him as the best quarterback ever? Well, that's … borderline.

Besides, he devoutly contends that such numbers mean nothing to him, since he is not a … material guy.

"It's not something I really have cared about," he said. "I think it's very flattering to be a part of those conversations, but I don't think that motivates me.

"I get the question: 'Why do you keep playing?' I love doing it. I love football. I love preparing. It's something more fun to me than just about anything I could think of."

Source: USA TODAY

'King' Taib still spouting empty promises

23.02.12

What wealth can Taib Mahmud promise Sarawakians when the state has already been ripped off?

KUCHING: When Abdul Taib Mahmud became Chief Minister on March 26, 1981, he promised he would turn Sarawak into the “richest state” in the Federation of Malaysia.

Sarawak then had plenty of resources – oil and gas, timber and land.

But today, 31 years later, Sarawak under Taib has become the third poorest state in Malaysia.

And the question here now is: where have the state’s resources gone and to whom?

At a Chinese New Year dinner to celebrate the 33rd anniversary of the Federation of Kuching and Samarahan divisions’ Chinese Associations on Thursday, Taib again proclaimed that by 2030, Sarawak would become the “richest state” in Malaysia.

His declaration, however, rings hollow. Taib and and his family’s vast network of businesses that cuts across global borders and the unimaginable wealth amassed puts him firmly as one of the richest in men in the world, wealthier than even England’s Queen Elizabeth. His wealth allegedly originated from Sarawak reources.

Source: Free Malaysia Today