Showing posts with label bracketology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bracketology. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 09, 2014

2014 March Badness AZ Edition: Fourth Round and Championship


Well, we've reached the time in the whackadoodle tourney where all we have left is the Freaky Four.

People who in nearly any other state would be the "craziest of the crazy"; here, they are just among the craziest.



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1AJ Lafaro





Lafaro


8Ally Miller






Lafaro

4Michele Ugenti





Ugenti


5Andy Biggs





Bay at the Moon - Urban
Lafaro
3John Kavanagh





Kavanagh


6Russell Pearce






Huppenthal

2John Huppenthal





Huppenthal


7Gilbert School Board








Melvin
1Al Melvin





Melvin


8Adam Kwasman






Melvin

4Cathi Herrod





Herrod


5Chester Crandell





Bay at the Moon - Rural
Melvin
3Bob Thorpe





Brown


6Jim Brown






Shooter

2Don Shooter





Shooter


7Brenda Barton









1Andrew Thomas





Thomas


8Jim Lane






Thomas

4Carl Seel





Burges


5Judy Burges





Black Helicopter
DiCiccio
3Kelly Townsend





Townsend


6Ethan Orr






DiCiccio

2Sal DiCiccio





DiCiccio


7Andy Tobin








Horne
1Steve Yarbrough





Yarbrough


8Jeff Dial






Murphy

4Debbie Lesko





Murphy


5Rick Murphy





Go Along To Get Along
Horne
3Kelli Ward





Yee


6Kimberly Yee






Horne

2Tom Horne





Horne


7Frank Antenori





Summaries:

Melvin over Lafaro.  On paper, this looked to be a matchup of two equals, a la UConn vs. Notre Dame in the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship, but while Lafaro made it look close for a while, the depth and breadth of Melvin's nuttiness carried the day, and took him to victory in the "Bay at the Moon" half of the bracket.

Horne over DiCiccio.  While Horne emerged from the Go Along to Get Along region, he overcame the victor of the Black Helicopters region by demonstrating that there is a fine line between insanity and stupidity.

And he is stupid enough to keep giving his girlfriends and other women in his life taxpayer-funded jobs for which they are other than qualified.


Championship Matchup -


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Melvin































Melvin






























Horne

Al Melvin fought off the game Tom Horne to win the (least) coveted "champeenship".

The game started off relatively quietly, with Melvin opening with his constant (and rather obsequious) pandering to tea party types to try to gather their support for his candidacy for governor.

Horne stayed close by reminding people of his anti-immigrant policies and actions, both as AG and State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

It stayed neck and neck for most of the first half of their tussle, then it seemed as if Melvin drank some spiked tea, and rattled off support for white supremacists,  a proposal to ban Common Core education standards in AZ, support for using slave prison labor, turning AZ into a nuclear waste dump and using the revenue to pay for public schools, more support for white supremacists, and attacking President Barack Obama with false quotes.

That flurry propelled Melvin to a strong lead well into the second half.  Horne fought back valiantly, citing the fact that he gave his (alleged) girlfriend a publicly-funded job, committed a hit-and-run accident while leaving his (alleged) girlfriend's condo after an (alleged) nooner, was found to have violated campaign finance laws during his quest to win the AG's job during the 2010 election, and gave the wife of a political ally an unadvertised job for which she doesn't meet the minimum qualification requirements.

However, in the end, Melvin closed out the win with an interview he gave in support of the discrimination protection act, SB1062.

It was an interview that will go down in the annals of politics as the most negative of negative examples, what *not* to do while running for office.

He sounded uninformed and unintelligent, and may have been the final nail in the coffin for the bill.

Horne looked on, shrugged his shoulders, and announced that even he couldn't top that, killing a proposal by supporting it enthusiastically.

That was enough to carry Melvin, the man who would be governor, to the championship of the 2014 AZ March Badness Tournament.

He didn't even need to trot out his opposition to algebra.

Note: in most states, winning something like this would probably mean that the "winner" probably doesn't have a snowball's chance in Phoenix in July of getting his party's nomination for governor, but this is the state the elected Ev Mecham.

In other words, hold on to your hats because the ride could get a little bumpy.

Monday, April 07, 2014

2014 March Badness AZ Edition: Third Round

Down to the freaky four, and the "nitty-gritty"...


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1AJ Lafaro





Lafaro


8Ally Miller






Lafaro

4Michele Ugenti





Biggs


5Andy Biggs





Bay at the Moon - Urban
Lafaro
3John Kavanagh





Kavanagh


6Russell Pearce






Huppenthal

2John Huppenthal





Huppenthal


7Gilbert School Board









1Al Melvin





Melvin


8Adam Kwasman






Melvin

4Cathi Herrod





Herrod


5Chester Crandell





Bay at the Moon - Rural
Melvin
3Bob Thorpe





Brown


6Jim Brown






Shooter

2Don Shooter





Shooter


7Brenda Barton









1Andrew Thomas





Thomas


8Jim Lane






Thomas

4Carl Seel





Burges


5Judy Burges





Black Helicopter
DiCiccio
3Kelly Townsend





Townsend


6Ethan Orr






DiCiccio

2Sal DiCiccio





DiCiccio


7Andy Tobin









1Steve Yarbrough





Yarbrough


8Jeff Dial






Murphy

4Debbie Lesko





Murphy


5Rick Murphy





Go Along To Get Along
Horne
3Kelli Ward





Yee


6Kimberly Yee






Horne

2Tom Horne





Horne


7Frank Antenori










Summaries:

Lafaro over Huppenthal to win Bay at the Moon - Urban region.  A spirited matchup, but Huppenthal's teflon hide was dissolved by Lafaro's acid-tipped barbs.

