Former Socialist, Former Republican, Former Contributor to The American Spectator, Former Resident of Canada, Back in Boston Area After Stints in New York City & Atlanta, Current Mustache Wearer & Aficionado of Baseball, Bowling in All Its Forms, Cats, Music & Healthy Living
Today, the United States surpassed 950,000 deaths from COVID-19 while also topping 79 million cases. According to Johns Hopkins University, there have been 79,035,756 COVID-19 cases resulting in 950,408 deaths representing a mortality rate of 1.2%.
Barring another surge (which is certainly not beyond the realm of possibility) it seems to me that most people are done with COVID even if COVID is not quite done with us.
Jeter, who joined the Marlins' organization late in 2017, evidently had differences with principal owner Bruce Sherman who reportedly reneged on spending an addition $15 million on player acquisitions. The Marlins did sign Avisail Garcia to a 4-year, $53 million deal and acquired second baseman Joey Wendle from the Tampa Bay Rays and Gold Glove catcher Jacob Stallings from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
At this point, Jeter's greatest legacy to the Marlins is his decision to hire Kim Ng as the team's GM after the 2020 season. Ng is the first woman to become a GM in any of the four major professional sports. Jeter knew Ng from his days with the New York Yankees when she served as the club's Assistant GM from 1998 to 2000. I was delighted when Jeter hired her though I thought that she should have been a GM at least 15 years ago.
In the long run, I think Jeter will regret his decision because I don't think the Marlins are that far from becoming a champion however modest their payroll. While a lockout could curtail if not cancel the entire 2022 season, when MLB does resume it will likely be with an expanded post-season format. While this might dilute the quality of the post-season it does help teams like the Marlins.
If the Marlins should win the World Series in a shortened 2022 season or a full 2023 season, Jeter is going to kick himself because he will not be around to see the glory.
With that said, Jeter can write his own ticket. I'm sure there's a spot for him with the New York Yankees if he wants it. I'm also sure he has other interests. But baseball is part of Derek Jeter's core and winning a World Series with an organization from the ground up is something special. The Marlins have a chance to win a championship but now Jeter has inexplicably decided to take his ball and go home.
On Friday night, Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene made a surprise appearance at the America First Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida. AFPAC is a white supremacist organization founded by Nick Fuentes who has engaged in Holocaust denial.
I do not know Nick Fuentes. I've never heard him speak. I've never seen a video. I don't know what his views are, so I'm not aligned with anything that may be controversial.
In other words, Marjorie Taylor Greene was in the neighborhood and just happened to drop by a white supremacist conference. When reporters told Greene that Fuentes is a white supremacist she defensively replied:
I do not endorse those views. The reason why I went was to talk to the audience. Just like I've talked to many different audiences. I've talked to Democratic union workers earlier this week. I talked here at CPAC. I talked to his people who were there.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is less than a week old, but in those few days it is very clear that Vladimir Putin underestimated Ukraine and so too did the rest of the world.
After all it was the Biden Administration who offered Zelensky a flight out of Kyiv to which Zelensky brusquely responded, "I need ammunition, not a ride." I don't think the White House was counting on Zelensky taking that stance.
Conditions could be very different in a week from now, let alone 24 hours. But for the moment Ukraine has defied the odds and has become a global symbol of hope in fighting for its survival and to preserve its democracy.
This evening I attended a screening of Casablanca with a near capacity crowd at The Brattle Theatre.
It is not the first occasion that I have seen Casablanca at The Brattle. The last time was on December 31, 2016. I was with a co-worker who paid very little attention to the film and saw fit to answer a phone call on her cell during the movie. She took little note of my admonition.
This is a shame because Casablanca has been shown at least once a year at The Brattle since the early 1960's. For many years, The Brattle shared space with a restaurant called Casablanca though that shut its doors nearly a decade ago. Frankly, the food there was overpriced, not very good and there was no piano player.
Later this year, Casablanca will commemorate its 80th anniversary. Yet the events of the past several days have made this movie feel a whole lot more contemporary. If this is the beginning of WWIII and Mr. Putin manages to conquer Ukraine and perhaps Europe and beyond then there will be a new class of refugees who must pay a stiff price for freedom. For the moment, the Russians are the Germans while the Ukrainians are the French and there is a very good chance that Kyiv will fall just as Paris did although it would appear the Ukrainians are offering a more gallant resistance. Will Casablanca assume its old role or will there be another city where people wait and wait and wait. It would appear that what is old is new again.
While the political themes in Casablanca have become more contemporary, the film is at heart a love story between Rick Blaine and Ilsa Lund albeit with a different arc. Boy owns saloon in Casablanca. Girl walks into saloon. Boy and girl have met before and the piano player wants no part of it. Boy and girl meet in Paris. Boy and girl plan to leave Paris. Girl stands up boy. Boy is broken hearted. It turns out girl was married to another boy, a boy she thought dead. Boy and girl wish to rekindle romance but are confused. Girl asks boy to do the thinking for the both of them. Boy does and determines that girl is better off with other boy.
