BALTIMORE, Maryland June 10, 2014 - Tuesday morning dawned gray, still, warm, humid, sticky, close, breathless. I don't believe that I suffer from depression, but if I did, this is the kind of weather that would surround a condition like that. It dawned with the reality that six American soldiers who volunteered to serve their country, were deployed to Afghanistan, and while deployed there witnessed one of their fellow soldiers pick up and leave, apparently defecting to the other side, and then, when contacted by reporters about the defector, volunteered their opinion, were being trashed by the administration and its operatives in the media. The defector, Timothy Bergdahl, is the one and only American to do that among all the tens of thousands of Americans sent to Afghanistan by their government. Immediately upon that incident taking place the United States government had these six, and others, sign a statement that they would not discuss the incident, i.e., the defection, publicly for fear that it might jeopardize the soldier who defected. The six adhered to that promise to the letter until word came that he had been freed. All six were angered by the fact that the administration was acting like Bergdahl was a hero instead of a defector. Those on the uber left, those like President Obama, are really ticked off when somebody points out that there is another side to the story they are spinning. Now I understand that it isn't absolutely certain that Bergdahl defected. But all of the evidence points in that direction. He mailed his valuable stuff back to the United States before defecting. He left a letter saying he was defecting.
At this juncture let me say this: I don't have a whole lot of animosity for Bergdahl. God knows what was going on in his head when he went wandering off all those times. We all know a free spirit like that, one who moves to the beat of his own drummer. Maybe we're all like that to a greater or lesser extent. But it's one thing if you leave your fellow soldiers because you don't want to be a soldier anymore, it is another if you leave for the purpose of joining the other side. There is evidence that Bergdahl did just that. Was he tortured first? During the Vietnam era a lot of people went to Canada rather than serve in southeast Asia. I don't remember too many people joing the North Vietnamese Army. President Obama would have had a realistic picture of how his countrymen would react to Bergdahl if he would have conjured up the way America reacted to Jane Fonda tripping over to North Vietnam. How can you be sympathetic to the Taliban? They don't want you to be sympathetic. And God knows how awful Bergdahl was treated once he got where he wanted to go. Some of the stories of how Bergdahl was treated are pretty awful. On the otherhand, of all the Americans sent to Afghanistan, he is the only one to have defected. The New York Times, true to its mission of propping up the Uber Left Obama Administration, has been trashing the six soldiers without any evidence to back it up. In other words, par for the course. The six soldiers were the ones left behind and they were stuck with the just awful job of cleaning up Bergdahl's mess. In America we don't like to think about stuff like that. I was against the War in Vietnam. But I felt pretty rotten about that stand when I found out what happened when we left. The people who support total withdraw should be just as liable for what happened to the people left behind as the people who believed we should go there to begin with. What happened to a lot of the people left behind in Vietnam when we picked up and went home? It was awful. We were heartless. Whether it was a good idea to go to Vietnam or help the Vietnamese people was a fine philosophical debate. But we needed to be realistic when we had the debate. Leaving Vietnam caused countless thousands of ugly murders and directly resulted in some terrible, despicable people being left in charge of running what passed for the government. Can you say Pol Pot? Same thing is going to happen in Afghanistan. How will those villagers from the Last Known Survivor Movie do once all of the Americans have left? What bugs the you know what out of me is that the folk on the Uber Left do not care. War is bad, they announce. So is the end of the war for a whole lot of really good people. It is not okay, morally, philosophically, or in any other forum or context you want to couch your argument in, to pick up and leave without accounting for what is going to happen for the indigenous people who supported you or even just tolerated you while you were there. I wonder how much Bergdahl thought of them when he went wandering off to jihadsville. Cleaning up his mess means that every mission from then on had a second goal tacked on: finding Bergdahl or finding out stuff about his whereabouts. More than one soldier was killed during these efforts. The six soldiers that Obama and the New York Times are trashing are the ones who have been damaged. Imagine that, you are a soldier, you volunteered to be a soldier, you go through the hell of becoming a soldier, you are deployed to war, you serve admirably and are discharged honorably, years later you are asked your opinion about a guy who deserted and, true to the tradition of the United States for free speech, you provide that opinion, which is the same opinion a whole lot of Americans would have in the same situation, and for that you are publicly humiliated by the President of the United States and the so-called national newspaper of record.
What gets me angry at the President - and, I take it, a whole lot of other Americans are with me on this - is his willingness to completely trash the six soldiers who served in the unit with Bergdahl for merely stating their opinion. Did anyone from the administration think to get in contact with these fellows? They were easy to find. If they had, they would have known what they were going to say when Mr. Obama started acting like he was liberating St. Peter.
In my column on Bergdahl a few days back, I opined that things happened the way they did because President Obama and his inner circle are all Uber Leftists. They love people like Bergdahl who don't like the military, who do things that discredit the military, and who act like the military is not a necessary presence in our lives. It is an extreme minority opinion, but it is the opinion of the people on the uber left, like our President. People on the uber left are also at least sympathetic to Islamic Radicals. Obama wrote a column right after 9/11 that stated the attacks on the United States were justified, at least in part, by the way we acted in the past. He was 100% wrong about that. The attacks on 9/11 were directed against citizens, people, innocents. If the 9/11 monsters had a legitimate point of view, they needed to get their government on board and handle it that way. What kind of the world would it be if any person in the world could launch an attack on a foreign government for perceived wrongs? If you can imagine a world like that, you would have imagined a world like the one dreamed about by Al Qaeda and by the blood-thirsty evil getting ready to take over Iraq (completely, they've already taken over half the country). This, now, is our world in the raw: the United States is governed by an Uber Leftist cabal. When the rest of the world is attacked, undermined, plotted against, run over by far left radicals or jihadists, they turn to the United States for help, only to learn that the United States they knew, the one that tried to do the right thing, is no longer in business. Were actual liberals or actual conservatives running the government, they would still find a sympathetic ear. But that is not now the case.
Then I saw a part of a video interview with Hilary. In it, the interviewer says that it seems like Hilary's recollections about Benghazi are quite detailed and, you know, did you - Hilary - keep a diary? "I kept a lot of notes," Hilary replies. "Would you make them available to the [Select] Committee?" the interviewer asks. "They can read about them in the book," she replies. In other words, her notes about the entire Benghazi Massacre, including the details about the incident itself, her attempt to cover up her failure to sufficiently defend the American consulate in spite of repeated pleas from the people there who are on to the Islamic Jihadist build up in and around the Consulate, and her notes about "tamping down" the desires of military types on the night of the incident to send in the marines (so to speak) are all mixed together. Hilary can't give up notes like that because if she did she might not get to be President.
I had a chance to see the Sole Survivor movie over the weekend, the one that tells the true story of four Navy Seals sent deep into Taliban territory in Afghanistan to kill a Taliban operative who had masterminded operations that had left many Marines dead. In the movie the Seals are on site and have the "bad guy" under direct surveilance when, suddenly, a herd of goats, a shepherd and two young boys happen upon them. They take the humans into custody and enter into a debate about what to do with them. Complicating matters to the nth degree is a break down in their ability to communicate with their commanders. One of the seals believes they have to kill the shepherd and two boys or many more marines will die. But the Seal in charge won't go for it. They merely release the people and head up the mountain, counting on their ability to contact their base and evacuate before they are overrun by the Taliban. It doesn't work. The Taliban catch up to them and a fierce gun battle ensues. Three of the Seals are killed, one by the Taliban after he is discovered while badly wounded. One, Marcus Latrelle, survives, barely, thanks to a village of Afghan people who - because they are caring for Latrelle - then become conflicted with the Taliban. The Taliban attack the village and capture Latrelle when, in the nick of time, the Marines arrive. When we are gone from there, I wonder how that village will do? I'd be interested in President Obama's answer. I assume he has thought about stuff like that after what happened in Vietnam when we pulled out.
Maryland lost the NCAA Super Regional to Virginia in three games. For the season, Maryland and Virginia split four games, but no one will remember that except people like me. You won't hear the Cavaliers say it, but the Terps did them the biggest favor an opponent can. Maryland made them play up to their potential. Before Virginia went down in Game 1, even though their "Lights Out" starter, Nathan Kirby, was on the mound, they were acting like all they had to do was show up and Maryland would lay down and lose. Virginia had superior players, but until Maryland whacked them twice - once in the ACC Tournament, costing them a shot at the ACC title, and once in the Super Regional - the Cavaliers were playing like nine or ten individuals wearing the same uniform. By all rights, the Cavaliers should win the College World Series. They clearly have the talent. They need to learn to bunt when it is to their advantage. It's all wonderful to high five a player after a play, but how about bunting him into scoring position in a tight game. Virginia lost to Maryland on Saturday and left 14 men on base in the process, and not once, in a one run game, with 14 runners left on base, did they move a runner up. Not once. And in Omaha, they will not be hitting home runs. The fences and walls are in Kansas while home plate is in Nebraska.
Two other comments arising from the Super Regionals: One, the NCAA still has all kind of trouble with umpires, just as in soccer they have lost control of referees. Actually, I'm not sure if they lost control or can't be bothered by exerting control. They won't want the CWS marred by the same ridiculous nonsense that went on in the Division I Championship Soccer Game, when the supposedly elite referee missed two intentional hand ball calls in the space of a minute, thereby handing the game to Notre Dame in the process. The umpiring in Lafayette for the series between Mississippi and Louisiana - Lafayette was atrocious, especially in Game One. I am assuming the four men in blue got a phone call after that because things did improve after that first game, but it can't start in Omaha like it did in Lafayette, when the umps were all wrapped up in the fervor of the moment, brought about by the wide outpouring of support by the home town fans. They were cheering and hollering and hooting and carrying on, tailgating like it was a football game and it was, really, wonderful. In some parts of the United States college baseball is ignored and it's a shame because it is really exciting and American and part of our heritage and all of that. But the umps have to be neutral. The four guys in Lafayette didn't get the word on that last part, especially in game one. The one play no one who saw it will forget was, I suppose, some kind of balk call. The pitcher threw a pitch, which the batter hit, the fielder played and threw to first, and when the ball arrived at first, the first base umpire said, um, wait a minute, you know, the pitcher balked. Not before this, not when the pitcher threw the pitch, not when the catcher would have caught it but for the fact that the batter hit the ball, not after the ball was hit, not after the shortstop fielded the ball, not when he threw to first, but when the first baseman caught the ball and the crowd, players and coaches looked to the first base ump to see if the runner was safe or out, that's when the ump decided to bring up the fact that the pitcher balked. The replay showed that nothing like a balk ever happened, so who knows what this fellow actually saw. The crew in Charlottesville wasn't nearly that bad, but the difference in the strike zone from one ump to the other was almost jaw-dropping. On Saturday, when Kirby faced off with Maryland's superb Jake Stinnett, the strike zone was so small that both pitchers were left to throw the ball right over the plate or face walk after walk. Kirby, who controlled hitters throughout the season, compiling a 9-1 record with a 1.36 ERA, was chased from the game by the fourth inning by the Terps. Stinnett, who walks nobody, was in trouble throughout his start because the strike zone was the size of a baseball card. And I won't even begin to talk about the call at first base that cost Maryland a big rally on Sunday. One of the Terps was caught off base on a line drive, but the throw pulled the Cavalier firstbaseman off the bag, obviously. The ump missed it. I missed his apology after the game. And since he obviously wasn't looking at that part of the play, I also missed him asking for help from the other three, who, together, couldn't have missed a call like that completely. Or, maybe they did. And the fine folk in Charlottesville couldn't have been proud of the fan who was caught on the crowd mike on Monday night. Maryland's Tim Lewis fouled a ball off his foot and was in obvious pain. He stepped out of the box briefly when some Neolithic nitwit yelled out, "you're not hurt! Get back in the box!" What makes people act that ignorant?
