It is 1991 and what would come to be known as the "Dream Team" was being chosen by a selection committee. They announced the first ten players.
Magic Johnson
Charles Barkley
Karl Malone
John Stockton
Patrick Ewing
Chris Mullin
Larry Bird
David Robinson
Scottie Pippen
Michael Jordan
***
All of the players listed in the first paragraph were available when the committee chose the final NBA player to be added to the team. The player selected was Clyde Drexler.
The final place on the team went to someone who had not yet played in the NBA. Christian Laettner was still playing for Duke University. His selection was a nod to previous Olympic teams where the players were all college players.
Why not Isaih Thomas? In 1991 he'd led the Detroit Pistons to NBA titles the two prior seasons. Some claim most of the others selected to the Dream Team would not play with Thomas. There are unconfirmed stories that Michael Jordon said if Thomas was on the team, he wouldn't be.
The point of all of this is that there are only 12 spots on the team. Just like there are only 12 slots on the 2024 USA women's basketball team. A lot is being written about how the choice to leave Caitlyn Clark off of that team is a major snub.
I do not follow the WNBA closely enough to evaluate comparative performance of its players. I have no idea of Ms Clark's particular skill sets would or would not be a good fit with the other 11 players. Christian Laettner was a non-factor in the Dream Team's gold medal achievement. Who knows with any level of certainty how Ms Clark would contribute to the 2024 team?
What I do know is that Caitlyn Clark has brought about a much higher level in women's professional basketball. Average attendance at Washington Mystics home games for each of the last three seasons is under 5,000 per game. This week the Mystics hosted the Indiana Fever, Caitlyn Clark's team. The game was played before a sellout crowd of 20,333. Caitlyn Clark is a major attendance draw.
When there is a factor that increases a team's revenues, you don't hide whatever is behind the increase. You promote it.
That is why leaving Ms Clark off of the USA Women's basketball team is a bad choice.
I wrote the following Memorial Day weekend in 2013.
It's Memorial Day and I am sitting here remembering those I served with who died while on active duty. A pilot who couldn't eject from his jet while on a training mission over the Yellow Sea. Two guys who were just swimming at the on-base beach after a 12 hour shift, who went beyond the rope and were never seen again. A young airman killed by a drunk driver while on the way to his duty assignment one morning.
In my mind, anyone who dies while wearing our nation's uniform deserves to be remembered today. The 241 Marines who died in the bombing in Beirut and the 248 soldiers who died in a plane crash at Gander while on their way home.
Same goes for those who simply could not go on living after their experiences in combat. When a military member takes his or her own life because they just can't go on living with what they endured, in my mind they also died while serving. The question is, did we fail because we didn't prevent their end? I have no answer to that question. It is as they say "above my pay grade".
On Memorial Day weekend in 2017, Ivanka Trump's "brand" posted the following tweet.
The reality is that most folk think of Memorial Day as a long weekend to travel, barbecue and celebrate the unofficial start to summer. I find the actual text of 36 U.S. Code § 116 - Memorial Day to be a clear message of what the holiday is meant to be.
(a)Designation.—
The last Monday in May is Memorial Day.
(b)Proclamation.—The President is requested to issue each year a proclamation—
(1) calling on the people of the United States to observe Memorial Day by
praying, according to their individual religious faith, for permanent peace;
(2) designating a period of time on Memorial Day during which the people may
unite in prayer for a permanent peace;
(3) calling on the people of the United States to unite in prayer at that
time; and
(4) calling on the media to join in observing Memorial Day and the period of
prayer
***
I was thinking back (yeah, I do way too much of that) to the afternoon of March 21, 1987. It was a Saturday and I was doing my part-time job anchoring the news on what was then All-News KNUU 970 AM. There was a crash of a California Air National Guard fighter jet in the San Bernardino Mountains. We learned later that day that the pilot and his weapons system officer (WSO) had perished in the crash. Because Captain Martin was a celebrity in his own right as well as being the son of Dean Martin had coverage laser-focused on his death. Without giving details, let me say I was told how awful it was that a news station in Las Vegas gave almost no attention to that WSO, Captain Ramon Ortiz, who was from Las Vegas.
Both of their deaths were tragic and as worthy of being honored on Memorial Day as any other military member who died in service to our nation.
