The month of ghosts

August arrived this morning. For many people August is vacation month, summer's last hurrah. Here in Minnesota August is the month of the State Fair, a huge part of our collective consciousness. It's a month of pennant races, pre-season football, golf championships and some of the best, most accessible sunsets of the year.

It's my least favorite month, by a long shot. Everything I mentioned above is important to me. We have had some wonderful times during August, but it is the month of ghosts. It is the month that I lost both my parents. I've discussed my mom at some length in this feature earlier this year, and there's a lot more to say about her amazing, contradictory, awful yet fascinating life. But today I'm going to talk a little about Dad.

Dad was born in 1933, a child of the Depression. He came of age in the late 1940s and early 1950s, a time of tremendous upheaval in our nation. His generation is something of an afterthought in the American pageant. He was still a boy during WWII, but was a grown man with young children during the 1960s. There has not been a president from his generation, and it is quite likely that there never will be. No one ever called his generation the greatest, nor were his contemporaries indulged as the Baby Boomers are.

Dad, like his contemporaries, was simply expected to participate. He was expected to graduate from high school, and he did. He went into the Army in between Korea and Vietnam, serving two years in Europe. He came back, went to school and married a pretty young executive secretary. He went off to the big city of Chicago to make his fortune. But because his wife suffered from demons that he could never quite grasp, he decided to return to the relative safety of the Fox River Valley. He worked hard, traveling extensively for business. He played hard, too. He liked a cocktail and a cigar and often had a set of golf clubs in the trunk just in case an opportunity arose. He had a warm sense of humor, an expansive if conservative world view and a trusting nature. He had friends all over the state of Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. He was, in short, a hell of a guy.

But the defining relationship of his life, his first marriage, was disastrous. His wife's mental illness was an explosive, insidious beast that caused him almost unbelievable grief. He tried to protect his children from the rages, but the task was too large for him to bear at times. He soldiered on, as members of his generation do, for 13 long years, but after a while he could not take it any longer and he eventually left. It would be six years before he could finally help his children find a better life under his new roof. And then, only seven years later, he was gone, dead from complications following open heart surgery, on August 30, 1990.

Dad died less than a month after Jill and I announced our engagement. I am comforted to know that he knew I had found a wonderful woman to marry. But he never met any of his grandchildren. It's a shame, really. And while I think of Dad nearly every day, it's always in August, the month of ghosts, where it gets toughest of all.

Eddie gets religion

We made a quick trip back to Appleton last weekend for my nephew's baptism. Young Eddie is a strapping young lad with a full head of hair and very long fingers. Although there's not a lot of tall people on either side of the family, this young boy has a chance to tower over his parents and his cousins once everyone has grown up. The baptism itself was nice and it was good to see my family again.

It has been said that the birth of every child is another vote that the world not only will go on, but that it should. My nephew is a perfect example of that.

Appleton, ho!

Not exactly the most inspiring call, but what are you gonna do? We're going to load the family up for a quick trip back to Appleton this weekend. My nephew Eddie will be baptized on Sunday at St. John's Church in lovely Little Chute. We're only going to be gone one night, but it will be good to see my siblings and get a change of scenery. As readers of this feature well know, I've been out of work for some time now and while we're surviving this blow, it's been getting more difficult as the weeks go on. I haven't left the state of Minnesota since Jill and I test-drove the Portland area in December, so we're long overdue for a change of scenery.

Every time I return to my home town, I get to resume my ambivalent relationship with it. I've long believed that Appleton was a great place to grow up, but throughout my youth I was eager to find a larger canvas and I haven't lived there for well over 20 years now. In many ways, Appleton is a very different place than it was in the 1970s. The population has swelled and has opened its doors to the world, for better and worse. The Appleton I grew up in was prosperous, provincial and sometimes uncurious about the larger world. It sent a famous magician (Harry Houdini), a largely forgotten early female literary lion (Edna Ferber), a genuine American hero (Rocky Bleier) and a greatly reviled villain (Joe McCarthy) into the national scene. Some 20 years ago now, Sports Illustrated chose Appleton as Sports City, USA, for the varied sporting opportunities available there. It's a baseball town that has sent numerous teams to the Little League World Series, but it also lies in the shadow of Green Bay, professional football's holy of holies. In the 20 years since, Appleton has continued to prosper, growing into a modern small city. As Appleton has grown, its contradictions have become more visible, but from my perch 290 miles to the west, it seems like a better place now than it was when I grew up. It has changed, and so have I.

Mo' Bulldog

It was passing strange that Mike (the Bulldog) Hatch, the endorsed DFL candidate for governor, made a formal complaint to the Minnesota News Council about a story that the Star Tribune had not run. Since there was no article, it seemed especially weird. The Strib reporters had been asking about Hatch's parking tickets, which were part of the dirt that Matt Entenza's oppo investigation turned up. Ordinarily, parking tickets are not that big a deal per se.

But the question is far more interesting when you are asking where the parking took place. The Strib decided to run an article today. Here it is - draw your own conclusions:

Hatch was smear target, a sheriff suspects

Location of attorney general's parking ticket spurred a private investigator's interest, says Dakota County's Gudmundson.

Mike Kaszuba and Pat Doyle, Star Tribune
Last update: July 26, 2006 – 10:54 PM

When Dakota County Sheriff Don Gudmundson heard last year that someone was asking his office about an old parking ticket issued to Attorney General Mike Hatch, he said he quickly became suspicious.

Gudmundson said Wednesday that he is convinced that a man working for a Chicago firm, hired by former state attorney general candidate Matt Entenza, tried to use the ticket to link Hatch to a park-overlook known as a gay-cruising area as part of what he surmised was a smear attempt.
He said any effort to link Hatch to the area and its reputation was "pure crap." But he said the firm may have thought it had "won the lottery" when it saw the ticket was issued to Hatch's car parked at the overlook.

Entenza was unavailable for comment Wednesday. Earlier this month, he acknowledged hiring the firm to explore the workings of Hatch's office, yet said he was "horrified" to learn later that broader inquiries were made without his knowledge or approval.

The firm has confirmed it collected more public documents than Entenza requested.
But if Gudmundson's theory is correct, the inquiry into the 2003 ticket illustrates the tough and unsparing digging into Hatch's personal as well as professional life by the firm, Gragert Research. After reports of the broader investigation surfaced, Entenza withdrew from the attorney general race. Gragert did not return a phone call Wednesday seeking a comment about Gudmundson's conclusions. V.J. Bustos, the man who sought details about the parking ticket on behalf of Gragert, also did not return a phone call. Both have declined repeated requests to discuss their roles.

Hatch didn't comment Wednesday on the sheriff's conclusion. His spokeswoman, Leslie Sandberg, said he was moving on to other issues "rather than rehashing what is now history."

Antennaes up
Gudmundson said when he heard about the inquiry he quickly surmised -- because of the location where the ticket was issued -- that the goal was to find potentially unflattering information about Hatch.

"I had no idea who was looking," Gudmundson said. "I didn't have a hint. I knew ... it would have been, what I would consider, opposition research."

Gragert's investigation of the ticket surfaced after the Star Tribune reported on July 12 that Entenza had hired the firm to conduct an inquiry into possible government spending by Hatch on furniture and artwork for his personal office and on travel. Bustos filed a request for such financial details, and the newspaper later obtained documents showing he also asked Dakota County authorities about the parking ticket.

It was issued to Hatch's car in December 2003 when it was parked after hours at the Big Rivers Trail scenic overlook parking lot in Mendota Heights.

Hatch's office has said that he and his wife each drove their cars to the Big Rivers Trail overlook, left their Buick at the site and drove in one car to a party they attended that night. The next day, they retrieved the Buick, discovered the ticket and promptly paid it.

Bustos inquired about the ticket in early 2005.
Said Gudmundson: "My antennaes were up right away, from the beginning, because why would anybody be interested in this petty parking ticket?"

He said he learned of Entenza's hiring of the firm only after reading about it in the newspapers. "My senior staff, my chief deputy and other people, they knew exactly what this investigator and Mr. Entenza was trying to find," Gudmundson said.

But Entenza previously said the broader inquiry wasn't his idea. He said Gragert, "in an effort to impress me and other clients in Minnesota," went far beyond his requests and conducted a full-scale investigation of Hatch's professional and personal history. "It's not right, it's not something I condoned," Entenza said.

More reputation than fact
Dakota County officials said the scenic overlook's reputation as a cruising area for gay men, while not generally well known, also is based more on reputation than fact.

"I don't know if the general public would know that," said Sgt. Brian McGinn of the Sheriff's Office's parks, lakes and trails unit. "I bet if you asked 90 percent of my friends, they'd have no clue."

Gudmundson said he telephoned Hatch in March 2005 to alert him to the inquiries about the parking ticket -- a move he said he made because Hatch was the chief law enforcement officer in Minnesota and, as a Burnsville resident, was also a constituent of Gudmundson's in Dakota County.

"He was surprised there was this reputation," the sheriff said. "He's like, 'What? I didn't know that.' "

Hatch this week referred to the call in a letter he sent to the Minnesota News Council objecting to questions from Star Tribune reporters about the ticket and other matters. Reporters asked about circumstances leading to the ticket after learning that Gragert had inquired about it.
The sheriff said he believed Hatch's explanation that he received the parking ticket after leaving a car there overnight because he and his wife were attending a social event and did not want to drive two cars.

Gudmundson said he kept a file on the episode and faxed a copy, including the private investigator's request for information, to Hatch. "I knew way back in March [2005] that I was going to get caught in the middle of this," he said. "It troubled me the whole time because I thought, you know, they're going to try to pin this on Mike Hatch."

Gudmundson said he is not a supporter of Hatch's gubernatorial bid against Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who has also been a Dakota County resident. "I don't have a dog in this fight," he said. "The governor's my friend. Mr. Hatch is my friend

Burning Bright

Yep, it is time to talk about the Twins again. It was pretty easy to be skeptical of the Twins' recent run, since many of the games were (a) at home, and (b) against weak sister National League teams. But a 5-1 road trip against two credible division opponents, Cleveland and Chicago, indicates that the Twins are actually for real. Now comes the test - the Detroit Tigers are coming to town for a crucial three-game series.

