The Daily Dose/March 3, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy

This is Part I of a two-part series on the minimum wage. 

Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.

THE HONEYMOON IS OVER: We’ll admit it is with some trepidation we dive into criticizing a proposed policy of President Joe Biden because we are still reveling in our glee over not having the lying sexual predator who believed the moon is part of Mars in the White House.  

But today’s item is going to discuss the minimum wage.

Dry, Technical Matter: The Biden Administration tried to get a raise in the minimum wage to $15 an hour included in their COVID relief bill. The Senate parliamentarian said no, it violated Senate rules, rules that are, thankfully, too dry even for examination here. 

Dry, Technical Matter II: Some research shows you can find compelling economic arguments on both sides of the issue, too, so we’ll skip those and take a practical look at the minimum wage: 

A wage, salary or any other condition of employment is a contract between an employee and an employer. The government must butt out. 

Oh, Jesus H: Now, we’re sympathetic with those who aren’t making what they think they should be making. We’ve spent a lot of our working life punching clocks and, in fact, we still are. Two of them, in fact. But we can’t expect the government to do things that we should be doing ourselves. 

USA! USA! Look, any American is free to do the following things: 

1) decide how much they want/need to make;
2) Identify the jobs that will pay this;
3) put the work in that is required to get this job. 

It’s the American way, maximizing your time and talents to build the life you want for yourself. To expect the government to take charge of getting you a raise is not reasonable. That is the lookout of every American worker. 

The Bottom Line: Let’s be honest, wages aren’t going to go up in this country until Walmart is unionized. Don’t bet on that happening, though. We’ve punched a clock for Mr Sam – as he’s affectionately known in the company – and the number of people we heard talking about unionizing was zero and for whatever reason the unions aren’t forcing the matter, either. So be it. It’s not the government’s job to give workers a raise, it’s a worker’s responsibility to put the time and effort into getting the job that pays what they want to make. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow deals with an alarm going off at the hotel. Today’s Diary. 

I walked into the room and the fire alarm is going off: a loud beeping and flashing white light, tho you don’t have to be the fire marshall to note that nothing appears to be burning…A quick feel of the alarm shows no way to shut it off so, after staring at the alarm in typical Sparrow fashion – crossly, with my hands on my hips – I go to the front desk…

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On This Date
The long march to today. 

In 1859 – The largest slave auction in US history concludes at a race track near Savannah, Georgia. Roughly 436 men, women, children and infants were sold to satisfy debts incurred by their owner Pierce Butler. The slaves had been brought to the race track four days before the sale, housed in the stables, to allow whites to inspect them. After freedom, some returned to the area had hired workers.

In 1981 – Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders extends his NHL record with his ninth and final hat trick of the season. Bossy had four goals and an assist in an 8-8 tie with the Edmonton Oilers.. Earlier, Bossy had broken the record of seven hat tricks in a season that had been done on four other occasions. Wayne Gretzky would break the record with ten hat tricks the following season, a mark he would tie in 1983-84. 

In 1973 – Cal Smith is at #1 on Billboard’s country chart – then known as the Hot Country Singles chart – for the only week with The Lord Knows I’m Drinking. It was Smith’s 13th country chart single, his second Top 10 hit and his first of three country #1s. The song also went to #1 on Canada’s country chart and peaked at #64 on the Hot 100, Smith’s only pop hit. 

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever. 

I learned this at least by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live that life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours…If you have built your castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.
Henry David Thoreau
Walden

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

Five NBA players besides Wilt Chamberlain have scored at least 70 points in a game: Kobe Bryant (81, January 2006), David Thompson, (73, April 1978), Elgin Baylor (71, November 1960), David Robinson (71, April 1994) and Devin Booker (70, March 2017).    

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard. 

What song spent the most weeks at #1 on Billboard’s country chart in 1973? – Answer next time!

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The Daily Dose/March 2, 2021
America’s Funniest Guy

Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.

OH, JESUS H: In today’s On This Date segment, we note the 59th anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game, still the most points ever scored in an NBA game. There are some – generally people who have no lives – who like to posit this is a record that will never be broken. 

Thanks For Clarifying That: We disagree. Not only do we think someone will eventually score 100 points in an NBA game, but we’re moderately surprised Wilt’s mark still stands because there have been an awful lot of scorers in the NBA over the years and an awful lot of no defense played. 

Dry, Technical Matter: In fact, except for records set back when a sport was played differently – like someone pitching 680 innings in a season – we feel there are a lot of records that can be broken. This doesn’t mean they will be, but it means they could be, on the theory that if someone did something once, it can be done again. 