Melvin over Shooter to win the Bay at the Moon - Rural region.  A nip-and-tuck matchup, in doubt until Melvin sank a buzzer-beating three-pointer - he running for governor against Barack Obama.  Last time I checked, Obama is not a candidate in AZ in 2014.
DiCiccio over Thomas to emerge from the Black Helicopter Region.  Thomas was ahead until DiCiccio offer to make a helipad part of his planned freeway extension.

Horne over Murphy, taking the Go Along to Get Along region.  Murphy was at a disadvantage in this matchup from the start - Murphy is one of many legislators, while Horne is the head of an entire state agency.  While Murphy has been waging a jihad against CPS all session, he needs to convince a majority of colleagues to jump on the crazy train with him.

On the other hand, when Horne wants to do something bad or apparently corrupt, he doesn't have to convince others to go along with him; he just issues an order, and it is done.


A final foursome of two one-seeds and two two-seeds?

My prognostication skills are incredible, aren't they?

:)

Sunday, April 06, 2014

2014 March Badness AZ Edition: Second Round

And then there were eight...


Even though the calendar has turned to April, the AZ edition of the March Badness tourney continues.

We've reached the part of the tourney were there are not going to be any real "upsets" as anyone who is left has the "Badness" credentials necessary to go all the way.  Some just need the right matchups.

The latest results:


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1AJ Lafaro



Lafaro
8Ally Miller




Lafaro
4Michele Ugenti



Biggs
5Andy Biggs



Bay at the Moon - Urban
3John Kavanagh



Kavanagh
6Russell Pearce




Huppenthal
2John Huppenthal



Huppenthal
7Gilbert School Board





1Al Melvin



Melvin
8Adam Kwasman




Melvin
4Cathi Herrod



Herrod
5Chester Crandell



Bay at the Moon - Rural
3Bob Thorpe



Brown
6Jim Brown




Shooter
2Don Shooter



Shooter
7Brenda Barton





1Andrew Thomas



Thomas
8Jim Lane




Thomas
4Carl Seel



Burges
5Judy Burges



Black Helicopter
3Kelly Townsend



Townsend
6Ethan Orr




DiCiccio
2Sal DiCiccio



DiCiccio
7Andy Tobin





1Steve Yarbrough



Yarbrough
8Jeff Dial




Murphy
4Debbie Lesko



Murphy
5Rick Murphy



Go Along To Get Along
3Kelli Ward



Yee
6Kimberly Yee




Horne
2Tom Horne



Horne
7Frank Antenori



Summaries:

Lafaro over Biggs - Biggs had innate meanness on his side, but that was no match for Lafaro's focused battiness.  The contest was close well into the 2nd half until Lafaro pulled away when he called Biggs "Judas Junior" for failing to block Medicaid restoration, with his dead body if necessary.

Huppenthal over Kavanagh - Kavanagh started off strong, raining bombs like the $900K gift to a private prison operator he put into this year's budget, but the seemingly teflon-skinned Huppenthal merely shrugged them off, cruising to a comfortable victory.

Melvin over Herrod - A close one, Herrod was close until Melvin defended his ties to a white supremacist.  For the first time in her many years as a "mover and shaker" in AZ politics, even Herrod was stunned into silence, giving Melvin an opening, on that he never relinquished.

Shooter over Brown - The heavy (and varied) experience advantage held by Shooter stood him in good stead as he simply overwhelmed the game upstart Brown.

Thomas over Burges - Both "danced with what brung 'em" to the big dance, and Thomas' "I may be disbarred, but I'm still a viable candidate for governor" beat Burges' cry of "Birther!".

DiCiccio over Townsend - DiCiccio just kept rolling along, using his smarm and sleaze to land body blows to Townsend's enthusiastic but rote nuttery.

Murphy over Yarbrough - Both are noted for proposing self-serving legislation, but Yarbrough's money bombs to himself (expanding school tuition tax credits) couldn't hold a candle to Murphy's attacks on CPS for that agency having the audacity to investigate sex abuse allegations lodged against him by foster children placed in his care.  Ultimately, no charges were filed, but Murphy has been lobbing warning shots CPS' way all session.

Horne over Yee - Horne may not have been disbarred (like Thomas, above), but his ethical "challenges" as Arizona's attorney general easily trumped the anti-medical marijuana and anti-choice epistles (aka - "legislation") proposed by Yee.  With his increasing age and shrinking likelihood of winning reelection, this may be Horne's last go-round, but if it is, he isn't going to fade away quietly.