If only the NY TImes used the sports headline writers for the news
Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.
Saturday's New York Times sports section features an article blasting the NFL for its treatment of Israel's football team (which plays for the AFC title and a trip to the Super Bowl tomorrow) and team quarterback Tom Brady (Hat Tip: Memeorandum). The headline is titled True Scandal of Deflategate Lies in the N.F.L.’s Behavior.
In
May, the data arrived. The prominent lawyer Theodore V. Wells Jr., who
was hired to investigate Deflategate for the league, delivered a
devastating indictment of the Patriots. The Wells report
concluded that “it was more probable than not” that two members of the
Patriots’ locker room staff had “participated in a deliberate effort to
release air from Patriots game balls,” and that “it was more probable
than not” that Brady was “at least generally aware” of the impropriety.
Although
the evidence was circumstantial — based on ambiguous text messages;
Brady’s discarding of a cellphone; and a trip to the bathroom by one of
the staff members, who took the balls in with him — it was also
buttressed by a lengthy scientific report prepared by Exponent, a consulting firm with dubious bona fides, having disputed the dangers of secondhand smoke and asbestos. Exponent was a hired gun, and its conclusions backed Wells’s narrative.
Brady
liked his footballs at the lowest p.s.i. in the range — 12.5. The
consultants concluded that the drop in the p.s.i. of the Patriots’
footballs — the average was 11.3 p.s.i. — could not be fully explained
by the Ideal Gas Law; it was too steep. But the smaller drop in the
p.s.i. of the Colts’ footballs could indeed be explained by the laws of
physics.
Numbers
in hand, Leonard went to work. He bought the same gauges the N.F.L.
used to measure p.s.i. levels. He bought N.F.L.-quality footballs. He
replicated the temperatures of the locker room, and the colder field.
And so on. When he was done, he concluded that Exponent had made a
series of basic errors. Leonard’s work showed the exact opposite of
Exponent’s conclusions: The drop in the Patriots’ footballs’ p.s.i was
consistent with the Ideal Gas Law; the smaller drop in pressure in the
Colts’ balls was not. (Leonard surmises that because the Colts’ balls
were tested after the Patriots’ balls, they had warmed up again.)
By
early November, he had a PowerPoint presentation with more than 140
slides. By the end of the month, he had given two lectures about
Deflategate, the second of which he had videotaped and posted on
YouTube. A viewer who watched the lengthy lecture edited it down to a
crisp 15 minutes; Leonard agreed to let him post the edited version.
The edited lecture
went up on YouTube on Dec. 1 and has been viewed more than 17,000
times. It is utterly convincing. Leonard told me that if an M.I.T.
undergraduate made the kinds of mistakes that Exponent made, “I would
force them to repeat the experiment and correct the analysis.” Based on
his study of the data, Leonard now says: “I am convinced that no
deflation occurred and that the Patriots are innocent. It never
happened.”
He is hardly the only scientist to take that position. As Dan Wetzel pointed out in a recent Yahoo Sports column,
scientists at Carnegie Mellon, the University of Chicago, Boston
College, Rockefeller University, the University of Illinois and Bowdoin
College — and others — have all come to the same conclusion.
Fair headline? I think so. Now compare it with this headline and the accompanying article's content.
Palestinian Girl with Knife Killed by Israeli Guard, Police Say
A 13-year-old Palestinian girl was fatally shot by an Israeli security
guard at the entrance to a West Bank settlement on Saturday after she ran at him
with a knife, according to the Israeli police.
The girl was identified by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa as Ruqayya
Eid Abu Eid, a resident of the Palestinian village of Anata. The village is about a mile
from the settlement of Anatot, where the episode occurred.
According to the Israeli police, Ms. Abu Eid quarreled with her family on
Saturday morning and then left her home with a knife “intending to die.” She arrived
at the settlement about 8 a.m., the police said in a statement, and ran toward the
civilian guard at the entrance, who opened fire. Grainy security camera footage from
the scene appeared to show a girl with a knife in her hand chasing a guard.
The girl’s father, who was looking for her, arrived at the settlement soon after
she had been shot. The police detained him for questioning.
