Rio Olympics
Rory Mcllroy quit the Rio Olympics over fear of the Zika virus. Other golfers, March Leishman of Australia and South African Charl Schwartzel, had already done the same. As had American cyclist Tejay van Garderen.
Rio Olympics
Last week the Russian track and field team took the easy way out – doping.
However, there were worse things than the Zika virus for olympic mascot Juma the jaguar. Juma got off her leash at an Olympic torch ceremony and was shot dead.
The Block
Before game three of the NBA final series against Golden State, Number 23 noticed old Number 32 in the stands. LeBron James trotted over and bowed to Jim Brown. Brown was pleased. He called the salute, “one of my greatest sports moments.”
One of his other great moments was The NFL Championship in 1964. It was Cleveland’s last major sports title, until LeBron and his co-workers ended 52 years of frustration Sunday night.
The Block
Brown and James bookended five decades of sports despair. Hope was crushed during those years by “The Drive“, “The Fumble“, and “The Shot.”
But now we have “The Block.”
LeBron used speed, grace, and power, to chase down Andre Iguodala and smash his layup into the glass. At Deadspin Chris Thompson called it, “the greatest individual athletic feat in a game of basketball that I have ever seen.”
It reminded me of Jim Brown’s second, third, and fourth efforts half a century ago.
I’m still watching The Block – over and over. You can too, here, here, here, and here.
Click the image for full size
Go here to see some of my less gushing LeBron cartoons through the years.
Republicans Did It
The NYT published an editorial Wednesday calling the Orlando shooting an act of hate. But the editors then said the precise motivation for the atrocity was unclear (Heather Wilhelm calls it America’s Hapless Terror Whodunit).
Republicans Did It
The editorial solved the mystery by finding that Republicans did it.
It blamed Republicans for creating a climate of hate for L.G.B.T. Americans that led to the violence in Orlando. No mention of a climate of Islamist hate for gays.
The shooter shouted allahu akbar and called 911 to proclaim he was acting for ISIS.
Progressives believe it when a man with a penis says he’s a woman but they don’t believe a man with a gun when he says he’s an Islamic Jihadist.
Paul Joseph Watson says, “The Left has chosen to protect the feelings of Muslims over the lives of gay people.”
Words Matter
For a guy who’s all about narratives President Obama doesn’t seem to think words matter anymore.
He still refuses to use the term “radical Islam“. He says it wouldn’t make any difference. On Tuesday he angrily asked, “What exactly would it accomplish? What exactly would it change?”
The WSJ editorial board thanked him for asking and answered his question:
If the U.S. is under attack, Americans deserve to hear their President say exactly who is attacking us and why. You cannot effectively wage war, much less gauge an enemy’s strengths, without a clear idea of who you are fighting.
Mr. Obama’s refusal to speak of “radical Islam” also betrays his failure to understand the sources of Islamic State’s legitimacy and thus its allure to young Muslim men. The threat is religious and ideological.
Islamic State sees itself as the vanguard of a religious movement rooted in a literalist interpretation of Islamic scriptures that it considers binding on all Muslims everywhere. A small but significant fraction of Muslims agree with that interpretation, which is why Western law enforcement agencies must pay more attention to what goes on inside mosques than in Christian Science reading rooms.
Words Matter
During the 2008 campaign Hillary Clinton dismissed Obama’s gift for gab as “just words.” Obama responded with this speech:
“Don’t tell me words don’t matter: ‘I have a dream,’ just words? ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal,’ just words? ‘There is nothing to fear, except fear itself,’ just words?’”
Trump to Media: You’re Fired
The Donald brags about not spending money to win the nomination thanks to free media coverage. But apparently he’s had enough. He revoked the Washington Post’s press credentials because he didn’t like a headline.
“I am no fan of President Obama, but to show you how dishonest the phony Washington Post is, they wrote, ‘Donald Trump suggests President Obama was involved with Orlando shooting’ as their headline,” Trump wrote. “Sad!”
CNN says the headline (which was changed before Trump complained) came from an interview he did with Fox News.
“Look, we’re led by a man that either is not tough, not smart, or he’s got something else in mind,” Trump said of Obama. “And the something else in mind — you know, people can’t believe it. People cannot, they cannot believe that President Obama is acting the way he acts and can’t even mention the words ‘radical Islamic terrorism.’ There’s something going on. It’s inconceivable. There’s something going on.”
Last night he said, “Obama is more angry at me than he was at the shooter.”
The Post isn’t alone. He’s also told The Des Moines Register, Univision, The Huffington Post, Politico, The Daily Beast, and Buzz Feed to buzz off.
