Maggie's Farm

For the sake of any college friends who are reading, this is not about Spare Change, the guy who stood on the corner down on M Street.  Though I'm sure he was very familiar with Carlo Rossi, this story takes place about 25 years later.

Today in the Morning New links, Bird Dog led off with an article about spare change.  I don't know if Mrs. Bulldog told him the story about our spare change jug, but I know Mrs. Bird Dog heard it.  Bird Dog was present in the Mohonk Mountain House parking lot when I picked up a dime, handed it to Mrs. Bulldog and said "Look, 10 Paris." 

Spare change has some history in our family.  About 11 years ago, I'd had a poker game in my basement and someone brought a jug of Carlo Rossi.  You know, the good stuff in the big jug, with the finger handle on the neck.

I agree with most of Bird Dog's review of The Labyrinth.  In the comments you'll see I'd take task on the over-40 commentary.  A good gym regimen is enough to keep you going and the fact one of our group did the scramble with a new hip says much about will as it does skill or fitness (admittedly, she runs marathons with that new hip, so she's not lacking in fitness).  You DO need to be in shape.  A good number of us emerged without our jackets, soaked in sweat.  Those two fellows waiting at the top of Lemon Squeeze (both in late 20's, early 30's) were laughing in part from our dialogue, but also at the surprise of seeing a group of nine people aged 55+ emerging from that space.  If you remember The Phantom Tollbooth, it pays to be Canby, as well.  I can be young, I can be strong, I can be tall, I can be small.  Be what you can be.  It pays off in the scramble.

Hiking and some mountain climbing (my 2 experiences with rappelling were in New Mexico when I was 14), from my Boy Scout days, provided an edge.  Mrs. Bulldog has only taken on hiking recently, though she does quite a bit of walking around town.  Her 4 experiences of this sort of activity are limited to a climb up Quail Mountain at Joshua Tree with me in 2012, the Labyrinth, and our two previous hikes with Bird Dog and Mrs. Bird Dog. 

More below the fold, with photos -

We just witnessed an historic US Open finish in more ways that one.  Not only did Naomi Osaka win the Japan's first title in a major tournament, but Serena Williams managed to overshadow this feat with her tirades and accusations of a double standard.  Is there a double standard in tennis?  It depends on what you mean.  If I am to understand Serena, she gets fined for bad language and behavior while men get away with it.

It is possible, but by no means probable, that men do behave poorly more and it is overlooked.  But evidence seems to exist to the contrary.  After all, it's rare to see a woman suspended for bad behavior (in fact, I have not found any examples of it) on the court.  With men, it's a fairly common experience.  Connors, McEnroe, Fognini are only a few who were assessed points, games, fines and/or suspended.  These are a few of the higher-profile players who have suffered, but it's by no means rare or unusual.

I have seen, in person, quite a few tennis matches.  I have rarely seen women assessed penalties.  I can't remember all the times I've seen men assessed, mainly because it's happened frequently enough for me to have forgotten.  In general, female players are better behaved than the men.  If Serena's claim is that men behave badly more often and are not assessed penalties, that's going to be difficult to back up.  However, what evidence exists indicates she's very wrong.  

The real question is are women held to higher standards?  I'd argue no, because I've watched many female tennis players berate judges without being assessed penalties.  I've seen it happen at least as often as I've seen men berate judges without a penalty.  I think commenting there is a double standard, though, lacks historical context.

To a large degree, the harshness of today's penalties are a result of the bad behavior of players like Nastase, Connors and McEnroe.  Tennis' image was taking a beating when these players began creating a new image of 'bad boy' tennis.  They were penalized and fined in the hopes of cleaning up that image, but they were good enough and wealthy enough to overlook it and keep going.  Female players, in the 70s and 80s, didn't earn the same level of prize money, though they probably could have waved fines off as easily as men, if they were assessed.  Still, one player who was far more outspoken and outrageous than Serena, Martina Navratilova, points out that Serena is wrong about her penalty.  Navratilova believes (again, without fact to back up the claim) there is a double standard, but just because it exists doesn't mean it justifies behaving the way Serena did.  Meanwhile, Navratilova never faced as severe penalties as those faced by Mac and Connors.  I saw her play many times, and she was generally good about maintaining her composure - the sign of a great athlete, in my opinion - and that has a lot to do with the reason there may seem to be a double standard.  Great athletes usually are good at maintaining their composure.

The reality is, as a friend of mine said, "The facts don't matter in anything anymore.  The only thing that matters is the reaction of social media and the emotions it can generate."  This seems to be true.  Emotional ties seem to trump reality.  When McEnroe - who was penalized frequently - says "Serena's right" people will take him at his word.  But his word isn't accounting for the fact that he created the situation Serena faces, and that he was penalized more harshly than she was. 

What we're going to wind up seeing is a reaction to a generalized 'feeling' that somehow there is a double standard, even if the facts indicate otherwise.  Social media works on feelings, not facts, which is one reason the firms running social media have issues trying to determine what is 'real' news and what is 'fake' news.  Serena's double standard is fake news, as is any news which is generated by, or relies on, emotions for support in defiance of fact. 

I'm not commenting that Nike's Kaepernick ad will hurt them financially.  So far, it has hurt them (in their stock price) but people are people and will buy things for a variety of reasons.  Using Kaepernick as a 'theme' is, however, polarizing on many levels.  For some people, the ad may spur sales.  For many others, the ad will lead them to spurn the brand.  If we look back at the Chick-fil-A and In 'n Out 'boycotts', we're resolved to recognize boycotts which are designed to exact retribution will often result in exactly nothing to harm a firm.

The difference with Nike was their ad is not a perceived slight.  It's deliberately offensive.  Nike raised the stakes in the marketing wars, and I don't think what they did will benefit them.  This wasn't just a misguided statement or an ill-conceived donation.  This was taking the Social Justice Warrior mentality and turning it into and ad.  It's big question - can social justice be branded?  Can the "revolution" of Progressive Thought be promoted in an ad campaign.  I'd say no, and the fruits of this campaign may have people talking about Nike...but Nike doesn't need people to be talking about them in this fashion.

Let's start from the beginning.  Kaepernick and other players have the right to kneel during the anthem.  We all do.  Excoriating them for this is silly, uninformed, and ignores the right to free speech.  So set that aside.  Let's discuss the real problem, which is the outcome of that decision to kneel, because that's where Nike messed up.  They took a relatively benign issue, and amped it up on steroids.

The NFL has a Game Day Operations Policy it chose to not implement, which stipulates players which do not stand for the anthem MAY be fined.  Not enforcing this has hurt the NFL's image and proved it to be a business at the mercy of its employees' political views.  Try breaking YOUR employers' policies and see what happens.  Good luck with that.  But, hey - it's the NFL, and these guys are "STARS".  So yeah, I guess if you have no backbone, you can ignore your own policies and assume everything will turn out fine.

The fiftieth anniversary of Woodstock is creeping up on us, and the 49th anniversary passed with barely a mention.  That's probably how it should be.  Maybe not, though.  Woodstock is viewed differently by many people.  For some it was a political event.  For me it was purely music and culture.  Regardless of how it's viewed, the history is deep, it resonates with different generations, and it was full of lessons.  It was a turning point.  

I was only 7 at the time.  I remember it as 'an event'.  At the time, I remember some vague political commentary surrounding it, I was too young to really care.  The only thing I was aware of was visiting my cousins in the nearby town where they lived, and thinking the dirty hippies were scary.

Several years ago, I moved closer to the empty nest phase of life, having dropped my second son off at Syracuse (followed in dad's footsteps) for his freshman year.  I had fun regaling him with my past life experiences.  It was a period of time when past lives were looming.  Mrs. Bulldog and I had been married 22 years, and only 2 had been sans children.  That's a big gap, and if you've had kids you know what I'm talking about.  

A former co-worker, who had been unemployed at that time, landed a job that started in September.  He asked if I wanted to take a trip up to Bethel and see the Woodstock museum.  I asked my wife if she had any interest, she didn't, so I signed on with him and one other former co-worker to take in some cultural history.  Another bit of a past life.

This day, September 3, holds some level of significance for the U.S.  Not only because it happens to be the day we celebrate Labor Day, or the unofficial end of summer, with barbecues, beach time, yard work or laying in hammocks.  Today, in 1777, at Cooch's Bridge, the official US flag (the one Betsy Ross presumably created) was raised in battle for the first time at Cooch's Bridge.  A minor skirmish, a loss for Continental forces, but a holding action to slow the advance of British and Hessian troops through Delaware.  It also is known as the Battle of Iron Hill, and was the only military action, outside of naval affairs offshore, which took place in Delaware.

The American flag took on many forms prior to, and after, its introduction.  Not many are aware of the fact both stars and stripes were added in 1795 for the admission of both Kentucky and Vermont.  The 15 star, 15 stripe flag was to remain the official flag for 23 years, and it was the 15 star, 15 stripe flag which flew over Fort McHenry and inspired The Star Spangled Banner.  It is the only official flag which had more than 13 stripes.  In 1818, an act was passed which dictated the modern conception of the flag, which added one star for each new state and left the number of stripes at 13 to represent the 13 original states.  The 1818 act was passed to recognized Tennessee (1796), Ohio (1803), Louisiana (1812), Indiana (1816), and Mississippi (1817).

Another note to consider, tangentially flag-related, is that Sept. 3 is also the day on which the Treaty of Paris was signed, officially ending the Revolutionary War in 1783.  The treaty was ratified by Congress on January 14, 1784.  Benjamin Franklin had pushed to gain all of Canada in the negotiation, but failed in that regard.  However, he gained enough land to double the size of the existing land controlled by the newly formed nation, leading to the addition of many new stars on the flag.

NYT Editorial Board admits Trump got what Obama had been asking for.

They still got a few shots in, because they do have their sheep to tend to.  But at least on the main point, they admit he not only is doing what Obama tried to do, but also signed an agreement critical of Russia.  Because that's what Russian agents do. 

“If freedom makes social progress possible, so social
progress strengthens and enlarges freedom"~ Robert F. Kennedy

I was provided this quote today, and agreed with it at first.  Then I realized it is problematic.  "Social Progress" is a broad term, and the method of achieving "social progress" is not defined at all.

There is no doubt "social progress" does enlarge freedom.  If that progress is achieved naturally, fluidly, organically.  As communities and people come to accept new and interesting ideas and people, the scope of their capabilities and imagination for greater things is enlarged and improved.

Where this quote is badly flawed is applying it to law.  Social progress does not occur with passing laws that force people to think, or behave, a certain way.  Too many people believe that it is possible to nation-build, when virtually all attempts of it have failed.  It should, therefore, come as no surprise that it's just as hard to 'community' or 'society' build using laws and regulations.  Eventually the laws themselves act as catalysts for behaviors that undermine the original goal. 

I had the good fortune, and position, to have attended a few of these White House Correspondents' Dinners.  It was a long time ago in a previous job.  They were not, by any means, for the faint of heart.  The roasting was often hot, barbed, but generally all in good spirits (with one or two notable exceptions, naturally involving Republicans).  I heard it described as the "Super Bowl of Washington and general news journalism."  I'd have to say this was an accurate description.  The people in the good seats were high-profile, the coverage (like any in media) was extensive because what's better than the media reporting on itself?

The past two, however, have taken on a different look and feel than those which preceded.  It's no surprise to me that Trump wouldn't want to attend.  I do think he can handle a barb or two, even a few good-natured jabs.  But the press refuses to deal with him in any tone except the most vicious.  I've never hidden the fact that I am not a Trump supporter.  That said, I don't hate him the way his opposition and the media does.  I don't see a good reason for making outrageous and unsubstantiated claims about him, or using them as the basis for mean-spirited attacks.  I also don't see any logical reason for attacking his support staff or supporters, even on the basis of some of the more lurid details which are well-known about his behavior and commentary.

I was asked today why I took a hike around Brooklyn.  To non-readers of Maggie's, the answer isn't easy since I prefer to blog with a pseudonym and try to keep work and blogging separated, for a variety of reasons.

However, the answer I give is that I enjoy history, architecture, art history, and the company of people who enjoy these things as well.  While the original hike was an attempt to meet some of our readers (and a chance for me to meet our editor for the first time), we knew just walking around aimlessly wasn't going to suit people's purposes.

After working with Bird Dog to put the first walk together, I began having some fun actually finding interesting and wacky things to look at around New York City.  I saw a question in an open forum on another site which asked "What are some things about New York that nobody knows about and I should go see?"  I felt qualified enough to answer that question, and most of the Maggie's hikers - certainly any who have gone on all four - should also feel qualified.  As Bird Dog asked while we stood in front of a townhouse completely covered in mosaics, "Where do you find this stuff?"  Most of it I've found just by scouring the internet.  Places like Untapped Cities, Atlas Obscura, and  New York Historical Society are obvious starting points.  It's strange to say "places" for a virtual location, but our virtual world is an addition to our real one, and it should be used in that fashion.  For many it is just a place to escape from reality, through games or social engines.  That's fine.  But it is also an amazing learning tool that is often underutilized.

Within those starting points, we can spin off further.  Following links within articles which lead to stories about locations and art.   Even the social engines are useful.  Mrs. Bulldog, after all, found our DUMBO/Manhattan Bridge picture location because she is on Instagram and saw it was one of the best photo locations.  Interestingly enough, her research on that also led to the addition of the Commandant's House (late editing note: when we visited this, I merely said the Commodore of the Navy Yard lived here.  This was not incorrect, however, I missed that Commodore Matthew C. Perry, who opened Japan and whose flag was displayed on the USS Missouri during the signing of documents ending WWII, lived there), the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument, and the Old Stone House.  So even social media is useful in doing research, though we often malign it as useless.

Ultimately, it's good fun, it's great exercise (I was very stiff the next day, not sore), and it's a chance to socialize and learn from our surroundings and our fellow travelers.  An annual mini-Canterbury Tales, if you will.  A pilgrimage to nowhere in particular, except to exercise our bodies and minds.

Thank you all, again, for joining and looking forward to next year.  I'm thinking Upper Manhattan.  The Cloisters, Mother Cabrini, the High Bridge, Morris-Jumel Mansion, the old Polo Grounds, Battle of Harlem Heights, etc.  Northern Manhattan is walkable today (it certainly wasn't in 1985, when I first moved here).  If we're lucky, maybe take a gander at Yankee Stadium, even though it's not the original.

I promise to keep it under 10 miles this time. 

This was not the longest hike we've had, or so I thought.  After reviewing the last three, I came to realize I'd bitten off a bigger chunk of steak than realized.  We clocked in at just over 11 miles, and prior to yesterday, 10 was the longest.  For some reason I had believed our hike two years ago was closer to 13 miles when in fact it wasn't even 9.5.

Despite this, we were on target for time during the first half, but fell behind on the second.  Each site had a longer trek involved,and there were a lot of lights along the way.  In addition, wrangling 25 people (the largest group yet) was not easy.  Still, 8 people didn't continue past lunch (as expected) and a few other left midway through the second half.  We had a solid core of hardy trekkers at the finish.  Unfortunately, I made the tragic error of not checking to see if the water taxi was running.  It was not.  We are all very thankful for Citibike (the three who rode bikes back into Manhattan were the big winners!) and Uber (a cheap drive back into Manhattan from Red Hook).

As always, an enjoyable group.  We renewed friendships from previous years' hikes, made some new ones, and I even learned my cousin and his friends have never seen Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, despite one of his friends working for Pinkerton.  Kids these days!

Mrs. Bulldog and I enjoyed a cocktail with two of our fellow trekkers at Ryan Maguire's, near where we'd parked.  We commented what a pleasant and interesting group of people we did these hikes with.  Everyone is open to chat, friendly, full of fun and information.  Good people, no microagressions were noticed, no need for safe spaces.  

One thing I did not factor into the hike at all was the Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn.  I really didn't think there was much left to look at.  I was wrong.  We did run into several items which discussed the battle and its locations.  A plaque on a bank, just after lunch, indicated the spot Washington had used to observe the battle as it began down in Gowanus (then the Guan Heights) and the Old Stone House had more information about the holding action a Maryland regiment had engaged to allow the Continental Army to escape.  I'm an old dog, but still learning new tricks.

Thank you all for putting up with my error regarding 7 Middagh Street.  Where I'd first said it was the location of the Plymouth Church, on the ride home I was sorting through my notes and found I'd flipped addresses and that it was actually the location of a home which was shared (over time) by W.H. Auden, Gypsy Rose Lee, Carson McCullers, Paul & Jane Bowles, and Richard Wright.  Thankfully, my error was offset by a wonderful view of lower Manhattan and New York Harbor - so plenty of picture opportunities. In fact, we did hit Plymouth Church two stops later, so we didn't miss anything at all.

Several intriguing spots were missed on the second half, and that's fine.  It was getting late, and we had to get the (not in service) water taxi.  But we did finish, found a great dive bar (Sonny's) that was unfortunately considered by many to be a great dive bar...it was far too crowded. 

All in all, a fun day.  Pictures below of the Manhattan Bridge (Mrs. Bulldog pointed out it's the most heavily posted picture on Instagram, and judging by the crowds clogging the street at 10:30, she was right), the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument in Fort Greene Park, and the Williamsburgh Bank Tower (once the highest building in Brooklyn).

It's easy to see why the DUMBO picture of the Manhattan Bridge is so popular...

Details: Meet at Dunkin' Donuts,  64 Fulton St. in Manhattan, 3 blocks south of the Brooklyn Bridge.  Well, it's Dunkin' Donuts or Ruben's Empanadas.  Maybe it's both.  I'm fairly certain there's a DD there, Google Maps is never wrong.  Ever.  I'm guessing we meet at 9:30 and get started ASAP.  We'll leave a trail of donut crumbs for stragglers.

Weather report says high of 53, partly cloudy. Perfect for a 10-12 mile hike with some beer and pizza. Come one, come all. Exciting Brooklyn!

I have made one update, but the map was tapped out...so on to two maps (which Bing interestingly allows and Google does not).  We are always open to suggestions for additional stops.  At this point, the hike is about 12 miles long, close to 4 hours of walking without stops.  We will have stops, however, so let's call it 5 to 5 1/2 hours right now.   Maybe 6 with a stop for lunch.
The map looks like this.  It's a brisk stretch of the legs, and we finish at a chocolate shop (and distillery - Widow Jane's) near the Water Taxi back to Manhattan.

I believe (hope) this will be the biggest one yet.  I got confirmations from people I know around here (6 people), and many have expressed great interest.  I am sending them reminders, as well.

Remember - wear comfortable shoes and clothes, prepare for the weather, and if you have anything you'd like to see - suggest it now so we can add it!

Also, give us a heads-up if you want to come. No need to use your name, but we'd like to anticipate rough numbers. Right now, I've got 14 that I am 100% sure of.

One more shooting.  One more chance for the Progressives to screech and whine about gun control.  I'm really tired of this cycle.  Progressives complain about the cycle, too, because they want action, and they want it now.  In 3 weeks they'll be bored again, or outraged about something new such as the fact that Trump doesn't have a dog and doesn't seem to care for them.  Progressive try to make it seem like those of us who actually support freedom and the Constitution are uncaring, because we don't do something other than the one thing they deride - "Thoughts and Prayers".  I've noticed some are taking a new tack.  Not necessarily better.  Like every other event, they trot out the same emotions, same flawed statistics, bizarre comparisons to nations without cultures remotely similar to ours, and then one or two tricks.  Progressives are not old dogs.  They are young dogs and haven't learned that new tricks aren't necessarily smarter or better.

I wrote about mass shootings, and school shootings in particular, slightly over 5 years ago.  Have my views changed since then, and the presumed thousands of mass shootings that Progressives point out?  No.  Not in the least.  Does the fact this involved children change my views?  Nope.  Am I cold and heartless?  No.  I'm just rational.  Gun control won't stop this.  People who want to kill will kill and they will use whatever method they can.  The Progressive argument is "with guns, you can kill MORE" and that's just not proven to be true.  It's an assumption based on incomplete data sets.  What is the real issue that needs to be discussed after a shooting and the outrage is building? 

Here we go - planning a Maggie's Farm Urban Hike is a great Valentine's Day conversation for your spouse, significant other, or someone you'd like to impress.  It's time for the first glimpse of the 4th Annual Urban Hike Itinerary.  As we ate pizza last year outside of Chelsea Market, there was a general consensus that we needed to see the sights a girl can see from Brooklyn Heights.  As you know, there's nothing in Brooklyn aside from a bridge, some heights, and possibly Patty Duke's identical twin cousin.  And for those of you into bad 1970's B movies, The Warriors.  Fuhgeddaboudit.  Leave the gun, take the cannoli (Clemenza's house is in Gravesend, Brooklyn, but Paulie was probably killed in NJ since we see the back of the Statue of Liberty).

We're only about 60 days away.  Halfway through February, then March, and right now we're pegging  some weekend post 4/13 (so we're thinking 4/14, 4/21, or 4/28).  Sundays are a possibility, but much more difficult.  Saturdays are always better, so we're planning on those 3 weekends for now.

As usual, all are invited and welcome.  I expect this may be our most well-attended hike yet.  Last year I was surprised to learn one couple was from my hometown (hope we see you again), while yet another travels quite a distance from the MidWest just to share a few hours with us.  They've attended the last two, and I hope we see them again, as well (my wife and I speak about your wandering ways often).  A number of people in my office heard about last year's hike and asked me to inform them about this upcoming one.

Last year we were all dazzled by the 'secret lair' of the Manhattan Contrarian (my wife is still gushing).  I suspect we'll be equally dazzled by some new sights this year.   So feel free to add comments, observations, or suggestions.  Even if you're not plannning on joining us (please join!), but you have suggestions, we'll welcome them if they fit into the time span/distance.  We encourage additions, we encourage any additional commentary during the walk which you find useful (last year we even managed to glom on to a professional tour at one location).  This is all about  knowledge sharing.

The current plan is to start in Manhattan, possibly at a Dunkin' Donuts on Fulton, by Gold, about 3 blocks from the  Brooklyn Bridge.  We'll walk over the bridge, then head north to Dumbo, east to Vinegar Hill, the Navy Yard, and Admiral's Row.  We'll then double back to the Heights where we'll take a look at Roebling's apartment (I think I've got the right address - 110 Columbia Heights at Orange and Pineapple), a brownstone that isn't a brownstone, the Atlantic Avenue tunnel, the original Abraham & Straus (a New York thing, A&S was an iconic store), the Wyckoff Street Mosaic, Gowanus Ballroom, the Gowanus Canal, the Red Hook Warehouse and the Red Hook Grain Terminal.  Some other places of note where there may be stops include 299 Sands St (King's County Distillery - but it's early in the hike so maybe not),  141 Lawrence (Circa Brewing), Cacao Prieto (chocolates!), Prospect Park (a bit of a stretch, but we'll see), 195 Centre St (Other Half Brewing), 40 Van Dyke (Sixpoint Brewing), and 218 Conover (Widow Jane's Distillery - great bourbon).
Once we're in Red Hook, we can take a water taxi back to Manhattan, which I've heard tell is good fun.

So that's a preliminary plan.  I think it came out to about 11 miles.  That's a good stretch of the legs, but we're open to changes and ideas.

After last weekend's exciting trip to the Super Bowl, I was having some conversations with a good friend about our various superstitions.  Invariably, big games include a conversation about how we're going to be managing ourselves, or how we behaved..  I've never hid, nor have I pretended to not have, my superstitions.  They are a part of how I enjoy the game.

I told a workmate, prior to leaving, that I was seriously considering not attending since my nieces felt I was a jinx.  After all, the team did quite well with me lying on the floor in front of my TV, why change what works?  He laughed and said "You're the most rational person I know.  I had no idea you were so superstitious.  You do know you have no impact on the outcome of the game, right?"  I looked at him and said "Maybe I don't.  Maybe." Then I smiled and gave him a nod.  Of course I have no impact.  But I'll never believe I don't.

In 1997, I traveled to Scottsdale with friends to watch Syracuse play Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl.  Syracuse took an early lead, relinquished it, and made a strong comeback in the second quarter.  Things looked pretty good.  I decided to go to the bathroom, and it was all downhill from there.  My good friend was with me, and he explained to me my little trip was the problem.  Obviously, I had to take care of business before the game starts, and just deal with it after that.  Over the years, we've developed a good repertoire of what works and what doesn't.  In 2003, when Syracuse won the Men's Basketball National Championship, I was communicating with him every step of the way.  No missteps could take place on the part of anyone in our group, and none did.

I’m basically a kid. Sure I’m 55 going on 56, and I am starting to feel the aches and pains which we associate with age. Herniated and bulging discs make moving difficult sometimes. I have to watch what I eat and work out regularly to keep weight off. I miss the days of eating as much as I want, and as indiscriminately as I did. Bags of chips, tubs of ice cream, a whole pizza. Those days are memories. But one thing keeps me young. Sports. I love sports of all kinds.

I played soccer and beach volleyball in my youth, but really enjoyed being team statistician for basketball. I love numbers, and sports are about numbers. Sabermetrics got me back into baseball after all the scandals and negative stories of the 80's and 90's caused me to lose interest.  When you get right down to it, sports are a great combination of the things I love.  Physical activity, competition, and data.

But one sport has always been my favorite. Football. Never played it, always loved it. Especially one team in particular, where the team is mostly religion.
The city I grew up in has a rich history, and is a great place to visit.  Even after my family moved when I was 10, I continued to love the city and its teams. Starting my career, I landed in New York City, making it nearly impossible to get (at least unbiased) sports information. I then married into a family of New York sports fans.  I affectionately call ours a mixed marriage. Believe me, there is no love lost between New York and Philadelphia. Twice a year, at least, my wife and I have difficult days. I have had to root for her (not her team, just her happiness) in the Super Bowl twice. Very painful....but it’s what we do.
So I am fully aware of her pain this past weekend. I did not ask her to root for my team, and I know she struggled. Marriages have their rocky moments.  Pun intended.

I was sent this video by a friend who was lamenting the decline of education in the US, particularly physical education.  I was, briefly, sucked in.  As usual, you have to do 'extra' work before you believe anything these days, and it's work he didn't do.  I only did the legwork because....this was just too stupid for words, but completely believable in today's world.  Thankfully, it's just satire.  Although it wouldn't surprise me if it was actually taking place somewhere.

How to get out of super-tight parking spaces.  When you've got someplace to be, and other cars have boxed you in...there's a way out!

Maggie's has run an "Urban Hike" for each of the last 3 years.  We've gone north from the Battery and Delancey Street, in NYC, all the way up to as far as Grant's Tomb.  We even have traveled south from Lincoln Center to Washington Square Park.

All along the way, we checked out interesting historical, literary, and geographic sites as we got to know each other just a little better.  Maggie's audience is a fun and interesting group of people, and we get together because we enjoy learning and having a good time.

To that end, Bird Dog and I have loosely planned our Urban Hike for 2018 in late April.  It should be warm and sunny enough.  No date yet, we'll have that in a month or two.

Meantime - remember - BROOKLYN.  If you have any fun facts or trivia that you'd like to share, post them below in comments.  We'll start by hiking over Roebling's wonder, the Brooklyn Bridge, and after that?  Who knows (yet)?  I know if I can get the Red Hook or Brooklyn Breweries tacked on, as well as maybe Widow Jane's Distillery, I'll be in good shape to let Mrs. Bulldog drive home. 

Four years ago, while I filled in for Bird Dog on the daily news update, I posted a few articles about Bitcoin, which back then barely garnered any attention. 

 2017 was the "year ofBitcoin" and many ordinary Joes became millionaires, as a result.  Some people believe this ride is over.  Perhaps with Bitcoin it is (I do not believe it is, though 1,000% returns are definitely over for it...perhaps not for other cryptos, though), and at least one 'expert' thinks it is.  I'm not an 'expert', but I've heard if you speak enough publicly about something, you can become one (not a joke, this is definitely true).  So maybe I should speak more about cryptocurrencies and be an expert.  

This much is true - I suggested cryptos could represent a move away from standard currencies and represent a new reserve, particularly for nations which aren't fond of the dollar.  This seems to be exactly what is happening.  Amidst all the speculative excess which surrounds some of them, there are more and more real-world firms adopting them, as well as the technology which surrounds their development.  In fact, I have begun to find uses for blockchain tech in my own field, and we are beginning to pioneer new uses for it to defeat fraudulent activity (funny, because the one reason people fear cryptos is that they are often used to engage criminal activity.  My son told me many of his friends who used to purchase illegal substances via the web used Bitcoin.  I asked him how much they had left.  He said none, they'd spent it all.  I said "shows you how much value you get out of using drugs.")  Point is, Bitcoin does have uses.  I am aware of several people who entered the Cannabis growing business (legally, in states that allow it) and cater exclusively to cryptocurrency clientele.  

As we'd suspect, the shootings in Texas are being politicized by the anti-gun groups.  It seems I can't turn around without some anti-gun nut calling for more laws, if not outright elimination of guns.  As if that would actually stop these events.  Of course, none of these people have called for elimination of autos or trucks, particularly after last week's events in NYC.  

