A stunt's a stunt no matter what; and Jeter's loss tough for fans

So if this space diver guy had landed in my front yard, I might have looked up to see what the ruckus was about.

Might have.

Now, if it’d been Evil Knievel jumping over buses or something …

Here’s the thing about the skydive from a kabillion metres or whatever it was that kind of rankled me. It was made out in some parts as some big deal yesterday afternoon and lauded as some kind of historical moment akin to Neil Armstrong walking on the moon.

Getting to the moon was a moment of historical accomplishment; a guy making, I presume, all kinds of money off a sponsorship from a drink company to jump out of a balloon was more a stunt than anything.

Sure, it was something no one else has done before and maybe it belongs in the Guinness Book of Records and good for him; as an historical achievement I cannot see how it expands the knowledge of the world’s great minds, it doesn’t open any new frontiers, it was little more than a lark when understanding how the universe works is concerned.

The Mars thing? The moon landing?

They contributed something significant to scientists.

This? This was a stunt, a cool stunt and, I guess, fun to watch, but it was Snake River Canyon, it was the guy walking across Niagara Falls; it was no a moment of huge significance in the world.

It seemed at times as much about the energy drink as anything else and that’s kind of off-putting.

But good on him, glad he lived, glad he finally got it done, now we can get back to not knowing or caring who he is.

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So the ACC was ready for Rush last night, we’ll get to see it set up again today and tomorrow getting ready for tomorrow night and then I hear they’ll be in Montreal on our off-night Thursday.

Since I’m apparently being stalked by them …

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Three things that would be good for the Raptors this week:

Andrea Bargnani makes some shots.

He’s a bit out of game shape, his shot is flat, I presume it come back, now would be a good time for him to start rounding into form.

Kyle Lowry plays

The point guard practiced Sunday, we’ll find out today how he came through it but it’s pretty important they get him in at least one game this week. With only four pre-season games to go, he needs to start figuring out what it’s like to play with his new teammates.

A rotation emerges

There are still too many guys playing too many scattered minutes and with four games left it’s about time to start figuring out who plays when. They need to settle on four bigs, maybe three wings and a couple of point guards and let them get a little used to their roles. Figure that starts happening for real on Friday in Montreal.

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Speaking of Montreal, kind of wish I was going to have more time in that great city because I’m sure there’s all kinds of nooks and crannies Irregulars could point out.

But a dinner time arrival on Thursday, Friday morning shootaround an early story to write Friday afternoon (we have wretched deadlines for the Saturday paper) and the game Friday kind of make it busy.

So, knowing that …

Whaddya got for me?

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Man, that sure sucks about Derek Jeter, doesn’t it?

(Yeah, I know, a little late but first chance we’ve had)

I don’t know that I’ve ever spoken to Jeter even in a scrum but he is one of those athletes you admire and to see him with a broken ankle and his season over right when the games were getting to the most important part of the year was, well, heart-breaking.

In this day and age, Jeter seemed to be one of the true greats in any sport who carried himself with dignity and class; he plays the game hard and extremely well (if he’s not a first ballot Hall of Famer they ought to do away with the Hall of Fame and you know how I feel about Halls of Fame and how easy it is to get into them) and he seemed to handle everything thrown his way with professionalism.

As a former fan of the Red Sox, he was supposed to be one of the Evil Empire guys you were supposed to loathe but you couldn’t. I can’t imagine it’s easy for anyone to be the face of a sporting monolith like the Yankees, to be the team captain carries a level of responsibility that doesn’t exist in too many other places and all Jeter did was act like a grown up, he knew what he was to so many people and I don’t know if he ever let them down.

He was, and is, the kind of athlete I think we can all appreciate, one team for his entire career, a distinguished career focused as much on team goals as individual accolades and it looked all the time like he took every game – and his place in the game – seriously.

There probably aren’t a handful of guys who could do what he’s done over a career spent in the media capital of world, where “gotcha journalism” is in full vogue and everyone’s life is dissected far too much.

To an outsider, he was a pro’s pro; a class act; an excellent player.

And with the best post-season I can ever remember unfolding before our very eyes, it’s really too bad he won’t be on that stage.

Even if you hate the Yankees – and more than a few of us do – I think you had to appreciate Jeter and feel bad that his season is over.

 

Comments

[Bo Klymkiw]

I'm overwhelmed by all the comments regarding a possible Raptor rotation. I have Jonas, Andrea & Ed up front (with Amir as the primary & Aaron as the secondary fill-ins), then DeMar, Terrance & Landry at swings (with Linas as the fill-in) and Kyle and José at point (with John as the fill-in.) I also think that it's a shame that we can't find room in the active roster for Quincy's blocked shots. He's probably better off spending some time in the development league.

[UnansweredPoints]

I had to write because of your retort above that "if it wasn't a stunt he wouldn't have waited a week...". Are you suggesting that for his jump to have been of scientific merit (and not publicity) that he should have gone and jumped if his life was in serious jeopardy? “If this is for science, you’re going to have to jump at all costs.” If he went up in conditions less than ideal, this may not have turned out well. The scientific community of the 21st is big on not risking lives needlessly. Science does stuff in baby steps, maybe down the road we'll have accrued enough information to make it viable to do this in an uncontrolled environment, but we've got to start somewhere.

Would you have been happier if it was under the guise of NASA/ESA? As I’ve seen launches aborted for weather, it seems likely they wouldn’t have risked a persons life “in the name of science” either (particularly when the alternative was to wait just a week).

[ckl111]

Way to pee on someone else's parade. Every story I read reported him as a STUNTMAN so what keen powers of deduction you have. Maybe they should move you from sports to investigative reporter. Did you blog about Nick Wallenda's feat as nothing ground breaking also?

Blogger's note: Wallenda? A Blondin wannabe

[m]

‎"Dude... Millions of dollars - Millions of viewers - You fell to Earth. Really far, really fast. Wow. Cool. Rad. Whatever. Now put your parachutes away and learn how to properly walk on the Earth, and help others to do the same. THAT would be mind blowing."

[GM]

Doug responded: "...was still a stunt or else he wouldn't have waited a week or whatever it was for perfect conditions."

Not sure that means anything. They also wait for perfect conditions in shuttle take-offs. When experimenting, you can't be wreckless.

[john]

@sheik,
People jumped off balloon platforms from over 100,000ft in pressurized suits and parachuted to the ground safely over 50 years ago. Since then they have put a man on the moon (allegedly, HA!) and have people actually living in space. The hi-def camera that was used was newer technology than the actuall stunt.

[jsmut]

That's a pretty cynical attitude to take for someone who makes his living writing about grown men playing children's games. In experimental science, you don't always know where you'll end up or what the future applications might be - the challenge is the goal in and of itself.

"But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas? We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skill ..."

Blogger's note: Rice plays Texas because they might be in the same conference. Why is the sky blue? What would there be if there was no weather? How do they get the caramel in a Caramilk bar?

[Mike kovacs]

Perhaps all future ( and current? ) point-guard controversies could be settled by highest balloon drop?

[Dave B]

Now I feel bad I missed the stunt. I was in Niagara-on-the-lake last week. I drove to London on Friday to visit my daughter, drove to Toronto on Saturday to visit another daughter and home yesterday. I heard nothing about this stunt. Now I feel bad that I have missed some life changing event. Way to go Doug (I keed, I keed).

However I do remember the moon landing and where I was when Kennedy was shot. Will I still be able to survive and continue living without witnessing this world changing event?

If your objective is to throw out topics to generate comments and to find dissenting opinions, this blog was the penultimate success. Well Done Doug. Keep up the great work.

[dean]

Only a week to go before I have to "have the stones to post" about the Canadian Kid, Robert Sacre making the LA roster. Not just any roster mind you, one of the best rosters in the NBA in a long time........

He is clearly Dwight's backup, played what, 27 minutes last night, second to Gasol, has been playing tonnes of minutes in Dwights' absence. I will always stand by the fact the Raps should have taken him, not the stashed Euro.

Cheers, have fun in Montreal, go to the old side, fantastic pubs on the cobblestone.

[james]

Where @jsmut sees cynicism, I see indifference, which also sums up my attitude to most aspects of the "space program". Kubrick did it better. Phil Kaufman too.
No wonder so many teens are bullied online given the example set most days in the House of Commons. Discuss.

[Alex Chan]

Mr. Smith,

I just wanted to let you know that I applaud you for always giving your opinion. Readers come to your blog to read about your opinion, first and foremost on the Raptors, but over time, your efforts have expanded into other areas like music, other sports, world events and even where to find the best pint! Thank you, keep it coming. Always giving your opinion is why we come to your spot anyways.

I'd like to give one piece of my opinion: If the readers that think Red Bull's involvement was a wonderous thing for science, and that the stunt gave science a foot forward and very little government money was used to do it, then I would have to say that there's something very wrong with the governments priorities. Private entities are important to push the envelope forward on technology. The government should be support science and innovat as well, and maybe less energy and time worried about what goes on in people bedrooms.

I for one, do not want my children to grow up in a world where the text books (electronic?) says "Coca Cola" discovered new life on a far off planet, but where the schools are sponsored by Pepsi forget to put that information in the curriculum.

[doug]

lots of reaction to the jump, for me I love speed, going fast and the rush of free-falling at over 1100 km's a hour has to be unreal, I was in awe of it just for that fact...also i sky-dived once (no need to do more) and the moment when you have to push yourself off the plane is one of the greatest conflicting moments I have had...what that man had to be thinking at that moment when he disengaged from the craft had to be something we couldn't fathom....I 'd love to have A-Rod as a teammate for one reason as Granderson/Cano/Swisher have stunk but all anyone concentrates on is A-Rod, and think Swisher still thinks he is worth 120 mill? come on....
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you know Doug you have a chance to set a great example on this blog and that would be to instill some civility back into our culture via the internet...as we have seen lately something needs to change, so yes your "hits" may suffer or whatever but people need to be banned or not responded to or given a 3 strike your out type thing....as to not be civil, state opinions without decency has to cease or more accurately not be tolerated...we could call it the Amanda Todd rule.....just saying and cheers...