Sure glad I read the article for the context. I wonder how many other people didn't/
Bereaved Parents Comfort Family of Ezra Schwartz at OneFamily: “We Are All With You”
Ruth Schwartz, Ari Schwartz, Nachum Lemkus, and Brenda Lemkus at the OneFamily Center in Jerusalem
Coping with the loss of a child in a terrorist
attack is one of the loneliest experiences a parent can face. For Ari
and Ruth Schwartz, who lost their son Ezra in a terror shooting in
November, the isolation is intensified because the family
lives in America, far away from the support of other bereaved parents.
That’s why OneFamily Fund,
which provides support to victims of terror, sponsored the family on a
visit to Israel and arranged for them to meet with other parents who
have lost children to
terror.
“The Schwartz family has the difficult task of
mourning the murder of their son, Ezra, all alone, in America,” said
OneFamily Chairman Marc Belzberg. “Today, at OneFamily, they benefitted
from the warm embrace, the shared experiences and
the heartfelt advice of many other Israeli parents who, like them, lost
a child to terror.”
Ari and Ruth participated in a support session with
members of bereaved families. Ruth shared her memories of Ezra, noting
that “everything was more fun when Ezra was around. His personality was
so big.” Ari asked the parents questions
that could only be directed to others who have shared the experience.
The group included BatGalim Shaer, the mother of
Gil-Ad Shaer, one of three teens who were kidnapped and murdered last
summer. The kidnapping took place in the same location as the shooting
that took Ezra’s life. During Ezra’s shiva, OneFamily
paid to fly BatGalim and her daughter to America to provide personal
support.
Others included Nachum and Brenda Lemkus, whose
daughter Dalia was stabbed to death in 2014 in the same location where
Ezra Schwartz was killed and the three teens had been kidnapped and
murdered; Tirza Levy, mother of Rabbi Nechemia Lavi,
killed in the Old City of Jerusalem in October when he came to the aid
of other terror victims; Ronit and Ury Cherki, whose son Shalom was
killed in car ramming at a bus stop in April; Cheryl Mandel, whose son
Daniel was killed in combat at 2003.
The meeting also brought together Rivkah Moriah,
whose son Avraham David Moses, killed in the terror attack on the Mercaz
HaRav yeshiva in 2008; Pirhia and Yossi Apter, who lost their son Noam
in a terrorist attack on a yeshiva in Otniel
in 2002; and Penina and Simcha Malik, whose son Gedalia was killed
fighting in Jenin.
Sarah Rosenfeld, whose son Malachi was killed in a
drive-by shooting on his way home from a basketball game in July,
started the session by telling Ari and Ruth that the purpose of the
evening was to give them a big hug and “a gift from
our own lives.” And the evening ended with hugs all around.
The parents greeted Ari and Ruth with love and
support, shared their own bereavement stories, and spoke about their
journey of grieving and recovery. Most importantly, they let Ari and
Ruth know they are not alone.
“Losing a child, we are now different, “said Simcha
Malik. “But here (at OneFamily), we are normal. We have our own
language, our own society.”
Batgalim Shaer advised the couple to focus on their
four surviving children. “Remember what you do have,” she said, “not
only what you have lost.”
Brenda Lemkus warned against the feeling that
bereaved parents need to project an image of strength. “You don’t need
to be strong for anyone,” she said. “You only need to be strong for
yourself.
Nachum Lemkus urged the family to carry on with
projects that their son would have wanted them to do. “Do it in his
name, no matter what it is.” Ari agreed, noting that the original
purpose of the visit was to help fix up the park in Gush
Etzion, as Ezra was doing at the time of his death.
Ronit Cherki urged the couple to respect their own feelings. “Trust yourself about what you need,” she advised.
Rivkah Moriah spoke about the benefits of
OneFamily’s youth camps over Chanukah, Passover, and in the summer for
the four remaining children in the Schwartz family. The camps, she said,
give the children a chance to enjoy themselves without
guilt. “There is no sense of betrayal having a good time among other
bereaved children.”
Simcha Malik told the couple that part of their
journey would be to progress past the point where other people feel they
need to give to them. “It’s the other way around,” he said.
OneFamily provides financial assistance,
therapeutic programs, legal assistance and a steady stream of personal
encouragement for each victim and their family. The organization’s
presence and resources ensure that victims and their families
never need to feel alone.
*******
As some of you might recall, Ezra HY"D (May God Avenge his blood) graduated from my alma mater, Maimonides School in Brookline, Mass. The defending Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots held a moment of silence for Ezra during the shiva week. Ezra was a huge Patriots fan.
