2018 Winners and Losers

Losers first.

Bill Belichick has blown two huge games (and then Brady blows a third).  First, by stubbornly refusing to play Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl 52, he literally blew the game.  Butler is the one player who very likely could have made a critical defensive difference in a game decided by the razor’s edge.  Belichick has gotten to a point where his personal style and whims outweigh the concerns of the team.  And not only has this outpouring of arrogance been a detriment to the Pats; but he has apparently taken to sleeping at the wheel on occasion.  The coaching foobahs that allowed the Miami Miracle were rather obvious to anyone paying attention.  Has he forgotten how to coach?  I don’t think one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time forgets to how to coach.  I think that perhaps he has just lost his focus.  I suppose Bill figures they can win most of the time simply by showing up.  Good luck with that.

Theresa Mary May, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, and Vladimir Putin.   May is attempting to engineer her own personal Brexit.  Macron is hiding from the public and listening to violin music while Paris burns.  Merkel is overseeing the meltdown of what she arrogantly refers to as Europe’s premier economy.  Putin continues to play war games and joust with Trump; obviously still unaware that he is dealing with a different breed of American cat that will not cower beneath the couch.  All except Putin are headed for premature extinction.  In Putin’s case, I fear that his continued frustration from being outpaced may result in his miscalculation of some desperate measure.  All of these foreign leaders have chosen the path of very public dispute with President Trump.  How is that working out for them?  Do you suppose that in the case of this European trio, it has anything to do with their painfully and tragically flawed Progressive (think LIBERAL) governing principles?

  

Bill and Hillary Clinton.  How pathetic have the Clintons become when long-time groupie Maureen Dowd turns on them?  Her recent piece about Curtains for the Clintons is beyond humiliating for the ex-power couple.  The Clinton quest for power through greed is legendary; but in recent years, it has taken a turn for the pitiful.  It is also sad to view the early stages of Reluctant Presidential Withdrawal (RPW) from Obama and see the next chapter of this public shriveling occurring.  Please…Bill, Hillary, Barack…just go away.  Is it just me, or do we just see this disturbing syndrome from Democrat Presidents?

Moderates of any size or shape.  How maddening it must be for any common sense Republican or Democrat to live, work, and simply exist in the crazy world of WDC these days?  Between Trumpian Chaos and Democratic Resist lies a gulf so wide that it must be impossible to occupy it without some sense of absolute isolation and futility.  It has become a wasteland of irrelevance, anonymous sputtering, and a maze of interstate highways with no road signs.  What used to be known as the Silent Majority can best be described these days as the Muted Minority.  It seems that both national Parties have been hijacked by their more extreme characters and the occasional pragmatism of past years has been rendered both ineffectual and politically incorrect.  Our political environment is now dominated by a Forty Percent Discipline on either side of the aisle that would vote for a 120 pound Doberman if he, or she, were running on their ticket.

College Football Playoff (CFP) Selection Committee.  Is it Oklahoma, Georgia, or UCF?  Can a two-loss season be better than a one-loss season be better than an undefeated season?  Gosh…who knows?  I can tell you this for certain…these guys don’t.  Stop the maddening arbitrariness of the college playoffs; either expand to eight or do the right thing and establish a playoff… http://centerlineright.blogspot.com/2018/11/college-football-foolishness-redux.html

Where are the winners?

Let us start with business, both small and large.  Corporate America must be privately celebrating their new-found environment of less government influence and interference, increased consumer enablement, and unfortunately, continued public obliviousness about corporate greed, corruption, and monolithic ambition.  The loosening of regulatory shackles has indeed freed up our domestic economy to expand and grow; but it has also emboldened the dark side of Corporate America to allow its ugly, unbridled lust for profit to peek from around the curtain.  And in the case of the tech firms, they have moved alarmingly into the areas of privacy and influence as well as profit.  As Spiderman’s grandpa told him…With great power comes great responsibility; or to put it another way…If you are going to make filthy high profits, at least practice ethical business and personnel policies.   Trump has no doubt unleashed the great private enterprise machine of America; but at what cost will prosperity grow across our great land?

SCOTUS.  The Supreme Court of the United States is now positioned to enter an extended period of respect and common sense rulings while wearing a fresh face of dignity.  We appear to have a majority of SCOTUS membership that respects and reveres the Constitution.  And while that adherence to original content and intent will no doubt be refreshing, hopefully it will be intelligently balanced by the moderating influence of Roberts and Kavanaugh.  With our nation’s governance spinning wildly into chaos and extreme ideology, it is comforting to think that at least one of our three legs of democracy is setting up to be reliable and steady for the foreseeable future. 

Strip shopping centers.  As marvelously impressive as they are from an engineering and marketing standpoint, there is something that is eerily decadent about the mega malls.  The overwhelming power of raw consumerism and the mesmerizing aura of effective mass merchandising is mind-numbing; not to mention the oftentimes unsavory habits of the self unaware shopping public.  It is somehow refreshing to see the trend of stores moving from the huge commercial conglomerations that are malls out to the strip shopping centers that are more frequently popping up in communities all across America.  Not only does it lower the startup costs involved for an enterprising small business, but it also adds flavor and diversity to our urban and suburban landscapes.  I like it.  It is also fascinating to watch how the vacated and monolithic mega mall structures are being re-purposed by colleges, government, and other enterprising entities.  Cultural evolution is sure something, ain’t it?

Streaming.  One single word that will undoubtedly transform an entire industry.  In rural (very rural) Kentucky, I can get up to 25 FREE television stations with HD quality pictures as long as I provide a decent antenna setup.  I can supplement this with a cable or satellite provider to get broader and more current programming; but I will pay dearly for that service and I will likely only view a small fraction of the programming offerings I pay for on a monthly basis.  On the other hand, streaming allows me the freedom to watch what I want, when I want, and where I want to; paying only for the special selections I occasionally choose or by taking advantage of the generous free content available.  The only impediment to streaming taking over the television universe is the not-yet-completed establishment of affordable and reliable internet service all across our country.  That is now happening a bit more every day and the potential freedoms that this access offers to rural America are incredible.  I anticipate with relish that ever closer day when I can tell my satellite provider about that shady place where they can store my TV viewing package that they are so proud of.  When you get the chance, do all you can to encourage and support the expansion of inexpensive and reliable internet service to all areas of our nation.  It is one of the most liberating advents of the modern world and can dramatically expand the horizons of those who wish to utilize it fully.

We are.  For all the madness that surrounds us on a daily basis; the world continues to spin and exist.  Oh, the times they are a changing; that much is certain.  And even though the jury is still out on whether or not that change is predominately positive; the fact is that the world (we) remains.  For every callous deed, there is a magnanimous gesture.  For every arrogance, there is a compensating humility.  For every stupid action, there is an intelligent response.  It is true that many times, the balancing movement is quiet, unassuming, and simply hard to recognize; but it is there nonetheless.  For all of the political and social upheaval we have experienced in recent decades, our nation remains stubbornly steadfast.  From Rush Limbaugh to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, from the Kremlin to WDC, from the frozen arctic to the sizzling deserts, from the daily triumphs of glorious victories to the all too often tragedies of personal defeats, from the narrow visages of ideologues to the all too rare visions of statesmen, from the regimented lifestyles of many world citizens to the absolute personal freedoms of American residents.  We have survived Clinton…and Obama…and we will survive Trump.  Life will continue and whatever the future may hold for the United States, this nation will rise to meet it in its gloriously disheveled, uncoordinated, and multi-faceted fashion that is our way.  Our way and our privilege.  A true gift from God.  A gift that has been purchased and preserved by the active and retired personnel of our U.S. military.