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Major League Baseball spring training is underway and my sons little league opening day is this week.
For a baseball nut like me, it’s Christmas in the spring.
The gift of the Cactus League, with the addition of the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, make spring training that much better. With the Diamondbacks moving from Tucson to the Valley soon for spring training, makes the Cactus League that must stronger.
Play ball!
Give me a break. There is huge drama and controversy over an air traffic controller bringing his child to work and having him give directions to pilots at JFK Airport in New York.
I think it’s cute. And it’s not like he was going to say anything that put anyone at risk – it’s not like his dad left him alone to have a cigarette break or something. “Here buddy, you take over, I gotta get a smoke.”
Actual audio is here.
Ninety-one years ago today, Woodrow Wilson signed legislation designating the Grand Canyon as a national park.
I have been to the Grand Canyon many times, and each time the experience is a little different. Yes, I’ve had the Clark Griswold experience of taking five seconds to look at the view and then tell the kids, “Wow, isn’t that cool? Now let’s go get lunch.”
But I’ve also had the experiences of the solitude of taking in the awesome beauty and the totality of the size and grandeur of one of the true wonders of the world.
Happy Birthday Grand Canyon.
Just for kicks, here is the clip from the 1983 film Vacation.
The first question Republicans should ask Obama when they meet at the Blair House for the health care summit on Thursday is this: “If we turn to a government-run health care system like Canada, where will the Canadians go for their health care?”
As you may already know, Newfoundland’s Premier chose to come to the United States for surgery on his heart, rather than have it done in Canada.
Isn’t that everything we need to know about why we should have government-run health care?
Back in 2004 Dr. Tom Coburn, who had been a member of the revolutionary class of 1994 and then left Congress under a self-imposed term limit pledge, decided to run for the U.S. Senate. In early September I got a call from Congressman John Shadegg saying that my help was needed in Coburn’s Senate race.
A couple days later I flew to Tulsa and then drove to Muskogee, Dr. Coburn’s hometown and where the campaign headquarters was located. For the next eight weeks I lived in the Holiday Inn Express while I worked on the campaign.
The Muskogee Chamber of Commerce recently produced a video to Merle Haggard’s classic “Okie from Muskogee.” It brought back memories of the good ol’ days.
Thanks to Curt Price for passing it along.
In my previous post I pointed out that in the TV show Lost, John Locke is now evil personified.
But a friend of mine pointed out that this is the real evil personified.
MARJAH, Afghanistan — Taliban fighters holding out in Marjah are increasingly using civilians as human shields, firing from compounds where U.S. and Afghan forces can clearly see women and children on rooftops or in windows, Afghan and U.S. troops said Wednesday.
The intermingling of fighters and civilians also has been witnessed by Associated Press journalists. It is part of a Taliban effort to exploit strict NATO rules against endangering innocent lives to impede the allied advance through the town.
These animals are sick and they must be stopped. Our efforts in Afghanistan have never been more important. Pray for our troops as they look evil in the eye and make sacrifices so that we don’t have to.
The hit TV series Lost continues to wow me. This week’s episode actually answers more questions than it raises, much to my enjoyment and relief.
Now we know where the lists of names comes from and we have a better understanding of what Jacob was up to. The challenge is whether we believe that Jacob is evil or the man in black, now personified as John Locke.
Whereas previous seasons nibbled around the edges of good versus evil, this season has overt religious overtones. It is sure to keep Lost fans buzzing about what it all means, and I am guessing that the Lost writers are good enough to throw some major twists into the plot in this final season.
The John Locke-centered episode this week we learn a lot more about Locke, but we also catch glimpses of a different side of Ben and Hurley. Ben is much less confident and the Hurly that lands in L.A. continues to act as if he’s the luckiest guy in the world – a stark contrast to the Hurley on the island that believes he is cursed.
It is a rare moment for me to get to the end of a TV show and actually feel enriched for having watched it. I’m crossing my fingers that the rest of the season of Lost will have some big payoffs.
