Category Sports

In my 2015 book release, The Way Things Oughta Be, I offer numerous chapters with analyses and suggestions for improving the world, whether it be politics, science, education, criminal justice, family issues, love and romance and so much more. At the very end of the book, I present a chapter titled, “Afterthoughts” which is a list of one-liners, without essay or analysis.

     I thought some folks might be interested…so I extracted this chapter and created a short blog.  (With the author’s permission, of course) See what you think.

                                                            AFTERTHOUGHTS

Sometimes, a simple answer can identify a question.  According to your author, here are a few one-line reflections on – The Way Things Oughta Be:

• Smart people should think twice about the long-range consequences before blanketing their bodies with tattoo ink.
• Parents who sit with their kids at restaurant tables engrossed with tablets and smart phones tell me they’ve lost the ability to communicate.
• I’m a fan of space travel, but I also wonder if the enormous costs outweigh the benefits, and those billions of dollars could not be better funneled to more pressing needs.
• Abolish car alarms. They are useless costs added to the price of an auto.
• Schools, libraries, and other public properties should ban boys from wearing pants below their butts and exposing underwear. There is nothing wrong with standards.
• The term “African-American” is a misnomer that fails to account for all the indigenous Arabs and whites who also come from Africa, which, after all, is a continent, not a country.
• Non-citizen immigrants who arrive here and express hate for America should be given a one-way ticket back to their native country.
• If a public employee refuses to pledge allegiance to the United States he or she should not be employed by the taxpayer.
• The Pledge can easily be recited minus “under God” for anyone who so chooses, and should not be politicized.
• Enemies in foreign countries with whom we are engaged in combat are not entitled to American civil rights. Advising them of their “rights” is an absurdity that benefits the enemy and not America.
• Very little quality attention is paid to the problems of severe mental illness in America, which causes more grief, money and peril than we realize.
• Unaccounted-for minorities, or other human categories that don’t seem to matter, include – mentally ill, prison inmates, returning ex-cons, and homeless.
• Restaurants should post warning signs that advise parents they will be asked to remove loud and misbehaving children from the premises.
• Telephone solicitations, political messages, and other nuisance calls that disturb millions, including the infirmed, should be declared a federal crime not protected by the First Amendment.
• Young men and women who adorn their faces with multiple piercings should realize they are creating a gross distraction from their otherwise good looks.
• Can anyone articulate a reason why the federal government needs a Department of Education?
• English should be deemed, by act of Congress, as the official language of the United States, while at the same time encouraging bi-lingual education in schools and special education.
• No veteran who honorably served his or her country should be allowed to live homeless.
• I have a name. Please don’t call me “Man.”

“The Way Things Oughta Be” is a comprehensive book of unique ideas about a myriad of topics.  Signed copies available at my web site: www.marshallfrank.com or via Amazon.com

Meet America’s newest sports hero; Jordan Spieth, age 21. What a guy.  Keep your eye on this young man.  He’s only just begun.

If ever young people in America were in need of a worthy role model amid a myriad of loonies, druggies and narcissists, he’s finally come along.

No, he doesn’t play football or basketball, nor does he rap or scream into microphones with high-amped rock bands. Spieth is a pro golfer extraordinaire. After two years on the professional golf tour, this young man now sits as Number #2 in the world. The only phenom who compares, is Tiger Woods who, 19 years ago, won the Masters at age 21.

But wait. Spieth, the same age, just won the Masters tournament last weekend, setting records for lowest scores ever at the 36 hole and 54 hole marks, and tied Tiger Woods’ 19 year record for the lowest score ever at the Masters, beating Phil Mickelson and Justin Rose by four strokes each. His earnings for one tournament:  $1.8 million. And get this – one year ago in his first year on the tour in 2014, he placed 2^nd in that Masters Tournament, losing only to Bubba Watson.

He’s already had five wins on the professional tour, including three this year.  Most pros would give their teeth to win even one pro tournament, and he’s only started.

Spieth was attending the University of Texas, but dropped out after 1.5 years to turn pro.  After all, he had already won two U.S. Amateur Tournaments, and the lucrative PGA awaited him, offering far more than an academic degree would ever pay him, especially at such a young age.  It wasn’t a bad decision. This year alone, his total winnings are nearly $5 million, and the season has just begun.