The Detroit Tigers, only three years ago, were one of the worst teams in baseball history. For most of the 2003 campaign, they were challenging the record of the infamous 1962 New York Mets, who managed to win only 25% of their games. The '62 Mets were known for having a collection of has-beens (Richie Ashburn, the first Frank Thomas) and never weres (nearly the entire pitching staff). They were an expansion team and were brutally bad. The 2003 Tigers were different, though - they had three pretty good starting pitchers, but simply could not hit enough to win much. The young pitchers in question - Jeremy Bonderman, Mike Maroth and Rich Robertson, are still part of the squad, while this year the Tigers have unveiled Justin Verlander, a strapping young right-hander who has been as effective as Francisco Liriano has been for the Twins. Add a little hitting, actually a lot of hitting, and suddenly the Tigers are winning 67% of their games, on a current pace to win 109 games. In 2003, they won 43. It's an amazing transformation.

This year, the Tigers have been busily pounding lumps on the Twins, beating them repeatedly earlier in the year, often by shutout. This time it is likely to be different. The Twins have been retooling on the fly all season, replacing the dubious starters of April (Tony Batista, Lew Ford, Ruben Sierra) with significantly more productive players from within their organization (Jason Kubel, Jason Bartlett, Nick Punto). Even injuries to longtime mainstays Shannon Stewart and Torii Hunter have not mattered that much, as players such as Jason Tyner have been key contributors. The Twins have been frighteningly good since Memorial Day, winning 34 of their past 42 games. It should be a fun weekend at the Dome.

Without fear or favor (or content)

Well, the Minnesota Senate race is starting to heat up, and the two major candidates have now hit the airwaves with introductory advertisements. Amy Klobuchar, the DFL candidate, has come out of the gate with two ads touting two separate, non-impressive accomplishments. The first ad discussed her role in putting a corrupt appellate judge in jail for stealing from a mentally incompetent person for whom the judge served as conservator, while the second ad touted her efforts to extend hospital time for new mothers from 24 hours after birth to 48 hours after birth. Both ads sound real good, until you think about what she’s actually saying. In the case of the judge, it wasn’t exactly a profile in courage for Klobuchar’s office to prosecute the case. The evidence was overwhelming and the judge did not mount a vigorous defense. Any district attorney would have done exactly what Klobuchar did. In the second case, Klobuchar talked about her own experience after her daughter was born. Her daughter ended up having to spend time in the neo-natal intensive care unit (NICU) before she could go home, but Klobuchar was required by her insurance company to be discharged from the hospital 24 hours after she gave birth. As it happens, my family was similarly situated – my son was born a month early (but healthy) and my wife had been on bed rest for a month prior to a bout of pre-term labor that required her hospitalization for five days the month before my son was born. You can argue that mothers should have an extra day in the hospital to recover, but the implication of the ad is that Klobuchar’s newborn daughter was somehow imperiled by limiting Klobuchar’s hospital stay. That is not how it works, of course: once the child is born, it becomes a separate patient and no insurance carrier forces a child out of the NICU, no matter what the expenses turn out to be. Klobuchar’s slogan for the campaign is “Without fear or favor.” Based on the ads she’s run so far, she seems to be bragging about her bravery in prosecuting a judge who was caught red-handed, and she seems to believe she was entitled to a favor (another night of hospital care) because her child was in the NICU. Is that too harsh an assessment? I don’t think so.

Then there’s Mark Kennedy, whose opening ad is simply bizarre. He again reintroduces us to his family, who have authentic Meen-uh-SOH-tuh accents and who prattle on about how Kennedy had to share a bedroom with three brothers, who are shown sitting on a bunk bed with the candidate. Then the family assures voters that Kennedy is not a party guy, showing Kennedy wearing a party hat in grainy footage. Then various family members praise him for being an accountant. As Dave Barry would say, I am not making this up. I don’t know how any of this helps to make Kennedy’s case. Kennedy has defeated three separate DFLers in the past three elections, but Klobuchar is not boring (like David Minge) nor a petulant limousine liberal (like Janet Robert) or a well-meaning novice (like Patty Wetterling). He won’t win unless he figures out Klobuchar’s weakness and exploits it remorselessly. Here’s a hint for Mr. Kennedy – she’s a lightweight. Problem is, based on the opening ad, it would be easy to conclude that Kennedy is a lightweight, too.

You must stop shooting at us so we can attend to our mission of hurling you into the Mediterranean

That appears to be the message that Israel is getting from Hezbollah, which has been getting a great big can of whoop-ass since they attacked northern Israel two weeks ago. I can’t believe that those who are calling for a cease-fire actually believe that it would hold, or do any good at all. You have to be either stupid or cynical to believe otherwise. So which is it, do you think?
I’m guessing that you can divide things between the cynical (like the Syrians) and the stupid (like the peaceniks). Then there are the anti-Semites, who are both stupid and cynical. But the good news is that the current U.S. government shows no sign of putting any real pressure on Israel to stop doing what is necessary, i.e., blowing away as many Hezbollah types as necessary.

Moments of Clarity - Revisited

Back when I started this feature, I had a number of posts under the heading "Moments of Clarity." A moment of clarity comes when something that should be obvious, but is obscured, becomes clear to everyone. We have had at least a few moments of clarity this week.

1. The events in Israel and southern Lebanon, where the IDF has been fighting back against the terrorist organization Hezbollah, have brought unusual clarity. Ever since the British bugged out of the region in the 1920s, there have been countless squabbles over the region variously known as Israel, Palestine, the Holy Land, the West Bank, etc. The struggles over this land have occupied various governments and have been on the world stage ever since. Israel, a sovereign nation with well-established democratic institutions, has been under attack for nearly 60 years. The current battle against Hezbollah has provided conclusive proof that Israel's enemies, no matter what they say for public consumption, are implacable, and that the only solution that will mollify them is the complete destruction of the Israeli state. Once again, we have heard voices urging that the Israelis back down, that they accept a "cease-fire," that they sublimate their future to the ministration of UN peacekeepers, etc. This is the counsel of people like Madeline Albright, who apparently was U.S. Secretary of State at some point. One problem - Hezbollah is already violating various UN resolutions, so it's really hard to see how another resolution will solve anything. Moment of clarity - people who expect the UN to solve world problems are foolish.
2. Matt Entenza's bumbling bid to succeed Mike Hatch as Attorney General of Minnesota ended this week amid a welter of scandals regarding his political activities and the murky responses he provided as explanations/justifications. Entenza left the race only six hours prior to the filing deadline for the primary. Somehow, by the time the deadline passed, five other DFLers were on the ballot, including former congressman Bill Luther and Steve Kelley, a state senator from Hopkins who lost the DFL gubernatorial endorsement to Mr. Hatch. This lineup of candidates has produced a cavalcade of yawns from most Minnesotans. Moment of clarity -- there are a hell of a lot of DFL politicians in this state and most of them are pretty lackluster.

Delusions are tough to relinquish, and what is clear at this moment will probably become opaque again, since there remain many, many people who want to believe that things would be better if only we had more "progressive" leadership, both in St. Paul and in Washington. It's worth remembering - the lies that are most destructive are the lies you tell yourself.

Good Questions

Good Questions

It’s a cliché to say that old habits die hard, but like most clichés, the truth is evident. One of my worst habits is that I continue to watch television newscasts, especially at 10 p.m. I’ve been a consistent watcher of the late news ever since my parents relaxed my bedtime back in the early 70s, so my habit has lasted for over 30 years now. Back in Wisconsin, it seemed that most of the local news involved bad traffic accidents and barn fires – this was apparently an especially acute problem in the Manitowoc area, based on reports by “Lakeshore Bureau” chief Carmen Winkler back on WBAY news. There was something almost soothing about these shows, with the calm litany of misfortune, followed by the avuncular weatherman, then the smattering of Packers news. A thin but nutritious gruel, and served comfortably warm.

Things change, though, and now watching a 10 p.m. newscast has become increasingly difficult. It’s almost like a toothache – you know you shouldn’t put your tongue up against the aching tooth, but you can’t help yourself. My wife and I typically watch WCCO, the long-time CBS flagship that has been, for better and worse, the gold standard of television journalism in the Twin Cities since the medium began 50+ years ago. The 10 p.m. newscast is a marvel of market research and focus group dynamics; news is shaped to fit templates and is presented quickly and typically without context. This can be irritating, especially when the earnest anchors and reporters prattle on about something that is demonstrably false, but it’s often worse when the news folks try to frame their reporting within a context of their choosing.

For most of this year, WCCO has decided to run a series of reports under the heading of “Project Energy.” The tone and tenor of these reports have been that of a jeremiad, essentially taking all of us to task for our profligate energy use. We’ve been treated to reporting that has asserted that we are now past “peak oil,” that global warming (sorry, I mean global climate change, since somehow global warming has made some places cooler) is quickly destroying the world, that we continue to use SUVs, which are apparently the mark of the beast. It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for an Escalade driver to park at Ridgedale, I guess. Anyway, WCCO earlier this week asked, through their “Good Question” feature, “why aren’t we using less gasoline?” Since prices have been within sniffing distance of $3/gallon, apparently we were all going to stop using our cars and join the enlightened souls (and panhandlers) on the light rail. But it isn’t happening. Odd, huh?

I’d like to propose a few answers to this “Good Question.”

· Not everyone wants to live and work in the urban parts of the Twin Cities. Minneapolis and St. Paul are both lovely, but urban life has its hassles and many suburban areas are more peaceful.
· If you work in Blaine and live in Golden Valley, light rail is useless.
· Try to carry $75 worth of groceries on the bus sometime.
· The light rail won’t get you from your job to your son’s 6 p.m. baseball game at the Lily Pond. A car will.
· Panhandlers are never in your car.
· Cars don’t have second-hand marijuana smoke unless you put it there yourself. Bus stops on Hennepin Avenue often do.