I heard something that I had not heard during previous screenings - the tears of several women. In the real world one could not get away with saying the things Humphrey Bogart said to Ingrid Bergman. But Bogart delivers the lines written by twin brothers Julius and Philip Epstein and Howard Koch with such conviction that women are moved to tears.
The dialogue written by the Epstein twins and Koch is sharply economical but its meaning is clear even when full of ambiguity especially that uttered by Captain Renault as played by Claude Rains. Yet every line of Casablanca had a meaning and purpose. There were no wasted words.
Aside from being a Cambridge tradition, the film has resonance on the other side of the Charles River. Philip Epstein's grandson is Theo Epstein. Yes, the Theo Epstein who was the architect of the Boston Red Sox winning their first World Series title in 86 years and the Chicago Cubs winning their first World Series title in 108 years.
Since my return to this area nearly 9 months ago, I havebeen to The Brattle a half dozentimes and plan to go as many times as possible as it is essentially my neighborhood movie house. Tonight was the closest to full house I've seen. The Brattle still requires masks and proof of vaccination. Yet tonight felt about as normal a public gathering that I've attended in nearly two years. Whether this is a sign of things to come remains to be seen. But everything remains to be seen whether it is here, in Kyiv or in Casablanca.
Snapshots is a fitting title for the new album by Fanny lead guitarist June Millington because it is a photo album for the ears.
While some photo albums concentrated on a specific event or period of time, Snapshots is a collection of audio photos which spans nearly half a century. Granted, a majority of the album focuses on the here and now (or should I say the hear and now) Snapshots begins in late 1977 with a home recording of "Make Me Happy". Reminiscent of Judee Sill with a touch of Emitt Rhodes, "Make Me Happy" is unusual as it is driven by electric piano and drums instead of her ES-335. The upbeat song demonstrates her musical versatility. Towards the end of Snapshots, we return to the 1970's. In fact, we return to her days with Fanny with "The Ballad of Fanny" accompanied by the baritone voice of producer Richard Perry at the song's conclusion.
Yet much of Snapshots was inspired by contemporary events. The bluesy "Fire In The Street" was inspired by the protests which ensued in the summer of 2020 following the murder of George Floyd amid the early months of the pandemic. A triumvirate of songs - "Eagle to the Moon", "The Big Lie (Girls Don't Dream)" and "Too Close To the Bone" were written over a period of a couple of days following the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. All three songs feature June's former brother-in-law Earl Slick and his son/her nephew Lee John. Throw in Naia Kete playing bass on "Girls Don't Dream" and you've got a band which could be accurately called It's a Family Affair.
Of the songs inspired by contemporary events, the one which resonated the most was "Eyes in the Back of Our Heads", a spoken word song about the increasing violence directed against Asian Americans sparked by the pandemic. "Eyes in the Back of Our Heads" resonated because of its reference to the Atlanta Spa killings in March 2021. I was living in Atlanta at the time of the incident and vividly remember the wailing sirens which were heading north on Piedmont Road. Eight people would be shot dead including six Asian women. A few days after the massacre, I went to pay my respects at two of the parlors across the street from each other both of which were adorned with flowers. There was an Asian man carrying sign in front of the Gold Spa which simply said, "We Are Not a Virus." The song also resonated because Jews in America have experienced similar violence in recent years.
"Letter From The Heart", "Un-Knowable" and the closing track "Wonder Woman" are collaborations with students and staff of The Institute for Musical Arts. From where I sit, "Letter From The Heart" can be viewed as a companion piece of Fanny's "Think About The Children" from the Fanny Hill album. In "Letter From The Heart" is the children who are doing the thinking. "Stars at Night", which is dedicated to June's partner and co-founder of IMA Ann Hackler, was inspired by the Paul McCartney penned Beatles song "I Will". However, in my ears I'm hearing Gordon Lightfoot's vocal inflections. If he can read my mind perhaps one day he'll cover "Stars at Night".
I have heard many of these songs during the IMA Livestreams which were broadcast on Facebook in 2020 an 2021 as well as at the New England premier of Fanny: The Right to Rock last October but their spirit is fully captured and in focus on Snapshots.
If this has piqued your curiosity then you can purchase your copy of June Millington's Snapshots at IMA's website right here.
Upon learning that President Biden had chosen D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, South Carolina GOP Senator Lindsey Graham quipped, "The radical left has won President Biden over yet again."
Yet I suspect Graham's words might be the kindest Jackson receives from any Republican Senator during the confirmation process with the possible exceptions of Collins and Murkowski. But I would not be shocked if they too became wobbly where it concerns Jackson. Barring any Democratic defections, Jackson will be confirmed to the Court. Unfortunately, it will be yet another opportunity for the Republicans to put their Trumpian ugliness on public display.
Today, the whole world is united in condemning Russia for its invasion of Ukraine which has thus far claimed the lives of 137 civilians.
Well, just about the whole world. There are a few countries with Russia's orbit such as Belarus which are along for the ride. But if one goes outside that orbit just about the only people who are praising Vladimir Putin's actions are defeated former President Donald Trump and his cronies.
With that said, it won't be enough to condemn Russia. The nations of the world will have to stand with Ukraine and this very much remains to be seen if this will come to pass. Nevertheless, Trump and his apologists have praised Putin's naked aggression against Ukraine obliterating any sense of compassion, decency and humanity - qualities they perceive as weakness. Not only are Trump and company enemies of compassion, decency and humanity, but they are also enemies of America. It's about time America treats Trump and company like the traitors they are.
Actress and singer Sally Kellerman, best known for portrayal of "Hot Lips" Houlihan in the cinematic version of M*A*S*H which earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination, passed away today of complications of dementia. She was 84.
Kellerman's career spanned six decades. During the 1960's, she was on TV shows such as Cheyenne, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The Outer Limits, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, I Spy and perhaps most notably on the second pilot of Star Trek in which she played Dr. Elizabeth Dehner.
After being cast in M*A*S*H, Kellerman collaborated with director Robert Altman on several more occasions including in Brewster McCloud, The Player and Pret-a-Porter. On a personal note, I saw Kellerman in person during a tribute to Altman at the Brattle Theatre here in Cambridge for a special screening of Brewster McCloud.
In later years, Kellerman played Rodney Dangerfield's love interest in Back to School as well as in TV shows like Evening Shade, Murder, She Wrote and Columbo as well as The Young and The Restless. Kellerman was also a jazz singer and in 2009 released a CD titled Sally. I leave you with Kellerman singing "Say It Isn't So." R.I.P.
Former MLB player and broadcaster Julio Cruz passed away yesterday. No cause of death has been released. Cruz was 67.
The Brooklyn born Cruz was originally signed as a free agent by the California Angels in 1974. In 1976, Cruz was selected by the Seattle Mariners in their expansion draft and would make his big league debut during their inaugural season in 1977.
A second baseman by trade, Cruz's greatest asset was his base stealing. Between 1978 and 1983, Cruz stole at least 40 bases and twice stole more than 50 bases finishing in the Top 5 in the AL stolen bases each of those six seasons. Cruz was the Mariners' all-time stolen base leader with 290 bags swiped until he was surpassed by Ichiro Suzuki in 2008.
In June 1983, the Mariners traded Cruz to the Chicago White Sox for Tony Bernazard. At the time of the trade, the Chisox were 28-32 and in fifth place in the AL West. The Chisox went 71-31 the rest of the way and would win the division by 20 games. While there were many great players on that squad - LaMarr Hoyt, Carlton Fisk, Harold Baines, Greg Luzinski, "Juice" Cruz gave the team a spark and was arguably their MVP that season. The White Sox would fall to the Baltimore Orioles in 4 games in the ALCS, but hit a respectable .333 during that series.
Cruz remained on the South Side of Chicago through the 1986 season. Cruz would spend the 1987 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers playing baseball with their Triple-AAA affiliate in Albuquerque and finished up his professional career in the independent California League in 1988. In 10 MLB seasons, Cruz played in 1156 games collecting 916 hits for a lifetime batting average of .237 with 23 HR, 279 RBI and 343 stolen bases.
Cruz would reunite with the Mariners in 2003 joining their Spanish language broadcast team where he would remain through the 2021 season.
I leave you with Cruz balancing a baseball bat on his face. I kid you not. R.I.P.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has halted the Emergencies Act only 9 days after invoking it and only 48 hours after Parliament ratified it for 30 days.
I suspect that if an election were to be held now that Trudeau would earn the majority voters denied him last September. Were I still residing in Canada, I would cast a Liberal vote.
It isn't so much that my admiration for Trudeau has grown. Rather, my admiration for the Tories has almost completely disintegrated as they are now on the road to being Trumpified siding with an unruly mob over law abiding citizens. The NDP remains too left-wing for my taste. Even if I were so inclined to rejoin NDP ranks, the Liberals are the only viable force strong enough to thwart the Tories.
I harbor no illusions about Trudeau's Liberals as they are prone to their share of corruption, incompetence and arbitrary policy making. But so long as the Tories insist on embracing Trumpism and the malevolence associated with it, I cannot in good conscience support their ascension to political power. In this case, I suspect Canadians will stick with the devil they know.
One of my colleagues at work is from Ukraine and for the past several weeks she has been distraught Russia's imminent invasion. She tells me that she is in touch with family and friends on a daily basis and all they can do is to wait and ask why.
It appears the waiting is over. As for the why, it is very simple. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is invading Ukraine because he doesn't think anyone will stop him.
Oh, there will be sanctions. But that won't deter Russian aggression. Part of the reason for that is because Putin knows he won't face any meaningful military response from NATO especially the United States. We are a country weary of war and scarcely six months removed from our withdrawal from Afghanistan and a bloody, chaotic withdrawal at that.
Putin knows full well there is a critical mass of Americans who will not support a military conflict even if Russia were to kill American civilians on American soil. Worse still is that there is a fifth column especially in the Republican Party and the conservative mediasphere which is parroting Moscow's line.
In a war weary country approaching 1 million deaths from COVID and struggling with inflation, the odds are very much against President Biden in thwarting Putin’s ambitions. This, of course, didn’t start with Biden. Bush & Obama played nice while Trump just got played.
