Spellman’s Scorecard: Pistorius a true Olympian

Blade runner:When the track and field portion of the Olympics kicks off in, oh, about three weeks, you know all eyes are going to be on South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius.The man who runs with carbon-fiber lower legs has, and will, generate a lot of discussion.People will question if he should even be allowed to participate.They#146;ll ask: Do the blades give him an advantage?Some scientists say they do, others say they don#146;t.Frankly, I don#146;t care.The guy#146;s not favored to medal anyway, plus he#146;s an inspiration to so many people around the world.And isn#146;t that a big part of what makes the Olympics the Olympics?Did you know:Pistorius isn#146;t quite the trailblazer he#146;s being made out to be.According to David Wallechinsky#146;s #147;Complete Book of the Olympics: 2012 Edition,#148; American gymnast George Eyser won 6 medals in the 1904 games.And he did it while competing with a wooden leg.The equation:Oscar Pistorius 2012 = Casey Martin 1998.Riddle me this, bat man:If there#146;s a Geovany Soto trade at the deadline and no one notices, does it make a sound?Evidently not.The AP NFL Pro 32 power rankings are out! The AP NFL Pro 32 power rankings are out!And the top three are the Packers, Patriots and Giants.The Bears are tied for 11th with the Lions.Seems about right.But don#146;t worry, my friend:Because it won#146;t be too long before a certain team from a certain city with a certain former coach named Ditka moves up to the top of the standings and eventually returns the Lombardi Trophy to its rightful home.Right?Right?What#146;s weirder?Ryan Dempster sitting in with Theo and Jed on deadline day, or Lovie Smith interviewing Phil Emery?To be honest:Nothing is weirder than that commercial with the guy licking a keyboard.Handi-Wipes, hello.Sad sight:Never thought I#146;d see a half-full Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a NASCAR race, but that#146;s exactly what I saw Sunday as the crowds for the once-popular event continue to dwindle.Change a coming:Those small crowds have the folks at Indy thinking big. Big as in pondering the idea of installing lights at the historic track, according to the Indianapolis Business Journal.That would be amazing.I just hope they won#146;t use the lights exclusively for NASCAR events. I#146;m liking the idea of the Indianapolis 500 at night #151; but only if it#146;s once in awhile.Random thought:Not sure when it was enacted, but I#146;m really enjoying the new law making it OK for pedestrians to cross any street from any point at any time.It adds that extra zing our commutes have been lacking.Just imagine:If Lou Piniella were still managing the Cubs #133; especially this season.On second thought, don#146;t. It#146;ll only make your head hurt.Just right:Robin Ventura on the South Side and Dale Sveum on the North Side.The guy#146;s a ballplayer:Good luck to Reed Johnson in Atlanta.A ballplayer indeed, but there#146;s still a couple of ballplayers in town, and topping my list would be Darwin Barney and A.J Pierzynski.It#146;s early August ... :And Shane Doan is still available.Just saying.mspellman@dailyherald.com