FACTS
-Wei Wei Noodles, a locally-owned business in Toledo, was the financial backbone for the Zheng family.
-The owner, Wei Zheng, has been in the USA for 21 years.
-Wei’s wife is a US citizen living in Toledo.
-Wei’s 3 kids are all born in the United States. They are all US citizens living in Toledo. They are all 5 years or younger.
-Wei’s brother is a US citizen living in Toledo.
-Wei’s mom is legally in Toledo. She’s battling cancer.
-Wei has no family in China, the country where immigration is trying to deport him.

http://www.foxtoledo.com/dpp/news/local/My-kids-need-their-Daddy-back

FACT: There are legitimate criminals in this society who, having been born in this country, can still prowl around neighborhoods. They have the option of hanging out with their families.

Barring anything major that Immigration officials can prove about Wei, is “by the book” always the right thing, even if it means tearing up a family of US citizens and killing their financial way to survive?

I’m just asking the question here. I don’t need to say my opinion.

YOU be the judge of this country’s immigration system.

First off, just to get this out of the way, yes I’m a Syracuse grad. However, I am also a big fan of the Toledo program and of Tim Beckman as a human being and coach.

I’m looking at this issue as an objective outsider.

Toledo got hosed, but the Syracuse win should NOT be vacated, as Toledo is requesting.

The whole issue obviously stems from an extra point that was ruled good when it was missed. When officials checked the replays, they inexplicably kept the play as is. There’s no disputing how bad the call was. The Big East acknowledged as much afterwards. Of course, by then it was too late. A Ryan Casano field goal in the final seconds of regulation would’ve won it, but instead, it tied the game, sending the game to overtime, where the Rockets lost 33-30.

As bad as the call was, vacating the result might be worse.

Coaches will tell you the game shouldn’t come down to one missed call. There are countless times in the game where mistakes can be corrected. Beckman even said after the game that if his team didn’t give up the touchdown, that whole extra point situation wouldn’t have happened.

And with the game tied in overtime, it’s not like it’s the NFL. Toledo had their chance to score and play defense. The official did not intercept Austin Dantin’s pass in overtime. Syracuse did. That obviously made it easy for the Orange to win it with a field goal that wasn’t close to being disputed.

That said, I understand the outrage. Toledo SHOULD have won the game, but one horribly blown call (at ANY point of ANY game) shouldn’t decide whether the end result should be changed.

THAT would set a horrendous precedent.

I don’t expect the Big East to vacate the win nor do I think they should.

Beckman’s right in calling this whole thing an injustice, but it would be a graver injustice to reverse what Syracuse fairly did to beat Toledo after the erroneous call was made.

“Facebook just committed suicide.”

That was just one of many reactions to Facebook’s new layout.

Honestly, it always takes time to adjust to change, but if one takes a step back and reflects on the day as it was, Facebook got whupped by Google+.

Google+ used Tuesday to finally become open to the public. Their Hangouts feature became upgraded to where it could be used on mobile phones too. A new Google+ search engine can easily find ancient posts that may have been lost on Facebook. Combine the fact that Google+ can be integrated with Gmail and Youtube, just to name a few things, and you can imagine this will eventually be a beast with really good privacy settings.

Facebook essentially changed its layout. Is there really anything of real substance to this change? Has there been any change of real substance by Facebook outside of appearance? They combined with Skype, but that was in response to Google+ Hangouts and still doesn’t quite match up. Then they took Google+’s Circles concept and tried to make Facebook more like Twitter with the Subscription AKA Stalker concept. Oh yes, I should also mention that Facebook has a habit of changing privacy settings without letting the users know about it. I have plenty of friends who have their phone numbers out there to the public. Fantastic.

A good friend of mine put it this way: Google+ supporters are lauding the changes. Facebook users are scrambling to change their settings to go back to the old format.

That speaks for itself.

Today’s round of social media wars was clearly won by Google+.

And eventually, it really does seem like Google+ will be an unstoppable beast, what with all the integration of all of Google’s tools. Facebook can only do so much copying…

That said, apparently Facebook will be coming out with some more changes later this week. Here’s hoping, for Facebook’s sake, that those changes get better reviews than what they got tonight.

As a member of the media, I’m able to have regular access to coaches of various programs, and from 2005-2008, that meant getting to know Gregg Brandon over at Bowling Green.

