Daily Archives: October 20, 2005

Sociological implications of the 2005 World Series

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Cubs v White Sox2.jpgSo, it’s the Stros versus the Chicago White Sox in the 2005 World Series. Houstonians know Chicago well, as the Cubs are fierce National League Central Division rivals of the Stros, most recently responsible for knocking the Stros out of a 2003 National League playoff spot on the final weekend of the regular season. We long-suffering Houstonian sports fans in general — and Stros fans in particular — tend to remember those things for awhile.
However, the rivalry between the Stros and the Cubs pales in comparison to the rivalry among Chicagoans between supporters of the Cubs and White Sox, a rivalry that cuts across generations and class lines. Former Chicagoan (and Cubs fan) Larry Ribstein recently passed along the following excerpt from a John Kass-Chicago Tribune article that describes the Cubs-White Sox rivalry from the perspective of a Cubs fan:

As per your offer asking Cubs fans to beg for a chance to sit with you in your seats at Sox Park: I’m absolutely astounded that you think any Cubs fan would want to sit amongst greasy pork-butchers, filthy plumbers and inebriated truck drivers watching the laughable White Sox.

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Miers on business

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Harriet Miers2.jpgLarry Ribstein notes in this post that, based upon Harriet Miers‘ investment track record, it may be a mistake to presume that she will be as adept on business-related issues as a Supreme Court Justice than a proven Judge such as, say, Edith Jones would be. But Professor Ribstein shares my view that we should wait to evaluate Ms. Miers’ performance in the Judiciary Committee hearing before deciding whether to support her nomination, although he wryly notes:

I’m still reserving judgment until I see Miers’ performance in the Senate. But, then, I’m still expecting Ernie Banks to some day lead the Cubs in the World Series.

Gordon Smith shares Professor Ribstein’s skepticism of Ms. Miers’ track record on business-related issues.

Selling socially responsible ice cream

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benandjerryscone.jpgStephen Moore is a senior economics writer for the Wall Street Journal and a member of the WSJ’s editorial board. He also enjoys ice cream, and he has written this clever OpinionJournal piece about the socially-responsible nonsense that Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream spews while selling its quite good — but unhealthy (i.e., socially irresponsible) — ice cream. He describes a recent tour that he took of the ice cream maker’s factory in Vermont:

The tour itself is a 30-minute propaganda campaign explaining why the company’s founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, deserve the Nobel Peace Prize for their unwavering commitment to the environment and economic justice.
Meanwhile, their factory is a monument to the efficiencies of capitalism and technological progress: Several dozen giant computer-operated machines churn out hundreds of thousands of cartons a day. I half expect the massive energy-gulping freezers to be solar-paneled or powered by green-friendly windmills, but no, they use lots and lots of conventional electricity. It turns out that if you want really good ice cream, you just have to tolerate a little more global warming. That’s a trade-off that I personally am willing to make.

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Wilma!

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Wilma.jpgThis is getting very monotonous.
Hurricane Wilma moved toward Mexico’s popular Cancun resort Wednesday as an extremely dangerous category 4 storm that has already become the most intense hurricane to form in the Americas since such storms began being recorded over a century ago. The National Hurricane Center in Miami warned that Wilma would be a significant threat to Florida by the weekend and could hit the western coast of Florida as at least a category 3 storm. About the only good thing about the storm’s projected path is that it is far enough south at this point that it would probably not cause much additional damage to the Katrina and Rita-ravaged Gulf of Mexico oil and gas production facilities.

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Peaches, Baby!

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Roy O15.jpgRoy O — simply the best pitcher ever developed within the Houston Astros system — brought home the bacon. The Stros are going to their first World Series.
Since moving to Houston in 1972, I’ve been following the Stros for the past 33 years, the last 20 as a season ticket holder. Both of my teenage sons are lifelong Houstonians who have been attending Stros games with me since they were toddlers. Immediately after Jason Lane clutched that final out, my boys and I hugged each other and laughed about our experiences over the years with the Stros as we watched the players celebrate on the Busch Stadium field.
That special moment made every one of those Stros games that I have watched during the past 33 years worth every minute.