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The Daily Dose/December 14, 2008
By Gaylon Kent
The Writer's Shack
   
Notes from around The Human Experience...And Rachel Ray is the Column Four Foto!
WE'RE SHOCKED, REALLY SHOCKED: And outraged, too, about Illinois Governor Rod Blogojevich's corruption arrest Tuesday because this has to be the first time in American history a political appointment was put up for bid.
And is this, really, a whole lot different than a general election, which are sometimes bought by the candidate with the biggest bank account? Well, maybe a little, and there is the fact a campaign and general election are the duly constituted, legal means of filling certain offices. But still.
You've Got To Be Kidding Me: What we found interesting was a recent poll showing Blagojevich's approval rating is down to eight percent.
Eight percent? You mean there are eight percent of a sampled group that actually approved of Blagojevich's conduct? Even for Illinois, that seems high. I mean, there's always going to be a percentage of people who either are uninformed or don't care, but is the figure really that high in Illinois? Or maybe that's the percentage of the population that's actually purchased a political office in the state and thought they got their money's worth.
ONWARD! PURPLE RAIDERS: Official Writer's Shack faves the Mount Union Purple Raider football team advanced to their 12th Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl - NCAA Division III national championship game - with a 45-24 victory over pesky Wheaton College of Illinois at home Saturday.
Get Out Your History Books: Mount Union running back Nate Kmic rushed for 310 yards on 29 carries and became the leading rusher in NCAA history with 7,986 yards, breaking the all-division mark that had been held last season by Danny Woodhead of Division II Chadron State.
You Can't Stop Us, You Can't Even Contain Us: With the win, Mount Union is now 14-0 this year. They will play defending national champion Wisconsin-Whitewater in the 2008 Stagg Bowl. Wisconsin-Whitewater defeated Mary Hardin-Baylor in the semifinals for the second straight year.
The Final, From Deep In The Heart Of Texas: The Warhawks broke open a 12-10 game at the half by outscoring Mary Hardin-Baylor 27-3 in the second half.
Uh, Let's Not Count Our National Championships Before They Hatch: We would probably do well to remember that Wisconsin-Whitewater defeated Mount Union 31-21 in the 2007 championship game.
Dry, Technical Matter: This is the fourth year in a row Mount Union and Wisconsin-Whitewater have met in the Stagg Bowl, extending the NCAA record they set last year. Mount Union won in 2005 and 2006.
Oh, Jesus H: Northwest Missouri State became the first team in NCAA history to lose in a football national championship game four times, losing the Division II title game to Minnesota-Duluth 21-14 Saturday in Florence, Alabama. The Bulldogs are the first team other than Valdosta State or Grand Valley State to win the D-II championship since North Dakota won it in 2001.
Hut, Hut Hike: Meanwhile, further proof that college football playoffs are not as exciting as bowl games featuring 6-6 teams was found in Iowa Saturday, as Richmond rallied from a 20-7 deficit at the start of the fourth quarter to get a touchdown pass with 14 seconds remaining to beat Northern Iowa in a Football Championship Subdivision semifinal.
Richmond will play Montana - who beat James Madison Friday night - Saturday in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in a game that will probably bore the country to tears. Richmond will be making their first title game appearance. Montana won the I-AA title in 1995 and 2001, and were runners-up in 2004, 2000 and 1996.
UP, UP AND, WELL, LET'S TRY AGAIN IN A COUPLE OF DAYS: On this date, in 1903, the Wright brothers accomplish mankind's first crash landing of an aircraft. Attempting to become the first to fly and airplane, Wilbur, who had won a coin toss from brother Orville, stalled The Wright Flyer immediately after takeoff. The Wright Flyer sustained minor damage, putting off history's first manned flight for a few days.
South Pole Or Bust: On this date, in 1911, Roald Amundsen and a crew of four become the first men to reach the South Pole.
Dry, Technical Matter: His crew had left Oslo, Norway in June, 1910 and arrived at the Ross Ice Shelf the following January. They farted around establishing a base camp and supply depots at 80 degrees, 81 degrees and 82 degrees south before settling in - with a homemade sauna - for the winter. They would set out for the South Pole the following September, but weather forced them to halt their journey. They would eventually set out for good on October 20.
They arrived a month before the second expedition, led by Robert Falcon Scott, arrived at the South Pole. So Scott would be under no illusions that he had been the first one there, they left a small tent and a letter at the South Pole.
This Should Solve The World's Problems: In 1946 the United Nations General Assembly - after initially meeting in London - votes to make its permanent headquarters in New York City.
Waffle Houses All Over The South Rejoiced! Or Would Have Had They Been Open: On this date, in 1947, NASCAR is formed in Daytona Beach, Florida. It would conduct it's first series in 1949, with Red Byron winning the first points title. Martinsville Speedway in Virginia is the only track that hosted a race in the inaugural season that is still on the circuit.
Southern Pole Of Inaccessibility Or Bust: On this date, in 1958, a Soviet expedition becomes the first to reach the Southern Pole of Inaccessibility, the point on Antarctica farthest from the Southern Ocean. The Soviets put up a building, now covered in snow, but their large bust of Vladimir Lenin, which faces Moscow, is still visible. The site was last visited by a British and Canadian team in January, 2007.
Hot Legal Action: On this date, in 1993 in Colorado a judge ruled the state's voter-approved ban on gay rights was unconstitutional. The case stemmed from Coloradoans passing Amendment 2 to their state's constitution in November, 1992, which basically stated homosexuals were not entitled to claim minority or protected status. The case was appealed to both the Colorado and US supreme courts, appeals that were denied both times.
Entirely Too Dry And Technical: Sometimes we here at the Writer's Shack have been known to enjoy reading and writing about a Supreme Court opinion. Not in this case. Readers interested in the case of Colorado's Amendment 2 are invited and encouraged to conduct their own research.
Ah, Hell: On this date, in 1999 Charles M. Schulz announces he is retiring from producing the Peanuts comic strip. The first of 17,897 strips appeared on October, 2, 1950, and the last Peanuts strip was run on February 13, 2000, the day after Schulz died.
Thought For The Day: Humility will give you the power to do the job honestly. - United States Congressman Sonny Bono, December 12, 1997, at a speech outside of Holtville, California.
Answer To The Last Trivia Question: The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor started out in 1845 as the female counterpart to Baylor University, and had several names - such as Baylor College for Women and Baylor Female College - before Mary Hardin and her husband, John, donated a lot of money during The Depression. In gratitude, the college changed its name.
Today's Stumper: NASCAR's highest level of racing is the Sprint Cup, What was NASCAR's top series originally known as? - Answer next time!
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