NYT today by Sam Sifton—
Corruption chaos
“Is it possible to become president and not steal?” Volodymyr Zelensky asked before he became president of Ukraine in 2019. “It’s a rhetorical question, as no one has tried so far.”
Category: Z. Miscellaneous
A FEW GOOD MEN
“Anyone ?——-Lt. Kaffee ?”
JUSTIFIED
Raylan Givens: Sometimes, we have to make deals with lowlifes because we have our sights set on life forms even somehow lower on the ladder of lowlife than they.
UNDER THE BUS
“Let’s make one thing chrystal clear: Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and has my 100% support,” Hegseth wrote. “I stand by him and the combat decisions he has made—on the September 2 mission and all others since.”
Latest “ Who dunnit ? He dunnit ! “
Or , “…with friends like this who needs enemies?”
Harry Truman–”The buck stops here!”
??? “Nuke the two chicken-neckers 2. Turn the COKE KING DONOR loose, “
Or in the words of the great philosopher, POGO—”…it happened during my administration!”
The Post report, which cited two “two people with direct knowledge of the operation,” alleged that Adm. Mitch Bradley, then-head of the Joint Special Operations Command, ordered a second strike in order to comply with Hegseth’s initial orders and to ensure the survivors couldn’t call on other suspected traffickers to retrieve them and their cargo. (Their quote).
What could we have learned from the 2 nuked fishermen?
The nuked boat’s splinters may sink our air craft carrier?
TEAM SPIRIT
BULLDOG
At midseason 1979 I promised my team I would paint my car in the new school colors if we won 25 matches. (25/3 ! ). I took it to STEVE’S CORVETTE with the instructions to paint it royal blue and white, with a thin gold trim–as these were the new choices.
It was really my wife’s car and when we picked it up and she saw TWO FOOT GOLD STRIPES, she dropped to her knees and cried. I only laughed and blurted, “… it looks like a Pepsi ad.”
Looking at the front end one can see a blurred silver hood ornament. It is a 10 inch Mac truck
Bulldog hood ornament— Our team’s mascot.
Earl Boykin and some Tanquaray gin affixed it to the hood, in between laughing at it.
It was easily unique and people knew where I was (“ You’ve been spending a lot of time at the ELK’S Club, Coach ). When I rode around Wilson, NC most cars would blow their horn or surely someone would wave. Religiously, I would wave back.
After a few years I changed jobs. So we painted THE BULLDOG a pleasant green.
Before moving to the new town, I waved at a lot of people that didn’t wave back.
MAN TO MAN OR ZONE?
Tee called last night. He wants to know if he can get some help with his 10 years old basketball team. Maybe one of the Odom boys.
There are nine players. Son Lennox warned his Dad on the way to the first practice : ” … Four of these kids are crazy!”
Coach Tee spoke about 15 seconds before “the worst of the four” emptied his water cooler on the floor. Tee said “the four” have never since acknowledged that Tee was there.
Luckily 1. The other five are pretty good, And 2, the gym has two goals.
The 4 took off to goal 2. Tee’s 5 worked hard interrupted by several fights and obscene language from the 4 goal. Tee admitted seeing one 4 kick a wet floor pylon that drew blood from another.
He also confessed he told his five— I will bring them up to play. Beat them bad.
Worst 4 beat best 5. Worst of the 4 hit the winner.
Team vote on team name —BOULDER MAYHEM.
Russell Rawlings is coming tomorrow. He is not only a four graduate, but revelled in coaching them. He’ll help.
THIS STARTED THE WHOLE FRIGGIN MESS
https://docs.google.com/document/d/15zWY9rk1cHJCUkbnNuS_Nrs0nIUjhst_3jUDxoWiUDk/edit?tab=t.0
The book below came out in 2025. It confirms details of how this happened.
The mission : the CIA in the 21st century by Weiner, Tim
COLLEGE RUBICON?
Great birthday card — Front: This is Edith ( beautiful Pin-Up ) and this is your cake ( Giant slice with a lighted candle ).
Inside : “You can have your cake, or you can have Edith–but you can’t have your cake and Edith too!”
As the man said–It is time to make some “chawses” ( Choices )
The just released survey by the Elon Poll requested solutions to college athletics problems. Between the Portal and Likeness changes, a Rubicon moment, Teaming with the NCAA, they listed ten pages of questions and suggestions to summarize how to reign in this “conundrum”.
Some years back I played in a local poker game with John McQuire, brother to Al, and poster for Octogeneran Curmudgeons. Occasionally he would blurt out angry admonitions to shut up and play. Upon enduring one cliched dissection of the past hand, and it’s theories and what-ifs, John concluded “… NOBODY KNOWS ANYTHING! “
Apt description of the above Elon/NCAA poll.
What seems apparent is that a square peg- round hole problem is at the core.
Education and greed don’t jibe. The POWER conferences have made their choice. The rest may too “ante up “. Hopefully some avenue to EDUCATION as a choice will emerge. Some are already available.
“Bad luck women stick like glue. You can have one or the other, but never the two.” B. Dylan
TRY AND TRY AGAIN
Fiend At CourtUSTA Sport Science Research 2026: High Performance Player Development By Teresa Merklin on November 2, 2025—Two excerpts: |
Playing high-performance junior tennis is expensive and often prohibitively so. Families drop out of the competitive pathway not because their children lack talent or passion, but because they simply can’t afford to stay in the game. Travel, equipment, and coaching costs create barriers that exclude many promising athletes long before their potential can be realized. The USTA needs to explore sustainable, transparent ways to subsidize training and travel that are accessible, fair, and equitable.
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Elite-level player development doesn’t just happen in academies; It starts with the local coach who spots a spark in a kid at a park court and knows how to nurture it.
Of the three grant categories, I suspect this is the one that will attract the most proposals. Everyone loves the idea of developing the next great American champion. That’s understandable, but it also misses the point. The most impactful research might not be about training elite juniors at all, but rather creating an environment where excellence can grow naturally. That starts with broad participation, access to affordable instruction, and community-level engagement.
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Another Reality
“ For every Serena or Naomi, there are thousands of families who went all in, only to come up empty-handed. It’s a system built on dreams, but powered by delusion.
And yet… that delusion is part of what keeps the junior tennis engine running.”
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Playing high school team tennis is about the only way to inexpensive match experience in the U.S. (Tom Parham ).
The SHOT DOCTORS
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Sg8qPj4zvCNPhYlKy0mHe9ByIkTA-JHsUAywiW9Jv0E/edit?tab=t.0
The Little Green Book of Tennis 