Weekly Mail March 26, 2023

                       Happy Belated St. Patrick’s Day

Sorry we haven’t published the last two weeks. 

Hope everyone enjoyed St. Patrick's Day. We were supposed to march in the RVC parade on Saturday, but the weather didn’t cooperate. Still we had a nice day anyway. 

Onto the news…..

POLITICS: Alternative Facts?

A couple of weeks ago, Fox News blowhard Tucker Carlson aired footage on his program that he said showed that the terrorist attack on the US Capitol on 1/6/2021, were peaceful protests. He used footage provided by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in an all out attempt to rewrite history. Carlson referring to the terrorists, said These were not insurrectionists, they were sightseers”

Right. 

I am loathe to mention Carlson, or give his show any sort of, for lack of a better word, publicity. But I can’t sit here and let people try to change the narrative of what happened that day. 

There are members of Congress (who will go nameless) and of course Captain Orange himself, who are demanding that these terrorists be released from prison, despite the fact that many of them plead guilty in the first place. 

I don’t discuss politics on these pages nearly as much as I used to, but certain subjects are always going to get a rise out of me. I know what I saw that day. I also watched as much as I could, the hearings that were conducted last year. I know that several people on both sides of the aisle, including the Republican VP and the Democratic Speaker of the House believed their lives were in danger that day. 

There’s not much you can do about a slug like Tucker Carlson. As long as his show is scoring high in the ratings, he’ll always have a voice. 

But for Kevin McCarthy to hand over footage that he knows is at best out of context and more likely at worse an all out lie, is just unconscionable. McCarthy was one of the ones who was furiously pleading with Orange to call off the attack, and now he’s going to make pretend that didn’t happen? GTFOH! 

Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick died the day after the attack. Footage of him ushering some people out of the Capitol has been cited by the Right as evidence that the attack was not responsible for his death. Sicknick’s family says they have evidence that his death was caused by a chemical agent used in the attack.

Anyone who thinks this was a walk in the park is either a fool or a liar and as far as I’m concerned both. January 6, 2021 was one of the darkest days in American history. If you truly consider yourself an American Patriot, you need to acknowledge that. 

Speaking of the former President, I’m wondering what’s going to happen first, will he be indicted by the SDNY, or will the Jets complete the Aaron Rodgers trade, because I keep hearing both of these things are imminent, and yet here we are.

FOOTBALL- Mr. Rodgers new Neighborhood 

Last Wednesday, Packer QB Aaron Rodgers, on the Pat McAffee show, said that he intends to play football in 2023 and expects to be playing for the Jets. 

I’m of a mixed mind here. Yes I’m excited that it looks like my team is getting one of the best to ever play the position. Yes I’m concerned he is going to turn 40 during the upcoming season. Yes, I think when healthy and right, he gives the Jets a legitimate shot at the Super Bowl. But it’s also a yes that I think he’s more than a bit of a weirdo.

I’m kind of excited that he seems genuinely excited to be coming here. But I suspect that’s as much to do with his looking to go from being a big fish in a small pond to being a big fish in the biggest pond there is. I can see him being a headline hog, much like A-Rod was for all his years with the Yankees. And that’s all well and good. 

As long as he wins a Super Bowl. 

It’s been 12 years since the Jets made the playoffs and 54 years since they’ve played in much less won a Super Bowl. I feel like I’m selling my soul a bit here, but desperate times call for desperate measures. 

Speaking of desperate 

BASEBALL- Edwin Diaz and the WBC debate. 

Tim decided the news that Edwin Diaz was carried off the field with an injury couldn’t wait for me to find out in the morning, he woke me up to tell me the horrible news. 

That it happened in the World Baseball Classic made it all the more aggravating. And yes, I wondered aloud what the hell was the point of the WBC.

I get the appeal of international competition, I really do. I love the World Cup of Hockey, I remember how stoked I was when the US won it in 1996. In 1972, NHL All-Stars from Canada played the Soviet Union in an 8 game series. Paul Henderson, a very good but not great forward for the Maple Leafs scored the series winning goal and is still considered a Canadian national hero 50+ years after the fact. 

And don’t we still talk about the 1992 Dream Team here in the States? Still considered the best team ever assembled by many. 

The World Cup of Hockey and the 72 Summit Series were played in September, right before training camps were scheduled to open, so they are probably better comparisons than was the Dream Team.

