Today's Tids Issue 3,113
Opening Stuff:

Have you realized how difficult it has become to find a loaf of good pumpernickel bread?
 
How great was it to see T-e-a-m win the NBA title. San Antonio was incredibly dominate, continually spinning the heads of the vanquished Heat with magical passing. Sports teams usually try to emulate winners, and how great would it be for all if the Spurs became the new paragon. And “Old man Riverwalk”, Tim Duncan, the role model for every young aspirant. —The Rangers played tough up to the last double overtime. LA was supposed to win in a walk, but what’s on paper is generally written in invisible ink come NHL playoff time.  –Martin Kaymer won the Open in my estimation on the fifth hole Saturday when he it a shot out of the Pinehurst Crap over two hundred yards setting upon eagle putt, and stopping the bleeding. He continually made great shots from trouble, while the rest of the field succumbed. He looks more like #1 than Scott…to me. --If I knew anything about soccer, I’d, try to interpret what all of the whooping is all about.
 
According to a local wag The New York Post characterizes “Dead broke for a liberal like Hillary, as having to spend your own money”.
 
If some of this morning mess seems more rapturous than usual, it’s because my typing fingers were trying to emulate the emotions, the feel of the pianist Alfred Brendel playing Beethoven’s 4th Piano Concerto. Ahhhh, the melody of well chosen words lightly touched. Whatever that means.
 
The Question:
Casey Kasem was born in 1932. What do you think were the top ten songs then?
 
The Headlines:
--US Begins Removing Some Personnel From Baghdad Embassy; Iran Warns Of Foreign Intervention In Iraq; US To Talk With Iran On Solving Iraq Problems.
--Gold Higher On Iraq Violence; Wall Street Trying To Sort Out* Impact Of Middle East.
--Romney Blasts Hillary As “Clueless”; Says Her Around The World Huffing And Puffing As SoS Produced Nothig; Said She And “O” Continually Underestimated Opposition.
--Russia Cuts Gas Supply To Ukraine As Beleaguered Country Misses Payments.
--Terrorists Attack Kenyan Coastal Town Killing Dozens; Muslims Appear To Have Been Spared.
--Hamas Blamed For Kidnappings Of Israel Teens; US Teen Among Missing.
--#1 On Top 40 Casey Kasem Dies.
 
Rosemary Woods shows up at the IRS, Department:
The IRS never loses anything, except emails that probably would incriminate the agency, and perhaps even bring down a White House. This amazingly convenient loss of the Learner records is definitely not passing the smell test.
 
All you have to know about Afghanistan after the US pullout is that the waiting in the wings Taliban yesterday cut-off the fingers of voters in the just concluded elections.
 
The new restaurant trend around here seems to be trying to figure out how to put the word “Oyster “ into the name.
 
I’m hearing that the Hillary Clinton camp is surprised and a little disturbed that the press is asking tough follow-up questions during these so-called puff interviews on the book tour.
 
*How to use Middle East aggression to manipulate stock prices.
 
The only mistake about Cleveland, the great city on the lake, was in the spelling of the name. A hardy old guy from Canterbury Conn on the RI border, Moses Cleaveland trekked off to Horace Greeley land to open the Western Reserve of Connecticut. (The “a” in Cleveland was dropped in 1831 so that the “The Cleveland Advertiser” could fit it on the Masthead). Cleveland was the prefect place for Western Conn mainly because it had been successfully inhabited around the river/lake system for about ten thousand years! Now, that kind of continuity builds character. And Character, Cleveland has. While Wall Street churned money, Cleveland built the wealth in America upon the strong backs and creative brains of good people. Cleveland was the US manufacturing Center in 1900, becoming the US leader in all that made America great -- Rockefeller’s Oil, Woolens, Steel, Machine Tools, Tobacco, Ship Building, Electric Lighting, Industrial controls, Publishing… and yes. Rock and Roll. Oh yeah, Cleveland’s rivers are on fire, hot from jazz in clubs circling the intricate, working waterways. Downtown excotement is part of the rebirth of the city that dominated US manufacturing. Innately great places always come up winners, when there are rational thinking, independent, never give up the ship people as a rock solid societal basis. As one independent thinking police officer said during prohibition --“Hell, I’m not going to arrest nobody for doing what I like to do myself”. All this city needs today is the return of Mark Hanna to bring back Republicans to this city of good food and totally amazing people.
 
Our next quick look at American cities will be at those seemingly left behind as the country changed. I’m thinking we’ll travel a little east from Cleveland to Clarksburg WVA.
 
I have to admit that pepper plants are among the most beautiful in a garden. Eating peppers, or having them touch my food, is where the ugliness begins.
 
I really don’t know where I come down on paying college athletes. It’s probably because I am a traditionalist, still holding out for the purity of college students beating other college students for the good of ole’ State U. But of course that train left the station years ago. So that brings us to the scholarship question. Kids start specializing sports at an early age because visions of money for college dance in parents eyes. 99% of kids who get scholarships to play couldn’t be happier, enjoying their sport while getting a solid free or lower cost education. But, what about the many of the “Big  League” college athletes many not pure academic material who are put into remedial and crimp courses. Are they getting full value for their talents? Is a scholarship devoid of education producing an essentially worthless degree compensation for play, if compensation is what the argument is about?
 
Courtney Cox was fifty yesterday. That seems as though it may be significant to those in the middle years of life.
 
Many critics have panned The Hill’s book, but Madam Secretary’s enthusiasts point out that it is still among the big sellers on Amazon. Of course that is meaningless since the worst movies of the year always set all of the box office records.
 
Some people are just plain embarrassed to be caught shopping in super discount stores like Job Lot. “Hi, what brings you here,” I ask, catching them unaware. They smile quickly, and begin looking around while planning an excuse before escape. Their eyes latch onto the exit and their feet start creeping towards it. Then they look down at their hands and see the olive oil and crackers…”Heh, heh”, they say, as their face reddens being caught in the act of  relishing the victory of finding super bargains in the crowded undisciplined aisles. “I heard there were good buys here, and I was just passing by on my way to the club.” I just look at them and smile. I don’t have to say another word.
 
The Answer:
Numer was Fred Astaire and Leo Reisman singing Cole Porter’s “Night and Day”. Number’s 2 an3 were both “Brother, can you spare a dime, but 2 by Bing Crosby and 3 by Rudy Valee. 4. Was Louis Armstrong “All of Me”; five Bing Crosby and Mills Brothers “Dinah”; six Crosby and “Please”; Seven was another depression song by Ted Lewis, “A Shanty in Old Shanty Town”; Eight was Duke Ellington’s great “It don’t mean a thing if ain’t got that Swing”; Lullaby of the Leaves” by George Olsen was nine; Mr. New Years Guy Lombardo had 10 with “Paradise”. Among other songs and performers at the top that year of “The Casey” were Paul Whiteman, Kate Smith, Cab Calloway, Tommy Dorsey, Ted Fio Rito and Maurice Chavalier. The songs were We Just Couldn’t Say Good-bye, River Stay Away From My door, Too Many Tears, Where the Blue of the Night, I’ve Got The World On A String, Take My Hand Precious Lord, How Deep Is The Ocean, Willow Weep For Me, Mimi and Say It Isn’t So.
 
Jump into the new week: