Raymond Johnson @ downclimb.com

The weird news continues. Exploding whales? I could comment on the story, but I think it'd be much more entertaining to read it and let your mind wander without any guidance from me. Besides, I could hardly be considered knowledgeable on the subject of large exploding sea-going mammals on flatbed trailers in Asian countries. And if anybody is an expert on such a thing, it looks like you've got your work cut out for you.

Some news stories are too weird not to be true...

Not a bad speech by Kerry tonight, but Edwards was still probably the best. Mike Barnicle said it best about Dean's speech: "After that speech, not only do I not want that guy president, but I wouldn't want him as my doctor in an operating room." Here's a good article about the Iowa caucus process: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26071-2004Jan17.html

I have great pride in my home state, and I think I missed Iowa more today than any day since I left. It happens only once every four years, but today all the national media focuses on the Iowa and its caucuses. Caucuses have to be one of the most fun political processes out there - a bunch of people gather in a gym, listen to a few speeches and discussions, then the "voting" begins. "Okay, everybody for John Kerry in this corner! Dean supporters to this corner! Edwards supporters over here!" And it continues on down the line. "Hey, you five people back there for Sharpton - your group's too small...either join a bigger group or drop out! Same with you Lieberman folks!" What a great process...I wish I could have been there. My thoughts: John Kerry - Great comeback and great win. Even if people don't know your policy, your war record and what it says about you is undeniable. John Edwards - The trial lawyer turns out to be the nicest, cl...

So Pete Rose finally admitted that he gambled on baseball. As a late-80s Mets fan who watched guys like Dwight Gooden and Darrell Strawberry practically throw away their careers for drugs, only to get a slap on the wrist, gambling never sounded all that bad as long as no games were thrown. So I've been quietly pulling for Pete all this time, and now that he's admitted he bet on baseball (with less-than-ideal timing, given the announcement of the new Hall of Fame class yesterday), I guess I'm still hoping he gets his lifetime ban from baseball lifted. But what if Pete Rose is lying now ? He doesn't seem any more or less sincere in his apology now than he was in denying he bet on baseball, so isn't there some chance that he figured his only opportunity to get back in the game was to tell people what they wanted to hear, regardless of the truth? And isn't it a productive way to cash in on a book deal? I imagine he's telling the truth now, but without an...

The new baseball hall of fame class was announced today, and for the 2nd year Ryne Sandberg didn't make it. Hall voters are certainly a particular bunch, and I can only take solace in knowing that Ryno will make it eventually. ESPN.com 's baseball writers have done their usual great job covering all the ups and downs of hall voting, especially in regards to all these great players of the 80s whose stats seem to be overshadowed by the stats of the offensive explosion of the 90s. I'm of the camp who believes players should be judged as a part of their own era, not necessarily against current hall of famers or against the statistics of other eras. From 1982 to 1992, was there a better second baseman than Ryne Sandberg in all of baseball? No. Time will prove this one, if it isn't proven already. As a Cubs fan I'm certainly pulling for Andre Dawson, Bruce Sutter, and Lee Smith, three guys who could be hanging around on HOF ballots for a while. I could enjoy t...

...I'm a horrible blogger. Maybe it's because I've never warmed up to the term "blog". But it's probably just because I'm too busy/lazy/uncreative to write often, then too guilty/embarrassed to write when I haven't in a long time. I'm also a little annoyed by New Year's resolutions. Why wait for an arbitrary date to decide to improve yourself? I guess if that's what it takes for some people, then so be it. For me, I expect whatever good habits I have will continue, and the bad ones will drag on as well. IF that changes with the new year it will be entirely coincidental. I finally finished reading Walt Unsworth's " Everest: The Mountaineering History ". In a previous post I had accidentally referred to it as "A Mountaineering History", but it's definitely "The", as in the "Big The", meaning I can't imagine another single book containing more breadth and depth on the subject. ...