As was noted in the media, on February 2nd (Groundhog Day) Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, so we have six more weeks of winter. Of course, by the calendar, and considering that the vernal equinox comes this year on March 20th at 7:33 AM (Eastern time), Phil’s six week prognostication is a safe bet for any year.
Care to make any predictions on this year’s NHL season, or next year’s, for that matter? With most teams in deep financial peril, and most players intransigent about considering a salary cap, and all this played out against a backdrop of no national TV contract, the outlook is not terribly bright. Still, this may just be a situation whereby the weakest pro league is the first one to go down.
This year’s Super Bowl showcased the Patriots as a dynasty, but this, my friends is a not the stuff of legend. If “dynasty” can be used to describe a team that wins by making fewer mistakes than its opponents, and has no stars, then welcome to a world of sports where all expectations are lowered except broadcast fees and salaries. Please note that the Eagles, featuring an ill Donovan McNabb, lost by a scant three points, and frittered away at least 90 seconds, with incredibly poor clock management.
Here in the Washington, DC area, foolish hopes for a revitalized Redskins team under a hall of fame coach, have given way to excitement over the transplanted Montreal Expos (now Washington Nationals) baseball team. In sports-mad DC, it is dangerous to inject reality checks on this subject, but here are two:
Taking nothing away from Joe Gibbs, he made his bones in an era lacking sophisticated defensive schemes, and during a time when you could still motivate players. How do you motivate an athlete already making 3 or 4 million dollars, with the prospect of an additional bonus?
As to baseball, last time I checked, TV ratings were down, and demographics were horrific, with the median age of the typical fan creeping up into the late 40’s. To the video game/Internet/high intensity/high speed generation, baseball is a boring spectacle, indeed. How can you reconcile the 21st century pace of life with a game where the team on DEFENSE has the ball?
Pro sports is frankly starting to peter out. The public has other things to do, they don’t like the thuggish overpaid players, and the product (except for hockey) is way overexposed on TV. All that needs to happen is for August Busch IV to pull the plug, and then it’s game(s) over.
As to the political scene, the coronation of Howard Dean as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, while not unexpected, is fascinating nonetheless. After all, Kerry’s positions were pretty much in line with Dean’s, and he WAS determined to be more electable, although he did lose. Here is a pathetic example of true delusional behavior: We can win by being even more pure Leftists than we were in 2004. And, let’s make it even better by trying to squelch the nominations of Blacks and Latinos to cabinet or judicial positions. Michael Savage has said that Liberalism is a mental disorder, and he is definitely on to something.
Finally, we have the upcoming nuptials of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles. Since the Church of England was founded on the notion of divorce, this matter is in keeping with old tradition. Yet, when one reflects on the life of Princess Diana, there is something quite unwholesome about the entire business.
Poor Diana, blessed with looks, if not brains, was clearly brought on board as little more than a brood mare for the Windsors, and seemed to catch on to this nasty fact a few years into the marriage. Diana herself accused Camilla of being the one who broke up the marriage. To be sure, Di made some bad choices after that, ending up dead in Paris as the consort of another overprivileged playboy, but there is no doubt that she would have been better off if she had not met Charles at all.
Now Charles gets to make it legal with his true love of 30 years. How touching. I wonder what his sons think.