The story above was provided by OneFamily. I have mentioned OneFamily on this blog several times in the past. The organization was started by friends of Mrs. Carl and me.
What you may not know about the Patriots honoring terror victim Ezra Schwartz
I realize that many of you thought I might have disappeared from the face of the earth. When I last left you - nearly a week ago - I was in Chicago where my only internet connections were the public library and the Kosher Dunkin' Donuts. Last Sunday I flew to New York. I stayed in New Jersey Sunday and Monday nights, and had meetings in New York on Monday and Tuesday. Tuesday afternoon I drove to Boston. This afternoon I drove to New York City. I am here for the weekend. Had no time to post until now.
As I am sure you all know, Ezra Schwartz HY"D (May God Avenge his blood) was murdered in a terror attack in Israel a week ago tonight. On Monday night, at the Patriots-Bills game on national television, the Patriots had a moment of silence in memory of Ezra, who lived in the nearby town of Sharon (the stadium is in Foxboro - they are very close to each other).
Let's go to the videotape.
So here's what you didn't know. Four friends of Ezra's were on the El Al flight from Israel on Saturday night. No, El Al didn't fly them for free. Patriots owner Bob Kraft paid for their tickets. Kraft also paid a condolence call on the family. And he apparently embarrassed President Obama enough that he called the Schwartz's as well (he had not said a word about the terror attack before).
I'd be much happier with Bob Kraft as the next President of the United States than with Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. Unfortunately, Kraft isn't running.
Bob Kraft does it again: NFL Hall of Famers coming to Israel
New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft (pictured here with his wife Myra a"h - may she rest in peace) will be bringing a group of 19 NFL Hall of Famers to Israel later this week along with the former players' guests. Kraft is not only bringing them - he's picking up the bill (Hat Tip: Mike P).
On Tuesday, a plane carrying Patriots owner Robert Kraft, Pro Football
Hall of Fame president David Baker and 19 Pro Football Hall of Famers
will leave for Israel.
The backstory: About a year ago, the Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Ron
Dermer, visited Canton with his son and staff. Dermer, a Miami-born
former quarterback who is in the Israeli American Football Hall of Fame,
suggested they should arrange for some of the gold jackets to visit
Israel. Kraft, a champion of the NFL’s international efforts and sponsor
of the Israeli Football League, stepped in to make the idea happen,
starting with the funding (Kraft is paying for the trip, including
travel and accommodations for 19 Hall of Famers and their guests).
During the weeklong “Touchdown in Israel” trip, Baker and the Hall of
Famers will attend a scrimmage of the Israeli national team, which is
preparing for its first international competition, and host an event at
the Kraft Family Stadium, the American football facility in Jerusalem
that Kraft funded the construction of in 2000. There’s never been this
kind of trip, with this many Hall of Famers coming together as
international ambassadors for their sport and their country.
“Robert Kraft has a great heart for growing the game through the
world,” Baker says. “It’s a historic trip for the NFL, the Hall of Fame
and our game, and I hope it is the first of many. Politics causes
divides, but sports has an ability to unite.”
Among the Hall of Famers traveling: Andre Tippett, Tim Brown, Jim
Taylor, Mike Haynes, Jack Youngblood and Curtis Martin, who was a
regular guest at Kraft and his late wife Myra’s home for the Jewish
holidays during his Patiots career. The Krafts planted a tree in
Martin’s name during one of their philanthropic visits to Israel, which
the running back will get to see in person for the first time.
Martin says witnessing how the game is growing outside the U.S. will
be educational for him, as someone who’s been interested in breaking
into NFL ownership. The Hall of Famers will also have the chance to
visit religious landmarks and meet with Israeli government officials.
“We all need a different understanding of Israel,” Martin says. “And to
see it in this way, it could be the most significant trip any of us has
ever been on.”
Anyone know how to get tickets to the event at Kraft Family Stadium? It's here in Jerusalem....
Israel's Football Team (I'm sure he didn't know they were called that) went to visit President Hussein Obama at the White House on Thursday. Obama's joke about Deflategate fell flat. But most important, star quarterback Tom Brady (in the sunglasses behind owner Bob Kraft and an IDF soldier from the Boston area a few years ago) didn't show up.