***
More than 3,500 military personnel have received the Medal of Honor. Roughly 18.5% of those so recognized individuals received their Medal of Honor posthumously. While their actions were and are the stuff of legends, all of the fallen deserve to be honored. In my 15-month assignment on Guam, my 460 person unit lost five of its members during my time there. We honor them on this day as well.
We honor the eight people who died in the ill-fated Operation Eagle Claw during the attempt to rescue the Americans who were taken hostage at the U.S. Embassy in Teheran.
We honor those who fell on the battlefield, who died during training exercises and who died while wearing the uniform; no matter the cause of their deaths.
We honor Colonel Pat Ryan, commander of the 21st Tactical Fighter Wing who died when his F-15 crashed into the Yellow Sea during an exercise known as Team Spirit 85.
We honor all the fallen, without regard to their rank, or how they died; who passed while serving.
A certain politician speculated that if asked, most Americans would say they were better off four years ago. Is that accurate? Let's examine a few statistics:
Mar Jan
2021 2024
Unemployment rate 6.4% 3.7%
Labor Force Participation Rate 62.5% 62.5%
***
The inflation rate was 1.5% in March of 2020 and stood at 2.9% in January of 2024. Bear in mind that the inflation rate was 9.1% back in March of 2022. That's a decrease of over 300% from then to now.
Our democracy is in jeopardy. If #TFG wins the presidency, it may be the last presidential election ever. Take notice of AZ Senate Concurrent Resolution 1014. It proposes to take away the right of the presidential election results to determine who will be awarded the state's 16 electors. It has only a snowball's chance in hell of coming to pass. However, it shows that the politicians who are part of the MAGA crowd would be happy if Trump were to become a dictator.
I did not spend 10 years of my life in the military for someone to usurp our 200+ year democracy.
I was ruminating this morning after my morning shower. It is to honor everyone who is serving or has served in the U.S. miliary. No one questions our honoring of Sadao Munemori. You can read his Medal of Honor citation here. He was part of the 442ns Regimental Combat Team, a unit made up almost exclusively of Japanese-American men. What made Army PFC Munemori unique among his unit is that he was the only Japanese-American to be awarded his Medal of Honor during or immediately after World War II ended. However, the fact that his family was interned by the U.S. during the war was something he shared with others in the 442nd.
No one thinks twice about our honoring of CAPT John Sax, USMC. He was killed in a training accident in 2022.
No one thinks twice about honoring a USAF LTCOL that I served with at Homestead Air Force Base. His military legacy was to crash an F-4 fighter jet right after take-off. He failed to ensure his jet had full tanks of fuel.
***
The question on my mind is whether or not those who served and became traitors to our nation should be honored on this day? Take the case of McKinley Nolan. He was serving in Vietnam on 11/22/1967 with the 1st Infantry Division when he slipped away from his unit and turned himself over to the Viet Cong. The Pentagon classified him as a defector. Should he be honored among other veterans today?
How about Martin James Monti? During WWII he defected to the Nazis with a stolen aircraft. He volunteered for duty with the SS. Should his service be honored today?
One more. Charles Robert Jenkins was serving as part of the U.S. Army unit that patrolled the Korean Demilitarized Zone. He deserted his post and defected across the DMZ. Do we honor him?
I do not have an answer to this question. Maybe you have one.
Yet again, people fail to understand how Freedom of Speech works
Ryna Workman, who identifies as non-binary is a student at NYU Law school. Before writing about their situation, I want to go back in time for a moment. Back to a 2012 video that went viral.
That's Adam Smith behind the wheel of this drive thru trip. A trip that altered the course of his life. When he got back to his office at a medical device company, he learned that the backlash caused by the outrage generated by his video was immense. He was fired from his $200,000 CFO job and in the process lost stock options worth $1 million.
Some defended his video as protected free speech.
Ryna Workman had been offered a job by a prestigious NYC law firm. That offer was withdrawn after Ryna had written a column in a school newsletter that was described by some as an "incendiary pro-Hamas" statement.
Some have defended their column as protected free speech.
The reality is that the First Amendment protects speech from government infringement. Not from consequence from private individuals and employers. Even when speaking/writing while not officially representing one's employer, there is no protection from a consequence being applied in response to one's statements/writings.
I bumped up against a similar issue a few months ago. A local television news operation wanted me to do an on-camera interview on a news story related to my primary career. I was willing to do it. However, I am well-aware of my employer's policies involving contacts with the media. I told the news producer I'd need to clear this with the media relations department of my employer. Clearance was not granted. I refused to do the interview. Not because I am a "goody-two-shoes" type. Because I was not going to put my employment at risk.
