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The Bluegrass Blues Podcast: Episode 33
Money makes the world go round: Buying “free speech” in religion, politics and sports, and paying for silence. The corpse of Schrödinger’s senator wheels through the U.S. Capitol, while MAGA policies kill Kentucky kids. And finding refuge in bugs, sports and art. This podcast includes: My synagogue’s rabbi began Yom Kippur with a sermon apologizing…
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Headed to a big game
Louisville football tomorrow hosts SMU at 3:30. This one goes a long way in determining the Cardinals chances of going to the national playoffs, since the Mustangs rank 16th nationally, while the Cards are seven places behind them at 23rd. But how do programs reach that ranking. A lot of it is money. Take a…
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A net win for volleyball in Kentucky
Toward the end of our most recent podcast, we reflected on ways to take a break from today’s political, social and economic turmoil. One source of enjoyment: the University of Louisville’s volleyball team. The chart above is from the Facebook group Supervolley.org, and here’s what it says about its No. 3 and No. 4 ranked…
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The Bluegrass Blues Podcast: Episode 32
Driving from Paradise Found to Paradise Lost; MAGA politicians think (and say) their constituents are idiots; Democrat faces a DINO in the Louisville mayor’s race; racism behind a local data center; a Bluegrass philosopher’s take on technology; how citizens can get involved in coming elections, and finding entertainment in bugs and sports. We make references…
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Ali Museum will honor a civil rights champion athlete
The Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville recently announced that its Humanitarian of the Year Award will go to former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The ceremony is schedule for Nov. 7. Kaepernick, pictured above wearing No. 7, was discarded by the NFL, not because of subpar play, but because he actually took a knee…
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A note on the World Cup
I’m wearing my Belgian National Team football jersey for today’s World Cup match with the U.S., because a certain Orange Cretin has joined forces with FIFA, generally known as a corrupt institution, to cheat in a the world’s largest sporting event. Here are a few views from abroad: OK. The world hates us already because…
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The Bluegrass Blues Podcast: Episode 29
The richest get richer, legislators don’t legislate, and representatives don’t represent. But at least there are diversions! The Richest People In The World A week after announcing budget cuts, Kentucky gov moves millions to offset them 37 municipalities request Beshear’s gas tax reduction after KY lawmakers question the move KY gov blasts GOP leader over…
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A political sports diversion
I am a huge fan of watch parties for major sports events. I was in Paris in 2007 when the Rugby World Cup appeared on a big screen on the Eiffel Tower. I was in Brussels in 2006 when the FIFA World Cup was on a big screen at the Bourse downtown. I was in…
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Let’s put billionaire donations in perspective: the Ballmers
One genre of news coverage I hate is the “generous billionaire” story. This one’s from Forbes: After an exceptionally tough year for public media, Connie Ballmer, billionaire philanthropist and wife of former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, donated $80 million to support NPR’s future. I don’t have to read any more than this, which is cool, because I don’t have…
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The Bluegrass Blues Podcast: Episode 27
Election Day in Kentucky and its implications, IVF in the courts and we’re out of town at home and abroad. CORRECTION: The GOP senator who lost his primary was Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. We incorrectly said it was a North Carolina senator. In this podcast, we refer to: Republican fights to survive Trump’s wrath in…
