One more thing I’d do if I were in charge...
I’d stop salary payments to all senators and congressmen, the president and all political appointees confirmed by the senate if the government fails to reach agreement on an extension of the debt ceiling and the country defaults on its financial obligations. Pay would be withheld until a deal is finalized and signed by the president. Withheld pay would not be reimbursed once a deal is done. It would be gone with the wind.
Lost Legacy?: Consistency can be a virtue, but it can highlight hypocrisy if not followed.
Tea Party congressmen express outrage that big deficits would strap future generations with backbreaking debt. It’s an honest reason to advocate a balanced budget. Hard to find fault with the warm and fuzzy feeling Tea Partyers have for our children and grandchildren.
Only thing is, they don’t seem to care what type of world they’ll be leaving our offspring. By demanding cuts to, even the dismantling of, the Environmental Protection Agency, the “budget do-gooders” want to bequeath a world with dirtier air, less clean water, fewer national parks and forests, thus removing legacies of that great Republican president, Teddy Roosevelt.
Is the Tea Party so stuck on an anti-government platform it is willing to sacrifice our national heritage and societal advances of the last 120 years? Are regular Republicans so cowed by the Tea Party they are willing to repudiate their own history? Even Ronald Reagan raised taxes. Grover Norquist’s no new taxes pledge would disqualify Reagan from his exalted position.
Follow Me?: Do you take advice from a sibling? Many don’t. Number Track Palin among them. Apparently the 22-year-old didn’t subscribe to little sister Bristol’s abstinence-is-the-best-policy mantra. Instead, he bought into the monkey see-monkey do approach.
After watching Bristol conceive a child out of wedlock (and get rich and famous for it), Track seemingly took the same track, impregnating his high school sweetheart Britta, 21, before they got hitched last May. Recent pictures from a baby shower reveal Britta’s baby bump to be more advanced than normal for two months after nuptials and sanctioned relations.
Ah, well, as I said earlier, consistency can be a virtue, though in this case virtue might not be the right word for a clan that espouses family values but puts more emphasis on creating families than upholding values. Perhaps more appropriate for Palinistas would be the idiom, “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
If I Were In Charge
If I were in charge....
...I’d order corporate travel programs to boycott all airlines that didn’t pass along to the buyer the funds from the recently expired federal tax on airplane tickets. Except for Alaska and Spirit, to my knowledge, all airlines have chosen to raise fares by an amount equal to the expired tax, reasoning the consumer already is used to paying the higher amount so why not pocket the tax portion no longer being collected for the government. The tax averaged about $20 for a $200 ticket. It’s all very legal, but not really ethical.
I’d maintain the boycott until the airlines dropped the greedy pricing practice. The only way to force airlines to behave is to hit them where it hurts. If it’s too much trouble to boycott all the airlines, then single one out. Within days it will lower prices, no doubt followed by the rest of the fly-boys.
...I’d require all states to pass laws requiring Internet retailers with nexus (offices, warehouses, or other tangible assets) within their borders to collect sales taxes. When the Internet began, it was appropriate to give Web retailers a break. But Internet retailing is quite vibrant these days; the price advantage most cyberspace merchants receive is unfair to brick and mortar companies.
Moreover, those sales tax dollars are desperately needed by state and local governments. They’d also help offset the loss of revenue (from sales and property taxes) when retailers, such as Borders Group, go out of business.
I would exclude Internet start-ups from tax collection liability either for their first five years of operation or until their sales exceed $50 million a year.
...I would require all newscasts and newspapers to show past positions (by date) of politicians featured in stories as a way of exposing hypocrisy or at least changed thinking. It’s truly ludicrous that for the most part only Jon Stewart on The Daily Show goes back to the archives to reveal outright reversals of previously hallowed statements. People (and by that I mean, reporters and editors), let’s get some accountability here, not just for politicians but also for your actions.
...I would disallow government pensions or other retirement benefits for any politician or public servant who resigns because of a sex or ethics scandal (or a felony conviction of any kind), regardless of how many “clean” years he or she served.
...I’d require all politicians to pass an economics class that includes some simple lessons. First, while businesses often resort to cost-cutting measures for short-term profit enhancement, long-term growth can occur only if revenues are raised.
Second, businesses will seek any way they can to increase profits and reduce taxes, even if it means not acting in the national interest, e.g., sending jobs overseas rather than employing more Americans.
Third, cost-cutting can be effective if it does not harm the product, such as by substituting inferior raw materials, or by delivering less value to the consumer.
Fourth, government is analogous to business in that budgets may be balanced by cutting programs, but the value passed onto the public may suffer in the form of fewer police and firemen, lower social security payments, fewer parks, more children per classroom, etc.
Fifth, given the aging of the baby boomer generation and their increased use of Medicare and social security, more revenue generation is required, generally in the form of more tax collections.
Sixth, businesses and individuals often live beyond their current means. They borrow against the future. Individuals do that when they buy a home through a mortgage or make credit card purchases; businesses do that by issuing bonds. There’s nothing sinister or bad in those practices. For anyone in our government to believe it is now a smart move to stifle the future is a repudiation of capitalism as practiced today in the United States.
...I’d order corporate travel programs to boycott all airlines that didn’t pass along to the buyer the funds from the recently expired federal tax on airplane tickets. Except for Alaska and Spirit, to my knowledge, all airlines have chosen to raise fares by an amount equal to the expired tax, reasoning the consumer already is used to paying the higher amount so why not pocket the tax portion no longer being collected for the government. The tax averaged about $20 for a $200 ticket. It’s all very legal, but not really ethical.