Brandon always struck me as somebody who was supremely confident., and for good reason – check his offenses during his time at BGSU. They were very dynamic. Josh Harris. Omar Jacobs. P.J. Pope. Charles Sharon. Steve Sanders. Those were some good teams.

He was also very goofy during press conferences. Once, he brought a mask and popped it on suddenly since it was Halloween week. Very goofy.

Gregg Brandon was always nice to me. He never wronged me.

That said, if you speak to the players from Brandon’s final years, and we’re not talking about the benchwarmers, they are more than willing to express their thoughts (one was interviewed the day after Brandon was let go and wasn’t afraid to have his name put out there) that they didn’t quite feel comfortable going to their head coach to talk about personal issues not related to football.

Now why is that important, you may ask? Well, most of these players are young kids leaving home for the first time. The team is a sort of family to them. The coach, often times, is seen as a father-type figure. It is in this area where Brandon seems to have failed his top leaders from his final teams. It’s simply not normal where so many of the team’s top players are unanimous in this.

These players all gush that Dave Clawson is different, that they felt they could go to Coach Clawson the next season with personal problems and Clawson would understand.

And THAT’S what makes this homecoming interesting for Bowling Green and Gregg Brandon when he comes back as Wyoming’s offensive coordinator.

It’s not exactly a lovefest between the two. Keep in mind Brandon won his final game at Toledo. That year, he won AT Pitt. Yet he couldn’t beat Eastern Michigan and Buffalo at home. Here’s guessing that the BGSU boosters didn’t quite enjoy seeing that when they watched those home games. Here’s guessing Athletic Director Greg Christopher didn’t enjoy seeing his boosters not enjoying the way things were going.

Therefore, the boot.

And this Saturday, Brandon’s back. Love him or hate him, this game should be interesting.

So as I’m surfing online last night, I came across this video made by Jin. It’s a summary of his last 10 years made into a 4-minute rap.

\"Shoot for the Moon\" by Jin

Google him for a second.

Jin went on to BET’s “Freestyle Fridays” and set a record for most consecutive wins. He parlayed that into a deal with Ruff Ryders. His journey has taken him to Hong Kong, where he continues to make records to this day.

His name hasn’t quite made it into the mainstream, but he is doing what many of us only dream of doing – he’s following his dreams and his talents.

Trust me. Google him. Jin vs. Sterling. That was my first impression of him when I watched this in my college days. I can’t really post that video here because some might not be able to take the language sometimes used in freestyle battles.

Most Asian Americans become doctors, lawyers, engineers, businessmen, or something to do with computers. That’s just been the stereotype.

Jin’s not that. He smashes that.

And for that, he is FOREVER an inspiration to someone who is trying to do a similar deal for broadcast television.

It may have been a 16-hour day, but I had a blast last week going to Chicago Bears camp at Halas Hall.

Just to be around that big-time atmosphere in a city like Chicago was pretty amazing.

So, without further adieu, here are my thoughts from Halas Hall:

1) The Bears media loves Central Catholic grad and former Buckeye MVP Dane Sanzenbacher. The two words that were most commonly said about Sanzenbacher were, “Good kid.”

2) Several Bears media members told me they’d be shocked if the team cut Sanzenbacher. They said the Great Dane had a better chance of making the team than Chester Taylor, which was proven pretty much correct today.

3) Chester Taylor may be a nice guy, but he doesn’t like to talk to the media. He also wasn’t ashamed to admit he hasn’t really followed Toledo football since Tom Amstutz “resigned.”

4) Chicago traffic forced me to channel my inner Houston to work the expressway.

5) Bears headquarters is located about 45 minutes north of Chicago.

6) It takes about an 1 1/2 hours to drive from Bears headquarters to Chicago during rush hour.

7) There’s a lot of Chicago culture in the downtown area. Had myself some Italian beef. Could’ve had some Chicago-style pizza at the same joint.

8 ) It costs about $20 each way from Toledo to Chicago and back in tolls.

9) Gas costs about 80 cents more a gallon in Chicago.

10) I love covering the pro game.

“I am officially retiring from the NFL.” – Brett Favre in 2008, retiring as a member of the Green Bay Packers.

Favre would play with the Jets and then the Vikings in subsequent years, with each season having the retirement storyline hovering above.

“I’m humbly honored that this page is serving as a memorial for performances from yesteryear. I thank you for all your support throughout the years.

Yours in retirement,
Chris” – Chris AKA the Filipino Favre on September 9, 2010.