The second point to be made was the broadcast duo. When I saw that Mike Patrick was going to do the play-by-play I was delighted. He is such a great man and can call any sport with aplomb. Unfortunately, he and color commentator Doug Glanville got all tied up with how great everybody at Virginia was. I hate to think it was because Maryland is leaving the ACC after this season, but in the end that had to be it. Like I said above, even with the win Monday Night, Virginia and Maryland split four critical games. Maryland whacked Virginia in the ACC Tournament, and won the first game of the best of three. Only when they were pushed all the way back against the wall by a bunch of superbly coached over-achievers did the Cavaliers start playing somewhere near to their potential. Maryland hadn't been to the NCAA Tournament since 1971, and their all-time record in the NCAA Tournament before this season was 1-6. I'd have liked to know how that could be possible at a school where every other sport is superbly representative of the school. Not one word. John Szefc didn't just takeover a poor program. He took over a terrible program. The ACC stopped inviting every conference team to the conference baseball tournament in 2006. Maryland hadn't even played in the conference tournament once after that change was made. In other words, Maryland hadn't crawled off the bottom of the standings in the last eight years. Except it is longer than that. They hadn't had a winning record in conference play since 1971. Maryland set an all-time school record this season for wins in the conference. They went 15-14. These 2014 Terps weren't in good shape to make the ACC Tournament as April ended. They were 25-19 over all, under .500 by 5 games in the ACC, and coming off four games in which they were swept in a weekend series in Boston against the Eagles of Boston College, one of the lowest finishers in the ACC, then came home and lost to James Madison. But baseball is a redemptive game. Suddenly, Maryland caught fire. The difference between this year's team and those from the past are twofold: first, John Szefc is a wonderful coach who has been around the block more than once and learned something at every stop. And two, his first recruiting class is out on the field this season to join the couple of lads he brought in last season despite starting late. All of this began to kick in full speed ahead as May rolled around. They swept Notre Dame in College Park to open the month. Two days later they took the bus down to Richmond and squashed a good VCU team. The next night they headed north to Aberdeen, Maryland, to Cal Ripken's stadium, and edged always tough Towson, 4-3. Two days after that they went to Pittsburgh for a weekend series and swept the Panthers, winning Friday night, 21-1, winning Saturday in a game that was scheduled for 2 pm but started at 9 pm because of lightning, and winning a tight game on Sunday. Finally, two days after that series they beat West Virginia in College Park, the same West Virginia that the NCAA said was the next team that would have made the NCAA Tournament field if they could've taken one more team. Then they went to the ACC Tournament and on back-to-back days beat Virginia and Florida State. They won 11 straight. They finally lost to North Carolina in the ACC Tournament because they had clinched a berth in the ACC Championship and Szefc wouldn't use a pitcher against the Tar Heels he would consider using in the Championship game. Plus, UNC, though they had no chance to make the ACC Title Game, knew they were right on the edge of the NCAA and needed to beat Maryland. And still it was a great game. UNC led, 7-2, going to the 8th, but Maryland rallied to tie the score. I heard none of this during the three games in Charlottesville. But I did here that color announcer Doug Glanville had tweeted the MLB team that drafted Virginia's Mike Pappi, telling them that they were getting an outstanding player. Wow. What other tweets, Doug? Any about the lads on Maryland? Never mind, I don't want to know. In fact, I heard so much about how great Virginia was that I thought they'd won the last three CWS. I mean, they had to be that good. Doug and Mike said so. In fact, in the nine years that Virginia Coach Brian O'Connor had headed that program, they have made two trips to the CWS without winning. There is no doubt that Virginia is an elite program and talking about that in proportion was fine. My complaint is that this was all that was talked about for three days, when the truth is that the teams have split four games. What did they say about Maryland? That John Szefc had done a remarkable job. Great. Anything else? Well, John Szefc has done a really remarkable job. Great! And you see, I know Mike Patrick is better than this. I still remember his incredible call of the Maryland v. North Carolina basketball game when the great Len Bias rallied the Terps from well behind in the waning seconds to beat UNC in the Dean Dome, a place where the Tar Heels had never lost up to that moment. Even though he is on ESPN a lot - he was the Monday Night Football Play-by-Play man for years - his big break came with the ACC. I suppose somewhere in his brain Maryland sold the ACC out. But the lads and the coaches on the field had nothing to do with that. The alumni didn't have anything to do with it. I'd have been against it, if I was asked. I love the Big Ten. It will be an honor to play in the Big Ten. But it is a conference for the middle of the country. In the ACC, the weather in the fall is warm enough to play soccer at night deep into November. It isn't warm enough to play home baseball outside in February, but we do it anyway because we are the northern outpost in a southern conference (OK, I know, nowadays, that Boston College, Syracuse, Pittsburgh and Notre Dame are futher north. Good for them.) There was an incredible story there during the three days of that really good David v. Goliath matchup. The Saturday game, where Maryland's over-achievers went out like David and took down Goliath - again - was as good as college baseball gets. Most of America didn't know how much of a story it was. Nobody told them.
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