Baseball Quiz: 1) Name the top three all-time pitchers in bases
on balls? [Hint: All threw in the 60s.] 2) Who are the only
brothers to pitch a combined shutout? [Hint: 1970s] Answers
below.
First Top Twenty Tunes: Name the first Billboard Top 20 for the
following artists- Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Gerry & The
Pacemakers, Lesley Gore, Grand Funk Railroad, The Grass
Roots, Al Green, The Guess Who, Hall & Oates, Heart,
Herman”s Hermits, The Hollies, Buddy Holly, The Isley
Brothers, Jackson 5, Tommy James & The Shondells, Jay & The
Americans, Jefferson Airplane…Answers below.
It Only Takes One.
With all of the talk about a National Missile Defense and the first
meeting between Presidents Bush and Putin, I thought it was a
good time to bring up an episode or two which reminds us all just
how fragile the peace that exists between the U.S. and Russia can
be. [In case you”re wondering why here and not “Week in
Review,” the following fits this format better.though I will
continue to make other comments in WIR.]
I bet if you asked the average American on the street, most of
them would have no clue that the U.S. and the Russians still have
about 5,000 nukes which remain on hair-trigger alert and are
targeted at each other. Thus, regardless of the happy talk
between the leaders last weekend, the potential for a catastrophic
accident is as great as it”s ever been.
Back in September 1983, weeks after the Soviets had shot down
Korean Airlines 007, and with relations between the U.S. and the
USSR in tatters, Col. Stanislov Petrov was on duty outside
Moscow, monitoring 9 Soviet satellites that were, in turn,
monitoring U.S. nuclear missile bases. Suddenly, alarms
sounded…his computer was indicating a launch of a single
missile from the U.S. (though this one missile could be carrying
multiple warheads), just 30 seconds into its 25-minute flight to
Moscow.
As described in an article this past spring by the Washington
Post”s John Pastore and Peter Zheutlin, Petrov had to make an
immediate assessment. If this were an actual attack, the Soviets
would have to retaliate within minutes. Petrov judged that the
U.S. would never just fire one single missile and relayed to his
superiors that it had to be a false alarm.
But just a few seconds later, the sirens went off again.only this
time they extended into Supreme Headquarters.because the
computers had picked up an additional 4 missile launches! They
had 5 minutes to “use them or lose them.” Petrov held firm.it
was a false alarm. [He could have been overruled, but wasn”t.]
What caused the Soviet computers to react the way they did?
According to Pastore and Zheutlin, “The satellite mistook
sunlight reflecting off a cloud for the hot plume of a missile
launch – a software glitch.” And as it turns out, Col. Petrov
wasn”t even supposed to have been on duty that night. Would
another in his seat have reacted the same way?
Obviously, if the Soviets had launched, U.S. retaliation would
have resulted in tens of millions of deaths on both sides. And
this is but one incident. You may recall that just 6 years ago,
Russian radar mistook a Norwegian research rocket launch for an
incoming attack from the U.S. President Yeltsin”s nuclear
“football” was actually activated, but with just minutes to go,
once again the Russians judged it to be a false alarm. [What is
even scarier about this latter episode is that the Norwegians had
notified the Russians of the rocket beforehand, but the
information hadn”t reached Yeltsin”s top security chiefs.]
There.now that I”ve ruined your weekend.
Killer Spiders!!! EECK!!
Now this is gross. Workers laying phone lines near Windsor
Castle have discovered nests containing thousands of possibly
dangerous spiders. And these aren”t your run of the mill web-
weavers. No sir. They are rusty red and black and have a leg-
span of 3.5 inches. [Get out your ruler…that”s a big freakin”
spider.]
The species has yet to be identified but it”s possible that
whatever they are, they were probably believed extinct in
England for thousands of years. Worse, one entomologist
commented, “The species is certainly venomous and the jaws are
strong enough to penetrate the human skin.” The spiders may be
under Windsor Castle itself. Needless to say, engineers have
stopped working until they know what they”re dealing with. The
army is on alert. [Source: Reuters]
Manute Bol
It”s hard to believe that Bol has been out of basketball since 1995
and, unfortunately, life has not been kind to the 7”7″ Dinka
tribesman from the Sudan. Declan Walsh had a piece in the New
York Times the other day wherein he reported that Bol is
currently living in Khartoum with no job and two wives, with a
third wife having left him to live in New Jersey with Manute”s
four children. His knees and wrists ache with rheumatism and
there are days when he can barely walk.
Bol, who made good money in his 10-year NBA career, has seen
it all disappear, both because of poor investments (like the loss of
$500,000 in a D.C. nightclub) as well as his financial backing of
the rebels in Sudan”s long-running civil war. Bol is a Dinka
chief, his people being from the southern part of the country,
rebel territory, and he has spent up to $3.5 million financing the
Sudan People”s Liberation Army in its battle against the Muslim
forces of Khartoum.
But then in 1997, Bol decided to back a faction that sought
peace, against the wishes of the SPLA, and he moved to
Khartoum, an act which was viewed by the government there as
a coup because Bol is still one of the most popular people in
Sudan. It was originally thought that he had sold out the rebels
for a government job, but now he sits around, unemployed.
Manute also would like to return to the U.S. but may not be
allowed to by the ruling authorities. Put it all together and you
have one pitiful tale.
Top 3 songs for the week of 6/24/72: #1 “The Candy Man”
(Sammy Davis Jr.) #2 “Song Sung Blue” (Neil Diamond) #3
“Outa-Space” (Billy Preston)
Top Twenty Hits Answers (with peak position)
Aretha Franklin – I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)
3/67 #9
Marvin Gaye – Pride And Joy 6/63 #10
Gerry & The Pacemakers – Don”t Let The Sun Catch You
Crying 6/64 #4
Lesley Gore – It”s My Party 5/63 #1
Grand Funk Railroad – We”re An American Band 8/73 #1
The Grass Roots – Let”s Live For Today 6/67 #8
Al Green – Tired Of Being Alone 8/71 #11
The Guess Who – These Eyes 4/69 #6
Hall & Oates – Sara Smile 4/76 #4
Heart – Magic Man 9/76 #9
Herman”s Hermits – I”m Into Something Good 11/64 #13
The Hollies – Bus Stop 8/66 #5
Buddy Holly – That”ll Be The Day 8/57 #1
The Isley Brothers – Twist And Shout 6/62 #17
Jackson 5 – I Want You Back 12/69 #1
Tommy James & The Shondells 6/66 #1
Jay & The Americans – She Cried 4/62 #5
Jefferson Airplane – Somebody To Love 5/67 #5
*By the way, the Isleys” “Shout” wasn”t even a Top 40!
Baseball Quiz Answers: 1) Top 3 / walks: #1 Nolan Ryan, 2795
#2 Steve Carlton, 1833 #3 Phil Niekro, 1809. 2) Rick and Paul
Reuschel of the Cubs combined for a shutout in 1975.
Next Bar Chat, Monday…if you keep it where it is.