There’s too much to unpack in a single post, but the war on the internal combustion engine is not going nearly as well as some would hope. I don’t begrudge anyone who chooses to use public transportation – I rode the 4 bus from my house to downtown Minneapolis for well over 5 years, and took other buses (the 33, the 94H, etc.) when I lived elsewhere prior to that. But making the commitment to doing without a car means that you have to change your life in fundamental ways. For most people, it’s not an option.

Rich Becker, please pick up the white courtesy phone...

It hasn't come to that, yet, but the Twins are dropping like flies. In the past week Lew Ford, Shannon Stewart, Torii Hunter and now Nick Punto have been injured. The Twins have had to bring up Jason Tyner, Josh Rabe, Rondell White and Rob Wilfong to replace them.

Okay, okay, I know that Wilfong played for the Twins back in the 70s, so it wasn't him. But I know this much - as much as I need a job, I wouldn't want Terry Ryan's job right about now. This is an amazing run of injuries and Ron Gardenhire is running out of bullets. If this keeps up, the Twins lineup will look like the Cantina scene in Star Wars.

"Is this mike on? Oh, #%@!"

So George W. Bush used a barnyard epithet in a conversation with Tony Blair yesterday. It's a scandal, dammit!

Oops, did I just say that? What the #%*@# was I thinking about? Man, did it again. If my dad were here, he'd clean out my mouth with a bar of #@*@# soap.

We'd talk more about the substance of the President's remarks, but I don't want to get into that #*&%.

Stick a fork in Entenza

He's done. The Star Tribune (www.startribune.com) has the information. Lots of rumors going around right now, but only one declared DFLer in the race, a young (only 29) woman named Mattson, whose father and grandfather were political figures in Minnesota. Other potential candidates are Mike Freeman (Amy Klobuchar's predecessor as Hennepin County DA and the son of Orville Freeman) and Bill Luther, the former congressman. This race is getting a heck of a lot more interesting.

We'll do a little more schadenfreude on Mr. Entenza when I have time. Put it this way - even if you are a DFLer, this guy was the poster child for everything that's wrong about modern Democrats. The contrast between him and the other heavyweights on the ticket (Hatch, Klobuchar, etc.) could not have been more stark. Good riddance.

Memories of Governor Skip Humphrey

Minnesotans look back fondly on the administration of former Governor Skip Humphrey. Humphrey brought his well-known personal charisma and decisive character to bear in solving myriad issues the state faced following his 1998 election victory over former St. Paul mayor Norm Coleman and wrestler-turned-politician Jesse Ventura. Governor Humphrey was able to parlay his Minnesota successes all the way to the White House, where he ably serves President John Kerry as his Vice President.

Wait, you don't remember that? Really, it was all right there in the Star Tribune. I remember reading the results of their Minnesota Poll back in 1998, and it said that Humphrey has a comfortable lead over Coleman and Ventura. It was pretty much in the bag, as I recall, but then something really strange happened. The election took place, the lines at the polling places were out the door, filled with giggling guys with mullet haircuts, and somehow lead-pipe cinch Skip ended up finishing third. I always thought that was really strange, that somehow the Minnesota Poll could be so wrong.

Now we learn from today's Minnesota Poll that DFLer Amy Klobuchar has a 19 point lead over Congressman Mark Kennedy in the U.S. Senate race. The poll says that Klobuchar leads in all demographics, including outstate farmers. They find the results "surprising." Somehow, I think they picked the wrong word....

I Don't Want To Go Down To The Basement

But it's the place to be right now. On Friday I jinxed myself by mentioning that the air conditioning hadn't gone out. So much for that theory - it went out Friday night and has not worked properly since. The air temperature in the Twin Cities was officially 99 on Saturday, but the readings in certain locations (downtown St. Paul, for example) were above 100. This heat wave is supposed to abate as the week goes on, but we do expect it to be in the 90s again today.

One of the big disadvantages of unemployment is the lack of income, and that includes paying for repairmen to come to your house. But the basement is still cool and the kids don't mind being down there, since that's where the television is. So we spent a lot of time down there in the past few days, including sleeping down there the last two nights. Meanwhile, I do have an interview today, so maybe the income issue will start to abate as well.

Meanwhile, the Twin Cities are a good place if you are looking for free things to do with the kids. I continue to use the heck out of the Ramsey County Library system, which offers a lot of books and DVDs. We screened "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" for the kids on Saturday night; still one of my all-time favorite movies. I got a copy of Gaylord Perry's 1974 memoir, "Me and the Spitter," which is a very amusing look at his career up to that point. And we took the kids to the Minnesota Children's Museum in downtown St. Paul on Sunday; the third Sunday of each month features free admission. The kids love going there and they are old enough now that we can simply turn them loose, instead of guiding their efforts. Jill and I even got to sit down a few times. These days, that's a benefit I dare not overlook.

Visions of Johanna

My wife works every other Saturday. Today is one of those days, and it's often a challenge for me to find something for the kids to do. I took the kids to the beach at Lake Johanna today. Johanna is a nice little lake in Arden Hills, about one mile square, and the beach is level and smooth, with a nice pavilion. All along the lake are $700K-$1M domiciles, where some of the power brokers of the northern suburbs make their homes. The kids love going to the beach and my wife is pretty diligent about taking the kids at least a few times each summer. Me, I hate the beach, but you have to make sure the kids are happy and on a hot day like today, it's a sensible place to go.

Like many of the metro lakes, Johanna has a lot of activity. You can see boats nearly from the moment the ice goes out until the winter chill returns. The water is pretty good; we saw about half a dozen small yellow perch darting around in the swimming area near the beach, and there are walleyes and northerns to be had there as well, out beyond the buoys. Lakes are a huge part of Minnesota life - most Minnesotans have some access to the lakes, either through owning a cabin up north or having a relative or friend who has one. The northern lakes are gorgeous, especially the big ones like Mille Lacs, Winnibigoshish and Lake of the Woods. But one of the benefits of living here is that you can find a scenic lakeshore in a matter of minutes. And even when the lake is full of activity, there's serenity to be found. It's something that's easy to take for granted, but we shouldn't.

Maria is here and we're going to talk about our family

It's a very hot Friday afternoon and I have stopped at the Ramsey County library in Roseville. Maria and I decided to do some blogging this afternoon. Maria has already put a post up on her blog (www.aboutmaria.blogspot.com) and now it's Daddy's turn.

Maria thinks we should talk about our family. I think that's a wonderful idea, since I am lucky to have such a wonderful family. Let's start with Maria. Maria is six years old and is enjoying her summer quite a lot. She has been spending a lot of time at Park Program at Hazelnut Park in Arden Hills and has made new friends and had a chance to make even more art projects. Maria never stops making art projects, of course, but that's okay, as we seem to have a big enough house to hold all of these projects, at least for now.

Maria would like to talk about Ben now. Ben recently finished his baseball season and is finally getting a chance to relax a little after that. He's already thinking about basketball and has been practicing his jump shot and dribbling. This year, he'll need to try out for a team, and that will be a new experience for him.

Then there's Mommy. Maria thinks that Mommy has been spending a lot of time cooking this summer, and I suspect that Maria is correct. Maria also thinks you should know that Mommy loves me. I'm very glad about that and am a very lucky fellow to have her in my life.

Maria now suggests that we discuss me and my great fondness for cherries. Maria has noticed that I eat cherry yogurt for breakfast at least 4-5 times a week. She finds that interesting and she often wishes that I would eat strawberry banana instead, since she likes to help me eat that in the morning. Somehow, we work that out.

That's it for today - Maria suggests that I say goodbye. So, goodbye it is.

Heat Wave

It's beginning to look a lot like 1988 here in Twinstown. We are in the early stages of what promises to be the worst heat wave we'd had here in a long time. Forecasts for Saturday and Sunday promise daytime highs of 100 degrees or more, which has not happened here since 1995. It's been pretty hot already and we've been battling with a balky air conditioner all summer, but so far it's holding up.

The heat rarely lasts that long, but I've had to make some allowances. I have already cancelled Maria's t-ball practice for Saturday; I don't like the idea of making her and her buddies run the bases in a blast furnace. We've also spent more time in the basement, which remains cool and comfortable no matter what. I am writing this afternoon from the Arden Hills Library, where I have been coming on Thursdays for most of the summer. This branch of the Ramsey County library is not much bigger than my house, but it has a remarkable DVD collection and enough good books that I've been able to keep the family entertained all summer. I was able to show the kids short films from the Three Stooges, Charlie Chaplin, W.C. Fields and Buster Keaton in the last few days and have also introduced them to the Marx Brothers and Peter Sellers. We try not to let the kids watch too much television, but they have a strong allegiance to Cartoon Network and I find a lot of its programming to be strange. It seems to me that most of the fare on that network is either highly stylized anime or aggressively ugly sub-Ren and Stimpy comedy built on a barrage of non sequiturs. There's better stuff out there and I'd like my kids to see it. And this heat wave provides an opportunity.

Mo baseball for Budum

Baseball returns today after what was a pretty ho-hum All Star game. A few quick thoughts:

• The American League's dominance is starting to get ridiculous. The NL team played well and was one out away from winning the game, but the AL was able to rally quickly and steal the game. When I was growing up, the NL teams would routinely crush their AL opponents, with an endless cavalcade of Joe Morgans, Willie Stargells, Tom Seavers and Johnny Benches whipping up whoever the AL would trot out. The NL has not won a game since the mid 90s now.
• Although I know Budum would disagree, the Twins played a very minor role in the game. Johan Santana did pitch one inning and Joe Mauer did play for over half the game, but neither were instrumental. Meanwhile, Ozzie Guillen managed to mess up Francisco Liriano's vacation by calling him in at the last minute, then not using him at all during the game. Maybe next year....
• If the Twins are going to get into the hunt, they'd better sweep the Indians this weekend. The primary reason the Twins are so far behind the Tigers and White Sox is that they have fared quite poorly against those squads. The Twins have whipped up on the rest of the American League and laid waste to the hapless NL teams, but if they want to win, they'd better do it now.
• My beleagured Brewers are, despite everything, much better positioned for a playoff run. They are 5 games back and will be getting their ace pitcher, Ben Sheets, back for the second half. The Cardinals do not look as strong as last year and if a few things break right, the Brew Crew could be right there at the end.

