At Ease
by Jack Webster
THIS IS A VERY STRANGE WINTER! What had been one of the wimpiest winters I could recall in the nearly 60 years I have been a resident of “The Nation’s Icebox,” has suddenly reverted to a “typical” Minnesota winter of sub-zero temps! It will be interesting to see how the next three months play out...
THE TIMBERWOLVES ARE STILL having problems finishing out games. They have had sizable leads in a number of games but just cannot hang on for the victory. I think that will come with experience but they need to start “getting the hang” of winning the close games and holding leads late in the game.
The team may just have the second consecutive Rookie of Year award as Karl Anthony Towns has been named Rookie of the Month twice thus far. Rubio, I think, is the disappointment of the year as he is as inconsistent as the rookies. When you consider his professional years in the European League he is a seasoned veteran but still seems to make rookie mistakes sometimes. The lack of offensive rebounding is also a sorry sight sometimes... The first thing I remember a coach telling us in high school was “follow your shot” and anticipate a rebound. The Timberwolves (and most other teams as well) do not do this simple act.
IT SEEMS LIKE ONLY A short time ago that our leaders (and those of other countries) were singing the praises of a “deal” with North Korea that would prevent them from building atomic bombs/weapons. I said at the time that country is not to be trusted --- never could, never will! That belief was proven correct about a month ago when the northern half of the divided country boasted that they detonated a hydrogen bomb to “defend its sovereignty and the dignity of the nation.” So much for the “given word” of that country’s leader Kim Jong Un. I don’t know why our country (and other NATO leaders) even listens to anything he has to say or pay attention to his rantings...
BEING KIND OF A “HISTORY NUT” I just recently became aware of a pending disaster that almost happened in 1844 that would have affected all of us southern Minnesota residents. During that year, politicians in the Iowa Territory advocating for Statehood offered a proposal for the boundaries of the proposed state of Iowa. The northern boundary proposed at the 1844 Convention would have had the northern boundary of Iowa extending from (what is now) Sioux City northward up the Big Sioux River to near St. Peter, where it joined what is now the Minnesota River. From there the northern boundary of (the proposed State) Iowa would have continued on northward to the Twin Cities area where it joined the Mississippi River.
Lucky (for us) in true Iowagian fashion, the Iowa Territorial Governor determined that large area was “completely valueless” and would become a “resort for desperadoes.” Thus we owe that long-ago Iowa Territorial Governor Robert Lucas a huge vote of thanks for vetoing that proposal and moving the northern Iowa border to its present location! Just think--except for that veto we would all now be Iowans! (And that “valueless” area of land is now some of the most productive farmland in the entire country). Also, without that veto, think of all the good-natured “harassing” that would have never taken place between residents of the two states... and the sometimes “clever” jokes exchanged!
THE VIKINGS’ SEASON ended with a “thud.” Brings to mind another missed field goal about 16 or 18 years ago... However, all of the blame should not be aimed at Walsh as he was the only one who did any scoring all game and if not for an Adrian Peterson fumble the Vikes would not have been in the make-it-or-go-home situation. Also, where was the defense when the Seattle quarterback botched a long snap and still had about 20 or 25 seconds to recover and make a long gainer?
COULD HARDLY BELIEVE AN ARTICLE last week that said the Mankato Fleet Farm store has been fined $40,000 for selling gas TOO CHEAPLY! According to the article, Sam’s Club (in Minnesota) has also been fined for the same “crime.” It is really hard for me to accept that, with the economy crying for help, that a business can be fined for selling a product at TOO LOW A PRICE!
The Commerce Dept. is the culprit in this farce but couldn’t Pres. Obama use his newly exercised (some say “dictatorial”) power to change this law on his own?
FOR YOU BASKETBALL fans who ever watched the Harlem Globetrotters play... The famed “clown prince of basketball” Meadowlark Lemon recently died at his home in Arizona. While he never played in the NBA, many of the game’s biggest stars agreed that Lemon was maybe the most sensational, talented, incredible player they had ever seen. I was lucky enough to have seen Lemon play when he was a relative newcomer to the team, and he followed in the footsteps of his predecessor and mentor “Goose” Tatum. Tatum was the original center on the team and probably was the one player, along with sensational dribbler/ball handler Marcus Haynes, who made the Globetrotters a household name in the 1940s and 1950s.
GOV. DAYTON IS SAID TO BE considering what I would say is a very questionable move. He is reportedly considering “lowering” the student loan debt of many who owe large sums from their student loans signed and agreed to in past years. These (ex)students took the loans out in good faith, spent the money and received their college education. Why now should they be able to NOT PAY BACK the borrowed money? Sure, it is a good deal for them but how about the thousands of college grads to took out loans, paid the money (as they had agreed to do)? Is the Governor also going to return some of their loan payments back to them--or are they to suffer a loss (repayment of the loan) because they were honest, maybe more frugal and conservative and spent their money wisely? Dayton’s idea is just another example of penalizing those who are honest and hard-working and rewarding those who take no responsibility, whine and lament “poor me.”
HURRAH FOR OUR SENATORS! They finally worked together and passed a piece of legislation unanimously! That piece of legislation that they passed as a UNITED GROUP was to make the Bison our national mammal! And that’s no Bull.
THE FINAL STATE OF THE UNION address by Pres. Obama seemed to be a lot of talk that didn’t say much. He acknowledged that part of the blame for the gridlock the last 7 years was his fault, but the speech (to me) almost sounded like he was stumping for a third term... Considering he campaigned as wishing to become the “Great Uniter” of the divided Congressional Houses he made little attempt to reach out to the IR party. Rather than focusing on ideas that could have bipartisan support, he touched on them only briefly and did not really even urge his own party to get behind them. Plenty of blame to go around and he may be the least of the problems.
QUICKIES:
Q: What is the difference between a Hippo and a Zippo?
A: One is very heavy and the other a little lighter.
Q: What is the difference between ignorance and apathy?
A: I don’t know and I don’t care!
Q: What do you call a Pig with three eyes?
A: A P i i i g.
