...and yes, I'm finally back. I was gone over the Memorial Day weekend in order to take a little trip with the family to San Antonio, Texas. It was fun--we vacationed with some good friends, saw neat places like the River Walk and neat historical sites like (of course) the Alamo.
OBAMA'S SUPREME COURT PICK: ...is Sonia Sotomayor, whose name had been mentioned as one of the possibilities for some time.
Right now I don't yet know that much about her, and have nothing huge against her.
I will say this, though--that two things bother me concerning the reaction to this pick:
1] Almost everyone immediately comments upon the fact that she's Hispanic, and a female. So is this the way it will always be in this country--that everyone immediately has to be classified and put in a box according to gender and ethnicity? Can't people be, er, judged as individuals and on their beliefs??? On, ahem, as MLK Jr. would say, the "content of their character and not the color of their skin"? Sometimes I wonder.
2] Furthermore, Judge Sotomayor says that she always thinks about the real world consequences of her decisions, and others say about her that she has "compassion." Fine. Of course, those two things are what legislators are supposed to think about. Supreme Court justices are supposed to decide cases according to constitutional principles, not according to what she or others believe will be the supposed social benefits of this or that. It would be really beneficial to this country to have a debate over just that kind of issue when it comes to our courts...
Even if you've never, ever, watched the show, I bet you've heard of "John and Kate Plus 8" by now, and especially its two "stars", the parents of 8 children Jon and Kate Gosselin.
I've seen the show occasionally--mostly it's been a rather cute story of a couple's ups and downs and life lessons as they try to raise 8 very young children. Now it's become something different, as perhaps Jon has cheated on Kate, and/or at the very least their marriage is in trouble, and all of this was on display last night as season 5 of the show debuted. If you read the linked article, you can see that the media aren't too sympathetic to the unhappy couple. I heard someone else today remark that watching the show now is like watching a car wreck--something at which you shouldn't be staring...but you can't take your eyes off of it. Perhaps so. And I hope Jon and Kate can work things out. But always remember--no one is forcing them to do this show.
BASEBALL DIARY: the Tigers lost two out of three over the weekend, as they mysteriously (they'd just finished winning 7 in a row) lost the ability to hit and score runs, despite facing the not-so-tough slants of Colorado Rockie pitchers. Ah, well...but yesterday, Justin Verlander again helped get the Tigers back on track, as they whacked Kansas City, 13-1.
That's what aces do--halt losing streaks.
Speaking of losing streaks, after sweeping their in-state rivals the Houston Astros over the weekend, the Texas Rangers now have a one-game losing streak, after getting blasted by the Yankees yesterday, 11-1. Not much positive came out of that one--Matt Harrison got blasted, the Rangers failed to hit with runners in scoring position, and the execrable A-Rod had a big day. Well, hopefully better things will come tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the Cubs are in trouble--they lost yesterday to Pittsburgh 10-8. That's 8 straight losses; they're not hitting or pitching consistently, and the fans are booing. They need to turn it around, and quick.
