Andre Dawson: One in a Billion

During his induction speech at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Andre Dawson says, “I am proof that any young person who can hear my voice right now can be standing here as I am.” I understand that he wants to be encouraging and inspirational to youth, but this statement is absurd in the extreme. About one out of two million men have the right physical and mental assets necessary to play major league baseball. There are about two hundred hall of famers out of around one hundred fifty thousand major leaguers throughout history. The chance of some random boy standing in Dawson's place are about one out of one and one half billion. He has a better chance of winning the lottery several times. Although I am certain Andre Dawson's work ethic contributes greatly to his success, he would not achieve it save for genetics.

War in Korea

The United States and South Korea are engaging in naval and air exercises in the vicinity of the Korean Peninsula. I worry that this is a provocation against North Korea. While I have no love for North Korea, I have concerns that we are being led to war with a nuclear armed adversary.

The media and government portray the recent sinking of the South Korean warship as a torpedo attack by the North, which always denies it. I think that the ship's sinking could be at the hands of either the South Koreans or the United States. This gives a pretext for war and these war games are the next step. This may not be the policy of the Obama administration, either, but the machinations of the Military Industrial Complex that sees war on the Korean peninsula to its advantage. I grant you that this is speculation, but I think these news reports need viewing though this prism.

Sons of Anarchy-Organized

The FX series, Sons of Anarchy, is in re-runs now. This series depicts a motor cycle club that runs a small town that allows it to conduct its criminal as well as legitimate businesses. I do not know of any biker groups that actually own cities, but it occurs to me that this show is an allegory. The burg represents the United States and the bikers are the white collar gangsters that actually operate the economy. The name of the club would indicate that this group is into chaos. Nothing is further from the truth. They are a force of law and order in this municipality. The Sons of Anarchy need order and stability in order to generate profits. This is reminiscent of the Nazis whose name implies socialism when they are really a party of big business. The show's efforts will probably lost on the vast majority of Americans. We see the criminal activity of businessmen, as in the recent economic collapse, and we pretend that these things just do not happen. After all, this is not South America. It is encouraging to see artists present the issue, even if their efforts may be for naught.

FDR, Grilled Millionaires and the Coup Plot

This week PBS presents an American Experience episode on President Franklin Roosevelt. The program shows FDR addressing students from the University of North Carolina about what they are hearing in the media about him. Rather sarcastically he characterizes the view of the wealthy and their minions in the press, “..that I breakfasted every morning on a dish of grilled millionaire.” In many ways FDR saves those fools from themselves. This county probably goes Commie if he does not act.

The program does not detail the coup plot by aristocrats and businessmen to install a fascist military dictatorship, ala Mussolini, in 1933. We not are taught this in school, either. This is disturbing, because it helps to understand the lengths to which those of privilege will go in order to maintain their positions. This is not the stuff of conspiracy theory. The records of the McCormack-Dickstein Committee of Congress document this. PBS does a disservice to the public by not educating it to these important events.