Chris is known as an Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) legend. See, AAJA holds a convention every year in a different city. Starting in 2004 in Washington DC, Chris established himself as one of the organization’s kings of karaoke. His rendition of Prince’s “Kiss” is SPOT ON. Trust me on that.

Well, since that fateful quote in September of 2010, Chris was spotted serenading to his many adoring fans at AAJA 2011 in Detroit.

The Filipino Favre at work!

Granted, there was a deal made where the emcee had to wear a Lions jersey instead of his beloved Raiders jersey, but the bottom line is, Chris wasn’t retired.

Therefore, the Filipino Favre nickname.

To get a taste of how good Chris is at karaoke… this is from 2010:

Filipino Favre at his finest

Also, there’s this from a few years earlier:

Filipino Favre\'s inner karaoke comes out!

And it seems like every year starts with the words, “I’m retired.”

Through the years, he’s become known as the Asian Prince.

The Sexual Tsunami.

The Asian Jay-Z.

And it all comes back to being like a certain quarterback wearing the #4 jersey.

Chris’ words this year after AAJA 2011… “Accept it. I AM RETIRED!”

BUT… I fully expect the Filipino Favre to be on full display at next year’s convention!!!!!

As I was thinking of something to blog about, I thought, “Why not just blog about whatever’s in my head?”

AAJA’s been in my head non-stop for the last several months, but especially these last few weeks.

AAJA stands for the Asian American Journalists Association. They hold a convention in a different city every year. Last year, the convention was in Hollywood. This year, actually last week, it was Detroit’s turn to host.

And boy, did they host.

But I guess the main thing about this that has me feeling the way I do is that these annual conventions feel like the culmination of everything that I stand for. What keeps me away from my hometown friends and family (and trust me, I miss Houston) is that I’m living my dream as a sports anchor. I’m trying to influence others into believing they can do whatever it is they like to do.

Go for it. Doesn’t matter what it is. Go for it.

I guess when so many journalists are all in one place, when everybody’s in the same boat pretty much… it kind of feels like I’m coming home.

Maybe it’s because AAJA’s become a second family to me.

Everybody’s going for the same dreams. Everybody’s trying to learn. Everybody’s trying to have fun. And it’s so great to reconnect with so many people while meeting so many more.

I’m still thinking about it three days after the fact.

If you find that lame, I’m sorry.

But this is my life. This is my mission. This is my family.

My AAJA family.

And family’s always been the top priority for me.

Much love…

My thoughts. My prayers. My friend.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/washingtonpost/obituary.aspx?n=jentso-hwang&pid=152542849

An old high-school buddy. Feels weird since I’m still kind of young.

Bottom line, it’s just tragic.

I’ll definitely miss him.

So Google+ comes along to the social media world and everybody thinks, “Another one.”

Right?

This one’s worth it.

It pretty much consolidates everything together.

Case in point…

Ah yes... so eloquently explained.

But, believe it or not, it’s not just about collaborating to pee together.

Think Twitter in the following regards: Ever get concerned you might lose some followers with some localized posts that someone else might not care about? Basically, with G+, you can put your localized tweets/updates to your specified Circles that, in my case, would include NW Ohio. For instance, my friends in Miami might not care about how a local high school did, but they won’t need to be spammed by my posts. At the same time, my Toledo/NW Ohio circles would still get the benefit of information. AND… you can do it in more than 140 characters.

Think Facebook in the following regards: for most of us media types who have fan pages, because of the Circles function organizing our cliques, we can essentially run our fan page from our personal page without sacrificing privacy in a gosh-darned easy way. At the same time, as mentioned earlier, friends outside my media coverage area won’t need to be bombarded with my work. So at least I won’t look too overly self-serving.

And I haven’t even gotten to the Hangouts section yet.

I mean… how cool is it to video chat with up to 10 people at the same time in the same window using a voice-activated system with the ability to share video at the same time? And it’s FREEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!! That kinda sorta rhymes with YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEE, by the way…

The Hangout session looks a little something like this:

Hanging out on a Friday night... the G+ way

Yes. Consider me sold.

That said, I’ll still use my Facebook and Twitter accounts along with G+.

Sincerely,

@ho_chen
@HChenBobblehead
@AAJAMichigan
@AAJAmales

PS… for more in-depth info about G+, check out the following:

http://king5olei.tumblr.com/post/7515810533/one-week-into-google-and-counting-an-analysis-or

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9218283/Elgan_How_Google_ends_social_networking_fatigue?taxonomyId=169&pageNumber=1