[doug]

oh and FIFA is a utter and absolute joke, a athlete reacts in a emotional situation and is given 4 games....well precedent has been set let's see if Ronaldo or Messi gets same when/if they make same statements come on...like I said a joke of a organization....cheers..

[papa]

not sure I share your cynicism regarding the jumper, doug. a guy jumped from space. I'm pretty sure there are going to be practical applications to come from a guy jumping from space. because a guy jumped from space!

that credibility is an issue because it was sponsored, I would say saddle up. Most if not all things related to future people being in space are going to be sponsored by corporations because this is what the US government has done to their program:

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1271085--space-shuttle-endeavour-heads-through-la-streets-to-museum-home

[SheikYurbouti]

@john

Perhaps you have far greater scientific knowledge, as well as knowledge of this "stunt", than I do, so I salute you. I'm always open to be better informed, so perhaps you can sum up how nothing can be learned from going 26,000 ft higher and traveling at twice the speed. Dr Clark has been quoted as saying that NOBODY knew whether a human, protected by nothing more than a suit, could withstand traveling at over the speed of sound, more than 2x what your 50 year old example traveled at.
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I have questions about the level of technology being less that the camera too. Again, Dr. Clark is involved in this and would seem to have very understandable motives. He lost his wife in the Columbia disaster and is quoted as saying that he is trying to help develop technology to make space travel safer for future astronauts, as in if a similar disaster happens at 130,000 feet, that the astronauts are wearing something that has been tested at higher than the 100,000 ft that the current space suits are limited to in their certifications
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Aside from laymen expressing their opinions, are you aware of any scientific publication/website saying nothing of value was to be learned from this? I'd be interested to know what the scientific community is saying, as i haven't heard anything from them saying it was just a stunt.

[J]

@Dan Smith:

That's a straw man argument. The issue isn't with learning--I learned something new today and am thankful for it--but with the amount of hostility that came with it. I read both Scott's and Kevin's posts and felt much more receptive to the latter. Surely, you don't have your head so far up your rear to have missed the unnecessary aggression. BTW, the preceding sentence was full of hostility (albeit made in jest), but I'm guessing you're okay with it because it was partially educational. =P

[JHP]

Morning

Is it just me or is the pre-season dragging on. I guess a game every 3/4 days makes sense but it would take 12 months to play the season. Any news relating to injuries or practices ?

Just wondering are you doing a IGBT tomorrow night ?

Thanks

Blogger's note: Oh yeah, I'll be here

[Tabber]

Seems like snark is only permited by Doug and the regulars, which is why I seldom bother to comment here any more. @LeeZ, who are you going to pick on next? I guess some are thinking they're superior to others, thus can use the snark and insults that others are excoriated for. Thanks,some of you, for allowing me, obviously such an inferior member of humanity, to read your insightful snark and insults. I just hope I can match the superior intellects and moralities of you some day - obviously far in the future, when developments from Felix's jump are in common usage. I sure hope you are using your superior intellects to help humanity, because I'm obviously no hope in that regard, being so inferior - I have enough on my plate helping out 6 or 7 people unrelated to me eke out their existence. No? Oh well, keep on devoting your time and effort to putting others down when they deserve it, I'm sure you'll be well rewarded in this world of screwed up priorities (and no, there is NO sarcasm in the last sentence, I'm now sufficiently jaded to see how things work, and I do believe you will garner the rewards that you think your behaviour justifies.)

Oh, Doug, why is it that your snap judgments are defensible while those of others are not? It's a serious question, because I'd like to be able to justify my own snap judgments while condemning those of others.

Blogger's note: Who says my judgements are snap? Carry on

[john]

@sheik,
A couple points, I am not an expert but my neighbor is a bit of an expert in high altitude flying being a retired fighter pilot.
- the new guy didn't go twice as fast as the guy 50 years ago. He went maybe 25% faster, and it was widely believed 50 years ago that the first guy broke the sound barrier but it was later refuted.
- after about 50M feet your dead so whether you go 100M or 200M your just more dead.
- technology to keep people alive above 100M feet has been around since they walked on the moon cause, well they walked on the moon.
- If a similar disaster happened that happened to the Columbia, they still can't eject safely going 12,000mph while their spaceship is breaking apart so the freefall is a bit of a moot point.
-Other than the scientists and doctors on the payroll, I havn't heard anything form independant scientists that suggest anything has been learned either.

[Tabber]

Oh,can't wait (well, for a few hours, I guess I can!) to see the flames I get for my comment above. Let's go, people, let me have it!