Cryptoquote Solved – 06/24/22

“The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.”   —   Andy Rooney

(I don’t think I could possibly get tired of this quote!  It is so true.  Andy Rooney was an “old man” my entire life.  It’s hard to even imagine him as a young man.  But I could almost always relate to him.  Like me, I don’t think he’d care for today’s level of “political correctness”.  What do they say about good intentions?  Be well and do good, friends.)   —   YUR

Image courtesy of Google

Can We Just STOP? Please!

This story is, or was, pretty much dead and buried already.  But only because one party was unjustly suspended, and forced to apologize, for engaging in a little friendly trash talk during a baseball game!

I think that most of you know me by now, as a very liberal individual, who supports voting rights, women’s rights, LGBT rights, and most of all civil rights.  I’m a firm believer in the Black Lives Matter movement, and I truly believe that our police systems should be reformed.  And, some of you may know – but for those of you who don’t, I’ll tell you – I hate the New York Yankees.  I can’t even get behind those who say you have to root for the home team!  Nonsense!  When you’re a New York baseball fan you have to make a choice.  Mine was, and is, the New York Mets.  The cross town rivals are my nemesis, and I always take great pleasure when they lose.  But when it comes to their individual players I’m generally pretty ambivalent.  The only one that I would ever really say I actually “hated” would be Roger Clemons, because he was a psycho-bitch.  But he has long retired – thankfully – and I have actually mellowed in my old age.

With that being said, I’ve always been ambivalent about Josh Donaldson.  He never played for my Mets.  This is his first year as a Yankee, but he has had an admirable career.  He’s been in the big leagues since 2010.  He’s a three time All Star, a two time Silver Slugger Award winner, and he won the AL MVP in 2015.  He’s now on his sixth team, and everywhere he’s gone he’s been considered a “team player”, and the antithesis of a trouble maker.

A couple of weeks ago the Yankees were playing the Chicago White Sox, and Josh Donaldson teasingly called White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson “Jackie”, because in a 2019 interview with Sports Illustrated Mr. Anderson made the statement:  “I kinda feel like today’s Jackie Robinson.”  He has been in the bigs about half the time Donaldson has.  He’s been in one All Star game, and won one Silver Slugger Award, and he was the AL Batting Champ in 2019 – the year he made the statement – so I guess you could say he’s an up and coming star.  Truth is I’d never heard of him before this happened, as I don’t pay too much attention to the American League, being a Mets fan.  So, I didn’t have ANY opinion of him . . . until now.  The Yankees had recently taken 3 – 4 games in Chicago, and then the White Sox were losing the game on Saturday, in New York, so I think Anderson was mainly frustrated with their efforts.  He went back to his bench and started complaining that Donaldson was “disrespecting” him.  Donaldson considered the calling him “Jackie” an “inside joke”, as he had also done so back in 2019, after Anderson had made his statement to SI.

In my mind, if you make a statement comparing yourself with one of the game’s greatest players you have to expect a good amount of blow-back.  I think that is why most rational people do not make these kind of statements, because it just opens you up to criticism . . . especially when you don’t live up to that comparison.  Jackie Robinson was in the MLB for only 9 seasons, and during that time he was the MLB Rookie of the Year – 1947, the NL MVP – 1949, a 2X NL stolen base leader – ’47 & ’49, and he was SIX time All-Star, with a batting average of .313!   You definitely have a ways to go, young man!

Josh Donaldson did not call Tim Anderson:  Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Willie Stargell, Ozzie Smith, or any of the other African American baseball players of renown.  Why?  Because Tim Anderson never made any statement comparing himself to any of them.  Only to Jackie Robinson.  And, Josh Donaldson has never called Josh Bell, Mookie Betts, Dee Gordon, Dom Smith, Michael Brantley, or any other current African American baseball player “Jackie”, because they never compared themselves to Jackie Robinson.  He very likely has called Jackie Bradley Jr. “Jackie” . . . but of course that IS his name.

