The Daily Dose/February 7, 2019
The Daily Dose/February 7, 2019
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Leading Off : El Chapo and supply and demand.
The federal case of Mexican drug dealer Joaquin Guzman Loera has been in the hands of the jury this week after a three-month trial. The entrepreneur known as El Chapo stands accused of murder, money laundering, racketeering and smuggling tons of weed and cocaine into the US.
Now, we don’t approve murder or money laundering any more than you do, but regarding the drug smuggling charges:
So what?
Good gravy, El Chapo and his cohorts were smuggling tons of weed and cocaine into the United States because there was, is, a demand for tons of weed and cocaine in the United States. His arrest didn’t change the demand here in America either, it merely changed who makes the attendant fortune off of it.
The jury appears to be doing its work with no small amount of diligence as already there have been numerous requests to review both evidence and testimony. Their work is not easy, it took the judge three hours to read their instructions and there are 53 decisions – guilty/not guilty, proved/not proved, ‘yes/no – to make.
What has struck us throughout this entire imbroglio is how if drugs were legal those jurors would have been doing something else with their time the past three months. Now, you may not particularly want to do drugs – good for you. I don’t either – but good heavens, if drugs are legal El Chapo goes from being an international arch-criminal to a vendor merely looking to move some product.
America has taken a flier on heeding the lessons of Prohibition: namely that morality laws don’t work. People who choose to do things that are prohibited will merely ignore such laws and go about their business; no drug law prevents anyone who really wants to – except maybe a Lutheran – from doing drugs.
It’s time for the United States to legalize drugs and treat drug use as health problem and not a crime.
Today At The Site
The Diary of a Nobody: The Haliburton crew is back for early morning coffee at the hotel, and it could be Commander Sparrow again at the Legion post. Today’s Diary.
The Haliburton crew was in early for morning muster and I had coffee for them, of course, tho there weren’t many takers…I am not generally too nosy, but I did listen to their briefing…They were urged to use their downtime constructively, doing things like housekeeping and maintenance, like “topping off greasers”…I don’t know what that means, either, but it sounded like something useful to do during an idle hour or two.
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On This Date
In 1979 – Pluto, then enjoying full planetary status, moves inside the orbit of Neptune for the first time since either planet was discovered. Pluto would remain the eighth planet from the sun for 20 years and four days, until February 11, 1999. Due to the fact the planets travel on separate planes and never actually cross the same point in space, there is never any danger of Pluto and Neptune colliding.
In 1976 – Darryl Sittler of the Toronto Maple Leafs establishes a new NHL record with 10 points as the Maple Leafs defeat the Boston Bruins 11-4. Sittler had six goals and four assists, breaking the record of eight that had been set by Maurice Richard (1944) and Bert Olmstead (1954), both of the Montreal Canadiens. The record still stands.
In 1970 – The Dutch group Shocking Blue is at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for its only week with Venus. The song also went to #1 in Canada, Australia, Belgium, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Switzerland and Spain, but only went to #3 in their native Holland and Shocking Blue remains one of the few groups whose only US Top 40 hit went to #1. Venus would return to the Hot 100 in 1986 when Bananarama also took it to #1.
Quotebook
Young man, why wilt though haste so fast? Thy vessel sails the open sea, and the harbor to which I am steering thee is still far off.
Ovid
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
George Jones has the most entries on Billboard’s country chart with 168.
Today’s Stumper
When will Pluto next move inside of Neptune’s orbit? –Answer next time!
The Daily Dose/February 6, 2019
The Daily Dose/February 6, 2019
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Leading Off : Super Bowl LIII by the numbers
2- The number of Super Bowls lost by the Los Angeles Rams. The St Louis Rams won one Super Bowl and lost one.
3 – Number of Super Bowls played in Atlanta.
4- Number of teams that have yet to play in Super Bowl. (Detroit, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Houston Texans)
5 – Number of Super Bowls lost by the New England Patriots, tied with the Denver Broncos for most in NFL history.
6 – The number of Super Bowls won by the New England Patriots, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. All are records. The Patriots team record is shared with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
7 – Number of states that offered legal betting on the Super Bowl.
8 – The number of Super Bowls won by Belichick as a head coach and defensive coordinator.
8 – Number of teams that have played in and never won Super Bowl. (Tennessee, Los Angeles Chargers, Carolina, Atlanta, Arizona, Cincinnati, Minnesota and Buffalo.)
8 – Consecutive possessions the Los Angeles Rams punted on to start the game.
13 – Number of NFL titles won by Green Bay Packers, an NFL record.
15 – Estimated percentage of American workers that called in sick to work on Monday.
15 – Number of cities that have hosted the Super Bowl. Metropolitan areas (LA, Pasadena, etc) are counted as one entry.
16 – The number of points scored by both teams, a record low for a Super Bowl.
20 – Number of teams that have won the Super Bowl.
26.4 – Percentage of total Super Bowls the New England Patriots have played in.
32.9 – Points per game averaged by the Rams before the Super Bowl.
41 – New England quarterback Tom Brady’s age. He is the oldest quarterback to both start and win a Super Bowl.
43 – Number of states where illegal Super Bowl wagering occurred.
99.5 – Estimated percentage of fans who thought Super Bowl LIII was boring when actually it was some splendid defensive football.
100.7 – Number of people, in millions, who watched the Super Bowl, the lowest total since 2009. The figure includes online viewers.
Today At The Site
The Diary of a Nobody: At then hotel, Sparrow fields a call from the GM at his old hotel asking if he had a phone number for a plumber lying around, while at The Shire Sparrow manages to cook dinner without setting off the smoke detectors.
I timed it perfectly, too, with The Wife able to unwind a bit and throw a salad together after arriving at The Shire…Now, the local market doesn’t offer Steaks of the Year, but they weren’t too bad and The Wife put blueberries in the salad, which completely ruled…Afterward, my efforts in the kitchen earned me rave reviews:
“That was good, honey…You didn’t screw anything up.”
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On This Date
In 60 – This is the earliest date for which a day of the week is known, some scribbling on a wall in Pompei, Italy identifying this day as a Sunday. Had today’s reckoning been used, it would have actually have been a Wednesday.
In 1958 – Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox signs a contract for the largest salary in major league history, $135,00. In 1957 Williams, then 38, led the American League in batting for the fifth time with a .388 average and had 38 home runs and 87 RBIs. $135,000 is about $1.2 million in today’s money.
In 1971 – Joshua by Dolly Parton is at #1 on Billboard’s country chart – then known as the Hot Country Singles chart – for its only week. It was the first of 26 #1 songs on the country chart for Parton and one of her 111 country hits, both records for women and a total that includes both solo #1s and #1s where she was a featured artist. The record for #1s on Billboard’s country chart is 44 by George Strait.
Quotebook
[Trees] endure rain, snow, wind and cold…Neither bad fortune nor good fortune will alter what they are. We should be the same way. We may have great fortune or bad, but we should patiently bear both…We must always be true to our inner selves.
Deng Ming-Dao
365 Tao
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Scotty Bowman is the winningest coach in NHL history with 1,244 wins.
Today’s Stumper
Who holds the record for most hits on Billboard’s country chart? –Answer next time!
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The Daily Dose/February 5, 2019
The Daily Dose/February 5, 2019
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Leading Off
Leading Off will return.
Today At The Site
The Diary of a Nobody: Sparrow starts wearing his uniform shirt at the hotel untucked, The Wife appears to have put ice melt on the driveway, while Sparrow’s fave sweaters have gone on clearance at the retailer.
…the big news is they’re now on clearance, priced to move at $7, 30 percent off and they have my fave colors in stock in my size, too…I think I am going to hold out, tho…Clearance prices are the retailer’s way of opening negotiations with customers…All right, they are saying, it’s time to get rid of these but we both know the clearance price will come down and continue to come down until we are obliged to all but give them away for a buck…So you’re betting your size will still be there when the price drops to the amount you are looking to pay.
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On This Date
In 1994 – Byron de la Beckwith is convicted of the 1963 murder of civil rights leader Medgar Evers in Jackson, Mississippi. Evers had been shot in the back when as he was walking into his home. Two previous trials in 1964 had resulted in hung juries. De la Beckwith, then 74, was sentenced to life in prison where he would die in 2001.
In 1950 – Dick Irvin of the Montreal Canadiens becomes the first NHL coach to win 500 games when the Canadiens beat the Chicago Black Hawks 4-3. Irvin would retire after the 1955-56 season with 691 wins, still good for seventh on the all-time list. During his career his teams appeared in 16 Stanley Cup Finals, winning four of them. The twelve losses in the Stanley Cup Finals remains an NHL record.
In 1977 – Mary MacGregor is at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first of two consecutive weeks with Torn Between Two Lovers. It was MacGregor’s first chart single and only a #39 hit in 1979 kept her from being one of the great one-hot wonders in Top 40 history. The song also went to #1 in Canada, peaked at #3 on Billboard’s country chart and was Billboard’s 10th biggest song of 1977.
Quotebook
One has to keep taking that step over and over again. There is no easy way. There are no shortcuts. I have taken those steps and am still taking them.
Louis L’Amour
Education of a Wandering Man
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Mexico had a bobsleigh team at the 1928 Winter Olympics in St Moritz, Switzerland. They came in eleventh out of 23 entries from 14 nations.
Today’s Stumper
Which coach has now won the most games in NHL history? –Answer next time!
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The Daily Dose/February 4, 2019
The Daily Dose/February 4, 2019
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Leading Off: Jamal Khashoggi is still dead.
The latest into the “investigations” into the October murder of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul isn’t much.
United States Senator Lindsey Graham continues to get his shorts in a knot over this, and the UN has announced a hot, new commission to investigate and Turkey, the murder’s host nation, is accusing some western countries of trying to stonewall its investigation. Our favorite line came from Swiss President Ueli Maurer, who all but fellated the Saudi delegation at a recent economic forum his nation hosted:
We have long since dealt with the Khashoggi case.
Have you now? How, by ignoring it? Because that is the only real way to deal with it without an actual trial and conviction. This gives you something in common with America, who, with the exception of some in Congress who want to produce sanctions, is remaining silent, and complicit, in the matter.
We said it at the time: the Saudis were going brazen their way through this, something they’ve done admirably. Sure, there are some malcontents that bring this up from time to time, but for all intents and purposes, Saudi Arabia is back in business. They may not even be obliged to produce some lower level prince to behead because nobody really seems to care anymore.
Today At The Site
The Diary of a Nobody: It’s a slow morning at the hotel, though Sparrow does move some product from the sundry stand, and The Wife brings home a new cover for the ironing board. Today’s Diary.
We had gotten the new cover over the ironing board when we discovered some straps on the bottom…First, we saw two in the middle, one with a button on it and the other with a buttonhole…All right, even ol’ Sparrow can take that hint and with some effort, I was able to secure the straps together…Then we discovered two more on the back end, the only problem being both had buttonholes…Well, heck…We thought for a bit they were meant to attach to the button on the middle strap, but then The Wife discovered one more strap on the front end that had a button…These were a bit tougher to secure, leading to some modest whining from yours truly:
“Heaven forbid they use some exciting 20th-century fastener like Velcro…Let’s stick with the 18th-century button.”
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On This Date
In 1801 – John Marshall is sworn in as Chief Justice of the United States, a position he would hold for 34 years, a record that still stands. Under his leadership the Supreme Court went from a relatively minor part of the government to a co-equal branch, putting the standards established in the Constitution into practical effect through judicial review. Marshall was also responsible for starting the practice of the court issuing a single opinion, instead of each justice writing their own, and for ending the tradition of justices wearing powdered wigs and red robes.
In 1932 – The first Winter Olympics in the United States open in Lake Placid, New York. 252 athletes, all but 21 of them men, compete in 14 events in four sports. The United States wins the most gold medals (6) and overall medals (12), followed in each category by Norway. The number of countries was down from the 1928 Winter Games in St Mortiz, Switzerland as eight nations, including Mexico of all people, did not send athletes to Lake Placid. It was the second Olympics in the US following the 1904 St Louis Summer Games and Lake Placid would hold the Winter Games again in 1980.