Now, back to our regular programming.

The bulldog and the weasel

It’s early and it’s entirely possible that when November finally arrives, the whole thing will be forgotten. But it was highly, hugely entertaining. No, I’m not talking about Pirates of the Caribbean. I’m talking about the entertaining spat between the two men who will likely head the DFL ticket in the fall. Let’s set the stage:

In this corner, we have the bulldog, Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch. Hatch has decided to give up the AG position and is running for governor this year. Hatch has been a fixture on the Minnesota political scene for over 20 years now. He’s intensely partisan and not afraid of anyone. In many ways, he is more of an old-school DFLer than many of the folks in that party now – he grew up in the Duluth area and brings an Iron Range mentality to his job. Hatch does have a propensity for grandstanding, but it’s pretty clear that his heart is in the right place, even though as a DFLer he regularly proposes poor policy choices. On the political continuum, he’s center-left. He’s someone I can respect, despite my disagreement with what he says and does. While I strongly prefer Tim Pawlenty, I could live with a Governor Hatch.

In the far corner, we have the weasel, Matt Entenza. Immediately, the thoughtful reader objects to the term weasel, thinking it pejorative. Damned right it is pejorative, but accurate, I think. Entenza has risen through the ranks of backbenchers to become the leader of the DFL in the Minnesota House and he is running for Attorney General, Hatch’s current perch. Entenza is an attorney who derives most of his political muscle because of money. Entenza is a prototypical “limousine liberal” and used his great wealth to make huge contributions to specific House candidates in 2004; in some cases this spending may have tipped the balance in some tight elections. He also has become a fixture of news coverage in Minnesota, with his eat-your-spinach visage and his droning denunciations always available for a video camera. He is, in my view, a sneaky, opportunistic and sometimes vicious adversary.

Entenza has money galore because his wife, Lois Quam, is a senior executive at United Health Group, a gigantic and often controversial health care management concern based in the western suburbs. UHG has recently received a lot of scrutiny for the executive compensation package that former CEO William McGuire has received; he will leave UHG within shouting distance of being a billionaire. While there’s no evidence that Quam has done anything unethical, she has benefited substantially from the executive pay structure at UHG. UHG and its corporate conduct will likely be subjects for the Attorney General’s purview in the coming years; needless to say, if Entenza sits in that chair, he will a pretty substantial conflict of interest.

As for the battle itself, last year Entenza hired an oppo group out of Chicago to investigate Hatch. The group began asking Hatch questions about his office finances, what he was spending money on, etc. Hatch figured out what was going on, traced the matter to Entenza and then confronted Entenza about it. While both sides officially claim things have been patched up, there’s plenty of reason to believe this is not the case. Hatch has gone as far as asking other prominent DFLers to consider a primary challenge to Entenza, including such figures as former congressman Bill Luther and former U.S. Attorney David Lillehaug. Both Luther and Lillehaug would bring significant credentials to the battle, but at this point neither seems inclined to run.

We’ll be watching this matter closely.

What do you do with a Muslim terrorist?

It's not an easy question. Since the Supreme Court says the government cannot haul the Gitmo detainees in front of a military tribunal, the Bush administration has a real problem - they are holding a lot of people who, if released, would return to their jihadist ways, bringing death and mayhem wherever they alight. It's a lot like receiving a Fedex envelope filled with loose asbestos - you don't want the material and have to get rid of it, but how?

News reports seem to indicate that the administration will treat these individuals as if they were prisoners of war, proving them rights and protections that our soldiers don't have any chance of receiving if they are captured. The gruesome murder of two captured U.S. servicemen last month shows what we are up against. Our enemy is varied in many ways, but uniform in a very important way - they don't give a rip about human rights.

So what would you do? The floor is open to suggestions.

Phillies drop two in Saturday heat; season complete

It was a tough Saturday for our Arden Hills Phillies, who were eliminated from the Shoreview Area Youth Baseball 9-10 year old tournament on Saturday. The Phillies lost a tough 6-1 battle against the Athletics at noon at Perry Park, then were eliminated later in the day, losing 7-1 to the White Sox in a 6 p.m. game at Southpoint Park in North Oaks. Temperatures were in the 90s and a strong summer sun meant that the team was especially tired for the second game, against a White Sox team that had not played earlier in the day. My favorite Phillie was 0-1 in the first game and 1-2 in the second game, rapping a sharp single to right field in the 5th inning.

The Phillies end their season with an overall record of 7-10-1. This team was significantly better than the squad my son played on last year, on all counts. My son learned rather a lot about the mental aspects of baseball and is a better player for the experience. And that's what youth sports should provide.

Terrorists foiled - Democrats blast Chertoff

So the news today says that the FBI managed to stop a terrorist plot aimed at blowing up the Holland Tunnel in New York. Good for the FBI - they haven't had many positive headlines lately. So, what's the response from the loyal opposition? Check out the response of Senator Charles Schumer, D-NY, to the FBI success (from CNN):

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer said no evidence existed that "in any way anything was done, either purchase of explosives or sending of money" and it "was caught" when investigators discovered "terrorists talking to one another."

"This is one instance where intelligence was on the ball," the New York Democrat said.

Meanwhile, Schumer's colleague, Senator Robert Menendez, D-NJ, had this to say (from Fox News):

"More than anything else, if true, these news reports offer incontrovertible proof that the federal government's homeland security strategy is flawed in its rhetoric and in its application. Let me be clear: Americans who face the greatest risk should receive the greatest amount of funding," said Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. "How anyone, at any level of government, could argue otherwise is beyond me and shows a flagrant disregard for the realities of protecting our homeland."

He continued: "For too long, the federal government has distributed security grants in a manner that seems to be based merely on whim. It certainly is not based on risk. It defies common sense that a would-be terrorist in Beirut with an Internet connection recognizes that the New York region is rife with significant landmarks, yet Homeland Security Secretary [Michael] Chertoff doesn't."

Way to stick to those talking points, boys. Wouldn't want to let a news cycle pass without throwing cold water on things, after all....

Phillies outlast Angels, prepare for mysterious Athletics

The mighty Arden Hills Phillies overcame a slow start and rallied from a 3-1 deficit to defeat a game Angels team 11-3 at Island Lake School yesterday. The first three innings were tough, as the Angels starter pitched magnificently against our Phils. During the playoffs, a pitcher can go four innings, so the Angels starter came out for the 4th inning, and that's when our Phillies struck, scoring 3 runs to take a lead they would not relinquish. My favorite Phillie was 1-3, rapping a sharp single in the 5th inning and scoring a crucial insurance run in the 5th.

The Phillies now move on with two games on Saturday. The first is a matchup against the mysterious Athletics, who played on the other side of the league this time. Game time is noon at Perry Park. A win would move them to the quarterfinals and a 3:45 tilt, also at Perry Park in Arden Hills . A loss would move them to the consolation bracket and a 6 p.m. tilt at South Point. If the Phillies win both games on Saturday, they will play again on Monday in the semifinals, this time at Sitzer Park in Shoreview. There are other possibilities, but listing all the permutations seems especially cruel to my faithful readership.

Marissa and the echoes

Two days on, the reality that our friend Marissa Irwin has passed away is only starting to sink in. I've also been thinking about another friend from Beloit, who left a long time ago. Way back in 1987, I lost another Beloit friend to cancer. Andy Boggs, son of a Beloit art professor, was quite a character. He was an amalgam of Jeff Spicoli and Johan Sebastian Bach. He absolutely loved to party and was a fixture in the various watering holes around campus. Somehow, though, he was an amazingly prolific musician who wrote and recorded dozens of songs and compositions, including many that were daring and even startling in their musical complexity. Following our junior year, Andy began to have difficulties and went in for some tests. It turned out that he had an inoperable brain tumor.

For the next three years, Andy waged a very public battle to fight the cancer that was ravaging his body. He became known throughout Wisconsin for his courage in facing the disease and, because of his talents and the friendships he developed, he was able to focus a lot of attention on cancer among youth. Andy threw out the first pitch at a Milwaukee Brewers game and, for a time at least, seemed to rally, even as he endured the ravages of cancer and the various regimens of chemotherapy and other treatments. Eventually, though, the cancer gained the upper hand and, in the warm spring of 1987, Andy left, only 23 years old.

Marissa fought much longer than Andy; her cancer developed more slowly, relentlessly and her struggle was much more private than Andy's was. She had the comfort of a wonderful husband and the support of an outstanding family. She also refused to feel sorry for herself, spending a number of years in India, assisting various organizations that were involved in alleviating poverty. She did not wallow in her misfortune. She understood that the time she would have was limited; she made the most of it.

I remember writing a poem about Andy shortly after he died; I happened to find it when I went through some old papers recently. The poem was alternately sad, angry, resigned and defiant, the work of a much younger man. But one of the thoughts I penned those many years ago remains - you can reach the essence of who you are, in the time you have. It's a challenge all of us face, but I am certain that both Marissa and Andy were at least close to that goal. And there's hope in that.

Ken Lay, RIP

Word came this morning that Ken Lay, the founder of Enron who was about to go to prison for his role in the widespread financial malfeasance that happened under his watch, died of a massive heart attack at his vacation home in Colorado.

After everything that's happened with the Enron scandal since it first broke five years ago, Lay's death seems like a very odd end note. While there were many people who wanted Lay to go to prison, it was never clear to me how sending Lay to a cushy federal pen really would have accomplished anything. The Enron scandal was a bit of a blank screen and most of the people who have opined on the matter have used the scandal as a cudgel by which to beat those they dislike, especially the current resident of the White House. Since most of the crimes took place during the Clinton era, it never made much sense to link Enron to Bush, even though Bush was the governor of Texas. We tend to believe that our governments have more power over our lives than they often do, of course, and there are those who believe that government needs even more power. These people, who have a rather dim view of human nature, are often called idealists.

