A Short History of Chippewa Falls Baseball

I know that this article is going to have a niche audience, but given the fact that Chippewa Falls was a small, post lumber mill town at the time, I found this little nugget amazing:

Now referred to as “Captain,” Porter returned to Chippewa Falls as a player-manager in 1902, and within a few years was fielding one of the top independent teams in the Midwest.

Led by African-American pitcher George Wilson, regarded to be one of the best pitchers in the country, the Chippewa Gotzians were crowned the 1904 Northwestern Champions. The deciding game was a 10-2 defeat of Renville, Minn. at Lexington Park in St. Paul that saw Wilson strikeout 17 batters.

Not too bad for a small lumber town in Northwestern Wisconsin in 1902.

Practice Makes Perfect?

I wonder how many clippings and print offs of this article made it onto refrigerators around the world today?

Having sex every day improves sperm quality and could boost the chances of getting pregnant, research suggests.

In a study of men with fertility problems, daily ejaculation for a week cut the amount of DNA damage seen in sperm samples.

Of course, I suspect many woman will recommend self medication to their men.

Brazil Calls Off Search For AF 447 Victims

Sad.

Brazil's Air Force and Navy on Friday called off the search for additional victims and wreckage from Air France Flight 447, which crashed over the Atlantic on June 1 carrying 228 people.

I'm a simple man with what I think is a realistic view of death. As such, if I were to be buried in a cardboard box with a wood cross bearing my name, I'm cool with that. After all, what will I care at that point? But I realize that my absence would be felt in some peoples' lives, and I do want that postage stamp of land where they can find some peace. Every time I fly over the Great Lakes, I shudder at the thought that I could end up at the bottom of one of them, never allowing my loved ones that little bit of peace of mind. There are a lot of loved ones of Air France Flight 447 victims who will never have that place to mourn over their loved one.

The H1N1 Solution

Okay, so the CDC says that the H1N1 swine flu isn't going away. Yet we also know that, as currently constituted, it is virulent but not a particularly deadly flu. So I say we pucker up and take our medicine, chicken pox style. Everyone who doesn't have it right now has to go to a birthday party for someone who does have it. Spin the bottle will be encouraged. This way, the 299 million Americans who haven't gotten it will come down with it and build up immunities before the virus starts to change itself. Also, we'll save billions on vaccinations. Kiss a Swine Flu victim today!

And So The Seventies Begin to Die

This week, three household names from the 1970's died in a two day period: Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Michael Jackson. It was a stunning death triumvirate of the most well known from that ugliest of decades. For many of us who pontificate in the electronic realm, the seventies don't seem all that long ago; then again, most of us also ignore those rapidly reproducing gray hairs. The fact is the seventies is getting to be "a long time ago," and this week was a pretty sobering reminder for those of us who got our start in that decade that we aren't getting any younger.

If You Snicker At Subway, Then Give BK A Break

Lots of idle chit chat in the blogosphere about Burger King's ad for their new "Super Seven Incher." The opinions are running largely against Burger King's overt oral sex reference. If crassness was truly the measuring stick, then I say, hey, give 'em hell. But most people I know snicker at Subway's "Five Dollar Footlong" promotion. Everyone knows the connotations made by Subway's commercials (ever see the commercial where the construction workers hold their hands about a foot apart in front of their groins?), yet nobody gives Subway hell for it. Why? Because most people are self congratulatory when they get a subtle connotation, but feel free to preach at the obvious. When everyone starts taking aim at Subway, then I'll over look the rage aimed at Burger King. Until then, shaddup.

Obama Gives Fatherhood Advice

Read about it if you'd like. It isn't bad advice per se. Just the same, I don't think men out there should consider any politician a fatherhood role model. The sacrifices that must be made to attain great power always affect the family.

Jiblog Turned 5...5 Days Ago

Oops. Hopefully this is an indicator that my priorities are in the right place and not just a sign that I'm getting forgetful.

The Sex Scandal That Mildly Shook Milwaukee

So, this broke yesterday.

I've thought long & hard about it, and I guess I ultimately don't have much to say. I've no interest in defending either Flynn or McBride in any way, shape, or form. I've also no interest in raking Bice over the coals for his scandal sheet piece. The fact is, Flynn is a public official and McBride has made herself a public person. News coverage of their actions come with the territory, for good or for bad.

It is most unfortunate for the friends and families of these two that they must deal with not only the pain this has caused, but the very public dissection of it. My empathy is with them.

Any comment on my part beyond the issues above and possibly the status of their jobs would be little more than gossip mongering, something else I have little interest in partaking in given the difficulty this already presents to a lot of people who did nothing wrong.

Define 'Proof'

Tom McMahon claims to have photographic proof that Michael Leon peed on the grave of Joseph McCarthy in violation of Appleton, Wisconsin ordinances. Unfortunately, like Mr. Leon, I'm afraid Mr. McMahon's evidence falls short. First, there is no way of telling from the photo if there is a urine stream. Second, it would appear that Mr. Leon is not a big man as we have no evidence of his unit actually being public. If the evidence can't measure up to reasonable doubt about it's true existence, it is tough to convict. And that should be of greater embarrassment to Mr. Leon than an actual record for doing this.

Palin Ain't the Future of Conservatism

While I'm on the topic, I'd like to address the ongoing adoration in some circles for Sarah Palin. I like Sarah Palin, and I think that politically, she was the best that the DOA McCain campaign could hope for. She could not carry the ticket for him, though, and she is not the future of conservatism. She is a excellent voice to have as part of the leadership, but she isn't a realistic candidate for the presidency. The public gave her type a chance in 2000 and 2004. They aren't going to give that type of candidate a chance again for a while.

By all means, be supportive of Governor Palin. But if you are excited about Palin's prospects in 2012, you really are wasting your time. The ass kicking that the right has faced will continue unabated unless we all take a good, hard look at reality, and reality does not include Palin as a viable presidential candidate.

Time to Concentrate the Fire Power

I have a word of advice for some of my fellow conservatives. It will no doubt go unheeded, but what the hell.

Stop firing your bullets at useless targets like David Letterman.

You aren't the majority anymore. In fact, you're getting your asses kicked. We don't have the luxury of fighting these stupid battles. Concentrate your fire on the men and women that you can beat in Washington and your state capitals. There is ample material there. Focusing instead on David Letterman and his ilk only makes your cause look asinine to those who vote but don't follow the issues all that closely. In other words, the people that unfortunately decide a lot of elections.

May The Good Lord Help Us

My wife and I are watching Joe Buck Live and the intro to the Favre interview. I commented that he was the Paris Hilton of the NFL. The lovely Mrs. Jib said that the sex tape won't come out until nobody wants the media whore anymore.

May the Good Lord help us.

Odd Journalistic Paragraphs

This inaugural edition of "Odd Journalistic Paragraphs" comes from the Telegraph:

But Mr Kildee, who has lived there nearly all his life, said he had first to overcome a deeply ingrained American cultural mindset that "big is good" and that cities should sprawl – Flint covers 34 square miles.

By London or Manhattan standards, maybe. 34 square miles, for a town of once over 200,000 people, is not that large. That's a town that, if perfectly square, would be less than 6 miles from one end to the other.

A Quick Thought

When looking at companies to buy, only a government buys the crappy ones.

Only In Madison, Wisconsin

So, the city of Madison is thinking about how it is going to grow and develop over the years. They've already told developers that the city can't grow towards the sky because it might block the pretty view of the capitol. Now they're telling them they can't grow outward, either, because they don't want people driving.

The suburbs must be loving their neurotic urban neighbor.

Arab World Lectures Obama About Lecturing

Heh.

"Obama is just a prettier face. I'm sure his intentions are in the right place but I don't expect much from the man," a Cairo electrician said on Wednesday as US President Barack Obama began his much-anticipated Middle East trip.

Newspapers, analysts and ordinary Arabs warned Obama -- whose election was hailed across the region -- against emulating the policies of Bush by lecturing Muslims on democracy, and also urged him to be tough with Israel.

Democrat Presidents have this obsession with feelings for some reason, and all of them have to come to the hard realization that the only way this part of the world is going to send America glad tidings is if we do their bidding for them. Their naivete is touching, but hopefully this president learns quickly that doing so would be an odious and futile effort.

Conan is Outstanding!

He has a new skit on the Tonight Show called the Twitter Tracker. It is like taking "If They Made It" and translating it to the fad of the day. It's Miley! "Don't Crap On the Ap."

Quick Question

How do people blog, tweet, Facebook, and participate in other various social media like Myspace (spit) and Flickr while still maintaining a real life?