03/15/24

Women Athletes Finally Sue the NCAA Over Transgender Athletes

It has taken far too long for female athletes to hold the NCAA accountable for its absurd policies as to transgender men competing in women’s sports as “women.” [That’s sort of an awkward sentence, but I felt like I had to say it that way to be clear.]

This is a class action suit — meaning it is on behalf of all women college athletes — and is centered on Lia Thomas, a mediocre 6’1″ male swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania who transitioned to “womanhood” and then became a champion “female” athlete.

Thomas emerged as a NCAA Women’s Division I Champ in 2022 winning the 500-yard freestyle and named as an All-American in three events (meaning Thomas posted one of the 16 fastest times in those events). Continue reading

03/11/24

College Sports Are On The Road To Ruin

I have always hated the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletics Association) as being a heartless bully and arrogant, arbitrary oppressor of athletic talent that favors the blue blood institutions in every sport. They are also wildly expensive, rake in a ton of money, and have built a financially extorted dynasty that is second only to the British royal family.

The NCAA, however, is not what will exclusively kill college athletics.

There are four things:

 1. The NCAA and its feudal fiefdom;

 2. NIL — name, image, likeness — the ability for a college athlete to be compensated by lending their name, image, likeness to third parties typically in an endorsement marketing capacity;

 3. Unions — there have been a number of unsuccessful and, now, successful attempts to unionize college athletics, typically an entire team, such as the Dartmouth men’s basketball team. Here is that story:

Dartmouth Men’s Basketball Team Votes to Unionize

 4. The transfer portal Continue reading

02/27/24

Pure Philanthropy

In this era of massive self-aggrandizement and virtue signaling, it is heartwarming to relate a tale of pure philanthropy and goodness. We all need a bit of good news, no?

What’s THE STORY, Big Red Car?

The story goes like this:

Sandy and Ruth Gottesman lived happily in Rye, New York. Sandy was a finance professional and a protege of a chap named Warren Buffett who started a company called Berkshire Hathaway.

Sandy got in on the ground floor with his pal Warren and invested in his fledgling conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway, resulting in a highly successful and lucrative fortune that Sandy managed well.

In 2022, Sandy passed away at age 96 leaving his wife Ruth with a fortune and spare instructions:

“Do whatever you think is right with it.”

Continue reading

02/6/24

The Quest for Stability

As I view the world today — domestically and throughout the globe — what we are engaged in is a universal quest and longing for stability.

It manifests itself in sleepless nights, a roiling gut, that sense of a tight iron band across your chest, the notion that ‘yes, it does make your ass look huge,’ and extreme flatulence. You know the feeling.

WTF is stability, Big Red Car?

Stability means a steady or consistent condition upon which we can individually and collectively base our decisions and expectations about the future. It inspires confidence and assures us that we can attack the future with a sense of balance, support, and predictability. We can live our lives in peace.

Stability allows us to marshal our energy for the future and not flame it off on the past or to constantly gird our loins for the next bit of chaos.

Continue reading

06/30/23

Slave Labor — Do You Care?

An ad comes on on your Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or other digital feed and the product is attractive. You want to buy it, but you recently read an article that said the following:

 1. The company — talking to you Shein and others — is accused of using Uyghur “uncompensated labor.”

 2. The company is accused of paying workers $20 for an 18 hour day.

 3. The company is savaging the environment whilst making the product.

Continue reading

05/29/23

Memorial Day — Have We Earned It?

Memorial Day is the sacred day in American history when we reflect upon and honor our war dead. It is a day dedicated to those who gave their lives for our country and for us.

If you are near a Federal cemetery, it is a moving experience to visit it and read the names on the white marble crosses and headstones and know they are men whose lives were given to us so that our lives might be lived in freedom. Continue reading