The only way I see Russia’s ambitions held in check under current conditions is if the U.S. launches the kind of covert disinformation campaign in Russia which Russia has so successfully deployed in this country in the 2016 election and beyond. Of course, that won’t be easy to pull off in a country less free than our own. Even if such a campaign proves successful it would probably be too late for Ukraine.
The best we can hope in the short term is that Ukraine puts up far more resistance than Russia anticipates which would have the effect of slowing them down. But such hopes are faint.
Brooker and Procol Harum became an overnight sensation in 1967 with the release of their debut single "A Whiter Shade of Pale" which Brooker co-wrote and sang lead. "A Whiter Shade of Pale" became a 1960's standard and has been covered by thousands of artists.
Needless to say, Brooker and Procol Harum could never top "A Whiter Shade of Pale". But they were far from a one-hit wonder. The group released 9 albums over a 10-year period and had hits with "Homburg" and a live version of "Conquistador" in collaboration with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra before breaking up in 1977.
For his part, Brooker collaborated with the likes of George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Kate Bush and the Alan Parsons Project before re-forming Procol Harum in the 1990's becoming a touring act through 2019. I leave you with Brooker sharing a few moments with his adoring public back in 2017. R.I.P.
The people of Ottawa finally have their city back - for now. This simply would not have been possible without the Trudeau government imposing the Emergencies Act which allowed for reinforcements to come in from other parts of the country. These reinforcements removed the last of the COVIDIOT Convoy by way of arrest while others retreated to face justice down the road.
What is remarkable to me is how little the Conservative Party cares about the law abiding residents of Ottawa. Michael MacDonald, a Tory Senator from Nova Scotia, was forced to apologize after being caught on videotape blasting Ottawa residents angry with the COVIDIOT Convoy. MacDonald said:
Oh, I hear this all the time – ‘They’re in our city’ – It’s everybody’s f------ city. This is the capital of the country. It’s not your g------ city just because you have a six-figure salary and you work 20 hours a week.
MacDonald claimed he had been drinking. Perhaps so, but in vino veritas. Senator MacDonald meant exactly what he said and in so doing speaks for the entire Conservative caucus who made the COVIDIOT Convoy a cause celebre.
I was saddened to learn of the passing of Steve Fonyo. While a coroner's report is still pending, Fonyo died after sustaining a seizure on Friday. He was 56.
In 1984 and 1985, Steve Fonyo completed Terry Fox's dream by running across Canada on a prosthetic limb to raise money for cancer research in a campaign called "Journey for Lives". Five years earlier, Fox's "Marathon of Hope" came to an abrupt end outside of my hometown of Thunder Bay when his cancer returned. He would pass away in 1981, a month shy of his 23rd birthday.
I vividly remember when Fonyo's run came to an end and he dipped his artificial left leg into the Pacific.
It should have been the beginning of a glorious life for Fonyo. But after being bestowed with the Order of Canada (Canada's highest civilian honor), Fonyo's life went south as he struggled with addiction and became a habitual criminal. His run ins with the law were so frequent that he was eventually stripped of the Order of Canada in 2010.
Over the past decade or so, Fonyo had stayed out of trouble but in 2015 sustained brain damage during a home invasion. This injury may have contributed to his sudden death.
While there is no doubt that Fonyo hurt a great many people the harm he caused did not warrant that harm come to him. Fonyo might have lost his Order of Canada, but no one can take away the fact that he ran across Canada on an artificial leg to raise money for cancer research. Fonyo might not have always been a good person, but he did do some good in the world. R.I.P.
As depressing as COVID denialism, the Republican Party no longer accepting the peaceful transfer of power and Canada's Conservative Party embracing mob rule, I find baseball even more depressing.
My diminishing joy of the game it is accompanied by the usual idiocy of baseball's owners locking out the players with a Commissioner who makes Bowie Kuhn look like Marvin Miller. The owners and Rob Manfred are not only bargaining in bad faith they cannot be said to be bargaining at all. It has now cut into spring training and frankly the crevasse between MLB and the MLBPA is larger than that between defeated former President Trump and electoral reality. So long as MLB and MLBPA cannot be in the same room for more than 15 minutes, I do not believe there will be a 2022 MLB season.
Then again even if there is a 2022 season, I will feel little joy in it. Aside from the likely implementation of the Universal DH, there is the strong possibility that 14 of MLB's 30 teams will make the post-season. Currently 10 teams (three division winners and two wild cards) make the post-season. As it stands now, there is a 1 in 3 chance to make the post-season and the new proposal would nearly make it a 1 in 2 chance. If there is any more watering down of the game they might as well play the game in an aquarium.
What makes the current state of baseball even more depressing than Covidiocy and the breakdown of democracy in North America is that baseball isn't supposed to be depressing. Unlike denying a pandemic and attempting to end democracy, baseball is supposed to be fun and an escape. Instead baseball has become just yet another source of misery and suffering.
In response to a question posed by Conservative MP Melissa Lantsman during Question Period in the Canadian House of Commons, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau replied:
Conservative Party members can stand with people who wave swastikas; they can stand with people who wave the Confederate flag. We will choose to stand with Canadians who deserve to be able to get to their jobs, to be able to get their lives back.
