The price of goodwill
On the same day that Eric Milton signs for $90 million, the U.S., Japan, and U.K. pledge a combined $93 million to aid recovery from a disaster likely to claim at least 100,000 lives.
Seems about right.
Ok, I don't mean to be unfair to Eric Milton. His salary is wholly independent of whatever amount we decide to spend on saving the world. Whether or not he deserves $90 million is a topic meant for a pure baseball discussion.
Allow me to make another comparison then:
Tax dollars spent to build an irrigation system to serve Billionaire Paul Allen's golf course:
$36 million
U.S. pledge to aid victims of the recent tsunami tragedy:
$35 million
Get the point?
I suppose plenty of folks would say, “What obligation do we have? Who would give us even $35 million if we needed it? After all, we have already pledged more than any other country.”
I have 2 responses. The first is an appeal to emotion. That one is obvious so I won’t get into it here. The second appeal is to logic. Actually, the logical response is obvious to me as well, but based on the responses from our leaders, I think it’s over their heads.
I think we can all agree that the reputation of the U.S., rightly or wrongly, has suffered around the world in the last few years. I’ve recently spent time in both Asia and Europe and can attest that there is a strong undercurrent of distrust and disgust for the U.S. government and its policies. While I do not intend in any way to minimize the suffering caused by the earthquake or color it as anything other than the tragedy that it is, our leaders must recognize opportunity within the tragedy for the U.S. to reacquire some of the goodwill that has been so foolishly squandered.
We have been given an opportunity to show the world that our intentions are indeed noble. We have been given an opportunity to prove that we intend to act as benefactor to all those who wish to live free from oppression and poverty. And here’s the most important part….we have been given the unique opportunity to do this in the part of the world experiencing the fastest expansion of the Islam religion.
So how does our government respond? By reaching into the couch cushions, picking out all the quarters, and handing the rest over. Maybe folks don’t care that it might be the right thing, dare I say the moral thing, to commit the resources necessary to secure immediate relief, pledge the resources needed to help rebuild lives, and even provide the tsunami warning system that is lacking in that region. But even if you don’t care, you must admit that doing all those things is a prudent investment in our own security, and much more cost effective than another batch of bunker busters.
*- After I first made this post, I noticed that I'm not the only making this connection. Check out another viewpoint,
here. Also, I've been reminded that the cost of Bush's inauguration is estimated to reach
$40 million. Nice.
3,000 and still counting
Another 1,000 visitors, another Stargell star. It's so encouraging to see traffic really picking up, especially during the lamest baseball period of the year!
I haven't done a lot of material lately due to the lack of news and the fact that I've got a new baby at home. So, if you need a fix, check out the excellent Pirate sites I've listed on the left-hand panel.
Fun with baseball-reference.com
Not much Pirates news lately. Rumor has it that Jack Wilson has been offered a 2 year deal for $8 million. I don't understand the purpose of this since Wilson wouldn't get much more than $4 million in arbitration, and even if he did, the Pirates still control his rights for next season. Ah well.
Anyway, in the absence of Bucco happenings, here are some fun facts I've learned from baseball-reference.com:
957 players have had major league careers lasting exactly 1 game. None of them ever hit a home run, but a guy named
Ed Irvin hit 2 triples in his only game back in 1912.
Of all the players in major league history, only 1 was born in Afghanistan (Kabul to be exact.) His name was
Jeff Bronkey and he pitched for the Rangers and Brewers in 1993-95.
Another player,
Ed Porray, was born on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean back in 1888. I presume his parents were making their way to the new world at the time? Anyone have any more information about this guy? Would make a great story I'd think.
3 players have died on February 29th:
Lena Blackburne,
Rebel Oakes, and
Ernie Courtney.
12 players were born on February 29th, including active player
Terrence Long.
That's about it. When does spring training start?
Steeler trivia
Total # of games in Steelers history prior to 2004, in which the Steelers didn't have to punt = 0
# of games this season in which the Steelers didn't have to punt = 3 (including the last 2 games in a row.)
Bye, bye crows.
I think I finally figured out what happened to Joey Porter's explosiveness off the edge. James Harrison took it.
Anyway....
Even though I spent 6 years in Charm City, something about the crows has bothered me since their inception by deception.
Maybe my irritation is because the most celebrated player in team history, Ray Lewis, enjoys deadly knife fights and gets his jollies from helping thugs get away with murder.
Maybe it's because Jamal Lewis' idea of a work-study job is delivering dime-bags.
Maybe it's the way Baltimore fans and media fawn over Art Modell, yet miss no opportunity to discuss how Robert Irsay belongs in hell.
Maybe it's simply the fact that grown men shouldn't wear purple.
Whatever it is, I wanted to put it all aside and wish them a happy, healthy, off-season. You deserve nothing less.