Phillies prepare for Angels

The mighty Arden Hills Phillies begin playoff action on Thursday, with a 6 p.m. game against the Angels at Island Lake East. The Phillies are seeded 3rd in the South Division, while the Angels were 6th in the West. The two teams played earlier in the year, with the Phillies coasting to an easy victory. If the Phillies win, they will face a team they have not seen before, the Athletics, at noon on Saturday at Perry Park. A loss on Thursday would mean a 6 p.m. Friday matchup against the loser of the Rangers/Red Sox game; that game would take place at Snail Lake West. This is a double elimination tournament, meaning the Phils will play up to five games in the next four days. All your playoff action will be right here.

Marissa

We knew it was coming soon, but we had hoped that the phone call wouldn’t come, at least for a while. But it did arrive yesterday. Our friend Marissa Irwin, who I discussed last month, died yesterday in Washington, D.C., succumbing to ovarian cancer at the age of 40. She is survived by her husband of 11 years, Hans Verlome, and by her family back in Connecticut.

It is distasteful, even horrible, to be forced to discuss someone you care about in the past tense. But that is where we are. Marissa was a true friend and genuinely fine person. She met Jill during their freshman year at Beloit and they became part of a larger circle of friends that was a typical gathering of people at our school. Marissa was a very bright young woman with an East Coast sensibility, but utterly lacking the pretensions that often come west with students who alight in Midwestern schools. She immersed herself in the hard sciences at Beloit, spending countless hours in the labs of Chamberlain Hall, diligently applying what she’d learned to various experiments and projects. In a small school like Beloit, you get to know most everyone. I met Marissa after I had graduated; I was working for the school at the time and still hung around campus a lot, and so our paths would cross regularly. The image lingers; Marissa, often with Jill and our friend Sue Law in tow, sitting at one of the long row of tables in Goody’s Bar, watching the passing parade intently, her dark eyes shining and an intermittent smile crossing her face. She enjoyed the camaraderie and laughed easily; it always seemed that she enjoyed escaping the confines of Chamberlain and joining the more devil-may-care collection of English and history majors you could always find at Goody’s.

We have a picture that was taken on Jill’s graduation day in 1988. The picture shows Jill and I sitting at a table with Marissa, Sue and Sue’s brother Bob, who did not attend Beloit but who frequently visited. The picture itself is unremarkable; it simply shows friends basking in the glow of accomplishment and preparing to find their way in the larger world. We all did go our separate ways, of course, not knowing what was ahead. What we could not have imagined is that one of us would be gone so soon. There is a lot more to this story, of course, and I’ll revisit it tomorrow.

Elian Gonzalez returns to television

I noted that CBS decided to put Elian Gonzalez back on television last night. When last we saw him, he was being sent back to Cuba by the Clinton administration after being taken at gunpoint from his Miami relatives in a midnight federal raid. Now 11, young Elian is the very model of a Cuban boy, denouncing the people who sheltered him and claiming that he was never happy living in that little house in Miami. The smiling, happy young boy, not much older than my own child, seemed altogether too serious, especially as he denounced his mother, who drowned while trying to escape.

I always thought that, of all the crappy things that Bill Clinton did, one of the crappiest was sending this boy back to Cuba. It was always obvious that the various family members that Castro had dispatched to the U.S. to reclaim young Elian were greatly fearful and were under a whole lot of coercion. Watching the rote answers that this young man gave last night hardly made me change my mind. Some day, when Castro finally keels over, there will be a lot of reckoning.

Obligatory Twinsblogging

I don't know what else to say, except that the Twins have been amazing lately. As of the Memorial Day weekend, the TC Men looked like a Baby Ruth bar in a swimming pool - gross and barely floating. But the past 30 or so days have been nothing short of phenomenal. The Twins have now won 10 in a row and 18 of their last 19 following an 8-0 thrashing of the Milwaukee Brewers yesterday. I have been following baseball for the better part of 35 years now and I've never seen a stretch like this, where a lifeless team suddenly becomes potent in every way. For those of you just tuning in:

• Twins pitching has been nothing short of phenomenal. You have to begin with the performances of the two southpaw starters, Johan Santana and Francisco Liriano. Liriano and Santana currently rank 1 and 2 in the American league in earned run average, which is still the best single measurement of pitching effectiveness, especially for a starter. Liriano toyed with the Brewers yesterday, striking out 12 batters with a bewildering array of fastballs, sliders and off-speed pitches. Santana was merely the American League pitcher of the month for June. He has been as dominating as he was in 2004, when he won the Cy Young award in a runaway. This year he has competition, from his teammate Liriano. That both of these guys are still well short of 30 is even more amazing. No one in baseball has an answer for these guys.
• Joe Mauer has received a lot of well-deserved attention for bringing his batting average within a few points of .400, but the real story in June has been the torrid hitting of the other JM, Justin Morneau. Morneau has been absolutely devastating in June, hitting home runs and driving in key runs on almost a daily basis. The shot Morneau hit yesterday in the Dome was one of the hardest hit balls I have ever seen. The ball was gone almost before announcer Dick Bremer could proclaim it so, and it was still rising when it hit the facing of the football press box.
• The removal of Tony Batista and Juan Castro has totally transformed the offensive look of this club. Replacements Nick Punto and Jason Bartlett have quietly made key contributions all month long, including some very timely hitting that has started or continued big innings in front of Mauer, Morneau et al. You get the sense watching this team that everyone in the lineup can hurt you, even when a sub like Terry Tiffee is in the game. The only guy who isn't hitting for the Twins right now is Lew Ford, but he is seeing a lot less time now and it hasn't mattered.
• Despite how hot the Twins have been, they haven't been able to make up much ground because the White Sox and Tigers have been equally hot. Ordinarily when a team wins 18 of 19, they will pick up a minimum of 5-6 games in the standings. That has not happened this time around.
• Right now, the National League looks more like a AAA league than a major league. The Dodgers and the Brewers are contending in their respective NL divisions, but both teams looked feeble in comparison to the Twins. While the respective strengths of the leagues vary over time, the current dominance of the AL is absolutely shocking. The Twins finished their series with the NL teams with an overall 16-2 record. That just shouldn't happen.

Sunday nights and Monday mornings

Most people dislike Sunday nights. It’s a predilection that develops early, as a child contemplates having to return to the classroom after a weekend of fun. Then, as people enter the working world, it becomes the harbinger of the work week to come. Technically, for most people, Sunday nights are “free time,” but it’s a nearly universal thing that the following morning is the beginning of the work week and the start of additional obligations. Even for people who genuinely love their jobs, there’s a certain twinge of regret, a sense that something is about to be lost, on Sunday nights. It’s a temporary thing, but I think it’s pretty much universal.

When you are unemployed, it would seem that, at least in theory, Sunday nights would lose some of those resonances. If you don’t have a specific place to go the next morning, it shouldn’t necessarily matter as much. But it’s funny – at least for me, Sunday nights have been a lot worse since my job moved to Oregon without me. I have always found that, once you reach your Monday morning destination, things look better – there’s a challenge on your desk, you have a chance to chart your course for the week, you get to see your co-workers again. Once it’s about 10 a.m. and you are back in the swing, Mondays are often quite enjoyable. But right now, Mondays aren’t a lot of fun. And it’s making Sunday nights seem a lot worse.

The kids have been blogging again

And it's about time that you checked it out.

Ben's latest stylings are at: www.bens-sportsblog.blogspot.com

And Maria updates her world at: www.aboutmaria.blogspot.com

Check it out, y'all.

9/10

I remember September 10, 2001; it was the a nice, late summer Monday in the Twin Cities. I was working for Target at the time and I remember riding the bus into downtown, thinking about the projects I had to complete that week. My son had begun kindergarten the previous week and my daughter was busily scooting around our house, investigating everything in sight. It was shaping up to be an uneventful week and I remember spending the majority of my bus time reading about the football results from the day before - the Packers had routed the Lions 28-6 at Lambeau Field, a typical result for what was a typical day.

Life was a lot simpler on 9/10. I've been thinking about 9/10 today because of the Supreme Court decision yesterday in the Hamdan v. Rumsfeld case. In their ruling, the Supremos decided that President Bush needs to say "Mother, May I" to either Congress, or the Court itself, and probably both, before he can establish a system of military tribunals to deal with suspected terrorists who are captured by U.S. forces. John Paul Stevens and his pals are eager to rein in President Bush. I'm not sure that it's the president who needs reining in.

The good news is that once President Bush does his courtesy bow to the other branches, he'll likely be able to proceed as planned. I don't believe that even some of the loonier members of Congress are likely to want to leverage Hamdan to further hamstring the executive. It will be a difficult sell for anyone to show mercy to the plaintiff in this case, who was once Osama bin Laden's driver.

No matter how low Bush's "approval numbers" get, this president (and his successors) will need to have the power and leverage to deal with the threat of terrorism going forward. Even if it's President Feingold. The executive in our system has the responsibility to wage war. Congress has to declare it first, but Congress and the Court really need to think hard about how much involvement they should have -- no military will long survive with 545 commanders in chief...

Happy Birthday, I-94

And all the other highways. Today marks the 50th anniversary of the creation of the interstate highway system. It is difficult to imagine any governmental action over the last 50 years that has done more to transform this country.

I was not alive in 1956 and I only remember parts of the 1960s. I grew up in a town that is not served by the interstate highway system. For reasons unknown, the Fox River Valley did not get a branch of the system until the 1970s, when I-43 was completed between Green Bay and Milwaukee. But since I left fair Appleton, I have lived in places where I travel the interstates nearly every day. It's no exaggeration to say that the presence of these highways affects every American. The interstates have provided a reliable system for intercity transportation, shipping of goods and, in a little mentioned but crucial matter, greater ease of transport for our nation's defense. In fact, when President Eisenhower signed the legislation into law 50 years ago, that was a primary consideration.

