In Case You Missed It (v81)

Trying to get back in the 'writing-on-a-schedule' swing of things, including doing the weekly post recap. In case you missed anything, I've got you covered for last week.

It started with a Sunday School post, where we listened to a handful of senators talk about what's going on in the world, and here at home. Touching on both of those was Idaho's Sen. Jim Risch, who pointed out how difficult it is to vote on legislation these days. 

Speaking to Fox's Brett Bair, Risch noted he voted against the omnibus spending bill that was just passed, even though it included a boatload of billions for Ukraine, something he supports, and a boatload of billions in pork, something he doesn't.

Whenever we have these doggone big bills, you're damned if you do and damned if you don't, whether you vote yes or no. But I -- I have -- I hope that no one would take this as not being the support for -- for the Ukrainian people, the Ukrainian war.

Several guests gave their thoughts on a decision, shared by Biden administration types who were also in the classrooms, on not helping Poland provide Russian-made fighter planes to Ukraine.  To provide some context for that, I included highlights from those interviews in a Sidebar. Here's a taste, from National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan:

Our goal is to support Ukraine and their negotiations with Russia and our allies, but "ultimately, it is Ukraine that will have to make its own sovereign decisions about the shape of any diplomacy going forward."

There was some good discussion from the panel on ABC's This Week, which made it into your Extra Credit entry. Some of the back-and-forth had to do with Russia and Ukraine and WWIII, of course, but there was also some talk about gas prices, and who's to blame for them.  

Former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp noted that blame always falls on whoever is in power, but she also pointed out that the Dems and Biden's own people aren't doing a very good job pushing back on what she called "the red herrings." One example? The common complaint that "It's because you didn't build the Keystone XL Pipeline." 

And I remind them, one of the first things Donald Trump did was give the permit. And in four years the pipeline didn't get built. Why not? Because it wasn't -- it wasn't economical to build that pipeline in those price points.

She's right - the party in power does get blamed - and she's right that the Dems don't have a clue how to fight back, or how to get in front of this stuff so they don't have to play defense all the time. 

After watching and listening to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speak to elected officials in the West, I was inspired to envision Zelenskyy asking Donald Trump for a favor via Zoom. I made some slight adaptations to Zelenskyy's remarks to American officials, and gave him the upper hand in the conversation. Here are a couple of snippets.

I remember your national memorial in Rushmore, and how you want to see your face there, with the faces of your prominent presidents, those who laid the foundation of the United States of America as it is today. 

And, later in the conversation,

 I understand that you are not personally familiar, because of your bone spurs, with how much depends on the battlefield, on the ability to use aircraft, powerful, stronger aviation to protect our people, our freedom, our land.

It was a fun exercise.

For your TGIF, I focused only on good news/good week stuff. Some of it was consequential to folks involved, personally or professionally. Some of it wasn't, but there are times when we need to escape into our time-honored traditions. 

First, one of the consequential items.

Hundreds of protesters were arrested across multiple Russian cities earlier this week; since the invasion started in late February, over 14,000 have been arrested. They protest, even in the face of up to 15 years in prison.

And, one of the less-than-consequential ones.

Baseball's Spring Training is underway, after a lengthy lockout of the players by the owners, over what else? Money. It's always about money, one way or another. Playing ball is great; my Boston Red Sox starting the season 2-0 is even better.

Finally, I tossed up a Quick Take on the entertaining process by which the Senate "unanimously" passed the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make Daylight Savings Time permanent come November 2023. The folks at BuzzFeed did some digging into how this passed, and honestly, it's a tragi-comedy or something. 

Don't believe me? Listen to Sen. Chris Coons.

Asked to re-create his reaction to the news, Sen. Chris Coons issued a series of shocked stammers that is impossible to phonetically translate.

Honestly, you can't make this stuff up.

Coming up this week? I'll be in the classrooms, of course, and there'll likely be some Wondering on Wednesday. Other than that, my former governor is getting on my nerves, and my current governor is getting ready to rumble with her own party on crime and the budget. I'm sure there's a post or two in that mess somewhere.

