Volume 1, Issue 18 (Special Rainbow Over New York Edition)

IN THIS ISSUE:

-- NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS?

-- ONE GIANT STEP FOR MANKIND

-- CATCH A TIGER BY THE TAIL

-- U.S. SOCCER --- WHO, WHAT, WHEN?

TGG was already on our summer ("we'll put out an edition if the weather's not too nice") schedule, when it looked like it was shaping up to be a very slow news period.

The Republican Party had a Presidential Debate, and nobody cared.

And Really, Why Would They?

The NBA held a draft, and nobody cared.

Quick, Name All Three

In fact, one commentator, examining the GOP field, characterized the race for the Republican nomination as a "Tallest Leprechaun Contest"

The fallout?

Leprechauns All Over The World Took Offense

But as it turns out, there would be some news by the end of the week.  And what news it was.  In a historic vote, the Republican-dominated New York State Senate joined the Assembly in legalizing gay marriage in New York.   By some estimates, that single-handedly doubled the number of gay Americans now able to legally marry.

Governor Andrew Cuomo staked his reputation and his political future on doing whatever it took to pass the measure, and took a well-timed (and well-deserved) victory lap at New York City's Gay Pride Parade on Sunday.

Smile, and The Whole World Smiles With You

The change in public opinion and shift in American attitudes that made the passage of this bill possible is nothing short of remarkable.  Cameras, of course, showed celebrations in Greenwhich Village and San Francisco, but we think all over America those who have no room for hate were celebrating.

Politically, the implications were equally as stunning.   Andrew Cuomo wants to run for President.  He has calculated that leading the fight to legalize gay marriage is not a dealbreaker for a progressive Democrat running for President.   Which inevitably led many who think about such things to contrast Cuomo's position with that of our current President, who remarkably (that is our word of the week) appeared at a gay fundraiser in Manhattan on the eve of the New York vote and could not manage to offer an endorsement of the landmark bill. 

What Would Michelle Do?

All of this caused New York Times coulumnist and Obama skeptic Maureen Dowd to rip into the President, for trying to have it both ways on issues from gay rights to Afghanistan:

"As a community organizer, Obama developed impressive empathetic gifts.  But now he is misusing them.  It's not enough to understand how everybody in the room thinks.  You have to decide which ones in the room are right, and stand with them.  A leader is not a mediator or an umpire or a convener or a facilitator."

Did someone mention Afghanistan?   


 We almost forgot --- the President announced his new Afghanistan policy this week, committing to bring back 33,000 troops in relatively short order and promising that the Afghans would be ready to protect themselves by 2014.   Neither liberals or conservatives were pleased with the decision or the number of troops staying or going.  

The cover of "The Week" seemed to get it just about right:

Birdwatcher

Now, TCG is no strategic think tank --- just a (semi) weekly tip sheet for the fleet of foot and the faint of heart.   But when we hear that after a Trillion Dollars and hardly any visible signs of progress, Afghanistan is expected to take care of itself in 2014 --- just three short years away --- the words literally fail us.  We can't explain exactly what is wrong with that analysis, but in the words of our Old School Jam of the Week, we surely do know that....

Meanwhile, with the NBA playoffs over, it was not clear that there would be any real sports until Labor Day.     Two items managed to catch our attention last week, however.   The first was the breakout performance of Rory McIlroy at the U.S. Open.    We are not going to go into great detail here, but let us just say, with someone in the mix who actually appears to enjoy himself on the course ('cos you're just playing golf, fellas!), the word here is "Tiger Is Through."

"The King Is Dead --- Long Live The King"

Careful There, Now, Chief....

Finally, U.S. soccer fans had their hopes dashed once again as the Yanquis disgraced themselves by giving up a 2-0 lead to lose 4-2 to El Tri in the Gold Cup Final.   There was only one bright light: the who-could-have-seen-it return of former phenom Freddy Adu, written off by most observers as through at the age of 22, to a key role with the U.S. national team.  There it was, for all the world to see: the creativity that Adu brings to the table that so many of the "play in junior soccer since you're 5 years old with drills from some book and by the way everybody gets a medal even if their team loses" other American-bred players never, ever seem to have in comparison to the rest of this futbol-mad world.   3 years until World Cup 2014 to shape up, Team USA!

This Time, He's Taking Names

TCG will be on hiatus next week.  Stay tuned July 4th Weekend for our special "All American Girls" edition,

and be on the lookout for periodic updates

"as events warrant"