I think the Prime Minister should think long and hard about his own history before singling out a Jewish Member of Parliament and falsely accusing me of standing with a Swastika. What a disgraceful statement unbecoming of anyone in public office - he owes me an apology.
A new low, even for Trudeau: he falsely accuses a Jewish MP and descendent of holocaust survivors of standing with people who wave swastikas. She did not.
Enough lying and dividing.
Unite Canadians for freedom.
Except that Trudeau didn't single out Lantsman. He criticized the Conservative Party at large and his assessment is correct.
In view of these facts, it is difficult for me to take Lantsman's claims seriously let alone the claims of the Conservative Party that Trudeau was somehow singling her out.
If the Conservative Party wants to embrace the COVIDIOT Convoy then they embrace all of it including the swastikas. Because if not for its anti-Semitism and hatred there would be no convoy in the first place.
We have added 1 million new COVID cases over the past week. But it wasn't so long that we would add more than 1 million new cases a day. Yet with states and municipalities dropping mask mandates and vaccine requirements I worry that we will as a country accept 1 million new COVID cases a week even if it wreaks havoc on our health care system thereby prolonging the pandemic. I can only hope that cases continue to slow. But if jurisdictions loosen the rules cases are bound to skyrocket again.
After taking 9 days to go from 875,000 to 900,000 deaths, it took 11 days to go from 900,000 to 925,000 deaths. At this current rate, the United States will surpass 1 million deaths from COVID-19 on March 20th - the first day of spring.
While O'Rourke identified as a libertarian, he skewered right-wingers every bit as much as The Left. Case in point:
The Democrats are the party that says government will make you smarter, taller, richer, and remove the crabgrass on your lawn. The Republicans are the party that says government doesn't work and then they get elected and prove it.
"The Democrats say, 'We know what is wrong with America and we can fix it.' The Republicans say, 'There's nothing wrong with America and we can fix that.' What we have in this country is a choice between the Democrats, who can't remember the past, and the Republicans, who can't stop living in it; between the Democrats, who want to tax us to death, and the Republicans, who'd prefer we get shot to death by a member of the Michigan militia."
This is my favorite O'Rourke quote of all: "'You said we were going to have a drug-free America and I want my free drugs now." Although perhaps his most poignant quote was about Hillary Clinton when he endorsed her over Donald Trump in 2016. "It's the second worst thing that can happen to this country. But she’s way behind in second place," O'Rourke said, "I mean, she’s wrong about absolutely everything, but she’s wrong within normal parameters.”
I got the opportunity to meet O'Rourke once back in 2007. O'Rourke appeared at the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline where he discussed Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations in the Books That Changed The World series.
Of course, I wrote an article about O'Rourke's appearance. Unfortunately, I wrote it for one of those conservative websites which has since disappeared into outer cyberspace. Equally unfortunate is that my memory of what took place that night has largely faded.
One of the things I remember was that after O'Rourke spoke we crossed the street to Brookline Booksmith where he did a book signing. It was the first time and only time I had been at an event which occurred at two different venues.
What I also remember was that I managed to make O'Rourke laugh. I did this in the context of Smith's famous quote about the butcher, the brewer and the baker. Smith wrote, "It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest."
O'Rourke was known as a purveyor of alcohol. So I asked him how much benevolence he bestowed upon the brewer in the course of writing the book. This drew a laugh from both him and the audience. I wish I remembered what his response was to me. Perhaps I would have found it if the article were still online. Regardless, I can take satisfaction that I made a funny man laugh. R.I.P.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has invoked the Emergencies Act to put an end to the COVIDIOT Convoy which is still causing havoc in Ottawa and several Canadian-U.S. border crossings.
I have no doubt the people of Ottawa are probably asking themselves, "What took so long?"
The Emergencies Act was enacted in 1988 by the Tory government of Brian Mulroney to replace the War Measures Act which was famously invoked by Trudeau's father Pierre during the FLQ Crisis in October 1970. What distinguishes the Emergencies Act from the War Measures Act is that it is subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and must be approved by Parliament.
For those who don't know the Canadian Parliament has a House of Commons and a Senate. Although NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has been critical of Trudeau's leadership, he will support the measure which ensures its passage in the Commons. Students of Canadian history will know the NDP under Tommy Douglas opposed Trudeau's invocation of the War Measures Act.
Canada's Senate, which is similar to the House of Lords in the U.K., is an unelected body appointed by the Prime Minister. However, since Trudeau took office in 2015, he has been appointing non-partisan Senators in an effort to make a chamber of "sober second thought."
I cannot help but wonder if the Senate could throw a monkey wrench into Trudeau's plans. If the Senate were to vote down the invocation of the Emergencies Act then Trudeau's order would be null and void. Now I think the likelihood of this happening is small. Because if the Senate were to voted down the invocation of the Emergencies Act then the Canadian government has no other recourse with the possible exception of invoking the National Defence Act to call in the Canadian militarywhich Trudeau has been very reluctant to do from the outset. If the Trudeau government was unwilling or unable to do so then the COVIDIOT Convoy would hold all the cards and could wait until all COVID restrictions were repealed.