I’d maintain the boycott until the airlines dropped the greedy pricing practice. The only way to force airlines to behave is to hit them where it hurts. If it’s too much trouble to boycott all the airlines, then single one out. Within days it will lower prices, no doubt followed by the rest of the fly-boys.
...I’d require all states to pass laws requiring Internet retailers with nexus (offices, warehouses, or other tangible assets) within their borders to collect sales taxes. When the Internet began, it was appropriate to give Web retailers a break. But Internet retailing is quite vibrant these days; the price advantage most cyberspace merchants receive is unfair to brick and mortar companies.
Moreover, those sales tax dollars are desperately needed by state and local governments. They’d also help offset the loss of revenue (from sales and property taxes) when retailers, such as Borders Group, go out of business.
I would exclude Internet start-ups from tax collection liability either for their first five years of operation or until their sales exceed $50 million a year.
...I would require all newscasts and newspapers to show past positions (by date) of politicians featured in stories as a way of exposing hypocrisy or at least changed thinking. It’s truly ludicrous that for the most part only Jon Stewart on The Daily Show goes back to the archives to reveal outright reversals of previously hallowed statements. People (and by that I mean, reporters and editors), let’s get some accountability here, not just for politicians but also for your actions.
...I would disallow government pensions or other retirement benefits for any politician or public servant who resigns because of a sex or ethics scandal (or a felony conviction of any kind), regardless of how many “clean” years he or she served.
...I’d require all politicians to pass an economics class that includes some simple lessons. First, while businesses often resort to cost-cutting measures for short-term profit enhancement, long-term growth can occur only if revenues are raised.
Second, businesses will seek any way they can to increase profits and reduce taxes, even if it means not acting in the national interest, e.g., sending jobs overseas rather than employing more Americans.
Third, cost-cutting can be effective if it does not harm the product, such as by substituting inferior raw materials, or by delivering less value to the consumer.
Fourth, government is analogous to business in that budgets may be balanced by cutting programs, but the value passed onto the public may suffer in the form of fewer police and firemen, lower social security payments, fewer parks, more children per classroom, etc.
Fifth, given the aging of the baby boomer generation and their increased use of Medicare and social security, more revenue generation is required, generally in the form of more tax collections.
Sixth, businesses and individuals often live beyond their current means. They borrow against the future. Individuals do that when they buy a home through a mortgage or make credit card purchases; businesses do that by issuing bonds. There’s nothing sinister or bad in those practices. For anyone in our government to believe it is now a smart move to stifle the future is a repudiation of capitalism as practiced today in the United States.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Multiculturalism Edition
As we continue to reel from the shock of last Friday’s bombing and mass murder in Norway that claimed 76 lives, new aftershocks to multiculturalism emerged from distant lands.
Glenn Beck put his dumb foot into his mouth again. As reported in Britain’s The Daily Telegraph, during his Monday radio show, Beck said, “'As the thing started to unfold and there was a shooting at a political camp, which sounds a little like the Hitler Youth. Who does a camp for kids that’s all about politics? Disturbing.’”
The Daily Telegraph reported, “The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party comprised of teens and preteens that existed from 1922 to 1945.
“Torbjørn Eriksen, a former press secretary to Jens Stoltenberg, Norway's prime minister, called Beck's comments a ‘a new low’ for the broadcaster, who is known for his controversial, often offensive statements.
"'Young political activists have gathered at Utoya for over 60 years to learn about and be part of democracy, the very opposite of what the Hitler Youth was about,’" he told The Daily Telegraph. “‘Glenn Beck's comments are ignorant, incorrect and extremely hurtful.’"
Ah, the hypocrisy of those with a microphone and hours to fill the air with their venom. Beck’s 9/12 project, it turns out, runs a Tea Party political camp for children 8 to 12 years old...
Any attempt at multiculturalism, especially when it comes to possible romance, breeds dissent worthy of Romeo & Juliet.
In Israel, according to the newspaper Haaretz, rabbis in the Gush Etzion region south of Bethlehem in the West Bank objected to a possible liaison between a Jewish cashier and a Palestinian bagger at an Israeli-owned supermarket that purposely opened in an area where Jews and Palestinians could freely mingle (http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israeli-grocery-store-keeps-arab-baggers-and-jewish-cashiers-apart-1.375301).
It’s not clear from the article if there indeed was a love affair. Nor is it clear whether the bagger left his job voluntarily or was fired under pressure from the rabbis. But the grocer has agreed to keep Israeli cashiers and Palestinian baggers apart except when customer traffic is heavy. Moreover, if the quotes from a local rabbi of Alon Shvut are accurate, it’s not a good situation.
Rabbi Gideon Perl is reported to have said, “I was asked to talk to (owner) Rami Levi and his staff about the problem, and told them that one of the things we had feared when the store opened a year ago was exactly this...You need a whip to teach people a lesson after something like this happens.”
I shutter to think any 21st century rabbi could think in such terms...
Perhaps that rabbi and any like-minded soul should look to Jewish history for some multicultural encouragement.
In the same issue of Haaretz, an article on an archeological find in Tel Tzafit, near the Gaza Strip, revealed possible links between biblical Jews and their arch enemies, the Philistines (http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/3-000-year-old-altar-uncovered-at-philistine-site-suggests-cultural-links-to-jews-1.375305).