Thanks for sticking around.

TGIF 3/18/22

We've all probably had enough bad news or sad news this week, so for this week's TGIF, I'm sharing only 'good week' stories. 

This past Wednesday was National Panda Day. The Smithsonian Institution's National Zoo in Washington DC kicked off a six-month celebration of pandas and partnership with the Chinese. Brandie Smith, the zoo's director, said 

After 50 years, giant pandas remain an iconic species for our zoo. More importantly, they represent how great conservation outcomes can be achieved through great partnerships with our Chinese colleagues.

The first pandas came to the zoo in April of 1972, after President Richard Nixon's groundbreaking visit to China that February. 

Almost as groundbreaking as Nixon's trip to China? The amount of resistance being put forward by Russians who are against Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

• Hundreds of protesters were arrested across multiple Russian cities earlier this week; since the invasion started in late February, over 14,000 have been arrested. They protest, even in the face of up to 15 years in prison.
• A Russian TV station employee held up a 'No war' sign behind the anchor during a broadcast; she was interrogated for over 14 hours, and fined 30,000 rubles - around $280.
• A prima ballerina is leaving the Bolshoi ballet, and Russia, in protest of the invasion.
• A leading Russian rapper is holding "Russians against War" concerts outside Russia; proceeds from ticket sales are being donated to Ukraine.

Closer to home, a benefit concert put on by the Rochester (NY) Symphony raised $58,000 for ROC Maidan, part of the city's Ukrainian Culture Center. The concert was just one of several events planned in the greater Rochester area. 

A few significantly less critical things occurred this week, too. 

• Baseball's Spring Training is underway, after a lengthy lockout of the players by the owners, over what else? Money. It's always about money, one way or another. Playing ball is great; my Boston Red Sox starting the season 2-0 is even better.
• With temps nearing 70 degrees in my neck of the woods, my golfing friends are enjoying a little spring training of their own. One friend faced a nice long birdie opportunity, which sadly turned into a three-putt bogey, but he didn't really care all that much. It was March, and he was playing golf
• The NCAA has entered March Madness, and things are nuts in the men's basketball tourney. There were a few big upsets - bracket busters, they're called - in the first round. For fans of the losing teams, for gamblers, and for folks who did a bracket in a friendly competition, it's not a lot of fun, but it's a blast for the rest of us. 

Those last three items aren't meaningful in the overall scheme of things, and I'm sure there are people who think it's silly to pay attention to them, given what we're up against. But we need our traditions, and we need to get outside on a beautiful Marchday, and we need a sense of community - these days, more than ever.

It doesn't mean we care less about what's going on in the world; it means we're human. 

TGIF, everyone.

Three Cheers for a Triple Crown?

When I was a kid, my sports hero was Carl Yastrzemski, beloved #8 of the Boston Red Sox.  I think I became a Sox fan because my one-year-older brother was one, and it seemed like the right thing to do.  I'm still one (insert snarky Yankee fan laughter here), and still think that Yaz was one of the best ever, even though he never won a World Series.

He did, however, win baseball's batting Tripe Crown, for having the most home runs, most RBIs, and highest batting average.  He also won the MVP that year, 1967.  Yaz's record stood until 2012, when Miguel Cabrera completed the almost impossible feat.  In all the years that baseball has been around, there have been only seventeen batting Triple Crowns, won by only fifteen people.  Paul Hines, 1878. Tip O'Neill, 1887. Hugh Duffy, 1894. Nap Lajoie, 1901. Ty Cobb, 1909. Rogers Hornsby, 1922 and 1925. Jimmy Fox (AL) 1933. Chuck Klein (NL), 1933. Lou Gehrig, 1934. Joe Medwick, 1937. Teddy Ballgame, 1942 and 1947. Mickey Mantle, 1956. Frank Robinson, 1966. Yaz.  And Cabrera.

I loved that, as the years went by, no one managed to to what my hero did. Forty-five years of Yaz sitting at the top of the heap, watching challengers (and cheaters) fail to match his success across three very different measures: the long ball, the ability to bring in men on base in front of you (which doesn't always require power), and consistency over the entire season.

