Setting a bad precedent...
Well they're at it again this year - only the names have changed. Jordan, Bird and Johnson have been replaced by LeBron, Carmelo and Yao ("Yo"). It's not the Olympics this year, it's the world championship, to be won by the U, S of A in Japan later this month. In my view we set a bad precedent when we loaded the 1992 Olympics with an All-Star team of NBA stars and beat the mighty Croatians to win gold on August 8th, 1992. In a move that smacked of Steinbrennerism, the Dream Team, which the New York Times described as a "boorish pack of prima donnas" was assembled to crush any country's team standing in the way, like a grape. Mission accomplished but at what cost ?
Look, I'm as patriotic as the next guy when it comes to seeing our country beat the pants off of other countries, especially France, but for Pete's sake and mine, can't we go back to the original concept of world wide events like the Olympics, contested entirely by, guess what ? Amateurs. And if your answer is, but every other country does the same thing, I say to you, the following. In the future, any country using a professional athlete is disqualified from competition, period, exclamation point, end of story. If we can only find a handful of countries willing to conform to these standards, that's okay. Not enough countries to compete ? Cancel the damn thing until we reach a point that we can get back to the original intent of the Olympics which is competition featuring international athletic contests using amateur contestants. Most college teams can beat a team composed of professional NBA players, like, let's say, oh I don't know... the Knicks, anyway...
Ten Timeline Memories...
1876] Thomas Edison receives a patent for the mimeograph, "a method of preparing autographic stencils for printing" (TAE, you show off !)...
1899] The refrigerator is patented by A.T. Marshall (geez and all along I thought it was William "Refrigerator" Perry)...
1942] Six Nazi saboteurs are executed in Washington after conviction. Two others are cooperative and receive life sentences in prison...
1966] Surgeon Michael DeBakey installs the first artificial heart (unfortunately blood clotting leads to failure)...
1968] Richard M. Nixon and Spiro T. Agnew are chosen as running mates at the Republican National Convention (a good day for Nixon)...
1970] The Yankees retire Casey Stengel's #37 uniform in a ceremony at Yankee Stadium...
1974] President Richard Milhous Nixon announces that he will resign the following day (not such a good day for Nixon)...
1976] Bill Veeck (as in "wreck") introduces shorts to the Chicago White Sox wardrobe (seeing Bucky Dent's hairy legs is worth the price of admission alone...what a treat !)...
1988] After 4 years of renovation work, the Central Park Zoo reopens (with seals now wearing formal wear)...
1988] A high of 88 degrees is recorded in New York City on 8/8/88...
#1 on this date: 1987] "With Or Without You" - U2...
Released on this date: 1963] "Louie, Louie" - Kingsmen...1970] "Looking Out My Back Door" - Creedence Clearwater Revival...
Remembering: 2001] Maureen Reagan (the President's daughter from his first marriage with Jane Wyman) died at 60 from melanoma...
[To ensure accuracy of dates and information, multiple reference sources are used in the timeline]...
Commentary...
An interesting e-mail from Paul Power who notes that Richard Barrett, the late singer/producer, "had a screenplay that he was trying to get Martin Scorsese interested in about his life but it never happened. Richard was truly the original super producer and never got his due, unfortunately". I agree Paul. This would make a great movie. The soundtrack could feature the Teenagers, Little Anthony, the Valentines, Three Degrees and any other act (and there were many) that Barrett helped to mold...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday"...
Kool Moe Dee (44), Deborah Norville (48), The Stylistics' Airrion Love (57), Keith Carradine (57), Connie Stevens (68), Dustin Hoffman (69), Esther Williams (85)...
[Timeline countdown: 28 days remaining until Labor Day, 32 days left until NFL kickoff, 57 days until MLB playoffs and 145 days remaining in 2006]
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