Memories Resumed

California is one state that recently loosened its pandemic rules to allow youth sports to resume outdoors in counties where the Covid-19 infection rate remains low.

That is straight-out good news.

There are reasons to worry about the effects of the pandemic on all age groups, but one particular concern I have had is the ban on kids playing sports. It's been as if one of the main parts of their childhood was just put on hold -- for an entire year.

What they are missing are the memories that never got to form. Both as a father and a coach, the many youth athletic contests I attended are among my fondest memories.

Not because my kids' teams always won -- they probably lost as many games as they won. Nor because my kids were the biggest stars -- sometimes they were and sometimes they weren't.

We have trophies, certificates and news clippings to recall the glory, but I also remember the  injuries and emergency room trips, and the pain of difficult losses. But those moments I spent out on green fields with the breezes coming in from the West were special in ways other events were not. For the kids, they included lessons for a lifetime.

In all of the companies where I worked, teamwork was highly valued. A strong work ethic was critical to success. How an employee recovered from a setback was significant. All of these qualities tend to be present in former athletes, which is why youth sports can be a preparation ground for careers in business.

Some of my grandchildren play sports but during the past year, they haven't had any games at all. That part of their lives -- as well as life's lessons -- have had to be on pause.

Hopefully that is all about to change now.

*** 

The political context for the first two years of the Biden administration were going to be tricky in any event, with a 50-50 Senate and a slim majority in the House. The battle to get a Covid relief measure through is illustrative, as is the difficulty raising the national minimum wage to $15/hour.

The positive impacts of such a raise clearly are beneficial for many working people and families, as are the negative impacts on small, family-owned businesses. 

Perhaps if Congress granted tax relief to small businesses that raise the minimum wage, we could achieve this important goal while increasing the likelihood that more small businesses could survive.

***

The news:

* Iran Rejects Nuclear Deal Talks With U.S. Proposed by Europe -- The rejection came days after President Biden ordered retaliatory strikes against Iranian-backed militias in eastern Syria. (NYT)

* With new mass detentions, every prominent Hong Kong activist is either in jail or exile (WashPo)

* Defending President Joe Biden’s decision not to sanction Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the brutal 2018 murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration sees “more effective ways” to hold Saudi Arabia accountable for the killing. [HuffPost]

* The Big Antifa Lie --On social media, cable networks and even in the halls of Congress, Trump supporters tried to rewrite history in real time, pushing the fiction that left-wing agitators were to blame for the violence on Jan. 6. (NYT)

* Disinformation Fuels Distrust And Even Violence At All Levels Of Government -- Political scientists say growing acceptance of unfounded conspiracy theories is fueling disengagement and distrust in democratic institutions, an effect that is trickling down to local politics. (NPR)

* Andrew Cuomo’s survival in office looks doubtful (WashPo)

* Biden on Sunday night condemned union-busting by corporations and expressed the U.S. government’s support for collective bargaining by workers. Although he did not mention any particular company by name, the subtext of Biden’s remarks posted on Twitter was the ongoing union election at an Amazon warehouse in Alabama. [HuffPost]

* The Ugly Divorce Between Britain and Brussels (the EU) Is Just Getting Started (NYT)

* Millions of Tenants Fall Further Behind on Rent as Covid Aid Stalls (WSJ)

* How Fast Are Oceans Rising? The Answer May Be In Century-Old Shipping Logs -- A century ago, the shipping industry recorded the daily ebb and flow of tides. Now, those records are becoming crucial for forecasting how fast sea levels are rising in a warming climate. (NPR)

* Before Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, There Was Ahmaud Arbery -- A year after his killing in Georgia, his death has sparked a bipartisan effort to remake the state’s 158-year-old citizen’s arrest law. But a potentially divisive trial awaits. (NYT)

* Jane Fonda received the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 2021 Golden Globe Awards on Sunday and powerfully addressed the need for diversity in storytelling in her acceptance speech. The honor celebrated her career, which has spanned five decades, and her activism. “You know, I have seen a lot of diversity in my long life, and at times I have been challenged to understand some of the people I’ve met, but inevitably, if my heart is open and I look beneath the surface, I feel kinship,” she told viewers. (HuffPost)

* The City Where Cars Are Not Welcome -- As automakers promise to get rid of internal combustion engines, Heidelberg is trying to get rid of autos. (NYT)

* 'Run The Oil Industry In Reverse': Fighting Climate Change By Farming Kelp -- A Maine startup is drawing high-profile support for its low-tech plan to soak up carbon emissions. It says its kelp farms will sink to the ocean floor and lock the carbon away for millennia. (NPR)

* High school seniors are facing a range of challenges, like isolation and pandemic exhaustion, and they’re applying for college financial aid at lower rates. [LAist]

* The Jobs the Pandemic May Devastate -- An updated forecast by the Bureau of Labor Statistics has alarming news for people with a high school diploma or less. (NYT)

* Sleeping naked results in a deeper sleep (Journalistic.org)

* Wolf Blitzer Announces Grim Milestone As Number Of Covid-19 Deaths Surpasses Jelly Beans In Jar (The Onion)

***

According to Baseball Almanac, In 1858, the first known baseball song was written, "The Base Ball Polka!" It was not quite as famous as Jack Norworth's 1908 classic, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game", which was written on some scrap paper on a train ride to Manhattan, New York. Norworth then provided those paper scrap lyrics to Albert Von Tilzer who composed the music which in turn was published by the York Music Company and before the year was over, a hit song was born.

Jack Norworth was a very successful vaudeville entertainer / songwriter and spent fifteen minutes writing this classic which is sung during the seventh inning stretch at nearly every ball park in the country. In 1927, he changed some lyrics and a second version appeared.

"Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack,
I don't care if I never get back,
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game."

-- Jack Norworth

-30-