I was sad when Cabrera won it in 2012, not just because it was Yaz's record that stood for so long, but because I liked that no one won it for so long. I like that it's not something that just anyone wins, that it's not an everyday occurrence.  The only thing that made it remotely OK was that Cabrera didn't play for the Evil Empire.

Similarly, I'm one of those cantankerous folks who has hoped, openly or quietly, that we don't have a horse racing Triple Crown winner.  I think the closest I came to rooting for a horse to win the race was in '03 when Funny Cide, the 'local boy', had a chance.  I cheered for him, our New York horse, I really did -- but with fingers crossed that he would not be successful, that the classic races in 1978 between Affirmed and Alydar would still be sitting at the top of the list when the dust settled.

Today, American Pharaoh will have a chance to break a thirteen-horse losing streak as he takes on seven potential heartbreakers in the Belmont. That's right: Pharaoh is the fourteenth horse to come into New York having won both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, and he's the odds-on betting favorite, as were his predecessors.

Pharaoh's trainer, Bob Baffert, knows the feeling of this moment better than anyone. He's been here four times -- four! -- with a Derby/Preakness winner staring at history, and coming up short. It's almost agonizing to watch the footage as his great and talented horses, ridden by great and talented jockeys, have fallen short, as many great players have fallen short of the magical batting Triple Crown.

The colt is running against a field of seven, five of whom did not race in the Preakness. Some say that's not right, that if any horse is to take down a potential Triple Crown winner, it should be one who has suffered through the two previous races, not one coming off a long rest. I guess, but they're three separate races; would it be necessary, for example, if a pro golfer won the first three majors of the year, that anyone who plays against him in the fourth must have played in the first three?  I don't buy that.

Sir Barton, 1919. Gallant Fox, 1930. Omaha, 1935. War Admiral, 1937. Whirlaway, 1941. Count Fleet, 1943. Assault, 1946. Citation, 1948. Secretariat, glorious Secretariat,  1973. Seattle Slew, 1977. Affirmed, ridden by 18-year-old Steve Cauthen, 1978.

Is 2015 horse-racing's 2012?  Is it time to let someone else sit on top of the world? I'm not sure. I might actually root for American Pharaoh this afternoon, but if I were to hazard a guess, I'd bet there'll be some at least gently crossed fingers hidden behind my back.

Looking Forward to 2010

Before we get too far into the year, I thought I’d capture some of my hopes for 2010. I don’t do any kind of formal New Year’s resolution, but I do think about the future. With thanks to my boycat Galway who I happened to catch in this great pose, here are some of the things on my list:

• Let 2010 be the Year of Cooperation between all levels of government including village, town, city, county, region, state and national jurisdictions. They should learn to play well with each other, consolidate services where possible, and think about what is truly best for their constituents in these trying economic times.


• Let 2010 be the Year of Accountability. I’m less interested in what we call this year (twenty-ten, two-thousand-ten, two-oh-one-oh, or whatever the other options are) than I am in hoping that this is finally the year that people become accountable for themselves, and act accordingly, whether it’s professionally or personally.


• Let 2010 be the Year of Not Defining Beauty by Dress Size. We need to focus less on how big a person is, and more on whether or not we’re healthy. There is a difference between the two, even if we’ve managed to convince ourselves that ‘healthy’ and ‘skinny’ are synonyms.


• Let 2010 be the Year of Fiscal Responsibility. We cannot continue to spend our tax dollars the way we do. There have to be politicians out there who can see the bigger picture and help us find our way back to some level of sanity.


• Let 2010 be the Year of Politicians Finding Ethics. That we need this is a no-brainer. If we have folks with the brains or the stomachs to fix it is a whole ’nother question.


• Let 2010 be the Year of The Demise of Reality TV. OK, we can keep American Idol, The Amazing Race, and maybe Survivor, but the rest of it has got to go.


• Let 2010 be the Year the Red Sox Regain the World Series title. I just never get sick of asking for that one.

We'll be talking about these again down the road, I'm sure. What’s on your list?