A Philistine stone altar from the 9th century BCE is similar in design to Jewish altars described in scriptures. They might have been bitter foes, but there clearly were cultural relations between the two peoples.
“Every group continues defining itself distinctly, but there’s intensive interaction. Think about Samson for a second,” said Prof. Aren Maeir of the Land of Israel and Archaeology studies at Bar-Ilan University, leader of the dig. “It doesn’t matter if the story is real or not. It’s true he kills them and they kill him, but on the other hand, he does marry a Philistine woman and takes part in their weddings.”
Summer’s Eve Follow-up: Seems I was onto something last Friday when I called out Summer’s Eve’s new advertising campaign for its feminine hygiene product. While it strove for a multicultural effect with three ads featuring white, Hispanic and Afro-American talking vaginas, the campaign elicited immediate reactions from Bill Maher on his Friday night show and Stephen Colbert on his Monday telecast.
Rotten Tomatoes: I like tomatoes. I like being able to get them year-round. But after listening to Barry Estabrook on WNYC’s Leonard Lopate Show today, it will be harder to swallow them next winter.
According to Estabrook, slave labor, yes slave labor, picks many of the Florida winter tomatoes we eat. Asked to explain what he meant by slave labor, Estabrook said according to court records undocumented workers from southern Mexico and Guatemala might be kept overnight in shackles, they are sold, they are beaten, they are paid subsistence wages and live in ramshackle huts with minimal sanitary facilities. For a full airing of the Estabrook interview, click here: http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2011/jul/26/tomatoland/. You’ll also find out why store-bought tomatoes don’t taste as good as they used to and are less nutritious.
Glenn Beck put his dumb foot into his mouth again. As reported in Britain’s The Daily Telegraph, during his Monday radio show, Beck said, “'As the thing started to unfold and there was a shooting at a political camp, which sounds a little like the Hitler Youth. Who does a camp for kids that’s all about politics? Disturbing.’”
The Daily Telegraph reported, “The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party comprised of teens and preteens that existed from 1922 to 1945.
“Torbjørn Eriksen, a former press secretary to Jens Stoltenberg, Norway's prime minister, called Beck's comments a ‘a new low’ for the broadcaster, who is known for his controversial, often offensive statements.
"'Young political activists have gathered at Utoya for over 60 years to learn about and be part of democracy, the very opposite of what the Hitler Youth was about,’" he told The Daily Telegraph. “‘Glenn Beck's comments are ignorant, incorrect and extremely hurtful.’"
Ah, the hypocrisy of those with a microphone and hours to fill the air with their venom. Beck’s 9/12 project, it turns out, runs a Tea Party political camp for children 8 to 12 years old...
Any attempt at multiculturalism, especially when it comes to possible romance, breeds dissent worthy of Romeo & Juliet.
In Israel, according to the newspaper Haaretz, rabbis in the Gush Etzion region south of Bethlehem in the West Bank objected to a possible liaison between a Jewish cashier and a Palestinian bagger at an Israeli-owned supermarket that purposely opened in an area where Jews and Palestinians could freely mingle (http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israeli-grocery-store-keeps-arab-baggers-and-jewish-cashiers-apart-1.375301).
It’s not clear from the article if there indeed was a love affair. Nor is it clear whether the bagger left his job voluntarily or was fired under pressure from the rabbis. But the grocer has agreed to keep Israeli cashiers and Palestinian baggers apart except when customer traffic is heavy. Moreover, if the quotes from a local rabbi of Alon Shvut are accurate, it’s not a good situation.
Rabbi Gideon Perl is reported to have said, “I was asked to talk to (owner) Rami Levi and his staff about the problem, and told them that one of the things we had feared when the store opened a year ago was exactly this...You need a whip to teach people a lesson after something like this happens.”
I shutter to think any 21st century rabbi could think in such terms...
Perhaps that rabbi and any like-minded soul should look to Jewish history for some multicultural encouragement.
In the same issue of Haaretz, an article on an archeological find in Tel Tzafit, near the Gaza Strip, revealed possible links between biblical Jews and their arch enemies, the Philistines (http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/3-000-year-old-altar-uncovered-at-philistine-site-suggests-cultural-links-to-jews-1.375305).
A Philistine stone altar from the 9th century BCE is similar in design to Jewish altars described in scriptures. They might have been bitter foes, but there clearly were cultural relations between the two peoples.
“Every group continues defining itself distinctly, but there’s intensive interaction. Think about Samson for a second,” said Prof. Aren Maeir of the Land of Israel and Archaeology studies at Bar-Ilan University, leader of the dig. “It doesn’t matter if the story is real or not. It’s true he kills them and they kill him, but on the other hand, he does marry a Philistine woman and takes part in their weddings.”
Summer’s Eve Follow-up: Seems I was onto something last Friday when I called out Summer’s Eve’s new advertising campaign for its feminine hygiene product. While it strove for a multicultural effect with three ads featuring white, Hispanic and Afro-American talking vaginas, the campaign elicited immediate reactions from Bill Maher on his Friday night show and Stephen Colbert on his Monday telecast.
Rotten Tomatoes: I like tomatoes. I like being able to get them year-round. But after listening to Barry Estabrook on WNYC’s Leonard Lopate Show today, it will be harder to swallow them next winter.