But more than that, the interstates have changed the landscape in other ways. America was once a provincial place, where regional differences were huge and an overarching model was not seen. There were real differences between the ways that people in different parts of the country lived. Some of the regional differences and preferences were pernicious, especially the Jim Crow laws of the American South, but they were persistent. The growth of national news networks, radio and television were of course instrumental in helping Americans speak a more common cultural language, but the role of the interstate highway system is difficult to overstate. It used to be an all-day trip to get from Minneapolis to Chicago; now, you can get from place to place in about 7 hours, if traffic and the Wisconsin State Patrol are amenable. And because a person can get from one place to another that quickly, people do make the trip.

Of course, this integration has led to a certain amount of homogenization as well. It's a common complaint that the landscape of the interstate highway is littered with fast food restaurants, cookie cutter hotels and unsightly billboards. These complaints arose almost immediately and those who cherish regional differences have continued to nurse these grievances throughout the past half-century. And I don't dismiss these complaints; one of the great benefits of travel is to see things you might not otherwise see, and it's difficult to learn much when you eat at a McDonald's. But the journeys are what matter and because of the interstate highway system, I've been able to make more journeys than I would have otherwise.

Americans love the road - from Jack Kerouac to William Least Heat Moon, from Dennis Hopper to Charles Kuralt, we all tend to look beyond the immediate boundaries and seek adventures in places far from home. And every American has stories to tell about their travels. The interstate highway system is integral to who we are and what we have become in the past 50 years. And even with gas hovering around $3 a gallon these days, the siren song of the road remains.

Beckham shaves with Occam's Razor

Good thing the World Cup is in Germany, where the "beautiful game" gets more respect. Despite a pretty strong public relations offensive (pun intended), people just aren't paying much attention to the World Cup here in the United States. A recent poll I heard about indicated that only 6% of Americans are paying close attention to the tournament, with most of those being expatriates of countries like England, Ghana, etc.

I have been watching soccer acolytes push this sport for over 30 years now. I remember when Pele, Giorgio Chinaglia, Franz Beckenbauer and assorted others were brought to the U.S. with great fanfare and placed among the teams of the North American Soccer League, which eventually withered into oblivion. I've seen Mia Hamm offered as the equivalent of Michael Jordan. I've seen millions of kids play soccer on fields across this great land. But still, no market for the sport. Why is that? Can I offer a three word explanation?

Baseball* is better.

I'm fond of Occam's Razor, which holds that the simplest explanation is usually the best explanation. I say that even though it's likely that William of Occam would be rooting for Manchester United or Real Madrid or some such were he here today.

*Football and basketball, too.

Running strong in place

We are witnessing a fairly amazing stretch for the Twins. They have won 14 of their last 15 games and have essentially laid waste to the National League teams they are currently playing. But they have not gained any appreciable ground in the standings on the Chicago White Sox and the Detroit Tigers. Both the Whities and the Tigers have been equally impressive, blowing out their NL opponents night after night. A few things worth noting:

• Historically, the National League has been stronger than the AL, but it's become quite evident that the AL is much better. The Dodgers have been leading the NL West for most of the season, but have been routed in consecutive games in the Metrodome. This Dodger team includes some ostensibly big names, like Jeff Kent, Nomar Garciaparra and Derek Lowe, but they have been no match for the Twins' collection of emerging stars.
• Francisco Liriano is a stone killer right now. It will be interesting to see how he does in subsequent trips around the league, but right now he is overpowering just about every batter he faces. He's even more of a power pitcher than Twins stopper Johan Santana, which hardly seems possible.
• Joe Mauer is becoming an amazingly good hitter. He went 5-5 last night, lashing singles to all parts of the ballpark. He is starting to flirt with .400; it's difficult to imagine that he could maintain this pace all year long, but no one in baseball seems to have found a good way to pitch to him.
• Some of prospects for the Twins are no longer "suspects." It's been interesting to see the simultaneous blossoming of Michael Cuddyer, Justin Morneau and Jason Kubel into solid, resourceful major league hitters. Jason Bartlett is now starting to show some hitting talent as well. Longtime Twin power supplier Torii Hunter is now about the fifth or six best batsman on the team.
• It's amazing how well the Tigers and White Sox are playing. Jim Leyland came into a team that had as recently as 2003 been one of the worst teams in major league history, but now his Tigers are beating everyone they face. The White Sox continue to be at least as good as they were last year, when they won the World Series. Eventually these teams will play each other again, and maybe then the Twins can make their move. But it's going to be tough.

Not that long ago, the AL Central was known as Comedy Central for the lack of quality teams among its ranks. Things change.

Phillies rout Rockies, prepare for playoffs

The mighty Arden Hills Phillies returned to the scene of one of their worst defeats of the season and played perhaps their best game of the season, defeating the Rockies 11-0 at the mysterious Lily Pond in remote Vadnais Heights last night. The tone was set right away, as the Phillies raced to an early 6-0 lead in the first two innings, adding additional insurance runs later on. Pitching was, in a word, outstanding. All three Phillies pitchers were quite sharp and the Rockies never seriously threatened during the course of the game. This was the same Rockies team that had defeated our Phils 16-5 in the same venue two weeks previously. That’s baseball. My favorite Phillie was 1-4, rapping a sharp single past a diving Rockies second baseman and getting called out on a bang-bang play at first in another at bat.

With the win, the Phillies complete the regular season with a record of 6-8-2; an earlier victory against the Braves was declared a forfeit, costing the team one win and an overall .500 record. Playoffs begin on 7/6, against a yet to be determined opponent (most likely the Angels, Astros or Braves). Further details will be right here.

Time for a Mr. Dilettante Mix

A while back we did a quick survey of bad songs from the 70s, and then guilty pleasure songs. Since my diverse readership (consisting of friends, family, former B of A associates and at least one spammer with a UN fixation) have consistently demonstrated their good taste through their patronage of this feature, I thought it was time for us to put together a Mr. Dilettante mix, i.e., good tunes.

I am asking for your help here. Let's have folks weigh in on some of their favorite tunes. Tell me some of your favorites, and why you like them. Once we've established a formidable enough list, I will then work with my musical director, a/k/a Stinger, to put together a Mr. Dilettante mix. A few ground rules:

Please pick songs you like. No one really likes "We Built This City," "Rock Me Amadeus" or "Having My Baby," and your faithful correspondent knows that his erudite audience is too smart for that crap.

Please pick songs that are generally available. You may love some Bolivian pan flute opus and have excellent reasons for doing so, but we're not going to search all over hell for it.

Please be patient: this could be a long project, but I think a good one.

Okay, I'll prime the pump with three of my favorite tunes:

"Moondance," by Van Morrison. Van has recorded many great things and a lot of really weird stuff, too, but this one is special for a lot of reasons. The eponymous album is also one of the best collections of songs you'll ever find.

"Reach Out I'll Be There," by the Four Tops. Levi Stubbs, the most dramatic singer in the Motown stable, at his peak.

"Ticket to Ride," by the Beatles. Not their most famous song, or even their most popular, but to me a song that packs the essence of what made the Beatles great.

The floor is open.

Bill Keller for President

Bill Keller is the current majordomo at the New York Times. He has also been at the vanguard of the recent spate of stories, driven by leaks, that have revealed secret government programs meant to stop (or at least discourage) terrorism. Some of these stories have provided operational details about how the government is using technologies and partnerships with other entities to gather information about terrorist activities. Today, President Bush condemned the recent disclosure of a program designed to track terrorist financial activity. Bush claims that revealing these methods undercuts the government's efforts to combat terrorism.

Is this a valid charge? Not to Bill Keller. In a series of public pronouncements, Keller has essentially stated that his organization can pretty much publish anything it damn well pleases, consequences be damned, because the public's right to know trumps everything.

If that is the case, then Keller is in the wrong job. He should be president and should make sure that everyone in the federal government, from the most lowly USDA inspector through John Negroponte and even the President, should now start operating at a level of total transparency. By why stop there? I think that we should stand naked in the public square. Let's have the New York Times work in a sheer glass office tower with glass walls, including the bathroom stalls. The public, after all, has a right to know. Besides, considering that two of the largest window makers in the U.S. are located in Minnesota (Andersen Windows and Marvin Windows), it should be a great deal for the local economy here. To hell with bricks and stucco! We've got nothing to hide!

Are we losing perspective?

Two separate events have garnered a lot of attention in the Twin Cities in the past week. In the first, young boys in North Branch (ages 6-8) are accused of beating a puppy to death. In the second, two older youths in South Minneapolis were accused of beating a cat to death. Both stories led local newscasts.

Let's stipulate that killing pets is cruel and that the kids who did it should be punished, counseled or (ideally) both. There is sufficient anecdotal evidence out there that people who treat animals sadistically often turn their cruel ministrations on people later on unless there's some form of intervention. But I have to ask; are these two random events more newsworthy than, say, the torture, murder and defilement of two captured soldiers by terrorists in Iraq? And why did these horrible acts garner a shrug, while the animal stories were given lead story status? And from a local angle, the number of murders this summer in Minneapolis is up sharply, but stories of people gunned down on the north side seem to fall behind the tales of puppycide in Isanti County.

One of the local stations here in Minneapolis has a feature called "Good Question." Here's a question for "Good Question." Why lead a newscast with animal killing, when people are being gunned down in Minneapolis all too frequently? I'm going to ask that question myself and I'll be curious about the answer.

Kidblogging

My very favorite six year old has a new post up on her blog. She provides the straight skinny on her new cousin and an update on summer, from her perspective. You won't want to miss out on this -- follow the bouncing link:

www.aboutmaria.blogspot.com

My son is considering his next move for his blog - World Cup, Twins or further BALCO bashing? So many choices. He'll weigh in soon and we'll send you there when he does.

Phillies drop two

It's been a tough few days for our Arden Hills Phillies. They have lost two games, first to the Giants 18-12 on Thursday, and to the Twins 11-5 this morning. A few quick notes.