New York is an at-will employment state. Even if Ryna Workman's employment had already begun, under that legal doctrine, the law firm could fire them at any time for any reason that does not involve illegal discrimination.
***
Bill Ackman is the CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management. A hedge fund that has $18.5 billion in assets under management. He has...well, let's let his tweet speak for itself:
This is a tough one. Doxing is wrong. On the other hand, should the members of the organizations that signed onto the letter Mr. Ackman reference avoid responsibility for their choice to sign? Why should students who are members of groups that signed the letter who do not agree with their group's choice to sign?
If I am a member of a group that takes a position I do not support, I need to either shut up and remain a member of the group, or speak out in opposition to the support and ultimately choose whether or not to remain a member of said group.
On the other hand, I wholly support the choice of the Wexner Foundation to withdraw financial support from Harvard itself. They have every right to do so. Their decision is based on Harvard's response to the letter referenced above.
Other colleges and universities will also take hits for their responses to the actions/words of students who support the atrocities of Hamas.
***
It is easy to take a political position. To sign a document as a member of an organization.
I am in shock. I actually agree with something Rep Lauren Boebert said.
She is right that our nation's system of budgeting is broken and has been for a long time. A 1990 law set the first Monday of February as the date by which the President must submit their budget proposal to the Congress.
President Clinton's first budget proposal was 66 days late. President George W Bush's first budget was 63 days late. President Obama's first budget was 94 days late. President Trump managed to get his first budget in only 38 days late. President Biden set an all-time record for tardy submission of a budget with it having been 116 days late. This year, President Biden's budget was submitted on March 9th. That was 31 days late.
It is not entirely a president's fault that we've been governing by continuing resolutions since 1997. Nor it entirely the fault of the president that we have not had a balanced budget for over 20 years. The proposal submitted by the president is a blueprint that changes very much after its submission.
Nonetheless, there are hard deadlines involved here. The budget of the United States runs from 10/1 to 9/30 each year. When a month or two or three is removed because the president's proposal is not submitted when it is due, it makes the process more strained.
***
How can we fix these problems? There are no consequences for a president who submits their budget late. What consequences could be imposed? Loss of a day's pay? Something else?
What consequences could be imposed on the members of Congress who do not enact the full budget (it is made up of 12 separate appropriations bills) on time? If it were my call, members of Congress would lose a full day's pay AND benefits for each day the budget is not passed by the deadline.
How much time does Congress waste on crafting continuing resolutions because they cannot pass a budget on time? Goodness knows that the propensity for a number of members of Congress focus much more time on social media than on the real issues.
Seems like it was 30 or more years ago when I wrote here on a nearly daily basis. As I write this, it has been more than two months since my last published blogs. I cannot promise to go back to nearly daily entries, but I will strive to write more frequently.
I worked an 8-hour day yesterday at a nonstop, breakneck pace. I am utterly exhausted. I will probably go back to bed.
***
In case you missed this news item, Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Boebert was unceremoniously ejected from a performance of a musical. You can read all about it here. She and her campaign manager both denied that she had been vaping during the performance. There is just one problem with those denials.
Faced with irrefutable evidence that she had been vaping, she issued a statement regarding the incident.
You can read about her apology here, but I am focused on just one section of what she said.
I see two issues with Boebert's denial of recollection of the vaping.
One is that she was reprimanded several times about the vaping.
Two is that if at age 36 her short-term memory is that at the age of 36, having short-term memory that bad calls into question her ability to serve in political office.
We must make sure, legally, that this is her last term in office.
***
Before I comment on the recent comments made by Sean Penn about how Will Smith's slap of Chris Rock; I feel the need for transparency and disclosure. I attended the same high school as Mr. Penn. He was class of 1978, I was in the class of 1977. I barely knew him.
He had a lot to say about what transpired in 2022 when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock's face after Rock made light of Smith's wife. Here is an excerpt from that interview:
After winning his second Oscar for “Milk” in 2009, Penn remarked, “I want it to be very clear that I do know how hard I make it to appreciate me.” This is a true statement. His face is now crimson; a vein in his neck tightens like a rope pulled taut. “I don’t know Will Smith. I met him once,” Penn says. “He seemed very nice when I met him. He was so fucking good in ‘King Richard.’” He lights another in an unchained melody of American Spirit cigarettes. “So why the fuck did you just spit on yourself and everybody else with this stupid fucking thing? Why did I go to fucking jail for what you just did? And you’re still sitting there? Why are you guys standing and applauding his worst moment as a person?"