According to Estabrook, slave labor, yes slave labor, picks many of the Florida winter tomatoes we eat. Asked to explain what he meant by slave labor, Estabrook said according to court records undocumented workers from southern Mexico and Guatemala might be kept overnight in shackles, they are sold, they are beaten, they are paid subsistence wages and live in ramshackle huts with minimal sanitary facilities. For a full airing of the Estabrook interview, click here: http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2011/jul/26/tomatoland/. You’ll also find out why store-bought tomatoes don’t taste as good as they used to and are less nutritious.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Jobs and Shifting Allegiances
Did you catch the CBS Evening News report last Thursday on the Dawsonville, GA, company that produces customized steel plates using a laser controlled machine? (http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7374087n&tag=mncol;lst;1)
The gist of the story was technology has become vital to economic success and a main reason why massive job creation may prove elusive. Impulse Mfg. is enjoying 60% profit increases, but it plans no additional hires because technology has negated the need. A laser-guided machine, for example, can turn out one steel plate in 30 seconds, a task 18 workers previously accomplished in 30 minutes.
There you have it. Manufacturing, formerly a foundation of the middle class, no longer can be relied on to provide a stable economic underpinning in the Rust Belt and other regions of the country. Job losses no longer just result from companies shipping work overseas. Even those companies committed to domestic production have limited opportunities for American workers.
When I studied economics in college, 4% unemployment was considered full employment. It’s not beyond the pale to suggest today’s definition probably is in the 7%-8% range, especially when one considers all the aging baby boomers who lost their jobs in the recession and are finding it nearly impossible to secure comparable work and pay. National unemployment was reported in June at 9.2%.
The subtext of this job dislocation is the impact on national and local elections. The party in power, regardless of fault, often bears the brunt of voter disillusionment. That partly explains Republican gains in the 2010 elections. As we enter the 2012 election cycle, embroiled as we are in the pseudo give-and-take of the debt ceiling extension debate, it’s a toss-up which party will be viewed as the more sympathetic.
Old allegiances are fraying.
As inconceivable as it might have been just a few years ago, poor, young, uneducated white folks are more inclined to support the Republican party in 2011 than they were in 2008. The Pew Research Center’s latest poll, released last Friday, shows these core constituencies of non Hispanic whites have deserted the Democratic party.
“A seven-point Democratic advantage among whites under age 30 three years ago has turned into an 11-point GOP advantage today,” according to Pew. “And a 15-point Democratic advantage among whites earning less than $30,000 annually has swung to a slim four-point Republican edge today.”
Furthermore, “Republicans have made gains among whites with a high school education or less. The GOP’s advantage over Democrats has grown from one point in 2008 to 17 points in 2011 among less educated whites. Republicans have made smaller gains among whites voters who have college degrees (http://people-press.org/2011/07/22/gop-makes-big-gains-among-white-voters/).”
Can the shift be explained away merely as frustration with the nation’s economic woes? Is it a racist response to a black president? Is it proof the GOP attracts voters who vote with their emotions, not their brains?
Probably a little, or a lot, of all those reasons.
What cannot be denied, even by the most ardent Republican booster, is the policies of the GOP are weighted toward the wealthy, its support for social welfare and higher education programs is squishy, to say the least, and its job-creation programs so far are non-existent save for calls for lower taxes for the rich, or as Republicans calls them, “job creators.” Of course, even with the Bush tax cuts for the upper crust new jobs have not been plentifully created. (Okay, they can deny it all but they’d be kidding themselves; regrettably, they’re already doing a good job fooling many of the young, poor and under-educated.)
How absolutely discouraging. How absolutely unfathomable. How absolutely implausible. But it’s true.
The safety net will be pulled from under them if the poor, the young and the least educated elect conservative, Republican politicians. But getting them to see that is like trying to prove a negative. Until they suffer and can be brought back into the Democratic fold, many will vote against their best economic interests. We have only to look at the eight years of George W. Bush to see the damage that can be wrought—failure to acknowledge warnings of an imminent attack on U.S. soil, 9/11, two wars seemingly without end, lower purchasing power for the middle class and working class, no job growth, federal budgets that went from surplus to deficit, and a loss of respect throughout most of the world.
The gist of the story was technology has become vital to economic success and a main reason why massive job creation may prove elusive. Impulse Mfg. is enjoying 60% profit increases, but it plans no additional hires because technology has negated the need. A laser-guided machine, for example, can turn out one steel plate in 30 seconds, a task 18 workers previously accomplished in 30 minutes.
There you have it. Manufacturing, formerly a foundation of the middle class, no longer can be relied on to provide a stable economic underpinning in the Rust Belt and other regions of the country. Job losses no longer just result from companies shipping work overseas. Even those companies committed to domestic production have limited opportunities for American workers.
When I studied economics in college, 4% unemployment was considered full employment. It’s not beyond the pale to suggest today’s definition probably is in the 7%-8% range, especially when one considers all the aging baby boomers who lost their jobs in the recession and are finding it nearly impossible to secure comparable work and pay. National unemployment was reported in June at 9.2%.
The subtext of this job dislocation is the impact on national and local elections. The party in power, regardless of fault, often bears the brunt of voter disillusionment. That partly explains Republican gains in the 2010 elections. As we enter the 2012 election cycle, embroiled as we are in the pseudo give-and-take of the debt ceiling extension debate, it’s a toss-up which party will be viewed as the more sympathetic.