The first loss to the Giants was especially disappointing, as the team struggled throughout against a team they had defeated handily earlier in the year. Pitching and defense were not at the usual level and it was a struggle throughout to catch up. The most interesting development of the game from this correspondent's perspective was that my son made his pitching debut. He came in the 6th inning and allowed one run, while getting 3 batters to ground out in the infield. Ben will not soon be confused with Roger Clemens, but his pitches were accurate and induced the Giant batters to hit routine grounders. Sometimes that works the best.

Today's game was a hard fought one, but a late Twins spurt spelled the difference. The Phillies and Twins had tied earlier in the season and this one was pretty much the same thing. Since the Twins players and the Phillies players are all classmates at Valentine Hills Elementary School, the kids and the parents know each other well and it's always an interesting game.

The two losses put the Phillies back below .500 at 6-7-2. The final game of the regular season takes place on Tuesday, a rematch against the Rockies at the dreaded Lily Pond in far Vadnais Heights. Game time is 6 p.m. Following the 4th of July break, the playoffs begin. Watch this space for updates!

Tick Tock

The clock is ticking. As we complete yet another largely fruitless week of job searching, I am growing increasingly concerned. So far, I've been able to conclude a few things:

I have a lot of talent. Everyone tells me that.
My credentials are impressive.
I've really done a lot of neat things.
I interview well - have heard that several times now.
People mostly like everything about me. I'm a regular Stuart Smalley that way.
I'm on the outside looking in.

So what gives? The last sentence is a classic example of a non-sequitur, since it does not follow that if I am a talented, well credentialed individual who is well liked, it doesn't make sense that corporate America would be turning me away. But that's what's happening.

The inner voice, or maybe my superego (to use a discredited Freudian concept) says... buck up, soldier - it's not as bad as all that. And I know it. I've written in this space in recent days about people I greatly admire who are facing something far worse than financial stress. It could be worse. But bad is still, by definition, bad. Thank you for indulging me on this one. Now back to the news....

Slices of life

Yesterday was a hell of a day, with a lot of weird resonances. We tend to compartmentalize our experiences - sometimes I'm a father, sometimes I'm an old classmate, or a former co-worker, or a colleague, or a baseball coach. Some days you can be all those things. And sometimes the compartments jumble into each other.

I spent the morning in my usual current way - primarily searching for a new job, but also corresponding with those who are part of my life. I found myself in an extended e-mail conversation with a woman I went to high school with. She is coordinating my 25-year high school reunion and I had to let her know that I wouldn't be attending. I explained our current circumstances, and answered her questions about my perception of her efforts to coordinate the event. Expected attendance for the reunion is way down, apparently, and she is concerned that the event is not appealing to our classmates. She also offered to help me get a job, which I greatly appreciate. I graduated from a small, Catholic high school and my class had only 150 students. As a result, I knew everyone in the class. My correspondent fit into the "sometimes part of our social circle" category. She was bright and accomplished in high school and that has not changed in the succeeding years. Even across the decades, there's a human connection.

Then in the afternoon I drove across town to meet a former co-worker. He is, like me, a blogger and a member of the B of A alumni association, and like me, has not yet found gainful employment. I would hire this gentleman in a New York minute if I were running an enterprise, as he is one of the most smart, gifted and thoroughly decent people I know. You'd think that someone in the world would figure that out and get his services, but it hasn't happened that way. We sat together in front of a Caribou Coffee location in Minnetonka, talking about our recent experiences and the highs and lows we're currently experiencing. I'm hoping that we'll both find a better place soon.

Then I picked up the kids after their summer park program and made dinner, as my wife was at work. As I was reading my son a bedtime story, the phone rang. The call came from my wife's best friend from college, a woman who was the maid of honor at our wedding. She had news for us and when my wife got home, we found out what it was. Another college friend, who has been battling ovarian cancer for a decade now, is losing the fight and will probably pass away in the coming days. She recently had her 40th birthday and will likely not see 41. My memory of this lady is forever young - she is, like most people from Beloit College, exceptionally bright. However, she was well-known for having a bit of a zany streak and a tendency for the malaprop. She would pop her head in the door and would start to say something, then completely get lost in the verbal thicket. She later devoted much of her life to serving those less fortunate, including a stint in India, even as the cancer advanced. She is leaving way too soon.

Sometimes life doesn't lend itself to tidy morals. Sometimes the messages are mixed. But today is a beautiful summer day and the world seems new again. Nothing is promised. But promise remains.

Meanwhile, in T-Ball Action….

My daughter’s crack T-Ball squad, the grey-clad Team 1, took on a formidable Team 3 at Pike Lake School in New Brighton on Monday night. It was an evenly played game between two squads with some surprisingly talented kindergarteners. Team 3’s pitcher made a particularly stellar play, spearing a line drive struck by our best young hitter. This was a catch that’s not often made in Little League, so it was especially impressive. Meanwhile, the enthusiasm and willingness of our team to play is really a great joy. The kids clearly understand what we’re trying to teach them and they are greatly enjoying their experience. I’m also greatly pleased with the support we’re getting from their parents. This is a really great group of kids and we’re enjoying the heck out of coaching them. They will not have another game until July 10, but we’ll pick up the trail from there.

Phillies rally to top Mariners, 9-8

Another strong rally meant another victory for the Arden Hills Phillies, as they topped the Mariners 9-8 at Island Lake School in Shoreview. The Phillies cobbled together a strong four run fourth-inning, overcoming an 8-5 deficit to take the lead. Strong relief pitching then cooled the Mariner bats and the Phillies hung on to win. My favorite Phillie was 0-2, with a walk, stolen base and run scored. He also nearly took this correspondent out with a vicious line drive toward my post in the 1st base coaching box. We’ll have to have a chat with the boy about that….

The Phillies’ record now stands at 6-5-2. This game marks the beginning of a busy baseball week, as the Phils next face the last-place Giants at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday at Cummings Park in Arden Hills, followed by a rematch with the red-hot Twins at 10 a.m. on Saturday at Perry Park. These two contests are especially important for playoff seeding as the tournament nears. Watch this space for updates!

Hermeneutics Munster

What the heck does that mean? Besides further proof that Mr. Dilettante is fond of really obscure puns, that is. Well, first, let's talk about hermeneutics.

The definition of hermeneutics is "the theory and methodology of interpretation." Hermeneutics was, at least initially, a word that connoted interpreting Scripture. These days some of my more unhinged English major colleagues have appropriated the term and use it as part of the impenetrable academic fog that surrounds "texts," i.e., any written thing that they want to interpret. It could be "Hamlet," it could be Che Guevara's 1962 shopping list, it could be the Star Tribune's editorial page. Hell, let's make it the Star Tribune's editorial page.

Yesterday the Strib ran an especially funny editorial entitled "Sack Bolton, Or at Least Muzzle Him." Turns out that they don't like U.N. Ambassador John Bolton's tendency to make intemperate remarks about the U.N. and its inner workings. Bolton had the temerity to suggest that, because the member nations of the U.N. seem unwilling to reform their behaviors within the organization, and feel free to reject Kofi Annan's calls for reform, that the U.S. and others who bankroll the organization should have the right to withhold funds until better behavior is forthcoming. So, how to interpret this? Let's take a shot.

Bolton can be criticized, but Bolton cannot criticize. Stop it, Ambassador Bolton.
The U.S. can ask for reform, but if reform is not forthcoming, it should still pay up.
Bolton should shut up.
Diplomacy means "taking one for the team."
The team is not your employer (the Bush administration), but the U.N.
Shut up, Bolton!

See how easy it is? And anyone can play. Except John Bolton. He can just shut up.

Soldiers murdered; better check those president approval numbers!

If you want to understand what's wrong with the mainstream media in this country, consider most of the commentary this morning. Word came from Iraq that the two soldiers who had been kidnapped by insurgents over the weekend were tortured and murdered, and that their bodies were discovered today. Some reports indicated that Abu al-Bloodthirsty Moron, or whoever the new leader of Al Qaida in Iraq is, personally "butchered" the soldiers. The concern of the reporters and pundits? How will this affect the president's "approval numbers."

Sheesh. George W. Bush will not face the voters again. His approval rating could be -40 gazillion percent, but he would still be president until his replacement is sworn in. That date, by the way, is January 20, 2009. Not 2007, nor 2008, but 2009, people. It is absurd how much time and effort the media seems to spend on polling. The only polls that will matter in 2006 will take place in November. God bless the soldiers and never mind the bollocks.

Phillies set for rematch against Mariners

The mighty Arden Hills Phillies will take the field this evening for a rematch against the Mariners. Game time is 6 p.m. at Island Lake East in Shoreview. Last time the Phillies stormed to an early lead and then coasted to a 11-10 victory. Current standings put the Phillies, Mariners and Rockies in a tight battle for playoff positioning in their division, so this game will be meaningful as the playoffs approach. Details tomorrow.

Let's hear it for the boy

The newest family member, that is. My nephew, Edward Jerome, was born yesterday. He arrived mid-afternoon, weighing in at an impressive 9 lbs, 5 oz. and measuring a towering 21 inches long. Given the size of this youngster, the minute he arrived, it’s likely that a bell rang in Brett Bielema’s offices down in Madison. Congrats to my brother Pat and his wife Jenny!

Baseball Saturday

Since both of my kids are playing ball now, and since I am involved in coaching both teams, you have days like Saturday. We had a practice for Maria’s t-ball squad from 10 – 11 a.m., then had a practice for Ben’s team from 11- noon, then Ben tried out for the 10-year old traveling team in the afternoon.

It was interesting to watch the buildup in intensity of these activities. Maria’s teammates are really nice young kids. It’s been a pleasure to coach them; we have no prima donnas or pouty kids on the team at all. They are eager to learn, take our direction well and they all seem genuinely happy when their teammates succeed. My co-coach and I would love to take credit for that, but we’re wise enough to know that we are not coaching geniuses. We are just lucky enough to have some really good kids to work with, kids with supportive parents and kids from good homes. It’s a luxury.

