REMINDER — Bette’s ‘Boxing Day’ Happy Hour, a Visit from Monique Camarra, and a Sportin’ GOAT Essay from Marty

Please register for Bette’s Boxing Day Happy Hour, Tuesday, Dec. 26, 12 pm PT — joined by Monique Camarra + ex-Fed Martin Sheil offers us more sports’ metaphors as they pertain to politics

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Looking forward to seeing many of you in the squares for our Boxing Day Happy Hour, Tuesday, 12.26, noon PT. Monique Camarra will be joining us from Italy to update us on the war in Ukraine and ships that go boom in the night at our Boxing Day extravanganza.

And speaking of boxing sort of, retired IRS criminal investigator sent me this sporting note on Christmas Eve, which I thought I shall share with the Bette Dangerous community in all its glory. I promised Marty we would not use it for wrapping paper, but it might inspire our ‘rapping’ session today.

Heidi

Finished wrapping presents and waiting for the football games to begin and I was a little bored so I got to pondering and the below sort of just wrote itself.

I know you are not a sports person, but I can't send this to MSM (author’s note: lol) so I am wondering if you can do anything with it.

If not, print it out and use it for wrapping paper (author’s note: ixnay)

Happy Happy

Merry Merry

marty marty

Why isn't Tom Brady - the GOAT - in the NFL Hall of Fame already?

One can quibble that for one game maybe, one might opt for Joe Montana or perhaps Peyton Manning. But anyone making that argument would quickly acknowledge that - the GOAT - is on the same level of greatness of the alternatives already enshrined.

So what is the problem?

Before we answer that question let me pose another. Why isn't Shohei Ohtani in the Baseball Hall of Fame? I'm not talking about a photocopy of his historic $700M contract encased in plexiglass in Cooperstown. I'm talking about a true to life Bust of the greatest living baseball player of our time being enshrined.

Again, I ask - what's the holdup? Why is this not happening?

Well, it seems there is the matter of qualification.

Just to parse this word down to its very inner perimeter - if you are not qualified then you are disqualified.

See where I am going with this?

Anyone?

According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame - "any fan may nominate any Player, Coach or Contributor who has been connected with pro football simply by writing to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.

Simple enough.

But here is the rub and y'all knew it was coming - "The only restriction is that a player or coach must have been retired at least five (5) years before he can be considered!

What? 

The GOAT is stymied/disqualified for now from his rightful place in the HOF by a one sentence seventeen-word rule. 

Sacre bleu!

And Ohtani?

The Baseball Hall of Fame also seems to have a qualifying rule - Rule 3C to be precise - "Player shall have ceased to be an active player in the Major Leagues for a least five(5) calendar years preceding the election but may be otherwise be connected with baseball."

Oh mon Dieu!

The GOAT and Ohtani need to fight this injustice - this indignity - does their greatness not afford them Immunity from the regular order.

They should sue.

I hear Giuliani's lawyers need a paying gig badly or perhaps I should say - Sadly, and they could jump on the GOAT's case before Selection Saturday. They don't have anything else to do since they mangled Rudy's case.

The Trump team might have some time to squeeze in Baseball's greatest's case before spring season hits and they do have some familiarity with Section 3 rules regarding qualification/disqualification.

Maybe not

And no, neither Brady nor Ohtani can complain in their prospective suits that they were denied due process.

The 14^th Amendment clearly states that due process only applies to Life, Liberty and Property.

Meaning 

Due process has nothing to do with Disqualification

Now, it would appear at first glance that Ohtani, the GOAT and the Assclown have no legal case with regard to their apparent current Disqualification.

Baseball's wealthiest player can always tempt some members of SCOTUS with a new Porsche or maybe a new RV, and the GOAT can proffer some yacht rides if so inclined but neither is likely to stoop to such an ethical low.

Can anyone say the same about the Assclown?

That such weak attempts to analogize the Supremes ethical shortcomings in the face of their Colorado legal dilemma speaks in the end to their respective failure in the public's eye, to resolving a long festering moral dilemma that will undermine whatever legal conclusion they reach concerning Colorado disqualification.

SCOTUS needs to self reflect and gather themselves to reach new heights for what is shaping up to be a very challenging legal season.

Is a recusal here, a touchdown judicial pass there and/or a late inning home run legal opinion to save Democracy too much to ask from folks who were appointed lifetime tenure no matter how unqualified some of them are/were.

The Roberts court has the chance to attain the SCOTUS Hall of Fame in the coming new year but will they fail and fall to the ignominious depths of the Taney court of Dred Scott infamy?

Tick tock.

Martin Sheil

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