Happy? Birthday NHL

It's the National Hockey league's birthday, but I'm not sure it's going to be a very happy one. The league is currently on day 72 of their lockout and there appears to be no end in sight.

The NHL was founded on November 26, 1917, making today it's 95th birthday. So far 422 regular season games, the winter classic and the all-star game are cancelled, which leads me to wonder if the NHL will make it the five years it needs to have its name read as a Smucker's birthday or will it even make it through the 95th year?

Like most professional sports lockouts, this one is no different. The collective bargaining agreement expired and now the players association is in a bitter dispute with commissioner Gary Bettman. The root of the debate lies in the root of most disputes ... money.

However, some are now placing the blame solely on Bettman. This is the league's third lockout since Bettman took the reins 19 years ago.

But, regardless of the Twitter threats and name calling, is Bettman really to blame? Or is the problem bigger than one man? The sad truth is, unless a commissioner puts a quick and painless end to a lockout, it will always be his fault no matter what. The fans love to make a scapegoat of a commissioner. The commissioner is nothing more than a greedy, money hungry suit in the eyes of the fans. They have no personal connection to him. And, when it comes down to it, who are you going to side with, your favorite player or a man associated with a faceless corporation?

That's both the beauty and the beast of sports. We have allegiances. Each week we open our homes and our hearts to our favorite players. Whether it be on our television screens or the jerseys in our closets or the posters on our wall. We really don't associate with the man in charge. I can guarantee you there is not a large number of kids who have Gary Bettman posters hanging on their walls right now. We aspire to be like our heroes, not the man who pays them.

So, in the case of a lockout that has resulted in half a season being cancelled, of course we're going to point fingers at the guy in charge. We'll stand behind our favorite players until the end. But, maybe we should put ourselves in the other guy's shoes. He's got a lot more to answer to. He's got stock holders and journalists and media companies and advertisers to please.

In a war between the suits and the jerseys there can be no real winner, just a lot of compromise. And, on this 95th birthday of the NHL let's all hope they get a big box of compromise. 

Sources:
CBS Sports: Eye on Hockey http://goo.gl/zVwE8
Wikipedia: 2012 NHL lockout http://goo.gl/Uh42m

Magic Johnson HIV+ 21 years+

On this day in 1991, basketball legend Magic Johnson made an announcement that shocked the world.

He was HIV positive. He had a disease that many believe he was immune from. Most people thought HIV and the imminent disease AIDS was a disease "other people" got. It was considered to be a disease only gay men could contract. We now know this is not true, and that is mostly thanks to the advocacy and example Magic has set for the rest of humanity.

Magic Johnson has a deadly disease, but 21 years later, he is still alive. He is now 53 and runs a foundation in his name dedicated to HIV education and prevention.

HIV/AIDS is now manageable thanks to advancements in medicine. Yes, there are fights to be had and pills to take, but diagnosis is not the grim reaper knocking on the door.

The Centers for Disease control estimates that 50,000 new cases of HIV are diagnosed every year in the United States. 61% of these new infections will occur in gay and bisexual men. African American men and women are estimated to have HIV rates 8 times higher than whites. In 2010, 20-24 year olds had the highest diagnosis rate with a little more than 7,500 new cases.

According to the Mayo clinic, there is no cure for HIV/AIDS but there are a variety of medications that can be taken to control the disease. The Mayo clinic recommends patients combine at least 3 different drugs from two different classes. The classes each block the virus in a different way. There are currently 5 different medications.

Magic has not let his disease define him. He is currently keeping busy with Magic Johnson Enterprises that includes Starbucks franchises, reloadable debit cards, movie theaters in undeserved areas and urban development. He is also a basketball commentator.

World Aids Day is December 1, 2012.

Sources:
ABC News: Magic Johnson's HIV Announcement Resonates 21 years later. http://goo.gl/L0OCm
Biography.com: Magic Johnson http://goo.gl/46IXz
NBA on TNT http://goo.gl/h1zRJ
CDC: HIV Statistics http://goo.gl/ZH1C
Mayo Clinic: HIV/AIDS Treatment and Drugs http://goo.gl/DHO8N