Only towards the end of “42,” the powerful new film by Brian Helgeland, does Branch Rickey, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers who in 1945 decided to break baseball’s “color barrier” with a dynamic ballplayer from the Negro Leagues, reveal why he decided to take on that challenge.  His story, related to the player by […]

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” -Ancient Greece (third century BCE)               “Beauty is only skin deep.” -Sir Thomas Overbury (1613, commenting on his wife) “She’s brilliant, and she’s dedicated; she’s tough.  She also happens to be, by far, the best looking attorney-general in the country.” -Barack Obama, attempting to praise California Attorney […]

“There is no doubt that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction.  There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, against our allies, against us.” -Dick Cheney, August, 2002               “The bulk of the funds for Iraq’s reconstruction will come from Iraqis – from oil revenues, recovered assets, international trade, […]

I have to admit I still get excited when opening day approaches.  I’m talking about baseball’s opening day, of course, which is the only opening day in the world of sports that still garners national attention.  True, football is now America’s game, but baseball is America’s history, and by plotting the opening days from year […]