Sophie's choice

Sophie's choice:

There is not much reason to watch the WNBA unless you follow a young woman named Sophie Cunningham. 

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There is not much reason to watch the WNBA unless you follow a young woman named Sophie Cunningham. She makes it fun and entertaining along with her pal Caitlin Clark.

Sophie's choice is to bring some common sense to the woke league. Of course, some people don't like that, as we see in this article from the Sporting News:

In a feature written by ESPN's Hallie Grossman, Cunningham -- who has spoken out against transgender women who were born as biological men playing women's sports -- reiterated that she is standing up for "truth."

"I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I'm like, 'I never once said that,'" Cunningham told ESPN. "I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men."

Once upon a time, or when common sense was common sense, having women go against biological men was never an issue. Who would support having men compete against women in whatever sport? You would have been referred to a mental specialist for saying something like that a few years ago.

Not anymore. Sophie's choice to make a common-sense statement about the biological differences between men and women has apparently upset some people.

As the article points out:

The WNBA's players generally lean left politically, frequently focusing on social justice issues. While the WNBA hasn't taken a stance on transgender athletes, one of Cunningham's former teammates, Brianna Turner, took the opposite stance from Cunningham in April, writing, "Policies that single out transgender women and athletes with intersex variations do not protect women’s sports."

Intersex variations? What in the world is that? As my late mother used to say, people think that they are smart by using big words.

The fact is that boys are boys and girls are girls, and they should compete in their own leagues without "intersex variations."

I don't know if the WNBA understands that Caitlin and Sophie are their meal tickets, but maybe not. In the meantime, talking about Caitlin and Sophie is the only thing that interests me and probably millions of others.

We love you, Sophie. Give my best to Caitlin.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts, and videos.

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Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/sophie-s-choice/

We remember Willie Davis (1934-2020)

We remember Willie Davis who was born in Louisiana on this day in 1934.

As a teenager growing up in Wisconsin, I had to learn about pro football.  

We did not play it in Cuba.  Nevertheless, I fell in love with the Green Bay Packers, the dream team of the pre-Super Bowl days. 

Before the Steelers, 49ers and Patriots won Super Bowls, the Packers won a bunch of NFL titles.

They had a great coach in Vince Lombardi, a great QB in Bart Starr and a great running back in Jim Taylor. The Pack even had great rookies, like Donny Anderson and Jim Grabowski. I remember Leroy Williams, who used to run back kickoffs. He ran one back for almost 100 yards against the Rams!

What a great team. It was easy to fall in love with a team like the Packers.

Willie Davis was also on those teams and a great fan favorite.    After football, Davis became a successful businessman, author and speaker.

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July 24, 1959: The Nixon Khrushchev kitchen debates

(My new American Thinker post)

They both got their chance on this day in 1959, or the famous kitchen debates.

Who won?  They probably both did.  This is a portion of the conversation, because it was not really a debate:

Nixon: "I want to show you this kitchen. It is like those of our houses in California."

Khrushchev: "We have such things."

Nixon: "This is our newest model. This is the kind which is built in thousands of units for direct installations in the houses. In America, we like to make life easier for women..."

Khrushchev: "Your capitalistic attitude toward women does not occur under communism."

Nixon: "I think that this attitude towards women is universal. What we want to do, is make life more easy for our housewives. ... This house can be bought for $14,000 and most American [veterans from World War II] can buy a home in the bracket of $10,000 to $15,000. Let me give you an example that you can appreciate. Our steel workers, as you know, are now on strike. But any steelworker could buy this house. They earn $3 an hour. This house costs about $100 a month to buy on a contract running 25 to 30 years."

Khrushchev: "We have steel workers and peasants who can afford to spend $14,000 for a house. Your American houses are built to last only 20 years so builders could sell new houses at the end. We build firmly. We build for our children and grandchildren."

Nixon: "American houses last for more than 20 years, but, even so, after 20 years many Americans want a new house or a new kitchen. Their kitchen is obsolete by that time. ... The American system is designed to take advantage of new inventions and new techniques."

Khrushchev: "This theory does not hold water. Some things never get out of date — houses, for instance, and furniture.  Furnishings, perhaps — but not houses. I have read much about America and American houses, and I do not think that this exhibit and what you say is strictly accurate."

Nixon: "Well, umm..."

Khrushchev: "I hope I have not insulted you."

Nixon: "I have been insulted by experts. Everything we say [on the other hand] is in good humor. Always speak frankly."

It went on a bit longer, and on TV, to say the least.  The comments about women are interesting so many years later.  Both men got their shots, but the Soviet leader never got to see Disneyland.  Mr. Khrushchev was barred from pre-woke Disneyland, and he was furious.

What's amazing is that Cuba and Vietnam were not brought up, or at least I could not find any evidence that they were.  In other words, the issue that almost started a nuclear war and the war that divided the U.S. were not on the agenda.  Maybe neither man thought they were important.

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July 1983 and the pine tar incident at Yankee Stadium

Who remembers that July 1983 afternoon in the old Yankee Stadium when George Brett’s game-winning run ran into a pine tar argument?

We didn’t have the internet, and most people still read the sports pages to get the latest news.

Back in July 1983, I was working in Mexico and on the phone with a colleague from New York City.  As we finished our business call, he teased me by saying to catch the sports highlights about the Yankees-Royals game that afternoon.  He had watched the game in the office on local TV.

So I made it a point to catch the sports news and couldn’t believe what I was watching.  This is how the legendary Murray Chass reported it in The New York Times:

Baseball games often end with home runs, but until today the team that hit the home run always won.  At Yankee Stadium today, the team that hit the home run lost.  If that unusual development produced a sticky situation, blame it on pine tar.  With two out in the ninth inning, George Brett of the Kansas City Royals hit a two-run home run against Rich Gossage that for several minutes gave the Royals a 5‚4 lead over the Yankees.  But Brett was called out by the umpires for using an illegal bat — one with an excessive amount of pine tar.  The ruling, after a protest by Billy Martin, the Yankees’ manager, enabled the Yankees to wind up with a 4‚3 victory.

What followed was one of the greatest arguments in baseball history.  Brett ran from the dugout and nearly (but thankfully didn’t) killed the umpire.  Benches emptied, and there were arguments all around home plate.  Last, but not least, the umpires ruled by placing the bat across home plate and determining that there was too much pine tar.

The league reversed the umpires, and the two teams returned to New York to literally play the rest of the game.  K.C. won.

The “pine tar” game was the last chapter in the Yankees-Royals rivalry.  It started with very intense postseason series that saw New York beat Kansas City in 1976, 1977, and 1978.  K.C. finally beat N.Y. in 1980, and most of the players were still around when the “pine tar game” happened in 1983.  And as they say, these two teams did not like each other.

I don’t know about you, but I’d rather hear about pine tar than all of these political messages in sports.

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Mayor Mamdani strikes out, Sophie talks common sense and a few other thoughts

 Mayor Mamdani strikes out, Sophie talks common sense and a few other thoughts

(I Can't Get No) Indictment

(I Can't Get No) Indictment:

Zohran can't arrest Benjamin Netanyahu, boo-hoo.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/i-can-t-get-no-indictment/

We remember Pee Wee Reese (1918-1999)

Harold Henry Reese was born in Kentucky on this day in 1918.   We know him as Pee Wee Reese, the great shortstop of the Brooklyn Dodgers who won 7 NL pennants.   

Pee Wee Reese hit .269 with 2,170 career hits & 1,338 runs scored.   He missed 3 full seasons to military service.

Reese's greatest contribution was his leadership in bringing Jackie Robinson along as the first black player in major league baseball.    In 1947, Pee Wee embraced Jackie in front of Cincinnati fans who were yelling obscenities at him.    It showed everyone that Pee Wee was a great player and a man of character.

Reese was inducted to The Hall of Fame in 1984 and died in 1999.

By the way, one of the greatest books about those legendary Brooklyn Dodgers is "Wait till next year" by Doris Kearns Goodwin.

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1952: "Decision before dawn", a different World War II movie

"Decision before dawn" is a very different World War II movie.    

It's not "The longest day" or "Saving Private Ryan", a couple of wonderful movies about D-Day 1944.    It's not "Casablanca" or a love story either.    

The film is about Germans helping the allies march through Germany with Richard Basehart as the US soldier who recruited Germans.  

The story is intense.   We've grown so accustomed to Germans as the bad guys that we forget many were opposed to Hitler and what he was doing.

It is a good movie.    However, be patient with the story because it takes time to develop.  

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July 23, 2009: Mark Buehrle and the perfect game

Mark Buehrle was an outstanding pitcher:  214 wins & 3.81 ERA.

 

He threw a no-hitter against a very tough Texas lineup in 2007.

 

Back in July 2009, he threw a perfect game against the very good TB Rays.

 

Every perfect game has its moments. (In 1994, I remember watching Rusty Greer saving Kenny Rogers' perfect game with a diving catch!)

 

Around the 7th inning, one of the Rays hit a shot down the left field line. It was foul by an inch!

 

In the 9th inning, Dewayne Wise made one of the greatest catches in major league history.

 

How in the world did this guy catch-up with the line drive, jump over the fence and hold on to the ball?

 

Congratulations to Mark Burhle for pitching the 18th perfect game in MLB history on this day in 2009.

 P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

July 23, 1964: Campy's super debut in the big leagues

On this day in 1964, A's rookie Bert Campaneris hit 2 home runs in his Major League debut.

This is how SABR remembered the day:

After an overnight plane trip, he arrived in Minneapolis the next day two hours before the start of the A’s game against the Twins, and had an unforgettable major-league debut. Playing shortstop and batting second, he sent a pitch by the Twins’ Jim Kaat over the left-field fence in his first at-bat. In the seventh inning he hit another home run. He turned in a brilliant defensive play, singled, and stole a base in the A’s 11 inning victory. Campaneris became the second major leaguer to hit two home runs in a debut game, after the St. Louis Browns’ Bob Nieman, who did it in 1951.

Campy became one of the best players in the AL and a key component of the A's who won the World Series in 1972, 1973 & 1974.

 P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.