28 seconds is an eternity
The San Antonio Spurs had not won an NBA championship since 2007. They were 28 seconds away from winning their fifth title, and led the Miami Heat by five points. That was in Game 6. Miami's hometown fans were streaming out of the arena, convinced their team had lost it all.
Tonight, the Miami Heat are again NBA champs, the Spurs go home after suffering a humiliating end to their championship run, and the streak of no road team winning a game 7 in the NBA finals since 1978 remains intact.
It was miraculous, but not the first miracle with time running very short in a game. Remember this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RodiAAns6Jk&feature=player_embedded
0.4 seconds from certain defeat, and yet they were able to win.
In the playoff game that's known as "the Miracle on Manchester", the L.A. Kings were down 5-0 in game 3 of their series against the Edmonton Oilers, after two full periods of play. They battled back furiously but with less than a minute remaining, they still trailed 5-4. With only five ticks of the clock left, they scored to tie the game and send it into overtime. 155 seconds into the first overtime, the Kings scored and completed one of the greatest comebacks in NHL history.
Yogi Berra was a master of malaprops, but one of those he is best known for is so true, and is illustrated by these amazing victories. "It ain't over until it's over" is on display in all three of these events.
I don't like to leave sporting events early. When I was a Dodgers season ticket holder, I'd be sitting in my seats until the Dodgers made the final out in the bottom of the ninth, in a loss. Or until the visitors made their last out in the top of the ninth. Did I face more traffic? Yes. Did I miss anything? I will admit that in a decade of going to those games, I might have ducked out early a couple of times when the Dodgers lead by five or more runs afte eight innings. But it was a very rare thing.
Until the score is final, the outcome can change.
* * *
I am a bit on pins and needles today. I'm hoping that my car will be ready early enough so I can join my friends for trivia tonight. I'm going to call the service advisor this morning after I finish up at the VA hospital to let him know I am hoping to pick it up by 3 p.m.
I'm also hoping against hope to not get that call. The one where they say "well, we found another problem..." which means only one thing. More money.
Sometimes I kick myself for making these 8:00 a.m. appointments at the V.A., because I have to miss breakfast here. But the complete lack of a wait, and the ease of getting parking more than makes up for it. Now if I can get them to stop adding second and third appointments on after the early one, I'd be a very happy camper.
* * *
Hoag Hospital in Orange County didn't stop performing abortions because they had a change of heart. They did it in order for their partnership with St. Joseph Health System to go through. If they didn't impose the ban, St. Joseph's statement of values would have prohibited the deal from going through.
Catholic-affiliated hospitals provide great care in most cases. I spent nine months in one of their facilities. I got used to the crucifix on the wall and in time, forgot it was there. There were no discussions of faith.
My perspective on this issue is this. If there are other alternatives for women to have access to abortion that are close by and don't involve paying more money; then it's fine. But when there aren't these alternatives, hospitals have an obligation to continue providing this service until such time as there is an alternative.
* * *
How much do you know about the FISA court? Probably not much. They operate behind the veil of secrecy. Here are a few startling facts. The court has 11 judges. Almost all are Republicans. The majority are former prosecutors. The overwhelming majority of them were appointed by Republican presidents.
But here's the frightening part. From 2001 through 2012, they approved 20,909 surveillance and search warrants. Only ten applications for a warrant of this type were denied. In any court, there is a fairly high success rate for warrant applications. But nowhere near that high a rate of success. These numbers show that the FISA court is pretty much a rubber-stamp. Now it could be that the lawyers preparing applications to take to this court are more careful about only sending those forward with a strong chance of approval. However, a rate of approval of over 99% says something is very wrong.
This needs to be investigated by an outside agency without a political agenda.
* * *
This Date in History:
On this date in 217BC, Hannibal is victorious over the Romans at the Battle of Lake Trasimene.
On this date in 1582, Daimyo Oda Nobunaga is forced to commit seppuku at Kyoto.
On this date in 1788, New Hampshire ratifies the Constitution and becomes the 9th state.
On this date in 1898, Guam is captured from Spain by the U.S. (and the island's name becomes an acronym for "Give Us American Money").
On this date in 1942, a Japanese submarine surfaces near the Columbia River in Oregon and fires shells at nearby Fort Stevens.
On this date in 1964, members of the Ku Klux Klan murdered three civil rights workers in Nebraska.
On this date in 1982, John Hinkley is found not guilty by reason of insanity.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Pope Leo IX (Leo is a great papal name)
Charles Thomas Jackson
Fyodor Gladkov
Al Hirschfield
Jean-Paul Sartre (still believe "No Exit" to be one of the greatest small-cast plays of all time).
Jane Russell (made the "Cross Your Heart" bra a household word)
Maureen Stapleton
Lalo Schifrin (brilliant!)
Bernie Kopell (Seigfried, Doc, and more...)
Ron Ely (http://free-loops.com/7222-tarzan-yell.html)
Mariette Hartley
Joe Flaherty (great talent, and Gudrun's father)
Ray Davies
Tony Scott (RIP, sir)
Meredith Baxter
Michael Gross (weird, same date, same year as his TV wife right above)
Nils Lofgren
Benazir Bhutto
Robert Pastorelli
Berkeley Breathed (bring back Bloom County)
Juliette Lewis
Movie quotes today come from "Eraser" which featured the late Mr. Pastorelli as an Arnold ally and comic relief:
Sal: [referring to a sniper perched atop a crane] You think I can hit that guy from here?
Johnny C: Give it a rest, Sal. You couldn't hit the ground even if you fell on it.
#2
[the phone rings]
Undersecretary of Defense Daniel Harper: It's for you.
[takes the phone]
Robert: Yeah?
John: [over phone] You've just been erased.