My son’s teammates have a similar demographic profile – intact middle class families with supportive parents. The kids are generally a polite bunch and will accept coaching. We worked with this group, about half the team, on situational fielding, i.e., when there is a runner on first and two outs, what’s the play if you are the first baseman? My experience this year is that while our kids know what to do, they don’t always do it. They often have to think about what to do, and by the time they come up with the solution, it’s too late. Or, alternatively, they rush the play and then boot the ball or throw wildly. Kids these days only seem to play ball in an organized setting. When I was a kid, we played ball every day during the summer. Often it was Wiffle Ball, and we might only have 5-6 kids who’d play, but we would still play. Now, at least in my neighborhood, it just doesn’t happen. As a result, kids do not get the repetition they need to make standard baseball plays. By organizing it, we lose something. If you’ve ever seen the movie “The Sandlot,” you can understand how this works. The kids who play in pick-up games whip up on the kids in the uniforms. But the pick-up games are disappearing.

Then we went to the tryouts. This is a rarefied atmosphere. Kids are timed with stopwatches, given a set number of balls to field, both infield and outfield, are tested for pitching and batting. The measurements are objective and only some kids will make the team. Typically the Shoreview squads play in tournaments against kids from neighboring suburban areas, such as Roseville, White Bear Lake, Brooklyn Park, etc. These teams then become the genesis of the teams that eventually compete for the Little League World Series. Shoreview has a strong history in this, sending a team to the Little League World Series back in 1997 and to Babe Ruth World Series several other times. It’s odd to be part of this tryout process – the kids are doing baseball activities, but they aren’t really playing baseball. My son may not make his division’s team, but if he does we’ll have a much better look at this highly competitive world. And we’ll share it here.

This ain't Havana

So said the Ramones. They weren’t talking about the Twins, of course, but given the sudden departures of Batista and Castro, it’s hard not to think a little of Havana this week. Not Fulgencio and Fidel, of course, but Tony Batista and Juan Castro, who have served as the left side (more irony) of the Twins infield for most of the season. Now both are gone in a week’s time. Jason Bartlett and Nick Punto are their putative replacements, but that may change, too. One thing has become apparent this week; Terry Ryan and the Twins front office are not afraid to make mid-course corrections. Meanwhile, the Twins swept the Red Sox and now are on their way to Pittsburgh and a look at a new ballpark that may give them a few ideas for their new digs. The Pirates are not that great, but PNC Park is gorgeous.

Phillies rally to defeat Astros, 13-11

The mighty Arden Hills Phillies mounted a strong late innings rally, overcoming a 9-4 deficit to defeat a scrappy Astros team 13-11 last night at Hillview Park in Mounds View. Phillie hitters were on fire, banging out a home run and two triples over the course of the game. My favorite Phillie had a rough outing, arriving late (more on that in a moment) and going 0-3. Still, a fine win for the crew, bringing their overall record back to .500 at 5-5-2. The next game, a rematch against the Mariners, is tentatively set for Tuesday, with a location TBD.

An aside: you have to be flexible in this life. That was our lesson last night as we didn’t receive a late breaking e-mail indicating a field change until after we’d gone to the wrong park. Thus, we were almost an hour late for the game. Turns out the Astros coaching staff disliked the scheduled field and moved the game, but we didn’t get word until late. Oh, well.

The meaning of Roberto Clemente

Roberto Clemente was my boyhood hero and I vividly remember crying when news reports came in that he had died in a plane crash on New Year's Eve 1972. Clemente's plane, loaded with relief supplies, was en route to Managua, Nicaragua, where a devastating earthquake had taken place about a week earlier.

A recent issue of Sports Illustrated featured an excerpt from a forthcoming Clemente biography, written by David Maraniss, author of two fascinating biographical portraits of Vince Lombardi and Bill Clinton. The excerpt detailed the fateful hours prior to the crash, when an unscrupulous gentleman who owned a broken down DC-7 airliner buttonholed Clemente and offered his plane for the relief effort. Clemente took him up on it, boarded the plane and met his fate. It's a horrible tale, well told, and I am looking forward to reading Mr. Maraniss's full treatment of Clemente's life. Charles Barkley famously said that he was not a role model. But Roberto Clemente saw it differently. In this ever more cynical world, I miss my boyhood hero more than ever.

Whatever Budum wants, Budum gets

Response is in from my Twins post yesterday and faithful reader Budum asks that we discuss an "additional J"; i.e., Johan Santana. Okay, why not. Let's say that Santana has been nothing short of masterful this season and that his performance against Boston on Tuesday was one of his greatest ever. Striking out 13 Red Sox is quite an accomplishment, as they remain one of the best hitting teams around. And Mr. Santana has already recorded 1,000 strikeouts in his career, which is pretty astonishing when you consider that he didn't officially join the Twins starting rotation until 2003. He is indeed a huge part of the Twins future, as our transplanted Harvest Sprite pal suggests. So, herewith a tip of the Dilettante cap to Johan Santana. Now back to our regular programming.

It's not supposed to matter

One of the silliest parts of a job search is that you have to answer the same question over and over and over again. Although it's not supposed to matter, the federal government continues to ask potential employers to obtain racial, ethnic and gender information on all applicants. I'm not sure what the numbers really mean, since the documents requesting this information state repeatedly that the information has nothing to do with a prospective job application. But every time I submit an application, I get asked the question. Although it's not supposed to matter.

Since it's not supposed to matter, I have no incentive to hide my racial/gender characteristics. But since it's not supposed to matter, it's a little disconcerting to keep answering the same question. Especially since it's not supposed to matter.

Kubel takes a bow

Another day, another walk off home run for the Twins, as Jason Kubel hit a 12th inning, game winning grand slam home run off Red Sox reliever Julian Tavarez last evening, providing the Twins with a 6-2 margin of victory. Kubel's clout barely cleared the baggie in right field, but it was enough to get the job done and end a thrilling night of baseball at the Dome.

The season itself is shaping up as a transition year for the Twins, but there are some positive signs. Yesterday we talked about the rapid progress of Joe Mauer, who has quickly turned himself into the best overall catcher in the American League. But there's more going on. Kubel is a good story; he looked to be a top prospect in 2004, but tore up his knee at the beginning of that season, costing him nearly two years as he had to rehab from the injury. He finally is back to the parent club now, and has been slowly building his batting average. He has also been effective enough to displace Lew Ford from the everyday lineup. Kubel has a quick bat and has a chance to be a high average hitter with decent power, if he can stay healthy. That's a big if, but yesterday's result should continue to boost his confidence.

Meanwhile, Justin Morneau has been quietly building up his numbers as well. Morneau was the walk-off winner in last Friday's 12-inning win over the Orioles, blasting a Bruce Chen pitch off the facing of the football press box in right field. Morneau is now on a 30-35 home run pace, which is the level of production that Twins fans are expecting. Meanwhile, Michael Cuddyer continues to show marked improvement in his offensive game.

But as these younger players begin to step up, it means that some of the warhorses the Twins have stocked this season need to go. The first casaulty is Tony Batista, the slow-moving, itinerant third baseman, who has been designated for assignment. Batista has not been nearly as productive as the Twins would have hoped, and it's clear that he wasn't going to be part of the Twins' long-term plans. Better to cut ties now and give him a chance to catch on elsewhere. Meanwhile, it's highly likely that Rondell White will be given his walking papers once Shannon Stewart returns from the disabled list later this month. Both Batista and White are fine gentlemen, but they are fading quickly and the Twins can't afford to keep them around.

No fun at the Lily Pond

It was a tough evening for our mighty Arden Hills Phillies, who fell behind early against the Rockies and struggled enroute to a 16-5 loss at a sun-drenched Lily Pond Park in Vadnais Heights. Not much went right for our heroes, who struggled with pitching problems and a lack of clutch hitting. To add to the pain, one of our kids had to leave the game with a bloody nose after losing a fly ball in the sun. My favorite Phillie was 0-1, reaching base twice with a walk and after suffering a second inning beaning (no harm done, that's why they wear helmets). The Phillies' record falls to 4-5-2, with a Thursday contest against the Astros scheduled for 6:15 p.m. at Emmett Williams Elementary School in Roseville.

Budum requests

One of the most faithful readers of this feature is a former B of A colleague who I greatly admire for his fine wit, affable personality, business acumen and unparalleled ability to consume sandwiches that are generally available only in gas stations. He is also known as Budum the Harvest Sprite, thanks to the ministrations of my fellow blogger and confrere Red Scourge.

Herr Budum has requested that we profile the recent exploits of Joe Mauer and the failure of the United States in the World Cup. Asked and answered, good sir!

First, Joe Mauer. Since his emergence from the Cretin Derham Hall athletic factory in the late 1990s, Joe Mauer has been a local legend for his multi-sport exploits. He had an opportunity to lead a big-time college football program as a quarterback, but instead signed a contract with the Minnesota Twins in 2001. Mauer is now 23 years old and is already in his third major league season. His batting average currently sits at .384, following a torrid hitting stretch this past week. He has a ton of talent - no doubt about that. He hits line drives to all fields, has exceptional plate discipline and one of the best hitting eyes in the major leagues. He will eventually hit for power, probably 25-30 home runs a season. In many ways, he reminds me of a hybrid between George Brett, the great Royals 3rd baseman, and Ted Williams, the legendary Red Sox slugger. Both Brett and Williams are among the greatest hitters of all time and both are members of the Hall of Fame. Will Mauer get there, too? It's awfully early, but based on his hitting alone, he should have a chance.

Now, the World Cup. My son will be writing about this over the weekend on his blog, so I don't want to steal his thunder. But as a baseball man, I have a hard time mustering a lot of interest in the events in Germany. It appears that, after 30 years of build-up and countless attempts to hype the sport, that the U.S. is approaching competence in this sport, but the national team was no match for the Czechs yesterday. Our best athletes do not play soccer; if that changes, I would expect the U.S. to contend for the championship. That's not the case now, so it's pretty easy to see why the U.S. team would struggle against top-notch competition. The soccer cognoscenti continue to hype and market the sport here, but they haven't made a lot of progress yet. And that doesn't seem likely to change in the near future. I'll always put a ball game on first.