More Dry, Technical Matter: For our money, there are only three records that will stand forever and ever: Chamberlain’s 55 rebounds in a game, Johnny Vander Meer’s two consecutive no-hitters and the Isner/Mahut 70-68 fifth set at Wimbledon. Every other record is in play.  

Broad, Historical Context: Chamberlain’s 100-point game was played in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Playing games in small, non-NBA towns was a common NBA ploy of the era, and it was the Warriors third game in Hershey and their 14th and final neutral site game of the season. Reports tend to indicate Chamberlain had spent the previous night getting laid in New York and at 6 am took a train to Philadelphia and almost missed the team bus to Hershey. 

The Bottom Line: It will take a unique set of circumstances for someone nowadays to score 101 points in a game, but it can be done. Someone gets hot against a team playing out the string, perhaps, or perhaps a player on a rested team against a team that is ending a long road trip, but with the way teams are heaving 3-point shots nowadays, don’t bet against it. We’re sorry, but Wilt’s 100-point effort does not belong on the unbreakable record list. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow washes his hotel uniform. Today’s Diary. 

For the first time in a while, ol’ Sparrow had a fresh-from-the-washer uniform…I took the shirt I’d been wearing for a bit longer than good hygeine might have dictated, and the uniform vest, home to be washed, where a clean uniform shirt had been sitting, along with some other things, on a kitchen chair, for a couple of months now.

Now, the uniform shirt is worn over a clean t-shirt every night, and I’m certainly not breaking a sweat at the hotel, but the collar was pretty gross – even by my (low) standards, and it certainly earned its cleaning.

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Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

Columns, books, shopping lists, click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available. 

———

On This Date
The long march to today. 

In 1877 – A commission appointed for the purpose declares Republican Rutherford B Hayes the winner of the 1876 presidential election over Democrat Samuel J Tilden. Tilden had won the popular vote by one percentage point but bickering in Congress had prevented either candidate from winning the Electoral College. Congress set up the commission of 15 men, with Democrats ultimately agreeing to Hayes’ election if Reconstruction was abandoned and federal troops withdrawn from the South. 

In 1962 – Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors establishes a new NBA record for most points in a game in a 169-147 win over the New York Knicks in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Chamberlain had 72 points from the field and 28 from the free-throw line to finish with 100 points to break the record of 78 points he had established the previous December 8. Chamberlain became the second player to hold the NBA single-game scoring record twice, joining Elgin Baylor. 

In 1967 – The Monkees are at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart for the fourth of 18 consecutive weeks with More of the Monkees. The album went to #1 in several other countries, including Norway and Great Britain and was Billboard’s biggest album of the year. More of the Monkees had replaced The Monkees at #1, giving the group 31 consecutive weeks at the top of the Billboard 200. The album produced two chart singles, including the #1 hit I’m a Believer.

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever. 

Personally, I do not think the human mind has any limits but those we impose ourselves. Louis L’Amour
The Education of a Wandering Man

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

The NBA record for most 3-point shots attempted with none made is 22, by the Denver Nuggets on December 21, 2012.   

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard. 

How many players not named Wilt Chamberlain have scored at least 70 points in an NBA game? – Answer next time!

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The Daily Dose/March 1, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy

Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.

Leading Off will return.

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow drops a Mr French reference in today’s entry. Today’s Diary. 

I made contact and I do have a bearing and some size and if someone like me is standing in your doorway, as likely as not he’s part of your welcoming committee, so it is not the Upset of the Year ol’ Sparrow got immediate compliance…Plus, I didn’t ask them to keep it down, I told them they would be keeping it down – with typical Sparrow grace that would have had Mr French sporting wood from here to Reno…

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Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

Columns, books, shopping lists, click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available. 

———

On This Date
The long march to today. 

In 1954 – The US tests a hydrogen bomb known as Castle Bravo at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The explosion measured 15 megatons, about three times the amount predicted and produced a fireball that was 4 miles across, a mushroom cloud that was 47,000 feet high and seven miles wide and left a crater 6,500 feet in diameter and 250 feet deep. It remains the 5th-largest nuclear detonation in history, exceeded only by four tests by the Soviet Union. 

In 1996 – The Dallas Mavericks establish a new NBA record for most 3-point field goal attempts in a game in a 119-111 win over the Vancouver Grizzlies. The Mavericks attempted 44 3-point field goals, making 16 of them, and research into whose record they broke was inconclusive. The mark stood for four days when the Mavericks attempted 49 against New Jersey and the record is now 70, by the Houston Rockets in January 2019. 