Old allegiances are fraying.
As inconceivable as it might have been just a few years ago, poor, young, uneducated white folks are more inclined to support the Republican party in 2011 than they were in 2008. The Pew Research Center’s latest poll, released last Friday, shows these core constituencies of non Hispanic whites have deserted the Democratic party.
“A seven-point Democratic advantage among whites under age 30 three years ago has turned into an 11-point GOP advantage today,” according to Pew. “And a 15-point Democratic advantage among whites earning less than $30,000 annually has swung to a slim four-point Republican edge today.”
Furthermore, “Republicans have made gains among whites with a high school education or less. The GOP’s advantage over Democrats has grown from one point in 2008 to 17 points in 2011 among less educated whites. Republicans have made smaller gains among whites voters who have college degrees (http://people-press.org/2011/07/22/gop-makes-big-gains-among-white-voters/).”
Can the shift be explained away merely as frustration with the nation’s economic woes? Is it a racist response to a black president? Is it proof the GOP attracts voters who vote with their emotions, not their brains?
Probably a little, or a lot, of all those reasons.
What cannot be denied, even by the most ardent Republican booster, is the policies of the GOP are weighted toward the wealthy, its support for social welfare and higher education programs is squishy, to say the least, and its job-creation programs so far are non-existent save for calls for lower taxes for the rich, or as Republicans calls them, “job creators.” Of course, even with the Bush tax cuts for the upper crust new jobs have not been plentifully created. (Okay, they can deny it all but they’d be kidding themselves; regrettably, they’re already doing a good job fooling many of the young, poor and under-educated.)
How absolutely discouraging. How absolutely unfathomable. How absolutely implausible. But it’s true.
The safety net will be pulled from under them if the poor, the young and the least educated elect conservative, Republican politicians. But getting them to see that is like trying to prove a negative. Until they suffer and can be brought back into the Democratic fold, many will vote against their best economic interests. We have only to look at the eight years of George W. Bush to see the damage that can be wrought—failure to acknowledge warnings of an imminent attack on U.S. soil, 9/11, two wars seemingly without end, lower purchasing power for the middle class and working class, no job growth, federal budgets that went from surplus to deficit, and a loss of respect throughout most of the world.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Number Two's Plus More Amazing Hacker-Gate News
During Saturday’s NY Yankees-Oakland Athletics game, a 4-3 loss, announcers Michael Kay and Paul O’Neill wondered aloud why Yanks manager Joe Girardi removed pitcher A.J. Burnett in the sixth inning after he had loaded the bases with two outs. After all, they bantered, Burnett is your number two pitcher. Why wouldn’t you let him work his way out of the trouble he himself created?
What Yankee team have they been watching this year (or last year, for that matter)? Burnett might be their second highest paid starter, but he has not shown he is their number two pitcher when on the mound. If the playoffs were to begin today, Burnett would be my fourth starter, behind C.C. Sabathia, Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon. (Burnett’s record and steadiness last year were so suspect he didn’t even pitch in the playoffs.)
This year Burnett is 8-8 with a 4.21 ERA.; Garcia is 8-7 with a 3.21 ERA; Colon 7-6 with a 3.29. Clearly the team has a better chance of winning when a pitcher gives up fewer runs per nine innings. I’d even pitch Ivan Nova over Burnett. Though currently in the minor leagues, Nova posted an 8-4 record and a 4.12 ERA before being sent down to accommodate Phil Hughes’ return from the disabled list.
More on Number 2: Yankee fans griped earlier this week on sports radio about Derek Jeter’s lack of pressure hitting. They demanded his demotion from the lead-off or number two spot in the batting order, citing his failure in the Tampa Bay series to repeatedly knock in runs in critical situations.
It’s true, Jeter is not the same clutch hitter of his youth. Compared to other lead-off hitters in baseball, he’s smack-dab in the middle when you look at batting average, runs batted in, runs scored and on-base percentage. Hardly any crazed Yankee fan can accept mediocrity.
But let’s not forget that baseball is a nine-man game. In two out of the last four contests, one run losses to Tampa Bay and Oakland, Jeter had three important late inning hits his teammates failed to convert into runs. Against the Rays he doubled into left center field but was stranded. Against the A’s he twice got into scoring position, first by doubling in the 7th inning and then by singling, stealing second and tagging up to third in the 9th. Jeter’s value has always been as a table setter. The Yankee captain, who wears #2 on his uniform, did his job, but baseball is a quirky game. The Yanks who scored 17 runs Friday night barely mustered 3 on Saturday afternoon. All too often, individual accomplishments are wasted by the inefficiency of your teammates. In today’s game, Jeter knocked in an important seventh run in the bottom of the eighth.
Bottom line: Over the long haul, Jeter remains a positive force high up in the batting order, whether first or second.
Bases Loaded: I finally heard an announcer give the record of a pitcher facing the bases loaded. In today’s Yanks-A’s game, Michael Kay noted batters hit .250 against Mariano Rivera in such situations, as the incomparable reliever tried to close out his 25th save of the season against the stubborn Athletics. Josh Willingham promptly singled to left to narrow the Yankee lead to 7-5. Mo and the Yanks escaped with a victory despite the next batter’s scalding line drive because it fortuitously went directly to Mark Teixeira who stepped on first to double-up Willingham for a game-ending double play. It was Rivera’s 15th consecutive year with at least 25 saves.
