PCM

To be fair, all three members of the Congressional delegation were quoted as saying that they support UND's use of the Fighting Sioux nickname. However, it wasn't widely reported by the media, which means that few people outside of Grand Forks know about it. And what they've actually done to help UND with this issue remains a mystery to the average North Dakota voter.

If you're responding to my earlier post, I wasn't suggesting that "overseeing" was all the AG's office would do. That would be part of the job, but certainly not all of it.

Mac Schneider left that position around August last year to attend law school at Georgetown University. Stephanie Craig, Pomeroy's current press secretary, is a UND graduate.

Yeah but, he's from South Dakota, and with SDSU going DI, he might decide that he'll get more exposure there. I think Dom belongs on the "flight risk" list.

Hence, the problem. Can we get Pomeroy to introduce a bill in Congress that prohibits THETRIOUXPER from looking into his crystal ball and posting what he sees on SiouxSports.com?

If we could get back to the day when I spoke for everyone on the board, we wouldn't have these problems.

I had the same thought. On the other hand, the NCAA is acting as if it's an arm of the government, and it's not. For some reason, without ever visiting Grand Forks, the NCAA thinks it knows that discrimination a federal investigation can't uncover exists on UND's campus. For some reason, Myles Brand and the NCAA Executive Committee think that they can simply disregard the organization's rule about members having the autonomy to deal with discrimination issues on their own and act as judge, jury and executioner against any insititution that doesn't agree with Brand's and Harrison's version of social justice. That being said, I have my doubts about how much support this bill will attract in Congress. There aren't enough oxes being gored in highly populated states for big-name politicians to jump on board. However, even if the bill doesn't get much support, it does serve one purpose: it's a warning shot across the bow. If the NCAA insists on continuing to operate "as a catalyst for social change" rather than an organization that regulates college athletics, the government will step in to make sure the association understands its proper role. Perhaps some of NCAA the member insititutions with real clout will realize that it's in their best interest to reign in Brand and company. Let's not forget that the NCAA was created because the government threatened to regulate college athletics if the colleges themselves didn't do it. Now it seems that the pendulum has swung in the other direction and the NCAA believes its role is to correct government decisions or inaction. If the NCAA's members can't or won't keep the the association operating within well-established boundaries, who will?

That's usually why votes concerning controversial issues are tabled. A tribal chairman dealing from a position of strength would have welcomed the vote to settle the matter in his favor -- if he knew he had the votes. So let's see. If Spirit Lake refuses to reconsider its last official action okaying UND's use of the Fighting Sioux nickname and the NCAA counts that as no support, does this mean that when Standing Rock refuses to reconsider its last official action against the nickname that the NCAA must count it as being in favor of UND? Great dialogue you started, Myles.

Thanks for the info, gordwiser. It's always interesting to learn more about how these things are done.

I wondered about that, too. Perhaps the hundred grand covers only the costs of the AG's office, which taxpayers would normally cover. The AG's office might not have much to do if the "heavy lifting" is handled by an outside firm on a contingency or pro bono basis. This is merely sudo-reporter speculation. I'll let the real lawyers duke it out.

UNH also socks it to their students with athletic fees and, despite that, they're still strapped for cash. I'm not convinced that UND should want to be like them.

As I and others have tried to explain to you, there's a lot more at stake than that, but I'm no longer going to belabor the point.

Sudo-reporters do it more than anyone else and better than anyone else. It's what makes the job so darn much fun.

I was referring to your last two posts before this one, both of which ragged on Schlossman for not picking series the way you think he should pick them.

Our nation is based on sportswriters not picking hockey teams to split a series?

I hear the pot calling to the kettle.

Aren't you being a bit anal about this? It's Schlossman's opinion. Let him pick the way he wants to pick. If he's wrong, he's wrong. Who cares about this issue besides you? Give it a rest already.

Phil Jackson said it was okay with him.

If you're not a graphical genius like me with innate artistic talent, you could take the easy way out and try this site.

From PJStar.com: Braves are safe NCAA ruling allows Bradley to keep name I read the story in total disbelief. So this is considered positive social change? Bradley keeps the name "Braves" under the false pretense that its nickname has nothing to do with American Indians. Furthermore, "the qualities of honor, courage, tenacity, loyalty, and endurance" are now divorced from any connection or association with American Indians. This, according to a Bradley graduate, is a victory for common sense. It's time to cue Gordon Lightfoot...

Me too.

Obvious, yes. Overwhelming? Who knows? Has anyone ever polled members of the Seminole tribes to find out how many of them are for FSU's use of their name and how many are against it? If 40 percent of them are against it, is that a significant enough percentage to disregard the tribal council's support? What if an independent scientific poll of enrolled members of the Sioux tribes in North Dakota showed that 60 percent or more of them supported UND's use of the Fighting Sioux nickname? What if, in spite of that, the tribal councils continued to vote in opposition to UND? Do you disregard what the majority of the Sioux people think and go with what the tribal governments think? You continue to say that UND has no support from any Sioux. That's simply not true. If the Standing Rock tribe wanted to rescind its past support, it could easily do so, but it hasn't. There are also many members of the Sioux tribe who have supported UND both publicly and privately. How you can continue to denigrate their efforts by saying that UND has no support is beyond me.

On his blog site, Brad has some information about Evan Trupp having surgery for a shoulder injury.

That's not true. It's your opinion, but it's not based on fact. Thanks for the advice. I have posted this link in past threads, which provides the most comprehensive explanation for the origins of the word "Sioux" of any that I've seen. I think it's important for UND to establish that it has the legal right to use the name. I think it's important for UND to fight the "hostile and abusive" label that the NCAA has unfairly slapped on the university, a label that inaccurately portrays UND has a racist institution. I think it's important that the NCAA be challenged for operating outside the rules that govern it and beyond the function for which it was established. If we do all that and the Sioux tribes continue to oppose UND's use of the Fighting Sioux nickname, then the university should seriously consider a change.

Thanks for the information, Tony, but I knew that. Perhaps I should have been more clear by saying that not only have I done what larsena suggested, but I've also done it on other reservations besides Sioux reservations. Many, many UND employees have.