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The Daily Dose/January 21, 2008
By Gaylon Kent
The Writer's Shack
   
More notes from around the Human Experience, though due to the nerve-wracking pressures of Internet deadlines, not all the notes we were hoping for, starting off with yet another boring New England Patriot Super Bowl trip, some great On This Date action, looking back on Jefferson Davis, the Kenora Thistles, Lenin and Jimmy Carter, plus rags to more rags in Zimbabwe, despite the fact almost everyone can be a millionaire now, plus the usual Trivia fiasco and the Column Four Foto is an all-time Daily Dose fave and one hell of a broad, Suzanne Pleshette.
GET OUT YOUR HISTORY BOOKS: The New England Patriots became the first team in NFL history to go 18-0 in one season, defeating the San Diego Chargers in the AFC Championship Game Sunday 21-12.
And Keep Them Open, Too, Just In Case: The Patriots advance to Super Bowl XLII Feb. 4, which is pretty late for a Super Bowl. The earliest Super Bowl ever was Super Bowl XI, played on Jan. 9, 1977, but that was before 12 teams made the playoffs and before the regular season was 16 games played over 17 weeks. And the Jan 9. date included two weeks between the conference championship games and the Super Bowl.
Dry, Technical Matter: The Patriots are now 6-1 in the AFC Championship Game. The Chargers are 1-3.
Fast Flashback: 1976 was the year the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went 0-14, and, the first year those 30-second clocks appeared in each end zone to keep coaches from whining when a delay of game penalty was called.
Also: In 1976 teams played only 14 regular season games and only eight teams qualified for the playoffs.
A Sign The Hand Basket Has Arrived: Jan. 9 is only one day later than the date the BCS National Championship Game was played this year.
Can We Get Back On Message Here?: The Patriots are the second team to win 18 games in a season. The 1983-84 Chicago Bears went 15-1 in the regular season and 3-0 in the playoffs, ending with a 46-10 demolition of the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX.
A Vicious Circle: The Bears' only loss that season came to the Miami Dolphins, the last team to go undefeated.
ON THIS DATE: In 1861 Jefferson Davis decides the Union has no chance and doesn't have the right to prevent states from seceding anyway and resigns from the US Senate, after his adopted home state of Mississippi secedes from the Union.
Uh-Oh: An early sign Davis was not completely enamored with Federal authority came when he declined a commission as brigadier general from President James K. Polk because he didn't think Polk have the right to commission officers, that that was a right reserved for the states.
We Are Not Making This Up: The Kenora Thistles win the Stanley Cup, defeating the Montreal Wanderers in both games of a two-game, total goal challenge, and outscoring the Wanderers 12-8. With an estimated population in 1907 of about 4,000 (4,300 American), Kenora, Ontario remains the smallest town to win the Stanley Cup.
A Fairly Short Reign: The Thistles would hold the Stanley Cup for two months. After defending it by beating Brandon, Manitoba two games to zero, they would lose a two-game, total goal challenge from the Wanderers in late March. Each team won one game, but the Wanderers outscored the Thistles 12-8. For reasons no one is entirely prepared to explain, the games are played in Winnipeg.
In 1924: Soviet Union dictator Vladimir Lenin dies, officially of a stroke but at the time of his death he was being treated for symptoms commonly associated with syphilis. This paves the way for Josef Stalin to start killing anybody he doesn't like and take the control of the country, thereby making Lenin look gracious and moderate by comparison.
Ah, What The Hell: In 1977, in his first full day in office, President Jimmy Carter issues Executive Order 11967, Relating To Violations of the Selective Service Act, August 4, 1964 To March 28, 1973, more commonly known as the act which pardoned Vietnam War draft dodgers.
LIVE FROM ZIMBABWE, IT'S FINANCIAL CATASTROPHE!: Responding in a manner first suggested in the 1970's by Dan Akroyd on Saturday Night Live, the Zimbabwe government continues print more money in an effort to ease a shortage of cash in the country. Following up the introduction of half a million and 750,000 dollar notes, Zimbabwe's central bank this week introduced a Z$10 million note this week.
More Dry, Technical Matter: Ten million Zimbabwe dollars is equal to about four American dollars.
Either Way, That's Kind Of High: The International Monetary Fund estimates Zimbabwe's inflation rate by the end of this year will be - and we are not making this up - 6,430 percent, and, some private estimates are as high as - and, again, we are not making this up, mainly because we aren't smart enough to - 50,000 percent.
Not So FunFact: Life expectancies in Zimbabwe are the lowest in the world: 37 years for men, and 34 years for women.
CARETAKER: The staff here at the Daily Dose will be taking a fortnight or so off coming up to concentrate on a literary project we've been ignoring. We are looking for a caretaker for this column. Requirements are suprisingly few: must be able to write in a more or less entertaining fashion. Must have some grip as to what we are trying to accomplish here at the Writer's Shack, even if we ourselves are not entirely clear on that. Must be willing to muster up a coulpe-three columns a week. We will provide editorial guidance and technical support and payment according to the current Writer's Shack pay scale. Inquire within.
WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON HERE?: As we write this, the NFC Championship Game is going to overtime of all the silly things, and our deadline is approaching, so the usual witless commentary will have to wait.
Answer To The Last Trivia Question: Grover Cleveland was the only president to have a child born in the White House, when his wife Frances gave birth to Esther on Sept. 9, 1893.
Today's Trivia Question:What was the largest denomination of United States currency ever circulated?
Threats? Recipes? Trivia question answers? Email The Writer's Shack Here!
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