Besides being a model professional golfer, Spieth is one of the classiest young men to come along in a sport that is marinated with class.  When interviewed following his big win, his thoughts turned mostly to his 14 year-old sister with autism. Here are some of his comments:

“I miss her a lot. I wish she could have been here,” he told a CNN reporter.  “I can’t wait to get back to her and maybe let her try on the (green) jacket…she’s the most special part of our family.”

I like this guy. He is not only a fine athlete, he reeks of integrity. He reminds me of a term we once referred to well-grounded, moral and decent people: Clean-cut. It may be old-fashioned, but it’s still something to be appreciated.

Keep your eye on this guy. He’s going to be a positive role model for millions of young men and women down the road. A breath of fresh air.

Click here: Jordan Spieth – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Meet America’s newest sports hero; Jordan Spieth, age 21. What a guy.  Keep your eye on this young man.  He’s only just begun.
If ever young people in America were in need of a worthy role model amid a myriad of loonies, druggies and narcissists, he’s finally come along.
No, he doesn’t play football or basketball, nor does he rap or scream into microphones with high-amped rock bands. Spieth is a pro golfer extraordinaire. After two years on the professional golf tour, this young man now sits as Number #2 in the world. The only phenom who compares, is Tiger Woods who, 19 years ago, won the Masters at age 21.
But wait. Spieth, the same age, just won the Masters tournament last weekend, setting records for lowest scores ever at the 36 hole and 54 hole marks, and tied Tiger Woods’ 19 year record for the lowest score ever at the Masters, beating Phil Mickelson and Justin Rose by four strokes each. His earnings for one tournament:  $1.8 million. And get this – one year ago in his first year on the tour in 2014, he placed 2^nd in that Masters Tournament, losing only to Bubba Watson.
He’s already had five wins on the professional tour, including three this year.  Most pros would give their teeth to win even one pro tournament, and he’s only started.
Spieth was attending the University of Texas, but dropped out after 1.5 years to turn pro.  After all, he had already won two U.S. Amateur Tournaments, and the lucrative PGA awaited him, offering far more than an academic degree would ever pay him, especially at such a young age.  It wasn’t a bad decision. This year alone, his total winnings are nearly $5 million, and the season has just begun.
Besides being a model professional golfer, Spieth is one of the classiest young men to come along in a sport that is marinated with class.  When interviewed following his big win, his thoughts turned mostly to his 14 year-old sister with autism. Here are some of his comments:
“I miss her a lot. I wish she could have been here,” he told a CNN reporter.  “I can’t wait to get back to her and maybe let her try on the (green) jacket…she’s the most special part of our family.”
I like this guy. He is not only a fine athlete, he reeks of integrity. He reminds me of a term we once referred to well-grounded, moral and decent people: Clean-cut. It may be old-fashioned, but it’s still something to be appreciated.
Keep your eye on this guy. He’s going to be a positive role model for millions of young men and women down the road. A breath of fresh air.
Click here: Jordan Spieth – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article appears in today’s on-line issue of YourNews.com, a national on-line news source.
 

More To Consider in the Ray Rice Assault Fiasco Sep 9While the media focuses on Ray Rice’s knock-out punch of his girlfriend in an elevator and weighing the response by the NFL hierarchy, we should also be viewing the fiasco from other angles By Marshall Frank Besides deciding the Baltimore Raven’s running back’s career setback, there are more questions in need of answers. First. Is this more pervasive than we know? How often are high paid sport professionals whacking their women around behind closed doors? This case was inadvertently caught on video, otherwise nobody would ever have known. Are such abusers emboldened with power – physical and financial – that they feel it’s their right to keep their female possessions in line? Second. Does the lure of mega-millions have an affect on the judgment of women being abused by their rich boyfriends/husbands? Do women who are married to millionaire athletes overlook infidelity and physical abuse in order to relish the rewards? Third. Didn’t anyone notice how Mr. Rice tugged the young woman onto the hard floor once clear of the elevator? He dropped her head and body like an unwanted sack of potatoes while he stood over her like a gladiator. A loving caring person would have been on his knees frantically trying to help the woman. Ergo, great difficulty buying the public atonement offered by Rice. Four. Why isn’t the focus of this case about a criminal act? All the hoopla concerns Rice’s future as a Raven. Perhaps his future should be determined in a criminal court, from which he’ll do a stint in the slammer, the same as other abusers who do time for the same thing, though not as rich and famous. Rice should not be given any more slack than any ordinary citizen. Five. Why did the second video release make such a difference? We didn’t have to see the assault to know it happened. The first video showed Rice dropping her out of the elevator. Did the police or the NFL hierarchy think she merely fainted? They surely questioned Rice and his girlfriend. Did they relate what happened or did they lie? Why the difference between a two game suspension and a seasonal suspension? Seems the NFL did a poor job of covering their butts while trying to rescue their star running back. Six. Haven’t heard a word from the forces of women’s rights. Where are you, NOW? I happen to believe in legalizing and controlling the oldest profession in the world. But when a woman marries wealth in exchange for sex and favors, it gives license to the same basic profession only as more permanent arrangement. Of course, we’re not alleging such in this case. Some pro athletes have been known for their dalliances during travels around the country while blinded wives bite that proverbial bullet because – well – life immersed with millions is so good. A camera showed us that Ray Rice – a powerful athlete – punched his girlfriend into oblivion inside a public elevator, knocked her out and then dragged her off like a side of beef. What did she do? She married him. Well…a woman can’t be forced to testify against a husband, especially when he provides the world at her fingertips. Now that Rice is out of a job, we’ll see how that plays out. Marshall Frank is a retired homicide investigator from Miami-Dade, now an author of twelve books. Visit www.marshallfrank.com

This article appears in today’s on-line issue of YourNews.com, a national on-line news source.

More To Consider in the Ray Rice Assault Fiasco Sep 9While the media focuses on Ray Rice’s knock-out punch of his girlfriend in an elevator and weighing the response by the NFL hierarchy, we should also be viewing the fiasco from other angles By Marshall Frank Besides deciding the Baltimore Raven’s running back’s career setback, there are more questions in need of answers. First. Is this more pervasive than we know? How often are high paid sport professionals whacking their women around behind closed doors? This case was inadvertently caught on video, otherwise nobody would ever have known. Are such abusers emboldened with power – physical and financial – that they feel it’s their right to keep their female possessions in line? Second. Does the lure of mega-millions have an affect on the judgment of women being abused by their rich boyfriends/husbands? Do women who are married to millionaire athletes overlook infidelity and physical abuse in order to relish the rewards? Third. Didn’t anyone notice how Mr. Rice tugged the young woman onto the hard floor once clear of the elevator? He dropped her head and body like an unwanted sack of potatoes while he stood over her like a gladiator. A loving caring person would have been on his knees frantically trying to help the woman. Ergo, great difficulty buying the public atonement offered by Rice. Four. Why isn’t the focus of this case about a criminal act? All the hoopla concerns Rice’s future as a Raven. Perhaps his future should be determined in a criminal court, from which he’ll do a stint in the slammer, the same as other abusers who do time for the same thing, though not as rich and famous. Rice should not be given any more slack than any ordinary citizen. Five. Why did the second video release make such a difference? We didn’t have to see the assault to know it happened. The first video showed Rice dropping her out of the elevator. Did the police or the NFL hierarchy think she merely fainted? They surely questioned Rice and his girlfriend. Did they relate what happened or did they lie? Why the difference between a two game suspension and a seasonal suspension? Seems the NFL did a poor job of covering their butts while trying to rescue their star running back. Six. Haven’t heard a word from the forces of women’s rights. Where are you, NOW? I happen to believe in legalizing and controlling the oldest profession in the world. But when a woman marries wealth in exchange for sex and favors, it gives license to the same basic profession only as more permanent arrangement. Of course, we’re not alleging such in this case. Some pro athletes have been known for their dalliances during travels around the country while blinded wives bite that proverbial bullet because – well – life immersed with millions is so good. A camera showed us that Ray Rice – a powerful athlete – punched his girlfriend into oblivion inside a public elevator, knocked her out and then dragged her off like a side of beef. What did she do? She married him. Well…a woman can’t be forced to testify against a husband, especially when he provides the world at her fingertips. Now that Rice is out of a job, we’ll see how that plays out. Marshall Frank is a retired homicide investigator from Miami-Dade, now an author of twelve books. Visit www.marshallfrank.com