#3
[the limousine that Daniel Harper, Robert Deguerin, and Morehart were trapped in was just hit by a train]
Lee: What happened?
John: They caught a train.
Tonight, the Miami Heat are again NBA champs, the Spurs go home after suffering a humiliating end to their championship run, and the streak of no road team winning a game 7 in the NBA finals since 1978 remains intact.
It was miraculous, but not the first miracle with time running very short in a game. Remember this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RodiAAns6Jk&feature=player_embedded
0.4 seconds from certain defeat, and yet they were able to win.
In the playoff game that's known as "the Miracle on Manchester", the L.A. Kings were down 5-0 in game 3 of their series against the Edmonton Oilers, after two full periods of play. They battled back furiously but with less than a minute remaining, they still trailed 5-4. With only five ticks of the clock left, they scored to tie the game and send it into overtime. 155 seconds into the first overtime, the Kings scored and completed one of the greatest comebacks in NHL history.
Yogi Berra was a master of malaprops, but one of those he is best known for is so true, and is illustrated by these amazing victories. "It ain't over until it's over" is on display in all three of these events.
I don't like to leave sporting events early. When I was a Dodgers season ticket holder, I'd be sitting in my seats until the Dodgers made the final out in the bottom of the ninth, in a loss. Or until the visitors made their last out in the top of the ninth. Did I face more traffic? Yes. Did I miss anything? I will admit that in a decade of going to those games, I might have ducked out early a couple of times when the Dodgers lead by five or more runs afte eight innings. But it was a very rare thing.
Until the score is final, the outcome can change.
* * *
I am a bit on pins and needles today. I'm hoping that my car will be ready early enough so I can join my friends for trivia tonight. I'm going to call the service advisor this morning after I finish up at the VA hospital to let him know I am hoping to pick it up by 3 p.m.
I'm also hoping against hope to not get that call. The one where they say "well, we found another problem..." which means only one thing. More money.
Sometimes I kick myself for making these 8:00 a.m. appointments at the V.A., because I have to miss breakfast here. But the complete lack of a wait, and the ease of getting parking more than makes up for it. Now if I can get them to stop adding second and third appointments on after the early one, I'd be a very happy camper.
* * *
Hoag Hospital in Orange County didn't stop performing abortions because they had a change of heart. They did it in order for their partnership with St. Joseph Health System to go through. If they didn't impose the ban, St. Joseph's statement of values would have prohibited the deal from going through.
Catholic-affiliated hospitals provide great care in most cases. I spent nine months in one of their facilities. I got used to the crucifix on the wall and in time, forgot it was there. There were no discussions of faith.
My perspective on this issue is this. If there are other alternatives for women to have access to abortion that are close by and don't involve paying more money; then it's fine. But when there aren't these alternatives, hospitals have an obligation to continue providing this service until such time as there is an alternative.
* * *
How much do you know about the FISA court? Probably not much. They operate behind the veil of secrecy. Here are a few startling facts. The court has 11 judges. Almost all are Republicans. The majority are former prosecutors. The overwhelming majority of them were appointed by Republican presidents.
But here's the frightening part. From 2001 through 2012, they approved 20,909 surveillance and search warrants. Only ten applications for a warrant of this type were denied. In any court, there is a fairly high success rate for warrant applications. But nowhere near that high a rate of success. These numbers show that the FISA court is pretty much a rubber-stamp. Now it could be that the lawyers preparing applications to take to this court are more careful about only sending those forward with a strong chance of approval. However, a rate of approval of over 99% says something is very wrong.
This needs to be investigated by an outside agency without a political agenda.
* * *
This Date in History:
On this date in 217BC, Hannibal is victorious over the Romans at the Battle of Lake Trasimene.
On this date in 1582, Daimyo Oda Nobunaga is forced to commit seppuku at Kyoto.
On this date in 1788, New Hampshire ratifies the Constitution and becomes the 9th state.
On this date in 1898, Guam is captured from Spain by the U.S. (and the island's name becomes an acronym for "Give Us American Money").
On this date in 1942, a Japanese submarine surfaces near the Columbia River in Oregon and fires shells at nearby Fort Stevens.
On this date in 1964, members of the Ku Klux Klan murdered three civil rights workers in Nebraska.
On this date in 1982, John Hinkley is found not guilty by reason of insanity.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Pope Leo IX (Leo is a great papal name)
Charles Thomas Jackson
Fyodor Gladkov
Al Hirschfield
Jean-Paul Sartre (still believe "No Exit" to be one of the greatest small-cast plays of all time).
Jane Russell (made the "Cross Your Heart" bra a household word)
Maureen Stapleton
Lalo Schifrin (brilliant!)
Bernie Kopell (Seigfried, Doc, and more...)
Ron Ely (http://free-loops.com/7222-tarzan-yell.html)
Mariette Hartley
Joe Flaherty (great talent, and Gudrun's father)
Ray Davies
Tony Scott (RIP, sir)
Meredith Baxter
Michael Gross (weird, same date, same year as his TV wife right above)
Nils Lofgren
Benazir Bhutto
Robert Pastorelli
Berkeley Breathed (bring back Bloom County)
Juliette Lewis
Movie quotes today come from "Eraser" which featured the late Mr. Pastorelli as an Arnold ally and comic relief:
Sal: [referring to a sniper perched atop a crane] You think I can hit that guy from here?
Johnny C: Give it a rest, Sal. You couldn't hit the ground even if you fell on it.
#2
[the phone rings]
Undersecretary of Defense Daniel Harper: It's for you.
[takes the phone]
Robert: Yeah?
John: [over phone] You've just been erased.
#3
[the limousine that Daniel Harper, Robert Deguerin, and Morehart were trapped in was just hit by a train]
Lee: What happened?
John: They caught a train.
posted by me at 7:03 AM
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