LFS: The Storyteller

©201 6 by LeeZard   I was sitting at my laptop the other night trying to NOT listen to the Republican presidential candidates’ debate. I do sometimes leave the TV on, though, just for the comedy and so I can understand the late night talk show monologues. About halfway through the ridiculous discussions on foreign policy, there was a light, tentative knock at my door. I looked through the peephole and, upon seeing that world famous and familiar face, threw the door open with glee. “Mother Goose!” I exclaimed. “Where have you been this election year? I’d just about given up on you.” She replied, “Humpty Dumpty and I sat on the wall, thinking we wouldn’t get involved at all. Now we’re both hot to trot, ready to take all our shots, and dumpty all over Trumpty."   “Not your best, MG,” I replied,  “but I get your point.” So, for the third presidential race in a row, my old pal and I waddled over to the laptop an...

©2015 by Lee Frederick Somerstein I love baseball, especially its history. That is why I am upset by the decision from Commissioner Rob Manfred that Hits King Pete Rose will forever be banned from baseball because he bet on the game both as a player and manager. That Rose did, indeed, place bets – even on his own team – is not in question. In fact, he stupidly admitted in his news conference after Manfred’s announcement that he still bets on baseball to this day. He definitely deserved a severe punishment. What bothers me is the commissioner’s – and Major League Baseball’s (MLB’s) – petty vindictiveness and hypocrisy. What bothers me even more is that even though Rose technically could be eligible for a plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame (HOF), that august institution still refuses to consider his entry because of the baseball ban. In 1991 the HOF passed a rule that bans anyone on baseball’s ineligible list from entrance into the hall. The HOF Board of Directors could ...