Street Thug Criminals

For the last couple years, I've been curious what Lucky Strike's ban of "MC colors" means.

It seems to me that it would be a lot easier to just say what colors are banned, rather than force me to guess.

LAL said it might mean "motorcycle club colors."
ed002d guessed that "MC" is referring to rappers, making it an out-of-touch attempt to ban clothing associated with gangs.

After that, it was a dead end for awhile.

The case opened up again when I picked up Friday's paper and read about Peiro Fuentes Hernandez, who is accused of killing two Northwest residents. The article by Michael E. Ruane contains the following information: Hernandez "told police that he was a member of the MC Gang, known as Master Criminals, an affiliate of STC, or Street Thug Criminals."¹

Aha!

Perhaps "MC colors" refers to the colors of the MC Gang.


¹Street Thug Criminals... really? That's what they call themselves? "We're innocent, officer. We're just part of the Street Thug Criminals. That's all."

Checked luggage

It's time for my quarterly update on airline baggage fees, a time-honored tradition in which I criticize airlines for charging fees for checked luggage.

Today, we'll be discussing reporting by the Wall Street Journal that fees have led to fewer checked bags, which has improved baggage-handling reliability and created more room for cargo on planes.

Hey, that's great.

More cargo room means the airlines can sell that space and make a few extra bucks.

But why should passengers be paying the airlines for something that helps the companies make more money? For that privilege, the money should be going in the other direction.

Color coordination

Wisconsin's colors are cardinal and white. But for some reason, the endzone and "Motion W" logo at midfield are a darker shade of red.

Why aren't the endzone and midfield logo the same color as the jerseys?
	They started out the same color, but the paint on the field has faded.
	The grounds crew messed up and ordered the wrong paint color.
	Wisconsin has new official colors (two types of red).
	My god, you notice the stupidest things.

No ESPN and no beer maker Homer something something

Especially given the current economic climate, cable TV is a luxury — not a necessity.

Still, I was surprised to learn that 18 percent of Madison, Wis., residents do not get ESPN.¹

That's a lot of people! I'm sure the number is lower in beautiful Middleton.


¹This stat comes from USA Today, which says many college football fans will be unable to watch the major bowl games at home once the events migrate to ESPN, per the new TV contract.)

Fact checking ESPN

During the Wisconsin-Minnesota game this past weekend, ESPN mentioned that it is the oldest rivalry in college football, dating back to 1890.

"The teams have played every year except for 1906," the announcers casually mentioned, "when Teddy Roosevelt canceled the game."

Wait a minute. Did the president of the United States really cancel the Wisconsin-Minnesota game?

After much research, it appears the answer is no.¹

But he did start a chain of events that lead to its cancellation for one year.

It seems football was a particularly violent game in those days. According to the Cincinnati Commercial Tribune, 25 players died playing football in 1905.

Roosevelt demanded that schools install safety procedures and new rules.²

Some rogue teams refused to obey the new rules.

At this point, the faculty at the University of Wisconsin proposed a two-year suspension of football, saying the sport was not safe.³

Wisconsin's conference, the Big Nine⁴, voted to adopt the new rules and continue play.⁵

However, the conference shortened the season to five games (from nine) and banned "traditional rivalries." For Wisconsin, that meant dropping its rivalry game against Minnesota.

The teams rekindled their rivalry the following year. And every year after.


¹Thank you to Pete for getting the ball rolling on this research while I watched the game. And a special thanks to "College Football" by John Sayle Watterson for the rest of the information in this post.
²The new rules included legalizing the forward pass and giving offenses four plays to get 10 yards rather than three plays to get five yards.
³This action, taken out of concern for student safety, had the ironic effect of leading to vigilantes riots on campus as armed students stormed academic buildings. By the way, the president of the school at that time was Charles R. Van Hise, the namesake of my middle school.
⁴It is known now as the Big Ten.
⁵These rules were so controversial they caused Michigan to leave the conference in 1909. The school rejoined in 1917.

Skinny guy throws weight around

"We should be creating a playoff system...
I don’t know any serious fan of college football
who has disagreed with me on this.
So, I’m gonna throw my weight around a little bit.
I think it’s the right thing to do."

— Barack Obama
11/16/2008

Should the president-elect throw his weight around on the issue of college football playoffs?

Our nation has a history of presidential involvement in college football. After all, we have the NCAA because Teddy Roosevelt insisted in 1906¹ that schools establish a governing board to standardize rules and ensure safety in their sports.<sup>2



1</sup>Spoiler alert: I'll have much more on Roosevelt and my newfound interest in 1906 later this week.
²It began as the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States and didn't become the NCAA until 1910.

How marriotty will the event be?

NAPLES, Fla. — It has come to attention that this is the only city in the world with two Ritz-Carlton hotels on the same road. Having spent time at both, I am now cultured enough to have a preference for one over the other.

All this thinking about the Ritz made me look up the word "ritzy." Sure enough, it derives from César Ritz, Swiss hotelier to kings.

From now on, I will try to incorporate more hotelier families into my adjectives lexicon.

Ritzy lifestyle

NAPLES, Fla.¹ — I was excited to be headed for a few days to the Ritz-Carlton here in Naples. After all, I don't stay at five-star hotels in my everyday life.² But when I mentioned the hotel to a few people³, I discovered that everyone I know has already been here.

Me: I'll be staying at the Ritz in Naples.
Melissa B.: Oh, sure. Yeah, my friend got married there a few years ago.

Me: I'll be staying at the Ritz in Naples.
Jason: That may have been where I stayed when I was there last year. Maybe not. I can't remember.

Me: I'll be staying at the Ritz in Naples.
Tracy: I went there for a drink once. Marnie should really go with you and live it up!

Me: I'll be staying at the Ritz in Naples.
LAL: That's a nice one. Very nice. The whole staff will know your name within 10 minutes.⁴

¹Sorry, Catherine (if you're reading this), that I couldn't make it the extra 100 miles to see you.
²Except for that one time at Trump Tower Central Park West.
³Arugula-eating elitists, clearly.
⁴It's a friendly staff, but I've remained "sir" to them. But getting a big hello is important to LAL, who, to this day, continues to tell the story of a wonderful greeting he got from JQB's sisters 15 or so ago.

An immigration medley

In the December issue of Esquire, hedge fund expert Richard Medley¹ states that illegal immigration in the United States is a "leading indicator" of the nation's economic climate.

He writes that things are so bad at the moment that that illegal immigration has plummeted.

Huh.

Maybe this was George W. Bush's plan all along. Should we credit the outgoing president with accomplishing immigration reform?


¹Who is Richard Medley? Is he just some guy? Well, yes. But he manages A.W. Jones International, the first hedge fund ever established. Feel free to impress your friends with that fact.

Drill, baby, drill

Maryland voters approved a referendum to put in slots, did you hear?

Among the headlines showing up in a Google News search:

• "Md. voters give OK to 15,000 slots."
• "Slots are coming to Maryland"
• "Ocean City says slots are threat to town"
• "Delaware considers ways to compete with Md. slots"

The ballot initiative gave approval for slot machines used for gambling.

But as Jason pointed out the other day, it's much funnier to think about the actual slots, not the gambling itself, that excites people — Maryland held a referendum on whether to drill 15,000 small narrow openings around the state.

Return Day

Tomorrow, Joe Biden will take part in "Return Day," a Delaware post-election tradition in which all candidates, winners and losers, gather in Georgetown, Del., to parade around town together and literally bury a hatchet.

I only learned about this tradition today, so I've got some questions:

• Is there a complementary day for the start of the next campaign season at which point the candidates dig up the hatchet and start their next political battles?
• Is it the same hatchet or are there a couple hundred hatchets buried on site?
• Wouldn't it be easier to stop having hatchet-worthy campaign battles?

Keeping dry

• French drains
• Sump pump
• Epoxy injections
• Foundation vapor seal
• DuraShield wall paneling
• Speedy Drain system

All complete.

It only took a year, but our basement is finally ready to handle a simple rainfall without flooding.

That's good news because the forecast today calls for rain.

How D.C. ripped me off by $5

When D.C. residents take their cars to the auto inspection station, they receive a little compliance sticker to put on the windshield. Cars need to be inspected every two years, so the sticker carries the date through which the current inspection has approved the car.

When I first registered my car, the sticker reflected that I had paid my registration through August 31.

When it came time to renew, I was busy that day... so I took in the car a few days earlier. But despite the fact that I had paid for a full two years (through the end of the month), my new renewal date became two years from the new date.

This process has continued each time, meaning that the renewal date has crept earlier and earlier (since I always take the car in before it's "due" date).¹

As a result, my new renewal date is mid-August.


¹Actually, Marnie has overseen the last couple of inspections.