Thursday, December 04, 2003

Apologies

December 4, 2003

I sent an email to many people and used the BCC function of Outlook so your name wasn't shown to the other recipients.

When I used the Resend feature, the old BCC list did not appear in the message, but everytime I sent the message to another recipient it resent to all the BCCs. I had done it about twenty times (or more), before I saw the error of my ways.

I know I sent it to some work email addresses and this is more embarrassing for you than me. Words cannot explain how sorry I am for inconveniencing you (and your I.T. Staff).

I wish I could take my friend Holly Grace Moses's sage advice. She said: "If God had meant for me to get upset about such things, He wouldn't have put a 'Delete' key on my computer!"

I hope your Delete key is kind to you and you can find it in your heart to forgive me.

Wednesday, December 03, 2003

Eyeglasses

In 1969 I made my first trip to the optometrist because the school nurse at St. Andrew's had determined my vision needed correction.

Dr. Shulman was the family eye doctor with an office on Huntington Avenue in Brigham Circle. It was right next to Staples (long before the office superstore chain), which was the local stationery store that sold games and toys. I bought all my models with airplane glue and paint-by-numbers sets from Staples. I remember getting a Batmobile model and a super-heroes velvet paint-by-numbers at Staples one Saturday afternoon!

My Mother wore glasses all my life. Here's a picture of me and her in 1965:



My Mother also smoked my entire life and this picture actually shows her cigarette more clearly than her glasses!

Anyway, my previous visits to Dr. Shulman's office had been with my Mother when she needed a new pair of glasses or an adjustment. She always reminded us that the receptionist was our aunt's sister. She was my father's brother's wife's sister, so she was really no relation to me at all; but, my Mother valued connections of all sort, no matter how vague or distant.

One Friday afternoon I left school and took the trolley to Brigham Circle for my first visit to the eye doctor. Wire-rimmed glasses were the newest rage in glasses, and I selected a pair that were sort of hip. They weren't round like John Lennon's, but they were as close to round as I was going to get when combining my Mother's meager budget with Dr. Shulman's charity.

It took some time for me to get used to seeing the world so clearly. I was almost dizzy from the clarity. The red brick and white mortar of the Farragut School across from Dr. Shulman's office was crystal clear and I could make out the definition of each individual bar in the surrounding cast-iron fence. The orange trolley-cars were bright orange. Walking down the street was almost difficult both because of the vertigo and my amazement at the clarity of it all!

I guess this is why I got them on a Friday! So I would have the weekend to get used to them!

I still have those glasses, and if they would fit I would have them fitted with my current prescription.



On Monday morning, Sister Theresa Ann (yes, a nun in the sixties with a woman's name), made certain to point out to everyone that I was wearing glasses. Damn, we hadn't even had our religion class yet and I was already feeling bad. I was the butt of all the jokes that day, and I made certain to take the glasses off for recess and the walk home.

I quickly got used to putting them on for movies and television and school; but after I'd forgotten them here and there a half-dozen times, I took Dr. Shulman's advice and just wore them all the time.

I learned to clean them and care for them and repair them myself with paper clips and the such. When I got new glasses I always kept these safe. I didn't know I would be writing about them and taking a picture of them in 2003, but I always held on to them. These eyeglasses have lived in seven American cities, and at two addresses in London. These eyeglasses have traveled (off my face) more than most Americans travel in their lifetime. I can't believe I still have them. Stranger than having my original pair of eyeglasses, is that I always know exactly where to find them. Seeing them makes me feel a bit old.

In the mid-nineties, I shared an apartment with my brother Stephan and I introduced him to the fine art of collecting art. Together we purchased a series of original drawing, twenty drawings of eyeglasses. They were all different, but all of the same pair of eyeglasses. My brother still has them in a drawer somewhere. I wish I had one to hang with my collection.

I hadn't thought of those eyeglasses or drawings in a long time until today when I got my first pair of bifocals. Yup! It's happened: bifocals. Almost thirty-five years after my first pair of eyeglasses made me dizzy and trippy, I am trying to get used to wearing glasses that work one way when I look up and another way when I look down.

If I turn too quickly, the entire world looks like a fishbowl. When I walk, I sometimes get a touch of vertigo; but when I try to read, I can see the print! I don't have to remove my glasses to read! It's almost as thrilling as the bricks of Farragut School!

I guess this means I'm getting old and the best part is the memories and mementos! I have my original pair of glasses and it's only at times like this that I appreciate how wonderful that really is!

Peace.