Taking offense to someone calling you a name – that isn’t yours – is the furthest thing from being racist.  In this case it was just a well-deserved dig.  It’s playful trash talk, that he has set yourself up for with his own words.  To whine to your manager (Tony La Russa) about it, and then agree with him – publicly – that it’s disrespectful AND “racist” is just deplorable.  There is more than enough actual racism and hatred in this world, and besmirching a fellow ballplayer’s reputation with this kind of allegation helps no one whatsoever.

And, the fact that everyone seems to have fallen in line with the all too eager to condemn PC police is just as disgusting.  All the players that Josh Donaldson has played with, and against, over the years know that he is not a racist.  The fact that none of his current teammates have come to his support is just plain sad, and that MLB had the temerity to suspend him for a game is just a cowardly act of weakness and injustice.  And, to think that Tim Anderson got a pass for calling Brad Keller a “weak-ass f—— n—–“, after getting hit by a pitch, is the irony that takes the cake.  He can call a fellow player the “N-word”, but someone teasingly calling him “Jackie” is racist?

I have no affection for either of these players, as they’ve never really affected my Mets.  But this is a gross injustice!  Josh Donaldson does not deserve this kind of treatment/character assassination.  And, Tim Anderson has made a mockery of a very serious subject.  Maybe worst of all?  MLB, our media, and all who remain silent – or agree with this utter nonsense – have allowed this to happen!  Shame on us all.

—   YUR

Human Population . . . again!

On occasion, some of you haven’t exactly supported/subscribed to my assertion that the world is quickly being overpopulated by human beings, who are resulting in climate change, aka: global warming. Granted, I’m much more of a wiseacre . . . wise guy . . . wise ass – take yer pick – than an actual wise man, but I am certainly not alone in my contention.

A reader of Parade Magazine, a Mr. Don Vollmer, posed to “Ask Marilyn” if the growing human population was enough to cause climate change.  The noted genius, Marilyn vos Savant, pointed out what I’ve said numerous times.  It took around 100,000 years for us to get to a population of 2 billion by the year 1900 – or so – which was just as the Industrial Revolution was getting into full swing, but since then we’ve skyrocketed to nearly 8 BILLION souls!  In a mere 122 years we’ve quadrupled what took us 99,878 years (998 CENTURIES) to *achieve*!  A lot of the growth is because we’ve solved smallpox and many other major killer diseases, but also it’s because of how of our modern conveniences have increased our standard of living.  Until a few hundred years ago human life expectancy averaged around 28.5 – 32 years.  By the 1950s it had grown to an average of 45.7 – 48 years.  Now, the world average is up to 72.6 – 73.2 years.  And, it’s even higher in first-world countries, like the U.S. and Canada.

Marilyn pointed out that if we lived the simpler agrarian lives, of days gone by, the population increase would be sustainable, but because of how we now live – our increased standard of living – the continued growth cannot be sustained.  She didn’t go into detail, but one can infer she meant we’ve all become such huge consumers, and a lot of that consumption comes in the form of burning fossil fuels, both in the generation of electricity, and in powering our automobiles.  And, also the petroleum we use to create all the plastics, that so much is made of these days, and the rare earth metals that our electronics use.  And, all of our single use paper products – like toilet paper, napkins and paper towels – are contributing to the global deforestation, just as the reliance on palm oil – in the foods that we eat – is causing deforestation in the rain forests of the world.  We’re spoiling too much of our ground water, and we’re running out of places to put our trash.  The genie is out of the bottle, folks!

Marilyn vos Savant has the highest recorded I.Q. in the Guinness Book of Records.  She has served on numerous boards of directors, and was the Chief Financial Officer for Jarvik Heart, Inc., as well as authoring “Ask Marilyn”.  No one is saying that she’s the smartest human on the planet, or anything, but she is a very respected thinker.  Dismiss my diatribes if you will, but don’t mess with Marilyn!  Be well and do good, friends.   —   YUR

Image courtesy of DeviantArt 

Dismayed, Disgusted and Disappointed!

By now, just about everybody – on the planet – has seen the clip of the most egregious – and totally uncalled for – attack by the actor Will Smith on the comedian Chris Rock.  I had zero interest in the Academy Awards this year, as I hadn’t seen a single new movie in 2021.  But I did switch over to it right after the incident, to see Questlove receive the award for Best Documentary.  A friend of mine texted me a link to an uncensored clip of the attack a little later, and I was totally dumbfounded!  Will Smith?  Everybody’s smiling, laughing good guy???

