"Adam Smith's enormous authority resides, in the end, in the same property that we discover Marx: not in any ideology, but in an effort to see to the bottom of things." Robert L. Heilbroner commenting on An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations-- We are no Adam Smith, but we are putting forth "an effort to see to the bottom of things."
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Post-Thanksgiving Thoughts
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Saturday Morning Sports Stories Posted On A Sunday
Jason Whitlock has a couple of commentaries on Mangino. This morning's article basically asks "How important is winning?" This is also the underlying question of the France-Ireland handball. At what lengths should coaches, organizations, teams, and player go to win? I played enough athletics to know that most coaches, organizations, and players would answer "anything within limits" to win. The limits differ, but the objective of sports is to win.
The things that bothers me about Mangino are the personal nature of his attacks, and his commitment to the idea that he is helping his players succeed in life. He probably has helped a lot of players do better than they would have if they didn't have a college scholarship. His "tough love" has probably helped a lot of players get past bad habits and lack of discipline. But what for? Winning college football games? I guess the question becomes is winning football games closely correlated with winning in life? I know they are somewhat correlated, but how closely?
It is the same thing with the France-Ireland thing. I know if I was Irish I would be pissed. I know the French feel that the win was tainted, but what is the right thing to do? And a bigger question, does the outcome of the game really matter in the grand scheme?
My philosophy has developed to the point where I believe the games don't matter as much as the seasons, and the seasons don't matter as much as the decades, and so forth.
The real thing that amazes me is that we are wealthy enough to care. Bill Simmons is paid millions of dollars to write about games. He gets to write a long column on one decision in one game that will in all likelihood not make a difference. And I get to read it even though I haven't slept in the same bed in consecutive nights this week.
Is the "win-at-all-costs" attitude what has gotten us to this place? Is the commitment to the attitude the difference between Bill Simmons success and writing a blog that no one reads? Is it the difference between six and five figures? Is it the difference between finishing and not finishing?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
My Opinion On The Decision
Monday, November 16, 2009
Outcomes Matter, Probabilities Don’t
Bill Belichick demonstrated what I was trying to say in this post. I just listened to Bill Simmons and Cousin Sal say Belichick went against the odds. Joe Posnanski links to a guy who says he played the odds perfectly. Neither link matters. They didn't get the first down. The Patriots lost.
The probabilities don't matter. The outcome does. Bill Belichick will only have once chance to make that call. He made it. Now the game is over. And he has to start preparing for the Jets. And I bet that is what he is doing.
Yesterday’s NFL Thoughts But I Am Not Getting Sucked Backed In To The Redskins
- The question is not Manning or Brady? It is Jason Campbell or Kyle Orton?
- Besides Wayne, Manning's best receivers are a former walk-on at Iowa and a Division III player (even though Mount Union is as close as Division III comes to big-time college football).
- A Division III player was getting a pretty big push on Football Night In America.
- Besides Moss, Brady's receivers aren't much better than Manning's.
- Again the question is not Manning or Brady, it is Campbell or Orton? And the answer goes something like if you put the right guys around a mediocre NFL quarterback, you might win one championship but you're not getting a hundred wins in a decade.
- I would be satisfied with one championship.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Uncomfortable Or Unfortunate Situations I Have Been In Today
2. I go into a bathroom at a fairly large airport. There is a man, an attendant, sitting there. I have to drop a sizable load. He sees me go in. Ten minutes later, he sees me go out. I know he understands, but like the shirt, it is just an uncomfortable situation.
3. I also don't know what to do with the attendant. He doesn't have an official tip jar. There are some mints and Listerine with a money jar, but that looks like it goes to a charity. Again, I don't know what to do.
4. I shotgun 40 ounces of Diet Coke. The caffeine and and liquid causes bladder spasms. I have to piss 4 times in the next two hours. This situation amplifies the uncomfortableness of 2 and 3.
5. Since I left this morning, I missed the opportunity to see Kevin Durant, the emerging Thunder, and maybe this year's champs, Spurs.
Just an unfortunate day.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Some Things On My Mind
Thursday, November 05, 2009
NASCAR Is Still A Good Sport To Write About
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Too Many Movies, Not Enough Work
Monday, November 02, 2009
Some Things
2. Vista sucks. The Mac commercial makes sense. Microsoft has been selling empty promises since I have started using computers. Windows will work most of the time, but when it doesn't, it will make your life miserable.
3. Wireless mouses were a great invention.
4. I bought a cord to hook up my laptops to my TV. I have no idea what I am going to do with it, but I am really glad I have it.
Sunday, November 01, 2009
"Truck His Ass" Or The Pursuit
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My wife and I watched the first game of the World Series. She has no idea about baseball. No idea whatsoever. But she and I enjoyed the game. The Phillies won.
I hate the Yankees. I have never liked them. It really started when they came back against the Braves in '96. I never thought they could get four wins in six games against the Braves' starters. But even before then, my grandfather told me to not like teams from New York, especially one named the Yankees.
I am not a big fan of the Phillies or Philadelphia either. I grew up watching the Redskins. Washington fans have very little respect for the other NFC east cities. Philadelphia, New York, and Dallas don't get "my team isn't playing" fandom.
But I enjoyed game one, prefer the National League to the American League, Charlie Manuel is from Virginia, and I started rooting for the Phillies. I couldn't watch Game 2, and they lost. I stopped wanting to watch the games. I couldn't handle it. I couldn't handle watching a baseball game, caring about the outcome, but knowing that my desired outcome probably won't happen kills me.
I don't want to watch anything sports related especially with the Redskins the laughingstock of the NFL and the Hokies choking away another season. And here I was enjoying the beautiful game of baseball in HD, and I don't even hate this Yankees team as much as usual (except Joe Girardi), but once I have a rooting interest, I can't watch the damn game without increases in blood pressure and yelling. I find the whole thing sad.
Then I am watching Mad Men, and President Kennedy gets assassinated. I remember September 11th and April 16th. I remember that baseball and sports and most everything else is a distraction from the only important thing:
Life.