Saturday, November 01, 2003

Soccer In America (part one)

Starting in the Autumn of 2000, I had the pleasure of spending a year living in London. It was odd making the transition when I learned that I didn't speak the language. I am an American who speaks only one language, and it isn't English. I speak American. This was going to be more dramatic than I anticipated.

Early on in my stay in London, Mrs. Mac and I were invited to see Arsenal versus Manchester City at Highbury, in North London. I had not been to a soccer match since seeing the old Boston Beacons at Fenway Park in the late 1960s. I was a lifelong baseball fan, and there had never really been any room for soccer. I tried to be interested during the 1994 World Cup hosted in the USA; but it failed to grab me.

The match between Arsenal and City was remarkable. I was an instant fan. I began to learn about the sport and its history and all the London teams.

Upon arriving back in the USA, I followed my new passion via the internet. I was relieved there were so many sites providing access to the English Premier League.

At the end of 2002, I began to seek information about American soccer leagues. I bought season tickets for the MetroStars and began investigating the US Men's National Team, and the Soccer Hall of Fame, and the US Soccer Federation, and ways to support the growth of soccer here at home.

I received an invitation to join the US Soccer Federation. The glossy mailing included a plea for money to light the soccer fields at the East Sixth Street Playground in Manhattan, and urged me to "light up the lives of soccer athletes in New York City." This was exactly what I was looking for!

I was rather excited about this proposition and prepared to sign-up. I read the brochure and was dismayed to find this: "This field sits a stone's throw away from New York's Financial Distirct and what was once the World Trade Center, where many workers were also soccer moms and dads, players, coaches, referees, and all-around fans of the great game of soccer." My heart sank. I could not believe that the U.S. Soccer Foundation was capitalizing on the tragedy of the World Trade Center to raise funds.

I located the Foundation's web site and contacted them via email which resulted in a correspondence with someone named Ellen Roberts. She denied that they were capitalizing on the tragedy and insisted she had never even heard of the brochure I was quoting. Eventually, I faxed a copy of the brochure and she tried to spin the whole campaign. It was a truly insulting experience. Her denial of the campaign was insulting enough, but to try and justify it was beyond the pale.

At the Foundation's web site, I found a link to the Soccer Hall of Fame. It's a nice site and it looks like a wonderful place. I read the inductees and saw many names of players who had been famous in South America and Europe early in their careers, and came to the US when their skills had diminished. Irrespective of their motives for playing in the USA, over the last thirty-five years these men have helped the sport put down roots.

To my horror, I learned that Henry Kissinger was a National Board member of the Soccer Hall of Fame and my mind began to spin.

Kissinger is the man who brought us the Christmas Bombings of Hanoi, and was recently unable to chair President Bush's 9/11 Investigation Committee because (it seems) his partnership has done a good deal of business with corporations owned by the bin Laden family, whose son has been linked to the World Trade Center tragedy. I know many apologists for the current administration will say there is no proof that Kissinger is connected to the bin Laden's; but, an awful lot has been published about the connection and he has never denied the connection, he only denies doing any business with the group currently.

So a member of the Soccer Hall of Fame's national board is profiting from the money earned by the family of the man who funded the WTC tragedy, and the US Soccer Foundation is using the WTC tragedy to raise money.

Am I the only person who sees a conflict here?

Should an organization trying to capitalize on the tragedy of the World Trade Center be allowed to control the funds that send the USA national teams into worldwide competition? And should the museum and hall of fame that promotes that same sport proffer an honorary position to a man who represents a fortune that funds the criminals who perpertrate crimes against the United States?

I don't know about you, but I will go to the soccer matches and I will avoid the not-for-profit foundations related to the sport.

Tuesday, April 15, 2003

Baseball Hall Of Fame – The Bull Durham Debacle

I think Bull Durham is one of the best baseball movies ever made.

This Spring, the Baseball Hall of Fame organized a celebration of the 15th Anniversary of the film’s release.

As the war in Iraq began to rage, things like baseball movies became rather insignificant, no matter how significant the movie itself seemed. Most public figures remained remarkably silent about the war, irrespective of their position. Silence was deemed to be patriotic, and nobody wants to be deemed unpatriotic.

Two of the film's stars, Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon, were not silent about their positions on the war. Their voices rang loud and clear in a silent landscape, and they did not go unnoticed.