But I can’t get into this WBC. Sure I was happy we won it the last time, but I only remembered we won it because it popped up in my Facebook memories. I couldn’t tell you any details about it. I’m sure I was more up in arms over my busted N.C.A.A. tournament bracket than I was happy the US won the WBC. Japan won it on Tuesday night, with Angel pitcher Shohei Otani striking out his teammate Mike Trout to end the game. 

The injury to Diaz could have happened in Spring Training it could have happened anywhere. Remember these are the Mets we are talking about here. We once lost a starting pitcher who cut off a part of his throwing finger in a gardening accident. We once lost a relief pitcher for the rest of the season because he was in a cab accident while going out for a late night meal. Freakish injuries are as much a part of Mets tradition as Mr.Met and Banner Day. 

I get all that. Still I think I am done with the WBC.

And to be honest, what I’m really going to miss about Diaz is not his pitching. As awesome as he was last season, I believe we have guys on the roster capable of closing games. What I’m going to miss is the way Citi Field came so alive when he came into the game. I think that buzz not being there is going to have a negative effect on the team, or at least on the psyche of the fans. 

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Please if you can, say a prayer for my all time friends Ray and Mary whose Mom died last week. I’ve known her since I was in kindergarten, she was one of the kindest people I have ever met in my life, and as Karl (the Ace) Ludwig will attest, she made the best iced tea in Maspeth. When the group of us would head out for a night on the town, she would every once in a while splash a little Knock water on us, and the older I get, the more I believe that I’m still here today because of that.

Just an amazing soul. RIP.

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The Yanks open in the Bronx on Thursday 

The Mets open in Miami later on the same day. 

Enjoy 

Stay Safe 

and Have a Great Week

Weekly Mail March 5, 2023

 

Our 350th Blog post

Hey Everyone:

Thank you for all the kind words regarding my Aunt Eileen. I'm glad I got to share my tribute with all of you Saturday night. 

We've now entered March and all the goodies that come with it, extra sunlight in the afternoon, St Patrick's Day Parades, March Madness, somewhat meaningful spring training games, and even baseball Opening Day this year is March 30th. So lots to look forward to as we move along here. 

COURT CASES: The Alex Murdaugh Trial

One of my co-workers was asking me if I was following this story at all, and to be honest I hadn't been. This just looked like another case of rich spoiled people doing bad things. There's enough of that $h-t going around, just look at Congress for crying out loud. 

But I ended up watching some of the cross-examination of this Alex Murdaugh fellow. 

Some background....The Murdaugh family have for years been a prominent family in South Carolina, famed for their work in the legal department. Both the father and grandfather of Alex Murdaugh served as the district attorney of their county in SC. Alex himself was a prominent attorney. 

But at least since 2014, things have began to fall apart for Alex, his wife and two sons. In 2019, Alex's son Paul was charged in the death of a young woman named Mallory Beach. Mallory was killed in a boating accident. Paul was operating the boat with a BAC of .286 when it crashed into a bridge piling. Paul was never given a field sobriety test, and was not questioned by police the night of the accident. 

Authorities began to look into the Murdaugh law practice since many believed that the older Murdaugh had used his influence to keep investigators away from his son. It was in the course of those investigations that it was discovered all the financial impropriety that had been going on, including bilking some of his clients out of millions of dollars. 

On June 7, 2021 Alex's wife Maggie and son Paul were found dead of gunshot wounds at the family's hunting lodge. Alex was arrested for the murders in July 2022.*

All I can say was that watching Alex Murdaugh get cross examined was like watching the Daytona 500 just to see if anyone crashes. First of all, he admitted he stole all the money they said he stole, admitted he committed fraud as an attorney, and admitted he was hooked on more drugs than all the members of Motley Crue combined. Then he admitted he was at the scene of the crime, after he had sworn he was with his mother at the time Maggie and Paul were shot. It reminded me of when Mike Tyson testified at his rape trial that he couldn't have raped the accuser, because the only reason he invited her to his room was to have sex with her. I mean, with that kind of testimony, it took about a day for the jury to find Tyson guilty.

Here it was much less, about three hours, for the jury to convict Murdaugh. Putting him on the stand may have been the worst decision by a lawyer since Chris Darden had OJ try on the glove (kids ask you parents about that one). 

On Friday he was sent away to prison for the rest of his life. If it makes him feel any better, it sounds like he's going to be spending as much time in court as he will behind bars, what with all the other criminal cases still to be prosecuted against him. 

Rich people behaving badly. 

HOCKEY: The Trade Deadline

The NHL trading deadline used to be one of my favorite days in sports. The baseball trade deadline is sometimes pretty cool too, but I always feel like hockey has the most deals on their deadline day. 

This year they put the dead in deadline, because this was one of the quietest least consequential trade deadline days I can remember. 

Now of course a huge part of that is due to the fact that most of the big trade chips were dealt in the days and even weeks before the deadline. All three of our local teams made significant pickups. We already discussed the Islanders getting Bo Horvat from the Canucks and the Rangers getting Vlad Tarasenko from the Blues. 

The Devils since then traded for Timo Meier, a high scoring right wing from the Sharks, (in a trade that saw a combination of 13 players and picks dealt back and forth) and the Rangers made another big move, getting Patrick Kane from the Blackhawks. 

I've been hearing about Kane coming here for years, and at 34, he's clearly on the back nine, but he has been playing well as of late, and when he is on, he can carry a team. Of course if everyone does what they are capable of, that won't be necessary. The Rangers now have two lines full of guys who can score. 

BASKETBALL: Break up the Knicks..

Tim and I watched the Knick play the Heat in Miami Friday night, and while this was a regular season game, it did remind me of some of the classic playoff games these two teams played back in the late 90's. 

The Knicks had built up quite a big lead, only to see the Heat whittle it down. That happens all the time, but it was really looking like Miami was going to pull this one out. Down by one with no timeouts left, Julius Randle was trying to drive to the hole, lost the ball, got it back, and fired up a wing and a prayer whilst falling out of bounds. How that ball got through the hoop I'll never know. But it did, and with 0.7 seconds left, the game was pretty much over. But an official review put the clock at 1.1 seconds, enough time for the Heat to catch an inbound pass and put one up. Thankfully the inbound pass was picked off by Knick Mitchell Robinson and the Knicks escaped with a win.

Going into tonight's tilt with the Celtics the Knicks were riding an 8 game winning streak. This team has been fun to watch. 

Thank you again for all the kind words. You made a tough week easier.  

Stay Safe

and Have a Great Week

* Netflix has done a documentary series on the Murdaugh family that according to those who have watched it, gives a very good account of the family history, both good and bad. 

A Tribute to my Aunt

 

As we go through this life, if we’re lucky, we learn very quickly who are the people we can count on. The people that will stick by you through thick and thin, through the highs and the lows. In boxing terms, someone who will always be in your corner. 

I was one of the lucky ones, because as long as I can remember, I always had Aunt Eileen in my corner. And I’m not breaking any news here folks, but you would have much rather had her on your side than going against you. Believe me.

She was tough but compassionate. She was the real deal, the genuine article.

An original.

Several years ago, I was up in the Bronx on a work assignment. I walked over to 167th and Grant Avenue, just blocks away from Yankee Stadium. I walked past St. Angela’s grammar school where both Mom and Aunt Eileen attended. Walking quickly (it was the South Bronx) past the school, I thought of some of the stories she told me. It wasn’t always easy,  nothing was easy for her.

But she persevered. Not only with determination but with humor. She could laugh almost anything off. That never ceased to amaze me. No matter what life threw at her, and life threw her a lot, she came through it. Resilience, look it up in the dictionary and you might see her picture there. 

On April 14, 2000 she was in a bad accident and we thought we might have lost her, but in typical Aunt Eileen fashion she bounced back. Fought through surgeries and a brutal rehab, to get back on how she would call them her “hind legs”. 

Eammon, you came into her life at a difficult time, I’ve always felt bad that you didn’t meet Raffy and Nana, but grateful that you came when you did. To heal her loneliness after they passed, to be her partner in life, and to take Tiernach and I to the movies. 

When I heard the news that Aunt Eileen was pregnant, I cried. They were mostly tests of joy, I was so happy for her. But I also think part of me was worried that I wasn’t going to be her main man anymore. 

That never happened. Even after Mairead and Deirdre were born, and all the love she had for you guys, she still loved myself, Krissy and Katie with all her heart. It was a big heart and there was room for all five of us. 

And what I will always be grateful for is that she got to experience the unparalleled joy of being a grandma. Seeing how her face lit up when Aidan and Saoirse were with her just did our hearts good. 

So now I say goodbye to you. Thank you for being my Godmother, thank you for all you did for me. 

Thank you for always being in my corner. I love you.

                                                                                   

                                                           Aunt Eileen with me and Krissy late 1976

Thank you.