Nevertheless, given the magnitude of the circumstances and how individual Senators are not bound to Trudeau let alone the Liberal Party, the Senate could see fit to give this very serious deliberation and possibly reign in the Prime Minister and his cabinet. If the Senate were to say no it would be as a direct result of reforms which Trudeau initiated.
But like their fellow MPs, many Senators live in Ottawa while Parliament is in session and live in the very residential areas in downtown Ottawa which have been most adversely affected by this siege and want to put it to an end. Yet given the chaos which has reigned for more than two weeks we must consider the possibility that this might not end as easily as Trudeau and the majority of Canadians would like.
The Los Angeles Rams edged the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 to win Super Bowl LVI in front of their home fans. It was the Rams first Super Bowl title in 22 years when the team was based in St. Louis.
The Rams had got off to an early 13-3 lead but an injury to wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. knocked the wind out of the Rams' sails and the Bengals came roaring back and would take a 20-13 lead early in the 3rd quarter.
However, the Rams defense led by defensive tackle Aaron Donald would sack Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow repeatedly in the second half and penalties by the Bengals kept giving the Rams a new set of downs at the goal line which eventually led Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford connecting with wide receiver Cooper Kupp for what proved to be the game winning touchdown. Kupp would be named the Super Bowl MVP. Rams head coach Sean McVey becomes the youngest head coach to win a Super Bowl title at the age of 36.
I feel a bit sorry for the people of Cincinnati whose fans were 90 seconds away from winning their first professional sports title since the Reds won the World Series in 1990. Championships are rigueur de jour in the City of Angels. Not so in the Queen City. Nevertheless, the Bengals, who had won all of six games, the previous two seasons were not expected to get this far. Still coming up just short has to hurt.
One must feel a certain elation for Matthew Stafford who played with the Detroit Lions, the NFL's Siberia, for 12 years. Then he earns a reprieve and is traded to the Rams and rewards them with the franchise's second title and first in Los Angeles.
So while Cincinnati was a decided underdog I don't think many outside of the 513 area code are egregiously offended by the Rams winning a championship they earned.
To that list I would add several films directed by Hal Ashby - Harold and Maude, The Last Detail and Being There. If one adds Shampoo, Bound for Glory and Coming Home, from where I sit, Ashby is the most unheralded director of the 1970's. The only Oscar nomination he received for Best Director was for Coming Home. No doubt these films are of that time and yet the characters from these films are so compelling that they have a resonance which transcends time.
In the case of Harold and Maude, which was shown this evening at The Brattle, it is a film which is ageless despite the subject matter. For those unfamiliar with the film it stars Bud Cort as Harold, a young man in his early 20's from a wealthy family who is deeply unhappy and fills his time devising elaborate ways of committing suicide and attending funerals where he meets Maude, played by Ruth Gordon, who is nearing her 80th birthday.
The two become kindred spirits as Maude shows Harold the wonders of life. They fall in love and consummate their relationship in what is still taboo relationship. To be sure there are May-December romances but seldom is the woman a half century older than the man. At the time, the film was released Gordon was 75 while Cort was 23.
With the wrong director and wrong cast, Harold and Maude could have been a hot, cringeworthy mess. But in Ashby's hands it is a sharp black comedy with fleeting moments of warmth between Cort and Gordon accompanied by the music of Cat Stevens at the height of his creative powers. Special mention must also be given to British actress Vivian Pickles for her straight woman act as Harold's self-absorbed mother in her only American screen appearance as well as character actor Charles Tyner who plays a one armed general.
While Gordon continued to appear in film, TV and on stage until her death in 1985, Cort's career took a sharp left turn. Harold and Maude had been Cort's second lead after Brewster McCloud, another black comedy this one directed by Robert Altman. But after Harold and Maude, Cort's career dried up. In 1979, Cort was nearly killed in a car accident and this severely damaged his career. He has done some TV, movies and voiceover work. He appeared in an especially moving episode of the 1980's revival of The Twilight Zone. Perhaps his most notable screen appearance since Harold and Maude came in 2004 when he was cast in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou starring Bill Murray. Still, given his performance in Harold and Maude, Cort's career deserved a far better fate.
This is especially true when you consider he audience was mostly 20 & 30-somethings and they got the both the black humor and the bright spirit of Harold and Maude. I don't know how much time Bud Cort has in this world (or for that matter of any of us) but Harold will thanks to Maude always have his whole life ahead of him.
Ontario's Conservative Premier Doug Ford today declared a state of emergency in response to the COVIDIOT convoy which has occupied Ottawa for two weeks and has shut down the Ambassador Bridge preventing traffic going from Windsor to Detroit.
I have a bad feeling this will end violently and it will be exactly what the COVIDIOTS want so they can get their martyrdom from Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan and defeated former President Trump.
But seeing pitchers hit is one of the things I enjoy about watching National League games especially when they go deep. Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner has 18 career homeruns and will probably not get a chance for more unless the D'Backs see fit to use him as a pinch hitter or as a DH in interleague games.