"I usually tell jokes at these events, but I was worried 11 of 12 of
them would fall flat,” Obama joked during a ceremony honoring the
Patriots' Super Bowl title on the South Lawn.
The crowd let out an audible groan at the president's jab.
The president conceded that the "whole story got blown a little out of proportion."
The
Patriots' championship run was clouded by allegations that a team
employee deflated 11 out its 12 footballs during the AFC Championship
game.
Team owner Robert Kraft, head coach Bill Belichick, and
starting quarterback Tom Brady, who was not in attendance at the White
House ceremony, have denied any wrongdoing.
In February, an NFL.com report found that only one football was severely deflated.
Good for Brady. Reminds me of another Boston sports hero who didn't show up at the White House during Obama's term.
I missed the Super Bowl parade in Boston on Wednesday - way too much work to do on the day I was returning back to Israel. But here's a brief highlight film.
Let's go to the videotape.
By the way, appearances to the contrary, Wednesday was the warmest day of the entire time I was in Boston this trip.
And yes, I did manage to get a Super Bowl Champions T-Shirt (although the kiddie sizes weren't available yet - that will wait for next trip).
Participants on the trip say Brady was visibly
moved by what he saw and experienced. Shrage remembers a Chabad rabbi
who was close with Myra leading the group’s Friday night dinner.
“Everyone started to dance, and Tom soon joined in. To see Tom Brady
dancing in a circle with us, singing with us, that was really special.”
“I think he was enormously moved.”
The Krafts took Brady to an IDF infantry base
as well. Boston-born Netzach Yehuda battalion soldier Avi Sandler was in
basic training in the Jordan Valley. He had just completed a week of
field exercises and a forced march back to his base.
He was told to put on his beret and report to the Deputy Company Commander’s office.
“I was nervous, as at that point one only went
to his office if he was in trouble,” said Sandler.
“As I entered the
office and saluted, I saw two other soldiers with American backgrounds
already seated. We were told that a group of important Americans will be
visiting the base tomorrow and that we were chosen to attend as
representatives.”
Fellow soldier Label Garelik was sitting in
his room when his sergeant came in, and told him that there were some
Americans visiting who wanted to speak to soldiers who had moved to
Israel from the US.
“Some Robert Kraft or something.”
The next morning, the soldiers were bused to the firing range, where a weapons demonstration was prepared for the visitors.
“Quietly, on the side, my friend says, ‘Avi,
isn’t that Tom Brady?'” Sandler recalled. “Other than Mr. Kraft, we had
no clue who was visiting. I responded, ‘It looks like him but what would
he be doing here?'”
“‘We quickly turned to Brady and asked, ‘Are you Tom Brady?'”
“‘Yes,’ he responded. Our mouths dropped.”
One of the soldiers asked Brady if he wanted to play football with them.
“I don’t mix business and pleasure,” Brady joked.
The soldiers gave a demonstration of the
various weapons lined up at the range. Brady exclaimed “Damn!” as the
machines gun were firing.
The Patriots quarterback even took some target
practice at the base’s shooting range. “I was worried about the
recoil,” Shrage recalled. “We certainly didn’t need Brady hurting his
throwing shoulder shooting a rifle.”
Other New Englanders were given the opportunity to meet Brady at the Israel Museum at a Saturday night dinner.
Read it all. So whom are you rooting for today? GO PATS!
For which football team should fiscal conservatives root on Super Sunday
Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.
I'm still in Boston and tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday. Yes, I'm invited to a Super Bowl party, and you can guess the team for which I am rooting. Yes, of course, it's Israel's football team, the New England Patriots.
But here's an aspect I never really thought about: For which team should you be rooting if you're a fiscal conservative?
Let's go to the videotape.
Yet another reason to like Bob Kraft.... And oh, yes, another 14 inches of snow now forecast for tomorrow night into Monday....
As many of you already know, I'm a big Patriots fan, so I hope you'll forgive me if I share this Saturday Night Live skit from last night regarding Deflategate (if you don't know what Deflategate is, you can go crawl back under your rock now).
Greetings from Madrid Barajas, where I will be for about another hour. You won't believe where I'm going from here, but I'm not telling yet.
Here's Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman from Israel's football team at Sunday's blowout of the Denver Broncos. Note the pin on the hat (Hat Tip: Lance K).