The physical assault was unprecedented in Oscar history, but the follow-up obscenity laden screaming was possibly even more disturbing.  I’m fully comfortable with the acronym For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, as I drop a dozen, or more, F-bombs each day.  But I’m always cognizant of the company in which I may launch them.  Would I ever scream out that word – twice – in anger – in a theater full of people, most of whom I probably don’t know?  Knowing full well that the event was being televised around the globe?  No!  That was sheer madness.  And, over a fairly innocuous joke about his wife’s – Jada Pinkett Smith’s – very public appearance!  Celebrities are in the public eye, and just about everything said to them, and about them, is considered fair game.  They are supposed to be thick skinned.  For Will to respond with both violence and obscenity was utterly disgusting.  And, for me, it totally destroyed his good guy persona.

Some people have tried to spin it as Will being a “man”, defending his wife’s honor.  That is complete nonsense, as Chris Rock was just making a simple joke.  And, Will Smith can even be seen laughing at it, until he caught Jada’s eye roll and dirty look.  Other’s have tried to say that the G.I. Jane II joke somehow “crossed the line”.  If Jada had been going through chemo-therapy, for cancer, then that would be cause for saying it crossed the line.  But she has Alopecia.  It’s an unfortunate hair loss condition, but it’s not physically painful, and it’s certainly not fatal.  And, in some cases, the hair can grow back.  It affects about 2% of people during some time of their life.  We had a neighborhood kid who lost both of his eyebrows from it.  He’s fine today.  And Jada Pinkett Smith – to her credit – went public with it.  And, despite her shaved head she is still a very attractive woman.  Trying to say the joke was “tasteless” or “offensive” is a just way to excuse Will Smith’s inexcusable behavior.  That kind of violence and obscenity cannot be justified.

Another complaint that I have goes to how the media continues to report this.  And, this might sound petty, or picky, but Will did not say:  “Keep my wife’s name out OF your FFFF’n mouth!”  He very specifically said “Keep my wife’s name out yo FFFF’n mouth!”  Both times.  No “of” and “yo”, not “your”.  I understand that Will Smith was born and raised in West Philadelphia, possibly in a tough neighborhood.  But did he consciously choose to speak this way – as a way to make himself sound even MORE threatening – or was this a case of:  you can take some folks out of the street, but you can’t take the street out of some folks?  We all know he can speak “the King’s English” when he has/wants to.  Just report it accurately, media!

I have to commend Chris Rock.  First for taking the shot, from a bigger guy, and not going down.  Second for his quick recovery to make light of the situation, and continue with his presentation.  And, third for telling the police that he wouldn’t be pressing charges.  Because he very easily – and rightfully – could have pressed charges.  My son has had some personal – public – dealings with Chris Rock, and apparently he is NOT a very friendly individual.  But that can be the case with so many celebrities.  Everybody has their shortcomings.

Will Smith apologized to Chris Rock, and I guess to the rest of us who saw the assault, but it was only on  Instagram.  And, as the old saying goes:  a day late and a dollar short!  He had the opportunity to apologize during his acceptance speech on Sunday night, but instead gave a half-baked, self-serving apology to the Academy and his fellow nominees.  There’s a lot of speculation that this apology was mainly an attempt to repair his reputation, as public sentiment was trending decidedly against him.  He has some more work to do, aside from this apology.  And, he could face some kind of punishment from the Academy.

My wife has always adored Will Smith, and feels very bad for him.  I’m a much more casual fan, but this whole incident makes me wonder about the more general rise in violence, all around the world.  With all this political polarization causing hurtful, hateful vitriol, and this unnecessary war in Ukraine, and countries like China, Myanmar, and Israel perpetrating various forms of apartheidism/genocide, and people assaulting others in the streets, and on the subways, because they’re either Asian or Jewish, etc., etc., I have to wonder if Will Smith’s actions are just a symptom of some kind of universal madness that is taking over the world!  Can we ever return to civility?  Be well and do good, friends.   —   Your Uncle Rave

Cryptoquote Spoiler – 09/19/20

“I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand as in what direction we are moving.”   —   O.W. Holmes

(And, finishing up the third quarter of 2020, that is kind of a scary thought.  With the threat of a re-emergence of COVID-19, the rise of these right wing “militias”, our President resurrecting the racist call for “Law and Order” of the late 1960s, and our Attorney General saying that a Biden victory could only happen if the election were “rigged”, and threatening martial law, is right out of Orwell’s “1984”.  How could Barr possibly say something so stupid?  Has he not seen the poll numbers?  Most of the voters are unhappy with the way the current President has been ruining . . . running the country.  And, speaking of George Orwell, does this description of “Animal Farm’s” Napoleon sound like anyone we know?  He is described as “a large, rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar” who is “not much of a talker” and has “a reputation for getting his own way”.  – – – Wikipedia  And, now we’ve even lost Ruth Bader Ginsburg!  With the same Senate that refused to hold a hearing, or vote, on Merrick Garland’s nomination to the Supreme Court in 2016, for nearly eight months, they now want to rush whoever Trump nominates for the opening before the election this November.  The only direction I am currently seeing us heading is known as backwards!  Our best hope is that our military will not heed Trump’s – potential – call for martial law, and they will uphold the election results.  Only then will we return to a forward direction.  Be well and do good, friends.)   —   YUR

Image courtesy of Google and museum of wtf

Jumble Spoiler – 09/12/20 (Of Course)

Not really, folks.  But, since nobody really seems to care anyway, I’m just going to rant and rave the inconvenient Truth to you.  The Official Narrative of 9/11/2001 was, and still is, largely an orchestrated LIE, designed to chiefly accomplish two things.

1.  Put the United States on a perpetual/never ending war footing.  and
2.  Disrupt much of the Arab/Islamic world, primarily for the benefit of the state of Israel.

It was THE most implausible chain of events that has ever happened in the history of the world.  But, instead of wondering, and then INVESTIGATING, the who and hows of such monumentally catastrophic events happening, to THE most powerful, technologically advanced nation in the world, we were immediately fed a ridiculous string of fairy-tale like lies.  And, because the country – and most of the world – was in a complete state of shock, sadness and anger . . . we (the vast majority of us at least) were all too eager/gullible to believe what those in – what should be – trusted positions of authority were all too eager – and READY – to tell us.

Why bother investigating any of it, when they got so many of us to believe this amazing story?  Of course it was 19 Arabic men with box cutters who hijacked the planes.  Of course they had knowledge of all the military exercises – that only the military would know of – that were happening that day.  And, of course 4 of these loathsome 19, who could barely fly a four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing, propeller aircraft were able to masterfully fly large, sophisticated, commercial jet airliners into both of the World Trade Towers, and also into the 5 story Pentagon, which was very likely THE most secure/protected building, in THE most secure/protected city, in the entire world.  And, of course both Trade Towers collapsed, in under two hours, one in 1 hour 42 minutes and the other in just 56 minutes, “due to the heat of the jet fuel” – which burns at a max of 1500°F – melting the the steel support beams, which would have required temperatures of 2750°F to do so.  And, of course neither of the towers toppled over, but they both came straight down, in their own footprints.  And then, at 5:20PM of that fateful day, of course the World Trade Center 7 building, which had NOT been hit by a jet, but had sustained some damage, due to the North Tower’s collapse, at 10:28AM, came down in its own footprint, allegedly because of internal fires.  So, despite the fact that NO skyscraper – in the history of skyscrapers – had EVER collapsed before – or since – due to fires, including fires that have burned for days . . . of course three of them did that terrible day.

Oh, but our government wouldn’t have been complicit in the deaths of nearly 3000 people, most of them American citizens!  Really?  With the kind of money and power involved with our military industrial complex, and the destabilization of these oil producing countries???  It’s been said that the U.S. could have saved 36,000 lives if social distancing had been implemented one week earlier, in this battle to contain COVID-19.  How many more lives, had President Trump not publicly downplayed the disease’s severity back in January and February?  I really don’t like apples and oranges types of comparisons, but I think that this demonstrates that the lives of everyday people is NOT the #1 priority of our government.

