Tuesday, August 02, 2005
for a change....GOOD NEWS
FOR ONCE, THE NEWS IS MOSTLY GOOD. First, the amazing Steve Yzerman has agreed to play for the Red Wings this year. This will be season #22 for the man who has arguably elbowed his way past Al Kaline and Gordie Howe to become the most popular athlete in the history of Detroit. Probably the gutsiest player in the history of sports, he will skate one more year on that knee most people couldn't even walk on. For those teams lucky enough to play the Wings at home, it certainly guarantees at least one sellout, as Stevie Y takes one last curtain call around the league. There is a reason that TV ratings go up by 10% anytime the Wings play. It is largely the love and respect Yzerman has earned that has made the Red Wings America's team. And when the Wings come to Chicago, be assured I'll be there for the curtain call.ITEM#2 : THE MICHIGAN SUPREME COURT has ruled that property owners on the Great Lakes cannot restrict people from walking the beach or swimming in front of their property. In a unanimous ruling, the justices said that there is a public right of way that extends three feet beyond the normal high water mark. This will almost certainly be the final word, as the US Supreme Court has already ruled similarly on the midwest's navigable rivers, streams and creeks.
This is an extremely important victory for the state of Michigan and it's people. Tourism has passed automotive and furniture to become the biggest industry in Michigan. Tourism brings in billions of dollars and supports tens of thousands of jobs in a state with a struggling industrial economy. The tourism industry is built largely around the beaches of lakes Michigan, Huron, St.Clair and Erie, and the spectacularly scenic shoreline of Superior. Keeping the beaches open for tourists and locals is a must if southern Lake Michigan is to keep it's reputation as North America's Riviera.
random thoughts:
I think we should start a pool on how long it will be before Ambassador Bolton blows up and embarrasses America and pisses off the rest of the world. Think days or weeks, not months.
Look for Rick Nash to be by far the best player in the NHL this year.
Don't be too quick to jump all over Rafeal Palmeiro for his steroid suspension (I'll explain tomorrow)!
Don't look now, but Indiana's Evan Bayh is outfundraising his rivals for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. And he is in Iowa kissing babies and behinds like nobody's business. More good news for Bayh, the highly respected and fabulously wealthy businessman Warren Buffet is said to look favorably on him.