In 1975 – Shame, Shame, Shame by Shirley (Goodman) & Company is at #1 on Billboard’s soul chart – then known as the Hot Soul Singles Chart – for the only week. The song also went to #1 on pop charts in Belgium, Austria, Germany and The Netherlands and peaked at #12 on the Hot 100. It was the third Top 10 hit on a Billboard soul chart for Goodman since 1953 and remains her only appearance at #1 on a Billboard chart. 

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever. 

I simply want to observe the world’s grandest zoo.
Gore Vidal
Lincoln

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

The era circa 1415 where there were multiple claimants to the papacy of the Catholic Church is known as the Western Schism.  

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard. 

What team holds the NBA record for most 3-point shots attempted with none made in a game? – Answer next time!

Go Gaylon! Visit Gaylon on Facebook here. 

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The Daily Dose/February 28, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy

The Sunday Bottom 5
A ranking of some things. 

1. Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) – US publicly acknowledges MBS authorized murder of Jamal Khashoggi, something smart 5th-graders have known since October 2018, but otherwise Saudi crown prince getting off scott-free for authorizing murder of journalist and American resident…Sunday Bottom 5 pollsters “pretty sure” this sends wrong message to future journalist murderers. 

2. Syria – US bombs noted sovereign nation despite fact US forces were not under imminent threat and pesky detail US had not declared war against them…Sunday Bottom 5 pollsters still “pretty sure” pointing out US Congress has not declared war against Syria still “you-know-whatting in the wind”

3. Lauren Daigle – 118 non-consecutive weeks at #1 on Hot Christian Singles chart for singer as single You Say extends all-time mark for weeks at #1 on any Billboard chart…Envious Morman Tabernacle Choir’s plan for hip-hop version of Te Deum Laudamus stalled when arrangers reworking lyrics can’t translate ‘bust a move to Jesus’ into Latin. 

4. US Congress – Has not actually declared war – their responsibility under the Constitution – since June 5, 1942, when they decided to smack around evil Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania in War II…Every other war America has fought since has been a violation of the Constitution. 

5. Fake News Roundup – With President Biden stubbornly more or less getting his facts straight, Presidential Fact Check – a 24/7 operation during Trump Administration – given week off…Click here for roundup of things some of us actually believed this week…From the AP. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

Of course it’s Read Free Sunday. Enjoy today’s Diary entry with Sparrow’s compliments. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow certainly got his rest this month. Today’s Diary.

…48.0 hours for the week and a whopping 49.0-hour per-week average for the month.  

Whopping, but not a record and only the longest-tenured regular readers of this crap may – or they may not – recall the historic 51.5-hour weekly average of January 2019…Still tho, a heck of a month in the sack.  

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Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

Columns, books, shopping lists, click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available. 

———

On This Date
The long march to today. 

In 2013 – Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation as head of the Catholic Church takes effect. Benedict had announced his retirement earlier in the month, citing “ a lack of strength of mind and body”.  He had been elected pope in 2005, replacing John Paul II and was the first pope to resign since 1415. Benedict, now pope emeritus, still resides in the Vatican and his successor, Pope Francis, would be elected on March 13. 

In 1960 – The United States wins its first Olympic ice hockey gold medal, defeating Czechoslovakia 9-4 in the final game of the medal round at the Squaw Valley Winter Games. The US finished the tournament 7-0, besting their previous best Olympic finishes of five silver medals. Canada took the silver medal and the Soviet Union earned the bronze medal and the tournament remains the only participation of Australia in Olympic ice hockey. They finished 0-6, getting outscored 87-10.

In 1976 – Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, billed as Waylon & Willie, are at #1 on Billboard’s country chart – then known as the Hot Country Singles chart – for the second of two consecutive weeks with Good Hearted Woman. Jennings and Nelson had written the song over a poker game in 1969 and Jennings – as a solo act – had first charted with the song in 1972, reaching #3 on the country chart. The song also peaked at #16 on Billboard’s Hot 100.  

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever. 

Mackenzie was a good guy, but he was a guy after all, not an image on a stained glass window.
William Irish
After-Dinner Story

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

Stephen Douglas defeated Abraham Lincoln in the 1858 Illinois US Senate election. 

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard. 

Before Benedict XVI, Pope Gregory XII was the pope to resign, a time when there were other claimants to the papacy. By what name does History refer to this period? – Answer next time!

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