Hacker-Gate Update: It’s not baseball-related, but I couldn’t wait to post this. Last week I commented how Hacker-Gate had similarities to Watergate (http://nosocksneededanymore.blogspot.com/2011/07/murdoch-most-vile.html). Maybe I was stretching a little, but the comparison continues to be bizarrely appropriate.
Word came Friday about the firing of another Murdoch editor because of the hacking scandal. If you haven’t heard or read about it, you might not believe your eyes. His name—Matt Nixson!!! (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/21/matt-nixson-news-of-the-world-the-sun)
Don’t you just love the way the British spell their names? Hacker-Gate's Andrew Coulson vs. Watergate's Chuck Colson. Matt Nixson vs. Richard Nixon. Is there a Deane waiting in the wings?
What Yankee team have they been watching this year (or last year, for that matter)? Burnett might be their second highest paid starter, but he has not shown he is their number two pitcher when on the mound. If the playoffs were to begin today, Burnett would be my fourth starter, behind C.C. Sabathia, Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon. (Burnett’s record and steadiness last year were so suspect he didn’t even pitch in the playoffs.)
This year Burnett is 8-8 with a 4.21 ERA.; Garcia is 8-7 with a 3.21 ERA; Colon 7-6 with a 3.29. Clearly the team has a better chance of winning when a pitcher gives up fewer runs per nine innings. I’d even pitch Ivan Nova over Burnett. Though currently in the minor leagues, Nova posted an 8-4 record and a 4.12 ERA before being sent down to accommodate Phil Hughes’ return from the disabled list.
More on Number 2: Yankee fans griped earlier this week on sports radio about Derek Jeter’s lack of pressure hitting. They demanded his demotion from the lead-off or number two spot in the batting order, citing his failure in the Tampa Bay series to repeatedly knock in runs in critical situations.
It’s true, Jeter is not the same clutch hitter of his youth. Compared to other lead-off hitters in baseball, he’s smack-dab in the middle when you look at batting average, runs batted in, runs scored and on-base percentage. Hardly any crazed Yankee fan can accept mediocrity.
But let’s not forget that baseball is a nine-man game. In two out of the last four contests, one run losses to Tampa Bay and Oakland, Jeter had three important late inning hits his teammates failed to convert into runs. Against the Rays he doubled into left center field but was stranded. Against the A’s he twice got into scoring position, first by doubling in the 7th inning and then by singling, stealing second and tagging up to third in the 9th. Jeter’s value has always been as a table setter. The Yankee captain, who wears #2 on his uniform, did his job, but baseball is a quirky game. The Yanks who scored 17 runs Friday night barely mustered 3 on Saturday afternoon. All too often, individual accomplishments are wasted by the inefficiency of your teammates. In today’s game, Jeter knocked in an important seventh run in the bottom of the eighth.
Bottom line: Over the long haul, Jeter remains a positive force high up in the batting order, whether first or second.
Bases Loaded: I finally heard an announcer give the record of a pitcher facing the bases loaded. In today’s Yanks-A’s game, Michael Kay noted batters hit .250 against Mariano Rivera in such situations, as the incomparable reliever tried to close out his 25th save of the season against the stubborn Athletics. Josh Willingham promptly singled to left to narrow the Yankee lead to 7-5. Mo and the Yanks escaped with a victory despite the next batter’s scalding line drive because it fortuitously went directly to Mark Teixeira who stepped on first to double-up Willingham for a game-ending double play. It was Rivera’s 15th consecutive year with at least 25 saves.
Hacker-Gate Update: It’s not baseball-related, but I couldn’t wait to post this. Last week I commented how Hacker-Gate had similarities to Watergate (http://nosocksneededanymore.blogspot.com/2011/07/murdoch-most-vile.html). Maybe I was stretching a little, but the comparison continues to be bizarrely appropriate.
Word came Friday about the firing of another Murdoch editor because of the hacking scandal. If you haven’t heard or read about it, you might not believe your eyes. His name—Matt Nixson!!! (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/21/matt-nixson-news-of-the-world-the-sun)
Don’t you just love the way the British spell their names? Hacker-Gate's Andrew Coulson vs. Watergate's Chuck Colson. Matt Nixson vs. Richard Nixon. Is there a Deane waiting in the wings?
Friday, July 22, 2011
Some Not So Random Thoughts
Here’s a headline of a press release you wouldn’t want to send out if you ran a company:
“Ski Helmets Recalled by Swix Sport USA Due to Head Injury Hazard.”
Though the release stated there were no reported incidents or injuries, it clearly was not the best PR for a company that sells $99 helmets.
Every day scores of press releases come through my email account via PR Newswire for Journalists. I scan the headlines to see if any are unusual or otherwise worthy of further investigation. Here’s one from earlier this week that piqued my interest:
“Do You Know Your Vagina? Summer's Eve® Challenges Women Nationwide to ‘ID the V(TM)’”
Now, I was quite taken by the frankness of this message, so I clicked on the link, only to get the following note: “There seems to be a problem displaying the page you requested.”
Now that really piqued my interest. Okay, someone had the good sense to filter out potentially offensive messages. But I was still curious, so I googled Summer’s Eve and discovered the feminine hygiene company has embarked on an advertising campaign that is raising hackles. I’m not going to weigh in on this controversy, but as a public service, here’s a link to a story with links to the three ads in question. You be the judge: http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/summers-eve-talking-vagina-ads-arent-racist-says-agency-133588 ((if the ads don't load, go directly to the company's Web site, http://summerseve.com).
