On Afghanistan, Covid, and College Football
Ol' Hobbs' Thursday Thoughts!
***My fervent prayers are with the nearly 2,000 Americans and estimated 250,000 Afghan citizens who helped with the American war effort who are in grave danger this very hour due to the escalation of violence at the Karzai Airport in Kabul. Amid reports that explosions have rocked the perimeter of the American guarded airport over the past 12 hours, other reports have surfaced that an old American nemesis, ISIS, is planning to attack crowds massing outside of the airport that are away from the American protective zone.
Yes, this is a whole mess, one that very likely will require American soldiers engaging ISIS and/or the Taliban, which is also an enemy of ISIS, in the days ahead. Which is why so many people, from military experts to laypersons with a good pair of eyes and common sense, continue to wish that the exit strategy had been more carefully laid out. The history buff in me vacillates between thinking that events in Kabul are reminiscent of Saigon in 1975 one moment, to fearing that the violence and chaos surrounding the airports are about to be somewhat reminiscent of the 1940 Dunkirk extraction that saw German army and air forces slaughtering British and French forces trying to flee from France across the English Channel to Great Britain. Such fuels my prayers that remaining US citizens heed the urging of the US Embassy in Kabul to "leave immediately," due to those aformentioned "security threats outside the gates."
Stay tuned...
***So, a little over a month after veteran ESPN journalist Rachel Nichols was exposed for basically saying that rising star Maria Taylor owed her rise at the network due to her race, the network has relieved Nichols of her NBA duties.
The only question that I really have is, "what took ESPN so long?" I know that Nichols apologized on air, saying that she was “…deeply, deeply sorry...for disappointing those I hurt, particularly Maria Taylor." Nichols's apology was surely a step in the right direction and I do sense that with grace, that she will work again in the field because she is extremely talented. But ESPN's dominant coverage of a sport dominated by Black athletes begged a sanction that's deeper than just "my bad" and business as usual, thus, this removal which by no means means that Nichols cannot land on her feet at some point in time. While a sanction was necessary, it is curious from a timing standpoint in that Taylor has since left for more money at NBC. Could Taylor reverse field and head back to ESPN with a lucrative offer?
We shall soon see...
***As I often note, bullies will bully until they get punched in the mouth, literally or figuratively. While I strongly condemn literal violence towards any elected official, I do appreciate figurative fights against elected bullies who think it's their way, when it's "the other way," as the fictional Marlo Stansfield was fond of saying in HBO's classic series, "The Wire."
Here in my home state of Florida, the bully is Gov. Ron Desantis, and his pulpit has been his cries to withdraw funding from school districts that defy his anti-mask mandate. Well, as of this morning, 10 Florida school districts including Leon County, the one that Desantis's kids would attend if they weren't in private elementary and Pre-K schools, have enforced mandates without any concern whatsoever for the next infantile temper tantrum that Desantis will throw for not getting his way. Those 10 districts encompass over half of Florida's public school students and because of this courage and common sense, the Hobbservation Point extends kudos to the leaders of those districts whose acts ostensibly conclude, "to Hell with what Desantis says..."
***I played a little football and baseball back in my day, so when I read this article in The Hill that Rutgers University football star Peyton Powell is transferring schools to avoid taking a Covid vaccination, I could not help but think how teamwork and camaraderie must mean so very little to a young man who is willing to leave his teammates behind simply because he won't take a safe vaccine.
Arguably worse than young Mr. Powell's decision are the acts of new Auburn Coach Bryan Harsin, a man who will neither confirm nor deny that he has taken a vaccine but yet, has missed parts of fall camp because he was quarantined due to his own Coronavirus complications.
What doesn't make sense to me is that I distinctly remember when I was younger that my parents had to provide my immunization records to every school that I attended and that when I was grown, I had to do the same at Morehouse College, the FAMU School of Graduate Studies, and at the University of Florida College of Law. I didn't dare think "that's my private information" because I knew that failure to produce those records simply meant that I would not be allowed to attend those schools—period! Which is why I continue to struggle with the reticence being shown towards simply getting the shot and producing the results, even by star ball players and millionaire coaches across America; it makes absolutely ZERO sense to me!
***"It's beginning to look alot like football season, everywhere I go"—and I am ecstatic! The smell of freshly cut grass and the sight of trees turning colors means that I and we are heading towards four months of high school, college, and professional football bliss—and it could not come soon enough! I'm very much looking forward to watching this Saturday's matchup between Alcorn State University and North Carolina Central in the MEAC/SWAC challenge that will air on ESPN at 7:00 p.m.
I extend best wishes to the teams nearest to my heart: the FAMU High Baby Rattlers that are coached by one of my oldest friends, Cedric Jones; the Morehouse Maroon Tigers, the FAMU Rattlers, coached by another friend, Willie "Shotgun" Simmons, and the Florida Gators!
I also extend well wishes to a Middle Tennessee State University team that will feature a tailback near and dear to my heart, Amir Rasul, my little nephew/cousin who will start for the Blue Raiders as a graduate transfer from Florida State University!
Thank you for subscribing to the Hobbservation Point Newsletter. Have a great Thursday!