Top 8 Disappointments from a Lifetime Philly Sports Fan

Up 3-2 and next two games are home before a rabid fan base and yet, the Phillies lose to the Diamonbacks in the NLCS.

Eagles Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs. 2023
1964 Phillies late season collapse.
Eagles loss to Arizona – NLCS 2023.
World Series loss to Toronto 1993.
Sixers loss to Portland NBA championship 1976.
USA loss to USSR in men’s basketball 1972 Olympics.
Anytime that I bet on the Buffalo Bills to win the Super Bowl, and they always lost. (can’t think of anything that has come out of Buffalo that has been a good experience for me.)
Eagles Super Bowl loss to New England – – 2005.

To be a sports fan in Philly, one experiences many years of woe for a few years of joy…

Intellectuals by Johnson, Paul (1989) (A Book Review)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

A dozen people picked at random on the street are at least as likely to offer sensible views on moral and political matters as a cross-section of the intelligentsia. But I would go further. One of the principal lessons of our tragic century, which has seen so many millions of innocent lives sacrificed in schemes to improve the lot of humanity, is – – beware intellectuals. Not merely should they be kept well away from the levers of power, they should also be objects of particular suspicion when they seek to offer collective advice. Beware committees, conferences and leagues of intellectuals. Distrust public statements issued from their serried ranks. Discount their verdicts on political leaders and important events. For intellectuals, far from being highly individualistic and non-conformist people, follow certain regular patterns of behavior. Taking as a group, they are often ultra conformist within the circles formed by those whose approval they seek and value.

The quote above is on the last page of the author’s book and is his conclusion based on his review of the lives of many people that could be classified as “Intellectuals.” Those coming under his inspections include Rousseau, Bertrand Russell, Lillian Hellman, Sartre, Ernest Hemingway, Norman Mailer and others. He finds them wanting and points out their particular foibles, weaknesses and sins. Some were actually not so smart at all or what they were reputedly to be. Many were not very good human beings treating the public, friends and family members poorly. Many were inconsistent in their political and philosophical views and proven to be wrong in their opinions. Rousseau, Russell, Hemingway and Mailer were womanizers and treated their wives shabbily. Being a great writer does not translate into being good with money, family life, healthy habits and smart living.

Johnson’s point is that these people may not deserve the pedestal that history or conventional thinking has placed them. They may not be as smart or as notable as they may consider themselves.

Interesting perspectives on interesting people…reads like a National Enquirer expose on the intelligentsia.

View all my reviews

The Diary Keepers: World War II in the Netherlands, as Written by the People Who Lived Through It by Nina Siegal

75% of the Dutch Jewish community perished in the Second World War, while in other western European countries, the proportions were significantly lower. Coincidentally as I read this book, Israel is recovering from terroristic attacks on its citizens.

History has recorded the treatment of Jews by the Nazis from 1933-1945. However this reader was surprised by similar treatment of Jews by the Dutch. The diaries describe how Jews were hunted down and families were separated. Their properties and possessions were seized. They suffered physical beatings and a variety of emotional and mental humiliations.

Some Dutch did their best on hiding Jews or preventing them from being sent outside the country to labor camps and gas chambers. Jews were thrown on trains as cattle. There were vivid descriptions on how they were horribly treated and humiliated.

How could civilized people allows this to happen? Fear of reprisals? Hatred and distrust of Jews?

There were diaries of those who supported Jews and those that supported the Nazis. Their motives are part of the story. The diaries depict stories of both heroism and cowardice. This reader became uncomfortable. Could these same acts happen today? Could they happen in the United States?

History continues to repeat itself…

Very sobering book and surprising as one would expect the Dutch people to be more civilized. Excellent reference book on how a country lives and fares upon occupation by a foreign power.

In The Year 2025…

I see future education primarily consisting of teaching most students how to use AI. No worries about grades, reading and math proficiency, honor rolls or SAT scores. AI will act as the support system to help students know, think and choose similar to a ventilator assisting with breathing.

Sideline Comments on Israel-Hamas War

The war between Israel and Hamas demands that the U.S. Government and its political leaders act responsibly, cautiously and forcefully. But it’s national election time and as the RNC Chairwoman proclaimed this crisis is a “great opportunity” for Republican candidates. It may be a better opportunity for Republicans to get their house in order and elect a Speaker of the House who won’t disgrace Congress as so many of its members are doing (Gaetz, Greene, Boebert, Jordan, Santos etc.).

I question whether the hatred and enmity between Israel and Hamas is that much different than between Democrats and Republicans.

Can anyone imagine how Donald Trump would handle this crisis if he were now President? I can’t imagine…

So many lies already…Republicans falsely claiming that the Iran money unfrozen by Washington was used to finance these attacks. Have they no shame????

If any of the hostages in Gaza are American, this would greatly acerbate the danger of this crisis worldwide. The images of women being assaulted and families separated are horrifying enough.

I don’t think that the Israeli people are interested in a negotiated settlement. The U.S. was not interested in a negotiated settlement after 9/11, just revenge.

Scary how the level of outrage is muted even within the U.S. about this atrocity. Harvard students blaming Israel for the attack, deaths and abductions???

Civille Bellum

As I grow older, my sense of disappointment toward my country, its government, and its people deepens. I was born seven years after our nation, as part of the Allied forces, achieved a significant victory over the original Axis powers—Germany, Japan, and Italy. At the age of 17, I witnessed our space program successfully landing a man on the moon, less than seven years after President John F. Kennedy made that ambitious commitment. I struggle to find a comparable scientific or societal achievement in my lifetime.

However, today, our education system appears to be in disarray. Many students are graduating from schools without essential skills such as reading, writing, critical thinking, and decision-making abilities. It’s disheartening to see that issues like abortion, civil rights, and equal rights, once believed to be resolved, are now being re-litigated, forcing us to fight battles we thought we had already won. Shocking events like school shootings and instances of political corruption fail to galvanize the public as they once did; they are met with indifference and apathy.

Decades ago, our nation had a responsible and respected press. Figures like Walter Cronkite, Peter Jennings, Edward R. Murrow, David Broder, and David Brinkley delivered the news. Today, however, a concerning number of people consume propaganda rather than news, relying on figures like Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, and Fox News. Contemporary news media seems more focused on inciting emotions than providing factual information.

It’s astonishing to witness individuals like Matt Gaetz, Lauren Boebert, Jim Jordan, and Marjorie Taylor Greene holding influential positions in Congress. These individuals now occupy the same halls once walked by statesmen like David Webster, John Calhoun, John McCain, and James Madison.

Our national politics have become a source of mockery. The leading Republican candidate for President is currently embroiled in legal troubles, including accusations of inflating assets for loans, election interference in Georgia, misuse of confidential documents, hush money payments to a porn star, and attempts to overturn certified election results. He has even lost a civil case involving sexual assault allegations. Shockingly, a significant portion of our populace, including many religious individuals, remains supportive of him.

In contrast, Joe Biden now serves as the country’s “Paul von Hindenburg,” an aged politician placed in power to safeguard against an impending threat that could jeopardize our nation’s very fabric.

As I reflect on these troubling developments, I find myself wishing I could live another 20-30 years to read what historians and writers will have to say about these times. I fear the unknown challenges that may arise. We seem to be in the midst of a civil war, though, so far, only harsh words have been exchanged. I hold out hope that someone will step forward to unite our fractured nation. However, history has shown that most well-intentioned politicians and national leaders are often rejected.

( There was a time when I used to discuss and argue politics. No longer. Too partisan. Too many closed and uninformed minds. Political arguments are expressed in rage, not reason. I don’t see this changing anytime soon.)