Last Monday night, I was in Boston and listened to part of the Monday night football game on the radio and heard this punt return by the Atlanta Falcons' Devin Hester which broke an all time record for touchdown returns (it was Hester's 20th - mostly with the Chicago Bears.
Let's go to the videotape.
Hester's team was penalized 15 yards on the ensuing kickoff for that little display of unsportsmanlike conduct at the end. The broadcasters thought that was a bit unfair because it was a record-breaking run, but the penalty stood and there was no real discussion about it in the morning.
Last night, the Kansas City Chiefs' Husain Abdullah intercepted my team's quarterback Tom Brady, and returned the interception for a touchdown.
Let's go to the videotape.
Abdullah's team was penalized 15 yards on the ensuing kickoff for that
little display of unsportsmanlike conduct at the end. I was in Israel and this happened while I was in synagogue this morning, so I did not hear what the broadcasters thought about it, but the penalty
stood. But there was a lot of discussion about it in the morning. Abdullah is a Muslim. And the NFL was forced to apologize (Hat Tip: Memeorandum).
His celebration drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, but
the NFL said Tuesday that Abdullah should not have been penalized.
The
league’s rule book prohibits players from celebrating while on the
ground, but spokesman Michael Signora wrote in an email Tuesday that
“the officiating mechanic in this situation is not to flag a player who
goes to the ground as part of religious expression, and as a result,
there should have been no penalty on the play.”
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/nfl/kansas-city-chiefs/article2324330.html#storylink=cpy
Huh? Never heard that exception before. Hester's high-step wasn't religious enough? Oh wait, Hester didn't have the backing of CAIR.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a civil liberties and
advocacy organization, issued a statement early Tuesday asking that the
NFL take steps in response to the penalty.
“To prevent the
appearance of a double standard, we urge league officials to clarify the
policy on prayer and recognize that the official made a mistake in this
case,” CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said.
Actually, I think the penalty prevented the appearance of a double standard. Abdullah did something remarkably similar to what Hester did. Both were penalized. Sounds fair to me. Sounds fair to Abduallh's coach too.
Game officials didn’t say anything to Abdullah after the play, but
Chiefs coach Andy Reid did when Abdullah came to the sideline.
“He said, ‘You can’t slide,’” Abdullah said.
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/nfl/kansas-city-chiefs/article2324330.html#storylink=cpy
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/nfl/kansas-city-chiefs/article2324330.html#storylink=cp
But Abdullah is allowed to slide... and to bow in the end zone. Maybe the next time, he can keep his prayer rug on the back of his pants.
Sorry but that penalty was earned. I have no problem with it.
What a class act: Bob Kraft sends a letter to the Steinberg family
New England Patriots' owner Bob Kraft has sent a letter to the parents of Max Steinberg, the 24-year old Californian who was killed in action in Operation Protective Edge (via Truth Revolt).
Kraft explained the incident happened while Sandy Weill
and other business execs were in St. Petersburg. “I took out the ring
and showed it to [Putin], and he put it on and he goes, ‘I can kill
someone with this ring,’ ” Kraft told the crowd at Carnegie Hall’s Medal
of Excellence gala at the Waldorf-Astoria.“I put my hand out and he put
it in his pocket, and three KGB guys got around him and walked out.”
Kraft released a statement at the time, “President Putin, a great and
knowledgable sports fan, was clearly taken with its uniqueness. I
decided to give him the ring as a symbol of the respect and admiration
that I have for the Russian people and [his] leadership.
But Kraft really wanted the 4.94-carat bauble back, he said Thursday, admitting he’d gotten a call from the George W. Bush-run White House, saying, “‘It would really be in the best interest of US-Soviet relations if you meant to
give the ring as a present.” (In fact the Soviet Union had collapsed 14
years earlier.)
But, Kraft said, “I really didn’t [want to]. I had
an emotional tie to the ring, it has my name on it. I don’t want to see
it on eBay. There was a pause on the other end of the line, and the
voice repeated, ‘It would really be in the best interest if you meant to give the ring as a present.’ ” The ring is now reportedly kept in the Kremlin library.
I sure hope that someone at least made Kraft a duplicate ring. And it should also be clear that Obama - much as I detest him - was not the first US President to suck up to dictators (nor was Bush by the way).
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