In a letter released to the media, Dale Petroskey, the President of the Hall of Fame wrote that the Bull Durham celebration would be cancelled because he believed Tim Robbins’ “ . . . very public criticism of President Bush at this important -- and sensitive -- time in our nation's history helps undermine the U.S. position, which ultimately could put our troops in even more danger. As an institution, we stand behind our President and our troops in this conflict."

His letter explained that public figures "have platforms much larger than the average American's, which provides you an extraordinary opportunity to have your views heard -- and an equally large obligation to act and speak responsibly." Therefore, Robbins would not have a platform at the Hall of Fame to talk about making a baseball movie.

It seems that in Mr. Petroskey’s view is that blind acceptance of the war in Iraq is the only responsible speech to be offered, and anyone who opposes the war has no place at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

I have added the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Major League Baseball and its broadcasts, and MLB/MLBPA merchandise to my boycott list. Why? Because I believe that freedom of speech and expression of dissent are what make the Untied States unique, and any attempt to abridge these rights are patently un-American and need to be attacked. By giving my money to MLB, the MLBPA, and the Hall of Fame, I am saying that it is OK with me that they silence voices of dissent.

It is important for me to remember, too, that baseball makes more money from the television broadcasts than from gate receipts; so, refusing to tune-in is actually more important than avoiding the ballpark.

If you are similarly offended by baseball’s patently un-American activities, please consider a boycott and a letter to them to let them know what you think. If you agree with baseball’s position on the Bull Durham Debacle, you should let them know! I’m sure they’d appreciate hearing from you.

Here is a link to a Sports Illustrated article about the incident: SI Article

Friday, April 11, 2003

Baseball Hall Of Fame - Petroskey Letter

11 April 2003

Mr. Dale Petroskey
President
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
25 Main Street
Cooperstown, NY 13326


Dear Mr. Petroskey:

I write to you with a heavy heart.

All of my life baseball has been a haven from the daily grind. It is the form of entertainment upon which I most rely for a moment of escapism and peace and quiet. Baseball has always been a place for me to go and be with other baseball fans to talk baseball and leave behind the long day or week that has preceded the game.

I am a life-long baseball fan. I started attending games at Fenway Park in 1966 and every summer I attend scores of games at every level from Little League to Major League, from Central Park to Keyspan Park at Coney Island to Shea Stadium to Yankee Stadium to Fenway to any other park I can get to.

I have traveled to Cooperstown every two or three years during my adult life (which accounts for seven trips at this point) on a pilgrimage to the Hall of Fame and Museum. Cooperstown and the Hall are like Mecca for me. They are a little slice of Heaven on Earth and I am forever grateful that they are there and I live close enough to make the trip. I have a fantasy that some year my wife will agree that we can plan to come to Cooperstown during Induction week. I'll bet that is the greatest of all baseball events outside a stadium.

Sadly, I will not be coming to Cooperstown anytime soon. Also, I plan to ask my friends and family to stay away from Cooperstown in general, and the Hall of Fame and Museum in particular.

I am appalled that you cancelled the anniversary screening of "Bull Durham" because you do not agree with the personal political positions of two of the actors in the film. Have you considered the political positions of the other actors in the film, the director, producer, distributor and all the others involved with the making of this brilliant film? Have you considered that others besides the two actors you vilify might have a vested interest in the celebration? Have you considered that America is a nation of greatness because voices of dissent are heard?

Your remark that the dissenting opinions of fellow Americans could endanger the brave troops fighting overseas is irresponsible. Your statements are much more offensive than any remarks made by voices supporting or opposing the war. Your position is dramatically more un-American and non-patriotic than any voice of dissent I have heard during these troubled times. This is America. All voices are heard, even when we disagree.

You are using your platform as the president of a great institution as a bully pulpit to further your own political agenda at the expense of the game of baseball. My resentment runs deeper than even I could have ever imagined. You are spoiling the game of baseball for your own political expedience.

You do the American flag, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, Americanism, and the game of baseball a greater disservice than any criminal, traitor, or spit-baller in the history of our beloved game. How dare you defile our great game with your politicization and polarization?

You should make a public apology to all fans of the game and all Americans about this irresponsible action.

I will stay away from Cooperstown and the Hall, and I will work diligently and vociferously to keep others away, until you resign from the position that you have so abused and besmirched. If you do not resign your position, and if the Hall keeps you on as president, I will stay away from Cooperstown indefinitely.

I may be only one voice, but mine is a voice that will speak out against you and your abuse of power until you are no longer in a professional position related to our great pastime.

Sincerely,
Dick Mac

cc: Hall of Fame Board of Directors, individually
Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce