So how is everyone’s weekend going? First off, Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms who read the Six.
A funny anecdote—I was a spectator at a baseball tournament Saturday. There was a break between games and I was standing near a team that had just finished up their game and about to head home.
I overhead one of the coaches say to his players, “be sure to spend time with your mom tomorrow. Don’t forget to give them a present.”
One of the players responded loudly (without a hint of sarcasm), “I am her present!”
Gotta love 14 year olds, huh?
(Fortunately, the young man was unmasked so we could all hear his charmingly self-absorbed Mother’s Day plans.)
Let’s proceed with the Six:
The Liberals Who Can’t Quit The Lockdown.
We all probably know a few people like this or have had an unpleasant interaction with a stranger (I had one in the grocery store a few weeks ago…a double masked fella who felt I was “crowding” him in line) who just won’t quit Covid. In spite of what doomsayer Dr. Fauci says, the data says we are decidedly not in the bottom of the sixth inning of Covid, no, the fat lady is clearing her vaccinated throat. The Atlantic with an interesting read on why large segments of the population continue to behave if the calendar reads May 2020 and not 2021.
Secrets of the World’s Greatest Jailbreak Artist.
Who doesn’t like a good jailbreak story? I’m fascinated by jailbreaks (highly recommend a limited series that ran on Showtime titled, “Escape at Dannemora” about an upstate New York prison break in 2015) and this is an entertaining read from GQ about prison escape in France, a country that evidently has seen “more successful helicopter jailbreaks than any other nation.”
The Time the New York Knicks Tried to Sign Michael Jordan.
This story has been out there for some time—how in 1996, an NBA free agent named Michael Jordan was wooed by the New York Knicks. Jordan had just won another NBA championship with the Chicago Bulls after taking an almost two-year sabbatical from basketball to try his hand in professional baseball. Jordan’s free agency pre-dated the player empowerment era that began with LeBron James’ signing with the Miami Heat in 2010. This piece from ESPN is a well- sourced oral history from a captivating time in the NBA that could have rewritten history for two of the sport’s most marquee franchises.
Snow White And Disney Face Backlash Over A Kiss.
Just when we all think “cancel culture” can’t get more farcical…we have a story like we did from this past week. Disneyland, finally open in Los Angeles after being shut down for over a year, made some changes to the Snow White’s Scary Adventures. When the ‘wokesters’ took offense to The Prince’s first kiss of Snow White (claiming she did not ‘consent’ to the kiss, thusly it should be cancelled) the backlash to the backlash was fierce (bravo!) One of the Disney creatives who imagined the change in the exhibit speaks out in this blog post. A good summary of the very absurdly contemporary social media controversy.
Forbes’ List of the World’s Most Valuable Sports Franchises.
I look forward to this list every year. Fun to see the balance between American and European franchises (plenty of Premier League Football Clubs on the 2021 list). Forbes does a good job explaining its methodology in the opening summary before revealing the complete list. Between the Bears, Cubs and Bulls (sorry Blackhawks) what Chicago franchise is worth the most? Hint: it had a purchase price of $120.
Loose Alligator in Iowa Frightens Local Folks, At Least For A Little While.
Wacky animal stories are back! Although this is more of a “Jackass” type prank…residents of a Des Moines apartment complex looked out their window one morning and saw what they thought to be an alligator. They anxiously called Animal Services which rushed to the scene…I’ll end the tease there. Read what happens next. I picture a group of half baked guys on a roof having a hearty laugh at the whole lampoon.
Have a great rest of your weekend everybody. Thanks for reading and again, Happy Mother’s Day to all mom readers of the Six and The Kerr Report.
Have a suggestion for the Sunday Six? Send email to jon@jonjkerr.com.