If you made it this far, friends, you can all go back to your idyllic dreamlike existences, where the U.S. is that bright and shiny city on a hill, and the bastion of both racial equality, and equal justice for all.  “They hate us for our freedoms.”  Really?   —   YUR

Image courtesy of Reddit

Portrait of a Patriot – John McCain

The stabilizing voice of American politics – in the age of extreme partisanship – has suddenly fallen silent.  We all knew that it was coming . . . but not sooner than later.  He informed the world that he was stopping medical treatment for his brain cancer on Friday.  And, shockingly, he died on Saturday.

As the flaming lifelong Liberal that I am, I disagreed with Senator McCain on a great many issues.  Most notably on Defense spending, and the War in Iraq, and the broader “War on Terror”.  But, I truly admired how he reached across the aisle, to get things done.  Clearly, he was an old school conservative, but he wasn’t all about the money, as are far too many in politics these days.  The McCain-Feingold Act was a game changer in campaign finance reform, at least until the Citizens United decision came down in 2010.  He had the nerve and resolve to speak out against torture and “enhanced interrogation”.  He called waterboarding what it is . . . torture.   He thought we should close Guantanamo Bay, and transfer the prisoners to Fort Leavenworth to expedite their legal proceedings.  He stood up to the religious right and called them “agents of intolerance”, and  denounced their tactics as “division and slander”.  He stood up to President Trump on more than one occasion, most notably against a bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act . . . without a replacement.

He did things, and voted, based on his conscience, and the belief that America should always set an example for the world.  He didn’t care if that meant rankling those in his own party.  He cared about his fellow Americans, and how the world perceives the United States of America.  He believed in that “shining city on the hill”, and that the US should always be a beacon unto the world.  As corny as it might sound, he had the old school values of the words to the intro of the  old television show “Superman”:  “Truth, Justice, and the American way!”

He often demonstrated that he had a fiery temper, but that just showed that he was a man of great passion.  He also had a great sense of humor, and he often used it to make fun of himself.  He refused to take the low road while campaigning, and was deferential and gracious in defeat.  Those traits made him more human than most politicians.  He was honest, and honorable, and noble.  He loved his country, and devoted his life in service of it. 

Proud:  son, Navy pilot, husband, father, and dedicated public servant.  He was all those things and more.  He was a true lion of the Senate, and he will be remembered as a legend of the legislature.  Our country is richer for having had his dedication to public service, but we’re now a little poorer for his passing.  He may have graduated near the bottom of his class at Annapolis, but he reached the pinnacle of respect among his peers and countrymen.

God speed, John McCain.

—   YUR 

Apologies to Al Hoffman and Murthy

. . . and, to almost anyone else who suddenly comments on a non-current post.  You may very well be someone with the best intentions, and are just a little late to the show.  But, the cautious and suspicious side of me views your comments as possible spam, that is smart enough to get around the WordPress spam guard software. 

I certainly do not want to discourage those who are new to this blog, but if you want to introduce yourself to our little community I would much prefer that you comment on a post that is recent, and not one that is months old.  I will always make allowances for known/regular posters.  But generally speaking, even our regular posters like to keep things relatively current.

No disrespect to the honest latecomers, but I do need to consider the safety of the blog, as a primary concern.

Regards,

Your Uncle Rave 

Today’s Sarah Palin Comment???

Surprisingly, this arrived in my Spam folder!  I had no idea Ms. Palin followed my blog.

“I’ve be mindful your stuff previous to and you are just too excellent. I really like what you have acquired here, really like what you’re stating and the best way during which you assert it. You make it enjoyable and you continue to take care of to stay it wise. I can not wait to read far more from you.“

Wow!  I can hardly wait for what she has to say next!   —   YUR  😉

Another Bonus Quote!

English: Riverside Press Cambridge logo from A Treasury of War Poetry (2nd Series), ed. by George Herbert Clarke. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Again, from the Thought for Today:

“Do not wait; the time will never be ‘just right.’  Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.”   —   George Herbert, English author (1593 – 1633)

(I wish I had seen this quote years ago!  Great advice for almost anybody, in almost any situation.  Except maybe in going to war.  We all know how that worked out in Iraq!  Be well and do good, friends.)   —   YUR

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