In 1989 – Sheriff, a group that had broken up several years earlier, is at #1 for the only time when When I’m With You is at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. The song was originally released in 1983 and went #8 in their native Canada and #64 in the US and in 1989 two Midwest stations started playing it. When I’m With You was written by the group’s keyboardist as a Valentine’s present for his future wife. The song spent one week at #1 and remains one of the few songs in the Rock Era to hit #1 in a second chart run.
Quotebook
For Confucius, true wisdom is to know the extent of what you don’t know quite as well as you know what you do know.
Gore Vidal
Creation
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Elton John has had eight #1 songs on the British chart.
Today’s Stumper
What event(s) did Team Mexico participate in at the 1928 Winter Olympics? –Answer next time!
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The Daily Dose/February 3, 2019
The Daily Dose/February 3, 2019
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Leading Off: A post-America America
Today we were chatting with a friend who made some crack about us living in a post-racial America, which was funny and insightful because, of course, we are not living in a post-racial America. We don’t make blacks stand on blocks so they can be sold anymore, but otherwise, America is as racist as its ever been.
We then noted that we are living in a post-America America. Sure, this is the type of funny line that ensures we don’t get invited to any parties, but the more we thought about it the more we thought it was true:
America is a shell of its former self. Forget making America great again, we’d settle for making America average again.
The American Century is long past and if we don’t do something soon 100 years from now the world may well be looking back on an America that is long past, too, because we cannot sustain perpetual war, fiscal insanity and deep social divisions forever. Eventually, they will consume and overcome our country and America will be tossed aside the scrap heap of History, probably before this half-century is out.
Collectively, America means nothing to Americans anymore. The America that forged independence, won World War II and put men on the moon has left the building. Perhaps not forever but, at least, for now. It won’t take all the king’s horses and all the king’s men to get it back again but it will take concerned and conscientious voters – you and me, we the people – ready to demand better on Election Day.
Today At The Site
The Diary of a Nobody: It’s a routine night at the hotel, the Sparrows start planning a vacation for next year and the sleep totals for the week are in. Today’s Diary.
Boy, I hadn’t even had coffee yet after getting up this afternoon before The Wife was making noises about taking a vacation next year…Even before any caffeination whatsoever I was obliged to pick a date in either 2020 or 2021…All right, I picked April 18, 2020…It turns out that’s a Saturday and The Wife had already decided we are going to Mount Rushmore, so mark that on your calendars.
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On This Date
In 1966 – Man lands a spacecraft on the moon for the first time, as the Soviet Union’s Luna 9 makes it safely after a flight of four days. Though the pictures it sent back are rather crude by 21st century standards, Luna 9 marked the first time the moon had been observed at surface level and established spacecraft could safely land on the moon, which had been suspected and even presumed, but not known for sure. Contact was lost with the spacecraft three days later.
In 2001 – The XFL, the brainchild of wrestling promoter Vince McMahon and NBC, debuts with the Las Vegas Outlaws defeating the New York/New Jersey Hitmen 19-0 and Orlando Rage defeating the Chicago Enforcers 33-29. Though early interest was fairly high, the XFL had problems getting taken seriously as legitimate sports league and 2001 would be its only season. The Los Angeles Xtreme defeated the San Francisco Demons 38-6 in the league’s only championship game.
In 1973 – Elton John is at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first of three weeks with Crocodile Rock. It was John’s first of six #1 songs of the 1970’s – the most of any solo act and trailing only the Bee Gees – and first of ten overall. The song also went to #1 in New Zealand, Canada, Italy and Switzerland, and peaked at #5 in John’s native Great Britain and was Billboard’s 7th biggest song of the year.
Quotebook
Everyman achieved his own greatness by reaching out beyond himself, and so it is with nations…Only when a nation means something to itself can it mean something to others.
Werner Von Braun (1912-77)
German and American rocket scientist
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
The first British act to have a #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 was Stranger on the Shore by Mr Acker Bilk. It reached #1 in 1962. In his native Britain, Bilk took the song to #2, though it spent 50 weeks on the chart and was the biggest-selling British single of the year.
Today’s Stumper
How many #1 songs has Elton John had on the British charts? –Answer next time!
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