What We Can Do in the Wake of the Penn State Tragedy

By Charlie Scaturro

I used to think that regular people couldn’t change the world. I used to think that it’s just too difficult to stand out from the crowd. I figured that the world is such a big place and each individual person is so small that it just wasn’t possible. But after witnessing how the inaction and cowardice of individuals at Penn State enabled a monstrous pedophile to continually victimize young children, I now know that regular people can change the world. If they’re willing to make the necessary sacrifices, and put the well being of others ahead of their own.


For months we’ve heard about the atrocities Jerry Sandusky committed on Penn State’s campus and elsewhere under the umbrella of the institution that was Penn State football. These disturbing details have played themselves out in the media as well as the courtroom, and they left everyone who heard them feeling a multitude of emotions.

When Fantasy and Reality Collide

It's been well documented on this website as well as on Twitter that I am an unabashed Washington Nationals fan. During their current pivotal two week stretch against NL East foes, the Nats recently hosted the New York Mets for a 3 game series - and my loyalties came under severe personal scrutiny.

Not because I was tempted to root for the Mets. Don’t be silly. If there’s been one constant throughout my life of baseball fandom (grew up near Philadelphia rooting for the Braves thanks to TBS, became an Astros fan for a decade, and have lived in DC rooting for the Nats for the past several years) it’s been “Screw the Mets.”

However, I do have David Wright on my fantasy team.

The Brooklyn Nets and Fandom

By Charlie Scaturro

Aside from providing NBA fans with seemingly endless entertainment since the Finals concluded about a month ago, the Nets move to Brooklyn has sparked a discussion about when it’s “acceptable” to become a fan of a certain team. This discussion really wasn’t very noteworthy before the Nets re-signed Deron Williams and Gerald Wallace, while they somehow mustered the courage to trade for Joe Johnson’s grotesque contract, but now that the Nets are a legitimate playoff team (at least they should be), and the Knicks seem hell bent on acquiring overweight point guards instead of retaining media darling Jeremy Lin while they simultaneously try to add every active NBA player over the age of 38, you could see why some Knicks fans might be contemplating a switch. Over the past few days, many have given their opinion about whether it’s ok for Knicks fans to become Nets fans, and as a native New Yorker who loves basketball, this topic hits especially close to home.

NBA Offseason Memes

By Charlie Scaturro

Seeing as we’ve reached the dog days of summer where real NFL football is still about 2 months away, the NBA and college basketball won’t be back until late October/early November, and baseball is the only sport on TV, the flow of content here at SIIJ has slowed. It’s not that I don’t have plenty of ideas floating around in my brain, but when you combine the slow sports season with an extremely busy work schedule, there’s just not enough time in the day to churn out articles.

However, I’ve recently discovered an easy-enough way to generate memes, and although I’d much rather be crafting a 3,000 word article on the Brooklyn Nets from the perspective of a native Brooklynite, the memes will have to do for now. Here’s a couple I’ve crafted in the last few days that pertain to the increasingly comical and always entertaining NBA offseason.

After the Nets signed Gerald Wallace, Joe Johnson, and Deron Williams, there’s been some squawking about who the best team in New York is, well here’s the final word in that pissing contest for New York’s heart: