(no subject)

Happy birthday, King George (Steinbrenner)! Okay, not very happy, as his (and my) team lost 19-1 to the Cleveland Indians.

So let's remember a different, better, and terrifically memorable birthday. Say, 23 years ago, in 1983.

It was a bright, sunny day. I know, because I was sitting in the bleachers at Yankee Stadium with my best friend, and I had a lovely (not!) sunburn when I got home. But I hardly noticed, for the festivities. (And probably for the beer and, um, other reasons. But I digress)

It was, then as now, The Boss' birthday (no, not my namesake from New Jersey. -- but I digress again :-) and he had entertainment arranged. There was a skydiver, who parachuted on a paraglider (one of those square things) with smoke trails from leg-borne pods.

The National Anthem was played by one of the stars of the day (well, of the just past days, but still well enough known. Now stop making me digress lest I owe my life savings to Ian Hanley! :-), Chuck Mangione.

The game was against the hated (then as now, but with more scorn, then, I think) Boston Red Sox. The pitcher that day was one of the Yanks' best starters, Dave Righetti.

To make a long story short (because, after all, it's a sporting event over twenty years old, and you could easily have looked up the ending already), Righetti fired a no-hitter and won the game 4-0. It was a big deal, being the first Yankee no-hitter since Don Larsen threw one in the World Series almost 20 years earlier (in 1956).

Okay. Time to have some more days like that. Where do order one online? :-)

(no subject)

Veteran arrested for wearing wrong T-shirt:

"You can’t be in here protesting," officer Adkins said, pointing to my Veterans For Peace shirt.

"Well, I’m not protesting, I’m having a cup of coffee," I returned, thinking that logic would convince Adkins to go back to his earlier duties of guarding against serious terrorists.

Flipping his badge open, he said, "No, not with that shirt. You’re protesting and you have to go."

...

And just for the record? I’m not paying the fine. I’ll see Adkins and Ousley and Dubya’s Director of the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, if he wants to show up, in United States District Court on the appointed date. And if there’s a Chicago area attorney who’d like to take the case, I’d really like to sue them — from Dubya on down. I have to believe that this whole country has not yet gone insane, just the government. This kind of behavior can’t be tolerated. It must be challenged.

I wish more politicians showed this sort of cojones. It's long past time to stand up for what this country is about, before the Administration and its repressive, intrusive, narrowminded policies is permitted to turn it into the Soviet States of America.