On China, good video

From the world of sports.

Oh my. So much confusion. So many competing priorities. So much money at stake!  I think there will ultimately be turbulent waters ahead for all sports, and it seems likely there there will be lots of litigation to settle some of it. 

I mean, the olympics chose to postpone rather than cancel because there was a huge financial stake and undoubtedly the olympics would have had to cease operations. Can't let that gravy train go!

As for college basketball, cancelling the tournament was in the best interests of the students and the universities - though they let go of lots of money. Funny though, that the Florida legislature took time out of dealing with pandemic and state issues to decide to vote on making florida state the champions of college basketball. 

And in the quirkiest twist of fate, it means that one of the best teams, who should have forfeited their season for the good of the students and university now has to. 

https://bitchindave.blogspot.com/2020/01/massive-brawl-breaks-out-at-end-of.html

Hockey and the nba are done for the year, in spite of their continuing efforts to try and come back. Ain't happening. 

Baseball is funny. Again it's about money. Some agent - whose income relies on there being games - floated a crazy idea to play games in one city. And because there's money and talk is cheap, the idea grew into something stupid. There are many reasons why, but my two biggest are (1) as David Samson pointed out its impossible to test players every single day. 1,000 or so tests per day, when the general population can't get tested? Makes sense. 

And (2) money. Baseball's tv deals in regional markets is what drives most money for the team. If they have to air games in a market that's not in the same time zone, or at strange times to accommodate the small number of stadiums, they won't generate revenue. Deal breaker. 

So don't believe the hype. The reality is that it's unlikely they'd get anything started until August, at the earliest. And they'd have to warm up again.  Which means the season is a wash. 

And now to football. College students typically report in late July to start conditioning. There really was no spring football, so they'd have to compress a lot into a short timeframe. But. There also is the problem that nearly every major university has moved to online classes for the second half of the summer - essentially meaning the universities will be closed until sometime in August. They'd have to return and start the program after that. So I would argue that there will be no college football until late September / early October, at the earliest. 

Pro football wants to go at it full steam ahead. It's all about this illusion that they're well run and that somehow what they do matters. So the draft comes up in conversation a lot. You know scouts have meaning and they have to pick players. Some in team management want more time to do those evaluations and done want more picks. Both are hilarious. 

The draft is a way to allocate the top talent among teams, to level the playing field. It's a crapshoot, and in general too much emphasis is placed on the outcome. Who can say how a 22 year old will perform in a year or two with money and fame. 

Adding draft picks? You can still sign these I drafted players. So who cares? Just put offers out there and be done with it. 

But the one that made me spit out my morning coffee was Jim Harbaugh saying he was worried about a virtual draft because someone might hack it. I'm not quite sure what he means. Someone might join the draft that doesn't belong? Someone might submit a pick for team? Someone might alter the outcome and pick all kickers for a team that they don't like?

Hilarious. 

Who knows when they might start. Or if they'll play in front of crowds. And the scary part for the league is: what happens if there are no crowds and interest is either really high or really low?

And one last thing and it's about the money. Several of the big broadcasters have met with ad executives and league executives to keep everyone happy. Gotta make sure the money train is still running! Because the alternative is...more litigation. 

Short. Sweet. To the point. That's the beauty Dave's iPhone.

Fact-checking Trump’s optimistic hydroxychloroquine claims - STAT

Would it surprise you to learn that mr. Trump has a stake in the company that owns the drug? It shouldn't.

My question is, will the idiots that blindly follow this man start taking this drug? And will this turn out like the tragic following of Jim Jones and his infamous kool-aid mass suicide?

When are people going to wake up and see him for what he is? A snake oils salesman. A fraud. A self aggrandizing fool who is only after your money and the power that comes with it.

The answer is rhetorical. It won't happen. As Mark Twain famously said "I have found that common sense isn't so common"

https://www.statnews.com/2020/04/06/trump-hydroxychloroquine-fact-check/

Still not clear on this...I guess he’s embodying “Florida man?”

Florida's gov desantis issued his executive order about safer at home. It was different than what he said it would have in it, in some ways and wasn't specific enough in others. Lots of confusion from cities and counties. Lots of questions. So he created a second one that...he talks about but hasn't posted or sent yet.

And as far as the religious exemptions he included in there, he said that he wants people to congregate for Easter ... and that he doesn't think government can regulate religious institutions.

Ummmm. They're business where people go in groups greater than 10, right?

Why? Just why?

Oh the irony.

"Senator" Ron Johnson believes they economy should re-open because this is no worse than the flu. And besides, he says, "death is an unavoidable part of life"

And this appears on his official government website. Tone deaf? Or just following orders from Republican Jesus (TM)?

Let this sink in.

"Roughly 280 million masks in warehouses around the U.S. were purchased by foreign buyers on Monday alone, according to Forbes. A FEMA spokesperson said the agency 'has not actively encouraged or discouraged U.S. companies from exporting overseas'."

And now mike pence says he'll stop. Because he got caught I suppose.

Do you see it yet? Trump does not care about you. It's all about him. He's inept and should be removed from office immediately.

MLB season likely to start without fans in quest for most games

I saw this and thought "hey, every team is going to emulate what the marlins have been doing for two decades!"

https://nypost.com/2020/03/31/mlb-season-likely-to-start-without-fans-in-quest-for-most-games-possible/