Fifty years ago, a new law known as Title IX gave female college and university students who wanted to compete in sports equality with male students. If I remember correctly, excluding football, schools had to provide roughly the same number of scholarships and equal treatment for women’s teams as for the men.
For 50 years, girls and young women have had the same opportunities as boys and young men to compete for First Place.
Lately, a change occurred. You probably heard of records being broken in swimming, track and other sports. And not just broken by a few seconds, but smashed! Without exception these new records have been set, not by extraordinarily athletic women, but by biological men transitioning to be female. Top male athletes are better than top female athletes in head-to-head competition. If a biological male is in the race, the females are competing for Second Place.
This is not against transgender females. Create a category for them to compete against each other. Not a perfect solution, but it would let them enjoy sports and compete fairly for First Place.
A family member is a high school Freshman on the swim team. As she improves over the next few years, I hope she won’t have to swim for Second Place, like the women in the Ivy League and NCAA championships.
The Russian Communist dictator, Vladimir Putin, is determined to take control of Ukraine. Why does he want Ukraine? Ukraine is a big European country, almost as big as Texas. Ukraine has tremendous natural resources, including iron ore, uranium, and natural gas. And I’ve already told you about the productive farm land, which potentially could feed 600 million people. (Do you realize the economy of Texas is much greater than the entire Russian economy?)
If Putin succeeds, it only adds about 3 percent to the size of Russia. He may envy the economic growth possibilities. But he grew up and served in the old USSR. He wants his legacy to be a return to the glory days of the Iron Curtain, when Russia ruled over Eastern Europe including a fourth of Germany. Putin never settles for second place.
A Presentation Piece from my talks as Will Rogers: “If any of you saw me roping back in the 1920’s… well, I’m not as good as I used to be. In fact, in 1934 I went out to a fine ranch at Hollister, California and was helping with calf branding. The next day in my newspaper column I wrote: ‘I didn’t mind all the men beating me at roping, but when a girl did it… (sigh) Well, it looks like it’s time to take up golf.’”
Historic quotes by Will Rogers (for Presidents’ Day):
“There wasn’t any Republicans in Washington’s day. No Republicans, no Boll Weevil, no income tax, no cover charge, no disarmament conferences, no luncheon clubs, no stop lights, no static (radio), no head winds, no golf pants or Scotch jokes…My Lord, living in those times, who wouldn’t be great?” DT #803, Feb. 21, 1929
“Lincoln was great. He freed the slaves and put the Southern whites in bondage for the duration of their natural lives. He furnished General Grant with cigars to smoke and poor Lee had no gas mask so he had to surrender. Lincoln tried his best to prevent that war between the Democrats and the Republicans. Since then, they have been settling their difficulties at the polls, with about the same results.” Radio, June 1, 1930
Will was introduced to President Warren G. Harding in the Oval Office and said, “Do you want me to tell you the latest political jokes?” Harding replied, “No, Will, I appointed most of them.”
On Calvin Coolidge: “As President, he did nothing and retired a hero, not only because he done nothing, but he did it better than anyone.” WA #326, March 24, 1929
On Herbert Hoover: “I always did want to see him elected. I wanted to see how far a competent man could go in politics. It has never been tried before.” Radio, Apr. 20, 1930
Introducing candidate Franklin Roosevelt in Sept. 1932: “This introduction tonight is not flowery or ostentatious… because I am wasting no oratory on just a prospect… Now after you’re elected, I’ll do right by you.”