There are interesting stories in the news today from the world of sports. Many talented basketball players chase the NBA dream by honing and showcasing their skills in leagues worldwide. In a long article at
Yahoo Sports, Jeff Eisenberg writes about a surprising destination - Iraq. In the past six years there have been almost four dozen Americans braving the turmoil to play in that struggling country's leagues. Pay is four to ten grand per month. There isn't much to do off the court, and many areas are not safe. Kudos to these young men for having the big ones to give it a shot... In golf, Jordan Spieth seems to have let his ego get away from him. American pros are required to play in 25 tournaments each season. Spieth played in 24, believing he would be a shoo in for his 25th, the Fed Ex final. He finished 31st in the rankings, one place out of the big show. He now faces a fine of $20,000. That's why I love pro golf... In baseball, pitcher Jacob deGrom of the NY York Mets has allowed three runs or fewer in 26 straight starts, breaking a record that had stood since 1919 when Leslie “King” Cole did it in 25 straight starts. Oddly, the team has managed only a .346 winning percentage in those starts. The Mets, whether positive or negative - are still amazin', as the "ol' perfesser" Casey Stengel used to say. Despite his excellence, deGrom is 8-9. Some scribes are arguing that he should win the Cy Young award despite his record. I disagree. His luck should remain bad. Wait 'til next year, Jake... Okay - show of hands: how many people expected the Jets to win, let alone romp on Monday night? Fans of Gang Green have hope, at least through week one. As for the Giants, they lost to a good team, so it's hard to gauge where they are... Who would you guess was college football's most profitable team in 2017? I was very surprised to learn it was Texas A&M, which cleared $107 million, $20 million more than second place Texas. National champs Alabama was tenth at $59 million. I bet any of the top nine schools would gladly switch places with the Crimson Tide.
I just heard Newt Gingrich say in a radio interview that Republicans have an easy argument to run on in the midterm elections. One of his comments was: "What do you want - jobs or food stamps?" As I've said before, it will be so interesting to see how it all breaks. Will the economy, which appears to be humming and raising all boats, win it for the right, or will the energized base of the left and constant anti-Trump barrage of the mainstream media prevail? 56 days to go.
My thanks to the sweet elderly woman who bought a book in Russian, and to the middle age one who purchased two historical fictions by Philippa Gregory; and to Ira, who selected
Invisible New York: The Hidden Infrastructure of the City by Stanley Greenberg and Thomas Garver; and to my constant benefactress, who donated books and DVD's I'm surprised were not jumped on immediately.
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