This is tragic, and hits close to home. I’ve known Tom Stewart for a number of years, and was always impressed by his commitment to the American Dream. He was a guy who put his money where his mouth was, walked the walked, talked the talk. He was a freedom fighter.
No one will ever know how much of an impact he had on conservatism in America, because no one person knows all the different things in which he engaged. What small part I saw in that world was impressive by itself, but I know it was just a smidgen of his influence.
Tom Stewart was a “great American” before being a great American was cool. Not only did he create thousands and thousands of jobs, he worked hard at protecting the system that allowed him to be successful. He didn’t just take his piece of the pie, he made sure there was a bigger pie left behind.
When I learned of his death, it rattled me. Bad. I realize now it is because it is not just the passing of a man, but the passing of era.
Our prayers go out to the families of Tom and Madena Stewart. RIP.
UPDATE
An updated story here. The official statement from SGA below.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (Feb. 15, 2010) – Services Group of America (SGA) has announced that Chairman & CEO Thomas J. Stewart was killed in a helicopter accident yesterday (Feb. 14) north of Scottsdale at approximately 3 p.m.
The company helicopter was en route to Scottsdale Air Park from the Flagstaff area when it crashed in a desert wash.
A total of five passengers were aboard the helicopter when it departed from the Flagstaff area. Authorities conducted a thorough ground and air search of the crash area Sunday afternoon and into the night. They are certain there were no survivors. Authorities are advising that it will take some time to identify all of the passengers.
The cause of the crash is not known at this time and the company is working closely with the investigating agencies.
Stewart, 64, was a long-time philanthropist who supported education and the arts; a community activist championing free enterprise; a life-long adventurer; and a foodservice industry leader.
Services Group of America is a $2.7 billion company which is ranked 157th on the Forbes’ Largest Private Companies in the U.S. list. The company is the parent company of a number of companies including Food Services of America, Systems Services of America, Amerifresh, Ameristar Meats and Development Services of America. The roots of the company go back 40 years when Stewart was building Stevedoring Services of America in Seattle.
He moved the corporate headquarters from Seattle to Scottsdale in 2006.
The company is privately-held and family-owned, a structure that will not change despite the accident, according to Peter K. Smith, president and COO of SGA.
“Tom was first and foremost a visionary,” he said. “He had a clear and concise continuity plan for the enterprise in place and was completely confident in the current leadership team.”
“With our people, our processes and our technology, we will continue our current operations without missing a beat,” said Smith. “That’s how Tom planned it and that’s what he wanted. We continue to be a privately-held, family-owned business that offers the highest level of service in our industries. That will never change.”
Stewart was known for being a deft financier and a calculating risk taker. During his career, he formed or acquired 45 companies; sold or spun-off 22; merged 18 into other companies and closed 79. He is legendary for his epic adventures including a horseback trip with his family riding the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest trail from Mexico to Canada and a jeep safari across the continent of Africa. He was an avid golfer, horseman, rancher, fisherman, skier, scuba diver and team roper.
The Stewart family is currently making memorial service arrangements which will be announced at a later date.
For more historical information on SGA and Tom Stewart, go to www.servicesgroupofamerica.com
We’re only two weeks into the final season of Lost and I’m more confused than ever. More questions are being asked than answers given to previous questions. I feel like the guy in a kayake paddling upstream and not actually moving.
What. Is. It. With. This. Show?
The addiction of it is enough to frustrate me just to the point of actual anger, but I can’t walk away from it.
The parallel experience that the show has taken only adds to the confusion. How creepy is it to see Ethan in the hospital treating Claire? (shudder)
Sawyer’s heartbreak was unexpected. I really thought Kate was the real holder of the key to his heart.
The unwinding of this giant ball of string seems to be taking some weird turns – and I’m starting to worry that the end is not going to be the payoff that we long-time fans deserve.
The startling end of the second episode was a good payoff though… Claire has taken the place of Rousseau?