Then there is the late Rick Camp. A relief pitcher for the Atlanta Braves with an .074 lifetime batting average, Camp crushed a HR in the bottom of the 18th inning off Tom Gorman of the New York Mets on the Fourth of July in 1985. Moments earlier, Braves announcer John Sterling had proclaimed that if Camp hit a homerun that game would be certified as absolutely the nuttiest in the history of baseball. Camp would go on to be the losing pitcher of that game which the Mets won 16-13 in 19 innings. But all that people remember from that game is Camp's HR and the fireworks which were set off at four in the morning.
The implementation of the DH removes the possibility of the very kind of wackiness I love so dearly about baseball.
Yesterday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell denounced the RNC's censure of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger and claim that the events of January 6, 2021 were "legitimate political discourse" calling that day "a violent insurrection". McConnell stated,“It was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent a peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election from one administration to the next. That’s what it was."
Predictably, defeated former President Trump was not amused declaring:
Mitch McConnell does not speak for the Republican Party, and does not represent the views of the vast majority of its voters. He did nothing to fight for his constituents and stop the most fraudulent election in American history. And he does nothing to stop the lawless Biden Administration, the invasion of our Borders, rising Inflation, Unconstitutional mandates, the persecution of political opponents, fact finding on the incompentent [sic] Afghanistan withdrawal, the giving away our energy independence, etc., which is all because of the fraudulent election. Instead, he bails out the Radical Left and the RINOs.
If Mitch would have fought for the election, like the Democrats would have if in the same position, we would not be discussing any of the above today, and our Country would be STRONG and PROUD instead of weak and embarrassed.
Nearly everything Trump says here is horseshit with the notable exception of his first sentence. Trump is almost certainly right in saying McConnell doesn't speak for the GOP nor does he represent the views of a majority of GOP voters where it concerns both the 2020 election and the events of January 6, 2021.
The main point right now is this is not going away and it's never going to go away until we get the correct result and fix our elections. I mean, it's just that simple.
Here we are, a year and a half later and we still are getting more evidence of just how fraudulent this was. And the momentum in all these different states is not going away, it's building.
The Trump campaign is not getting more evidence of election fraud and the momentum is not building. But Harrington is right to say it's not going away until they get the "correct result" namely the return of Trump to the White House by hook or by crook.
Meanwhile, it is only a matter of time before McConnell goes back to accusing President Biden "unpresidential". If Biden is unpresidential then what does that make Trump?
More governors from blue states are lifting their mask mandates.
After announcements from Democratic governors in California, Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey & Oregon earlier in the week, New York and Illinois' Democratic governors made similar announcements as did Massachusetts' moderate Republican governor.
Former big league outfielder, first baseman and DH Jeremy Giambi passed away at his parents' home in California of an apparent suicide. He was 47.
After winning a College World Series championship with Cal State Fullerton, Giambi would become a 6th round draft pick of the Kansas City Royals in 1996 and would reach the majors with the Royals towards the end of the 1998 season. After the 1999 season, the Royals traded Giambi to the Oakland A's where he was reunited with older brother Jason Giambi. The younger Giambi would taste post-season experience with the A's in both 2000 and 2001. However, Giambi will probably be best remembered for being thrown out at home plate via a flip throw by New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter in the 2001 ALDS. It was a turning point of that series as the A's were up 2-0, but it would be all Yankees after that play.
During the 2002 season, the A's would trade Giambi to the Philadelphia Phillies for outfielder John Mabry. After hitting a combined career high 20 HR with the A's and Phillies, the Phillies would send Giambi to the Boston Red Sox for pitcher Josh Hancock (who sadly was killed in a traffic accident while pitching with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2007). The Red Sox envisioned Giambi as their DH, but he would soon be supplanted by some fellow named David Ortiz.
After being released by the Red Sox after the 2003 season, Giambi spent the 2004 season in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization and the 2005 in the Chicago White Sox organization. However, he would never see big league action again. In parts of six seasons, Giambi played in 510 games collecting 347 hits for a lifetime batting average of .263 with 52 HR and 209 RBI. Giambi would later admit to taking steroids during his player as did older brother Jason.
Here is Jeremy Giambi speaking to group of men about his path to the majors with Jason Giambi looking on. He ends his story by saying "never give up." While Giambi might not have given up on baseball, it would appear he had given up on life. R.I.P.
On his very first day in office, when President Biden swore in new White House staff and other federal appointees, he declared:
I'm not joking when I say this: If you're ever working with me and I hear you treat another with disrespect, talk down to someone, I promise you I will fire you on the spot. On the spot. No if, ands, or buts.
Lander had been accused of bullying and harassing behavior not only to OSTP staff but to White House staff, particularly towards female staff. An investigation by the White House substantiated these claims, but Lander was not fired and, despite his resignation, will remain on the job until February 18th.
In retrospect, Biden ought not to have made such a promise. However serious an accusation or series of accusation it must be properly investigated and, of course, investigations take time. Now had Biden not made such a promise and Lander engaged in this manner resulting in his resignation then I think the White House would be getting praise for not tolerating such boorish behavior. After all, such boorish behavior would have gone unpunished in the Trump Administration. Indeed, it would have been encouraged by the defeated former President himself because he was the biggest bully of them all.