What we hear is 'but that was only 8 people killed by a truck while there were  58 in Vegas and 26 in Texas' as if scale is somehow meaningful.  Frankly, I'm less concerned about numbers, and more concerned about means, motive and outcome.  The assumption is that the means is a desire to use a weapon, so being concerned with autos is silly since few people use them as weapons.  There is a massive flaw in this concept.  Two flaws, really.  First, they are used as weapons (Nice and London are just 2 recent examples, and ISIS has called for them to be used more...but I should add Charlottesville to the list) often enough to be of concern.  Second, whether they are used as weapons or not, autos kill far more people every year than guns, and people aren't even trying.  Imagine how the numbers would rise if they were.  By any comparative measure, it's not even close.  WE MUST BAN AUTOS AND TRUCKS!!

We don't have a "Sports" category, but maybe we should.  I normally wouldn't call out a seemingly obscure sports obituary. However, it seems worthwhile, particularly in these 'racially troubled' times (let me be clear, I don't feel we are in any troubled times, but Connie Hawkins' story goes to show just how far we've come).

I was surprised to learn Hawkins passed away.  In fact, I'd forgotten about him, more or less.  Not an extremely well-known NBA player after the early 70's, in his early years he had been blacklisted by the NBA because he was implicated in a point shaving scandal.  The problem, of course, was he was a freshman in college, ineligible to play, and couldn't have been involved in any point shaving.  During the investigation, he was denied the right to legal counsel while being interviewed by NYC police.

As a result, he was expelled from school, and the NBA blackballed him.  He played for the Globetrotters, the Wizards and eventually joined the fledgling ABA and proved he was every bit as good as expected.  Unfortunately toward the end of the 1968-69 season, he injured his knee and it required surgery.  That same year, his suit against the NBA's blackball was settled and he received a large payment as well as having his rights assigned to the Phoenix Suns.  

His first season, he again set out to prove he was a top tier player.  But after 8 years of being denied the right to play professionally, many of his best years were behind him.  Despite this, he averaged 24.6 points per game, 10.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists.  There's little doubt that, fully healthy, Hawkins would have been a premier talent, probably even an NBA legend, if not for circumstances lining up against him.

7 years later, his career was over.  He remained a regular at Phoenix poker rooms for years, where his affable nature and celebrity kept him in good company.  He was honored by the NBA and inducted into the Hall of Fame because of his overall contributions to the game, in 1992.  The Phoenix Suns retired his number, 42. 

In the genre of sports literature, 2 books stand out to me.  Ball Four and Foul!  The Connie Hawkins Story.  I read both in my early teens, and they taught me as much about life as they did about sports and celebrity.  They are, in various ways, classics and paved the way for all the stories in that genre which followed.  They broke the rules of silence surrounding sports, exposing the soft underbelly and dirt which were previously ignored because athletes were icons, and sports leagues seemingly incorruptible (despite the Black Sox Scandal, Americans had a love affair with sports leagues and even today these flawed organizations are viewed as leaders and examples for young athletes).  Hawkins was a victim, as opposed to a perpetrator (unlike Jim Bouton), of bad behavior.  

What may have made him most well-known, toward the end of his injury-riddled NBA career, was a sketch on the second episode of Saturday Night Live, in which he played Paul Simon in a game of one-on-one.  

Here is a link to the video (there is no embed capability, unfortunately).  The Paul Simon/Connie Hawkins sketch occurs about the 17:20 mark.

Now the claim regarding censorship is that speech itself shuts down free speech.

I didn't have to get too far into this to begin to see where it was going.  Claims the Constitution is outdated, not suited for this era, etc.

The premise is that being shouted down or using troll-bots to humiliate or drown out 'undesirable' voices - using free speech to stop free speech - is, itself, based on an additional premise that is unstated.  That premise is people are incapable of thinking for themselves and that it is impossible to discern the truth in the midst of mis- and dis-information.

It also presumes these things didn't exist prior to the internet era.

These tactics are not new.  They are old.  Kennedy put them to great use against Nixon, although his methods were not high-tech.  These methods were used against van Buren, and even Grover Cleveland.  

People tend to think technology changes the reasons for certain laws.  In rare cases, it may.  In the case of the Constitution, I have yet to see a decent example of a need for changes based on changing technology...but the Left will keep trying to make that case. 

A $586.56 lawsuit in San Francisco could radically alter the 'gig economy' which much of the current tech growth depends upon.  

I doubt the plaintiff will win.  But if he does, the effects are potentially damaging to several firms worth billions of dollars.