rw: I think Presti has done very well to get P. George and C. Anthony for what he gave up. Pretty impressive, but I wonder about chemistry… Westbrook has to have the ball a lot, and Carmelo is a ball-stopper. Should be very interesting, and it seems that there is now a better chance that George will remain with the Thunder for more than one season.
Agreed. I have never liked Anthony, but the word is that Westbrook and George really wanted him. At least we didn’t have to give up our defenders (Adams and Robertson). It should be an interesting year.
And then there’s Rod Dreher. He has just attended a conference where Ben Sasse was speaking.
…..Yesterday I heard a wonderful lunchtime address by Sen. Ben Sasse, who told the audience that the US is going through an unprecedented historic transition right now, driven by economic restructuring, technology, and other things.
“We’re entering an era for the first time in human history where people are going to hit forty to fifty [years old], where their entire skill set will cease to exist, because of technology,” he said. Sasse went on to discuss the strong challenges this new world pose to human community.
According to Sasse, social science data show that a human being needs four basic things to be happy:
A theological or philosophical view that explains death and suffering
A family
Close friends
Meaningful work (Defined as work in which people think that they’re needed. “Not, ‘Do I make a lot of money?’ but ‘When I go to work, are there actually people in the world who need what I do?”
Sasse said that technology and automation is going to rob more and more people of meaningful work — and that whether we like it or not, this is going to have tremendous impact socially and psychologically.
He also quoted some statistics showing that loneliness, isolation, and the withering of friendship in recent decades has gone up markedly….
An account of Trump’s interesting behavior at the rally for Luther Strange. My son thought this whole thing was really funny. However, it reminded me that The War decapitated The South. In the North, many of the brightest citizens stayed home to run their businesses and factories. In The South virtually all of “the elite” became officers, who were targeted by the enemy and died at a much higher rate than enlisted men.
‘I love Alabama — it’s special’: At rally for Sen. Luther Strange, Trump vents frustrations in rambling speech https://t.co/EDa6KRgQt5
Debra, I thought you might be interested in the latest from Douthat. He makes a few good points, but I think he understates the degree to which health insurance costs discourage employers from adding new fulltime employees. He also fails to wrestle with the points Murray and Vance have made about the behavioral factors present in the problems of America’s lower class.
If it comes to eventually needing replacement players in the NFL, owners/GMs might want to look into the possibility of signing up this very talented ‘Free Agent’:
I agree that Kaepernick & others kneeling for the anthem have chosen an emotionally-charged form of protest, but I don’t think they are as awful as so many uber-conservatives are making them out to be. I’ve seen people posting with glee about Kaepernick not being picked up by any teams. I cringe when I see that from people who purport to be Christians, since we are not supposed to celebrate the downfall of our “enemy”.
Another thing I’ve seen is mocking them for making millions of dollars but supposedly protesting because they feel oppressed. But that is not the issue. They are protesting, or trying to bring attention to, the matter of how the police treat black citizens. (And yes, it has been found that blacks, even those who just happen to be witnesses, are mistreated far more often & harsher than whites are. It may not always be due to overt racism, but possibly to subconscious preconceptions.)
Many people complain when blacks (or others) protest violently, & when they protest in the streets, even non-violently. This protest is quiet, & does not inconvenience anyone, but many of those people are still complaining. And not only complaining, but wishing them ill.
Having said that, I do think it was unwise of them to have chosen this particular kind of quiet protest, as so many of us have such a strong feeling about our flag & our anthem. It is easy to forget that the flag & the anthem are merely representations of who we are & who we want to be, they are not “America” in & of themselves. And part of being American is supposed to be valuing freedom of speech & expression, freedom in general. So wishing these men ill, “hating” them for their protest, could be considered an unAmerican attitude in itself.
Thankfully, the leader of the Free World was re-elected today. Meanwhile, in one of the more populated banana republics, an orange lunatic continues his Twitter War with various athletes as a healthcare bill which the lunatic can not comprehend continues to be debated.
Kizzie, you do know that K broke the contract he was under and then refused another contract offered to him. They are not required to offer him only what he will accept, but what they are willing to pay. As I recall, Tebow was not signed to another team and he did not break his contract and not so many folk were hollering.
Wandering Views 
Tychicus, What do you think?
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rw: I think Presti has done very well to get P. George and C. Anthony for what he gave up. Pretty impressive, but I wonder about chemistry… Westbrook has to have the ball a lot, and Carmelo is a ball-stopper. Should be very interesting, and it seems that there is now a better chance that George will remain with the Thunder for more than one season.
Do you like it?
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Agreed. I have never liked Anthony, but the word is that Westbrook and George really wanted him. At least we didn’t have to give up our defenders (Adams and Robertson). It should be an interesting year.
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Speaking of the NBA, Trump has a new Twitter opponent:
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Rich Lowry’s analysis of Trump’s battle with the athletes:
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And then there’s Rod Dreher. He has just attended a conference where Ben Sasse was speaking.
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/ben-sasse-on-the-world-to-come/
LikeLiked by 2 people
An account of Trump’s interesting behavior at the rally for Luther Strange. My son thought this whole thing was really funny. However, it reminded me that The War decapitated The South. In the North, many of the brightest citizens stayed home to run their businesses and factories. In The South virtually all of “the elite” became officers, who were targeted by the enemy and died at a much higher rate than enlisted men.
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Debra, I thought you might be interested in the latest from Douthat. He makes a few good points, but I think he understates the degree to which health insurance costs discourage employers from adding new fulltime employees. He also fails to wrestle with the points Murray and Vance have made about the behavioral factors present in the problems of America’s lower class.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If it comes to eventually needing replacement players in the NFL, owners/GMs might want to look into the possibility of signing up this very talented ‘Free Agent’:
https://www.si.com/college-football/2017/09/23/squirrel-touchdown-louisville-kent-state-video
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree that Kaepernick & others kneeling for the anthem have chosen an emotionally-charged form of protest, but I don’t think they are as awful as so many uber-conservatives are making them out to be. I’ve seen people posting with glee about Kaepernick not being picked up by any teams. I cringe when I see that from people who purport to be Christians, since we are not supposed to celebrate the downfall of our “enemy”.
Another thing I’ve seen is mocking them for making millions of dollars but supposedly protesting because they feel oppressed. But that is not the issue. They are protesting, or trying to bring attention to, the matter of how the police treat black citizens. (And yes, it has been found that blacks, even those who just happen to be witnesses, are mistreated far more often & harsher than whites are. It may not always be due to overt racism, but possibly to subconscious preconceptions.)
Many people complain when blacks (or others) protest violently, & when they protest in the streets, even non-violently. This protest is quiet, & does not inconvenience anyone, but many of those people are still complaining. And not only complaining, but wishing them ill.
Having said that, I do think it was unwise of them to have chosen this particular kind of quiet protest, as so many of us have such a strong feeling about our flag & our anthem. It is easy to forget that the flag & the anthem are merely representations of who we are & who we want to be, they are not “America” in & of themselves. And part of being American is supposed to be valuing freedom of speech & expression, freedom in general. So wishing these men ill, “hating” them for their protest, could be considered an unAmerican attitude in itself.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thankfully, the leader of the Free World was re-elected today. Meanwhile, in one of the more populated banana republics, an orange lunatic continues his Twitter War with various athletes as a healthcare bill which the lunatic can not comprehend continues to be debated.
https://twitter.com/jwgop/status/911989748880887808
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Kizzie, you do know that K broke the contract he was under and then refused another contract offered to him. They are not required to offer him only what he will accept, but what they are willing to pay. As I recall, Tebow was not signed to another team and he did not break his contract and not so many folk were hollering.
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