The outside thermometer registered 100.2 degrees at 2:18 this afternoon (100.9 at 3:06). I know all of you are devout conservationists who willingly heed the call to raise your air conditioner thermostats to conserve energy. But if you have any feelings for me at all, you’d ignore those responsible impulses and power up the a/c. You see, years ago my parents gave me some Con Ed stock. So go ahead, cool down. It’ll do me good. It might even make you a little more comfortable as well.
I am all for full disclosure, but sometimes intelligent discretion is more appropriate. Case in point: In the June 26 Sunday NY Times Magazine (yes, I am woefully behind in my reading), the editors chose to include survey results for the following question from their Facebook page—"What’s your most memorable Disney-related experience?”
A rather ordinary poll. What fascinated me was the response level and the decision by The Times to print the data. Just 246 people chose to participate in the survey (107 had a positive Disney experience, 91 had a negative one and 48 “commented with an unrelated response”).
What could have possessed The Times to print such paltry feedback results? Rather than show interest, it shows disinterest or apathy bordering on disdain. Sometimes, it’s better not to print results when your sample size is so embarrassingly small and, worse, statistically not representative of the public at large.
Here’s another editorial decision that confounded me: A cartoon in the current issue of The Jewish Week shows two hackers “as the progressive media presents them.” One hacker above the title “Murdoch’s Media” is portrayed as a frowning devil. The other, a smiling angel, is described as “The WikiLeaks Guy.”
Really, people, are we so blind we can’t see the difference between a journalistic abomination and a self-righteous organization?
WikiLeaks is no angel, but its purpose is to expose evil and wrongdoing by governments and businesses. Its goal is transparency, so that the public can make informed decisions about foreign and domestic policies and corporate actions. Murdoch’s Media, on the other hand, hacked private accounts for salacious purposes. Are any national and international interests advanced by knowing the private messages of a murdered girl? Or the musings of Hugh Grant or other celebrities?
Sign of The Times: From one of my professional Internet business networks, here’s an inquiry to sum up the state of our economy—”Can anyone recommend a good debt collection agency?”
“Ski Helmets Recalled by Swix Sport USA Due to Head Injury Hazard.”
Though the release stated there were no reported incidents or injuries, it clearly was not the best PR for a company that sells $99 helmets.
Every day scores of press releases come through my email account via PR Newswire for Journalists. I scan the headlines to see if any are unusual or otherwise worthy of further investigation. Here’s one from earlier this week that piqued my interest:
“Do You Know Your Vagina? Summer's Eve® Challenges Women Nationwide to ‘ID the V(TM)’”
Now, I was quite taken by the frankness of this message, so I clicked on the link, only to get the following note: “There seems to be a problem displaying the page you requested.”
Now that really piqued my interest. Okay, someone had the good sense to filter out potentially offensive messages. But I was still curious, so I googled Summer’s Eve and discovered the feminine hygiene company has embarked on an advertising campaign that is raising hackles. I’m not going to weigh in on this controversy, but as a public service, here’s a link to a story with links to the three ads in question. You be the judge: http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/summers-eve-talking-vagina-ads-arent-racist-says-agency-133588 ((if the ads don't load, go directly to the company's Web site, http://summerseve.com).
The outside thermometer registered 100.2 degrees at 2:18 this afternoon (100.9 at 3:06). I know all of you are devout conservationists who willingly heed the call to raise your air conditioner thermostats to conserve energy. But if you have any feelings for me at all, you’d ignore those responsible impulses and power up the a/c. You see, years ago my parents gave me some Con Ed stock. So go ahead, cool down. It’ll do me good. It might even make you a little more comfortable as well.
I am all for full disclosure, but sometimes intelligent discretion is more appropriate. Case in point: In the June 26 Sunday NY Times Magazine (yes, I am woefully behind in my reading), the editors chose to include survey results for the following question from their Facebook page—"What’s your most memorable Disney-related experience?”
A rather ordinary poll. What fascinated me was the response level and the decision by The Times to print the data. Just 246 people chose to participate in the survey (107 had a positive Disney experience, 91 had a negative one and 48 “commented with an unrelated response”).
What could have possessed The Times to print such paltry feedback results? Rather than show interest, it shows disinterest or apathy bordering on disdain. Sometimes, it’s better not to print results when your sample size is so embarrassingly small and, worse, statistically not representative of the public at large.
Here’s another editorial decision that confounded me: A cartoon in the current issue of The Jewish Week shows two hackers “as the progressive media presents them.” One hacker above the title “Murdoch’s Media” is portrayed as a frowning devil. The other, a smiling angel, is described as “The WikiLeaks Guy.”
Really, people, are we so blind we can’t see the difference between a journalistic abomination and a self-righteous organization?
WikiLeaks is no angel, but its purpose is to expose evil and wrongdoing by governments and businesses. Its goal is transparency, so that the public can make informed decisions about foreign and domestic policies and corporate actions. Murdoch’s Media, on the other hand, hacked private accounts for salacious purposes. Are any national and international interests advanced by knowing the private messages of a murdered girl? Or the musings of Hugh Grant or other celebrities?
Sign of The Times: From one of my professional Internet business networks, here’s an inquiry to sum up the state of our economy—”Can anyone recommend a good debt collection agency?”