But because Biden set the bar so high even with a productive outcome it ends up only further eroding his credibility. It isn't that Biden shouldn't have promised a higher standard. It is just Biden very specifically and unequivocally said such behavior would be grounds for immediate termination and, right or wrong, he didn't back up his words.
Eric Lander has had a long standing association with The Broad Institute here in Cambridge concerning its work on the Human Genome. Full disclosure, a few years back I worked as a floater and would occasionally work at the Broad and very much enjoyed the experience. It was unlike anywhere I've ever worked before or will probably ever work again. Full of creativity and energy. People writing mathematical formulas on the walls of their offices in the most casual of atmosphere. Yet I found it very well organized. There were a lot of renovations and moving going and they literally had it down to a science.
Of course, where there are people there are problems. Based on his most recent interactions, I suspect if I was a female scientist and had any kind regular interaction with him at the Broad my assessment would be a lot different. Lander obviously possesses an incredible intellect and has contributed greatly to the world of science. But being a great scientist or a great athlete or a great musician doesn't make you a good person. On that score, the Eric Lander Experiment failed and the Biden Administration will have to go back to the drawing board.
Williams' death was announced by Derek Jeter. The two came up in the New York Yankees' organization together and were the closest of friends. Their bond was cemented when Williams, whose career began several years before Jeter's, stood up for the young shortstop when he was being bullied by a teammate.
A native of Louisiana, Williams was drafted by the Yankees in the 14th round in 1987. Williams would make his big league debut in 1992 and was part of the team which reached the first ever AL Wild Card game in 1995. Unfortunately for Williams, he would miss out on the Yankees' World Series glories when he was traded late in the 1996 season to the Milwaukee Brewers in a deal for Australian born relief specialist Graeme Lloyd.
After a season and change in Milwaukee, the Brewers traded Williams to the Atlanta Braves for pitcher Chad Fox prior to the 1998 season. Williams would play in his only World Series in 1999 when the Braves were swept by his former Yankees teammates.
The Devil Rays would release Williams during the 2001 season and he would return to the Yankees seeing limited action during both the 2001 and 2002 campaigns. Williams would earn a World Series ring with the Florida Marlins who bested the Yankees in 2003 though he did not appear in the post-season. He would return to New York and finish his playing career with the Mets in 2004 and 2005. In 1168 games, Williams collected 780 hits for a lifetime batting average of .255 with 85 HR and 365 RBI.
I leave you with Williams hitting a leadoff double in Game 6 of the 1999 NLCS between the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets. Williams would eventually score the winning run on a bases loaded walk to Andruw Jones which would earn the Braves the NL pennant. R.I.P.
While I would like to see live get back to normal, I have a feeling the state governors and provincial premiers making these decisions are doing so because of what is happening on the streets rather than what is happening in the science lab and that we going to pay a bigger price for it then we have already paid.
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson today declared a citywide state of emergency due to the out of control "trucker" convoy which has occupied the Canadian capital for more than a week. The state of emergency was called due to the occupation being a “serious danger and threat to the safety and security of residents.”
In a radio interview, Watson said, “The situation at this point is completely out of control. The individuals with the protest are calling the shots. They have far more people than we have police officers.”
This state of affairs cannot continue much longer especially that the so-called "truckers" have no intention of leaving and the Conservative Party is encouraging their lawlessness as are the likes of former President Trump, Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan. The longer this lasts sooner or later there is going to be a fatality or a series of fatalities and the Trudeau government will have no choice but to send in the military to put a stop to it.
"If we do not speak out against human rights violations in China, because of commercial interests, we lose all moral authority to speak out against human rights violations anywhere," said Pelosi.
But then Pelosi added, "Do not risk incurring the anger of the Chinese government because they are ruthless."
So Pelosi's admonition to American athletes basically undermined her previous declaration regarding the moral authority to speak out against China.
But who better to speak out against Chinese human rights abuses than American athletes on Chinese soil?
With that I wonder what Pelosi would have said to American athletes competing in the 1936 Winter and Summer Olympics held in Nazi Germany.
Most people are familiar with Jesse Owens' triumph against Aryan supremacy at the '36 Summer Olympics in Berlin. But fewer are familiar with the Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria.
During the Winter Games, an American hockey goalie named Francis Baker told an angry Adolf Hitler, irate the American team wouldn't give him a Nazi salute during the Opening Ceremonies, 'We will not only beat Germany in hockey tomorrow. In addition, Die Vereinigten Staaten werden Deutschland immer besiegen: The United States will always defeat Germany."
The following day the American hockey beat the German hockey team 1-0 and went on to win the bronze medal. Nearly a decade later, the Americans would beat the Germans on the battlefield with some help from Baker who stormed Normandy beach during the D-Day Invasion.
If I had an audience with Speaker Pelosi I would ask her if Francis Baker was wrong to risk incurring the anger of Hitler.
If Speaker Pelosi acknowledged that Baker was right to stand up to Hitler on German soil I would then ask her why it would be wrong for an American athlete to criticize the Chinese government on Chinese soil.