My problem with what Mr. Penn said are these words:
”Why did I go to fucking jail for what you just did."
The problem with that statement is that Smith's slap of Chris Rock is nothing like what Penn did in 1987 when he was sent to jail for 60 days (he only served 33 days).
In April of 1987 during filming of the movie Colors, Sean Penn had an encounter with an extra. He objected to the extra photographing himself and Robert Duvall. He swore and spat at the extra. When the extra spat back, Penn punched him several times in the face. No way of knowing how bad the assault might have been had members of the film crew not intervened and pulled Penn off of the extra. The extra was treated for cuts and bruises at an emergency room and released.
Then there is the fact that Penn's jail stint was not based solely on that incident. On Memorial Day of 1987, Penn was stopped by police officers on suspicion of drunk driving after he ran a red light. He failed the field sobriety test and the breathalyzer test. His lawyers negotiated a plea deal where the actor pled guilty to reckless driving.
Add to that the fact that when Penn attacked that movie extra, he was on probation at the time for allegedly assaulting a man he said had tried to kiss Madonna (married to Penn at the time). Penn pled not guilty and got a year of probation for that incident.
In 1985, Penn pleaded no contest to allegations he had attacked two journalists trying to take a picture of Madonna.
So, in 1987 when Penn assaulted that extra, he'd already been charged for two alleged attacks within the last two years. What about Will Smith? Had he ever been arrested for an alleged assault? The surprising answer is, yes! But that was in 1989 and the charges were dropped.
Analysis: Will Smith, with no criminal history in recent decades slaps Chris Rock. Sean Penn, on probation at the time and multiple prior recent arrests punches out a movie extra and then goes to jail on that charge along with a plea deal for reckless driving charges. Sorry Sean, Will Smith did not do what you did.
***
General Motors Chair and CEO Mary Barra's 2022 compensation was $29.8 million. This is a hot topic since the United Auto Workers union has gone on strike against the Big 3 U.S. automakers.
As I have written here before, compensation is a function of the employer's perceived value of the labor being performed.
GM claims the average salary of an autoworker is just over $80,000 per year. They claim total compensation for these workers is $96,000. Using the larger number for employee compensation, Ms Barra is paid over 300 times the average autoworker salary.
Has GM profited that much during Ms Barra's tenure? Let's look.
Net income has been up and down during her tenure, but grew by 320% from 2014 to
2022. Meanwhile, Ms Barra's compensation grew by 178% during the same period. Seems like a decent increase in her pay based on results achieved. That is how shareholders think. Is it valid?
Again, compensation is a function of the perceived value of the labor. My personal opinion is that her compensation is too high. How much of the net income increase is the direct result of how Ms Barra rn the company? How much would GM have to pay to hire another CEO to replace her? How much of the changes in net income is tied to how our economy is performing?
Another facet of this analysis is how valuable is the labor performed by the autoworkers to the company? Like it or not; without them, no automobiles will be made.
Should there be a direct correlation between the pay of the CEO and the pay of the lowest compensated employees? How would you cap CEO pay in light of the pay of a cashier? 100 times? 50 times? The average annual salary of a GM cashier is $29,000.
Would qualified people take on the position as Chair and CEO of GM for $2.9 million? For half that amount?
The salary inequities within the Big 3 automakers look really bad to the general public. They are bad. What happens when enough of us are so offended by CEO pay that we boycott their products?
Do you have a solution for this disparity? I don't.
***
Drew Barrymore choosing to resume production of her talk show while the WGA and SAG/AFTRA are on strike is a slap in the face of every member of those unions.
Donald Trump says he will testify in his own defense in at least one of his upcoming trials. The odds of that happening are about the same as a manned landing of astronauts on the sun.
Seattle Police Officer Daniel Auderer should be suspended for his outrageous comments after another officer ran over a young woman, killing her. Actually he should be fired, but that's not likely to happen. Read the story here.
Today's instance of irony - Donald Trump calling Joe Biden "cognitively impaired" as he warns that Biden may start World War II.
Was is wrong for actress Drea De Matteo to become an OnlyFans content creator after her refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine? Not in my opinion. You do what you need to do, within the law, to feed and house your loved ones.
Someone please help Jann Wenner remove his feet from his mouth?