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Family Reading
In anticipation of our recent trip to Israel we received a request from Gilda’s cousin. She’s an ex-patriot living on a kibbutz, having emigrated to Israel after graduating high school four decades ago. A grandmother now several times over, Tzvia, nee Harriet, would rather not repeat with the new generation what she considers an omission of parenting, namely, not reading to her offspring English language children’s books to increase their facility in her native tongue.
We were happy to oblige her request to bring books for newborns-to-elementary school age children. We picked out about 20 of our favorites, including Frederick, Corduroy, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, and a handful of Sandra Boynton classics.
I’ve mentioned before our preference for giving books as children's presents, accompanied by a short poem I penned several years ago:
Children outgrow clothing,
They tire of toys,
But the memory of reading
Books with your parents
Lasts forever.
Reading to Dan and Ellie was among the most glorious and rewarding of parenting activities. One reading session stands out, about the time Ellie was 10 and Dan 13. Like most young girls, Ellie loved the animated Disney movie, The Little Mermaid. As part of Disney’s promotional campaign for the film, I received a copy of the video and a handsome, illustrated bound version of the Hans Christian Andersen story. After watching the video several times, Ellie asked me to read the book before bedtime.
Ellie, Gilda and Dan piled onto our queen-sized bed for the command performance. All went well until I started reading the last page. In the movie, Ariel was transformed from a mermaid into a woman so she could marry her human sweetheart. But as I gazed down a few paragraphs, I stopped reading. The kids and Gilda wondered what was wrong. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Gilda’s quizzical look.
She was sitting right next to me. I whispered, “She dies.” Gilda said, “Huh?” “She dies,” I repeated. By now Dan and Ellie suspected something was not right. When I told them the original outcome of the story, like their parents, they couldn’t believe it. How could she die?
Perhaps Hans Christian Andersen wanted to give children a life lesson, that not everything turns out for the best. Or perhaps he wanted to nip in the bud any thoughts different cultures could successfully mingle. Whatever.
The Little Mermaid is one of his most endearing and enduring stories, commemorated by a statue of the mermaid in the harbor of Copenhagen. It’s a comely statue, a big tourist attraction but one without the impact one might expect. Indeed, Gilda and I were less than impressed when we saw it during a trip to the Danish capital, as the backdrop to the statue is an industrial portion of the harbor.
About eight years after the family reading, in a repertoire theater production, Ellie played Ti Moune, the lead in Once on This Island, a musical with significant parallel plot lines to The Little Mermaid. Ti Moune is a peasant on a Caribbean island who falls in love with an upper class islander she saves after an accident (Ariel saved a prince from drowning). As in The Little Mermaid, her would-be husband loves her dancing, but, alas, marries someone else. Just as in the Andersen story, she’s given a chance to save her own life by killing him; she resists, proving love is stronger than death.
On the wall above my desk there’s a picture of Ellie dancing as Ti Moune. It’s among my favorite pictures of her.
We were happy to oblige her request to bring books for newborns-to-elementary school age children. We picked out about 20 of our favorites, including Frederick, Corduroy, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, and a handful of Sandra Boynton classics.
I’ve mentioned before our preference for giving books as children's presents, accompanied by a short poem I penned several years ago:
Children outgrow clothing,
They tire of toys,
But the memory of reading
Books with your parents
Lasts forever.
Reading to Dan and Ellie was among the most glorious and rewarding of parenting activities. One reading session stands out, about the time Ellie was 10 and Dan 13. Like most young girls, Ellie loved the animated Disney movie, The Little Mermaid. As part of Disney’s promotional campaign for the film, I received a copy of the video and a handsome, illustrated bound version of the Hans Christian Andersen story. After watching the video several times, Ellie asked me to read the book before bedtime.
Ellie, Gilda and Dan piled onto our queen-sized bed for the command performance. All went well until I started reading the last page. In the movie, Ariel was transformed from a mermaid into a woman so she could marry her human sweetheart. But as I gazed down a few paragraphs, I stopped reading. The kids and Gilda wondered what was wrong. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Gilda’s quizzical look.
She was sitting right next to me. I whispered, “She dies.” Gilda said, “Huh?” “She dies,” I repeated. By now Dan and Ellie suspected something was not right. When I told them the original outcome of the story, like their parents, they couldn’t believe it. How could she die?
Perhaps Hans Christian Andersen wanted to give children a life lesson, that not everything turns out for the best. Or perhaps he wanted to nip in the bud any thoughts different cultures could successfully mingle. Whatever.
The Little Mermaid is one of his most endearing and enduring stories, commemorated by a statue of the mermaid in the harbor of Copenhagen. It’s a comely statue, a big tourist attraction but one without the impact one might expect. Indeed, Gilda and I were less than impressed when we saw it during a trip to the Danish capital, as the backdrop to the statue is an industrial portion of the harbor.
About eight years after the family reading, in a repertoire theater production, Ellie played Ti Moune, the lead in Once on This Island, a musical with significant parallel plot lines to The Little Mermaid. Ti Moune is a peasant on a Caribbean island who falls in love with an upper class islander she saves after an accident (Ariel saved a prince from drowning). As in The Little Mermaid, her would-be husband loves her dancing, but, alas, marries someone else. Just as in the Andersen story, she’s given a chance to save her own life by killing him; she resists, proving love is stronger than death.
On the wall above my desk there’s a picture of Ellie dancing as Ti Moune. It’s among my favorite pictures of her.
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