Missy Franklin 17 Years Old, Gets The Gold!

The Olympics are filled with unbelievable highs and heart-shattering lows! Winning a Gold, setting a World Record are fulfillments of a life of training. Likewise a defeat, a disqualification or tripping coming out of the starting blocks can be devastating . Nothing you can do about it!
One of top "feel good " moments of the London Olympics so far, took place yesterday when Missy Franklin, the 17 year old American won a Gold in the 100 meter backstroke in the fastest time ever. Yes, the fastest time ever. While most 17 year olds are finishing high school, taking the SAT's or getting ready for college she simply went out and cemented her place in history as the fastest female backstroker in the history of the World. Wow! Life will never be the same.
Hopefully, we'll have many more such moments to come.

Olympic beat witer Steve "Jim Thorpe " Goldman reporting.

Michael Phelps, One of The Greatest Olympians Ever; Don't Count Him Out Yet!

I guess when you win 8 golds in one Olympics, and 16 Olympic medals in your career, people's expectations are high. And rightfully so. So despite Phelps' admission that he did not train as diligently as in past years, he's here trying to become the all-time Olympic Medal winner! I can tell you, I'm rooting hard for him .
Off to an"Un-Phelps like " start. 4th in the 400 meter Individual Medley . Did get a Silver in a team relay and now is one medal away from tying for all-time medal lead. Come on Michael, you can do it!
My prediction. When all is said and done he is the all-time leader. That will be a great moment for him, swimming and the USA . Remember , don't count him out yet!

Olympic reporter Steve "Spitz" Goldman.

Insider Trading, Americans Don't Have Exclusive License On It, Japanese Doing it Too!

Everyone's doing it, "trading on Inside,Non-Public Information "! It's the latest and greatest international craze . And guess what? Us Americans don't have the patent on it . I know Boesky, Raj R, Gupta et al. Who said prostitution was the "world's oldest profession".
Latest company to be ensnared in an insider trading scandal is Japan's largest investment bank, Nomura Securities . Are you shocked ? I suspect you're not . Nomura admitted that it's employees leaked inside information regarding Inpex, Mizuho and Tokoyo Electric before it was made available to the public. Where I come from(Not Kansas you nitwit), that's called cheating ! And why ? Greed, power, impressing customers and" I'll only do it this one-time attitude". Customers greed and over the top trades did everyone in . No sympathy here . CEO Kenichi Watanabe just resigned.
Well, if convicted , I understand the defendants will face an unusual, but harsh penalty under Japan's Securities Laws. Yes, ten years in jail, sharing a bunk (bottom) with a 400 lb Sumo Wrestler convicted of eating a "day trader ".
Good luck. Sayonara!

International Securities Analyst Steve "Sushi "Goldman reporting.

A-Rod Fractures Left Hand, Another Yankee Down For The Count!

We get Sabathia back, Joba is close, Andy is coming along, and bang! A-Rod suffers a non-displaced fracture of his left hand . Could be out 5 weeks. Eric Chavez, a very competent third baseman will take over . Should do ok. Despite A-Rod's generally unproductive year, he has been hot as of late . Hitting the ball hard . He's usually a quick healer too.
So , if all goes well maybe we'll get him back by Labor Day. Give him 3-4 weeks to get back in game shape and ready himself for the post-season.
In the meantime, a little "silver lining ". Move Granderson to the 5 spot, and bat Ichiro 2nd behind Jeter. That would be exciting. Almost 6000 hits between them!

MLB analyst Steve Goldman reporting.

Yanks Get Ichiro, I Hope The Sushi in New York is Up to His Standards!

So after my kids went off to camp today, I picked up the Times to browse the headlines. What do I see? Ichiro is a Yankee! I gotta tell you , it picked me up like two double expressos. Yes, I know he's 38. Yes I know he's in the last year of his contract. Yes, I know he's had 3 down years in a row. Yes, I know we're about 20 games over .500...But, he's Ichiro. 2500 HITS in 12 or so years. 438 stolen bases. Had 262 hits in one year. Rocket for an arm. Premier "singles hitter" of this generation ! Future Hall of Famer . Yes, I said it.
And you know what? Baseball is all about the post-season . Just maybe, New York will revitalize Ichiro. Maybe he's the piece we need to get back to the "Promise Land". He's certainly an improvement over anything we got now . What a lineup too. Jeter, A-Rod, Tex, Cano , Ichiro and more . As a Yankee Fan , I feel like I'm in for a treat getting to watch this guy every night for the last 70 games. Will be a blast!
And while we lost Jeremy Lin, we have picked up another international Asian sensation. Stay tuned! Enjoy.

Romney, I Got a Good Idea, Make Shelly Adelson Your Secretary of State...He's Got Good International Diplomatic Skills(Lol)!

You know Shelly Adelson. Billionaire Casino mogul. Chief of the Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chief of the Company that runs his high-flying Macau Casino. Donated $20 million to an "independent group" backing Gingrich and has contributed another $10 million to another "so-called independent group " backing Romney . GOP groupie , in my opinion .
Hasn't had a good last 3 weeks in the news or in the Courts . In Court filings in a lawsuit filed by former Macau executive , Steven Jacobs , against Adelson et al, Adelson has been accused of personally approving prostitution at his Macau properties and violating immigration laws ! He is also under investigation for possibly bribing foreign officials . He would have loved Watergate! But hey, the First Commandment of Politics; Thou shall honor the almighty dollar contributed by wealthy donors. Adelson and Romney apparently abide by the same business rule...Eat or be eaten ! Ten million pays for a lot of "air time".
So with all these millions of dollars that Adelson has given , what will Romney do in return if by some miracle he makes it to the White House ? That's an easy one . Make him Secretary of State . Seems to have an"excellent way with foreign officials ". Maybe could win a Nobel Prize in "bribery ".
And don't forget as an added perk , when the President visits Macau Adelson can provide free hookers to his "advance team ".

Political analyst Steve "Woodward and Bernstein " Goldman reporting.

Lin's Gone; Ok Felton Get in Shape, And Kidd Please Don't Drive(Not To the Hoop You Knucklehead) Your Car Anymore...Get A Driver Already!

Tuesday night was dramatic, anticlimactic , disappointing and depressing all at once. I'm of course referring to losing Lin to the Rockets. The Knicks assumed too much, underestimated Lin and the Rockets took us to the cleaners . Great for Lin, the Rockets and the City of Houston. They'll get 3 years at least of Linsanity! Wow. We only had it for 25 games . I'll bet they sell out every game . Of course they need some pieces, but I believe Lin will be an all-star caliber point guard if he continues to work hard , get stronger and progress under Kevin McHale's system. I feel a little bad for Lin that Houston will be a work in progress. Hope he doesn't get stuck in a "long-term rebuilding scenario". As for James Dolan, you demonstrated that you're only positive attribute is having been " born into money ". You let a "megastar go"! Probably against the advice of Grunwald, Woodson et. al. You misled your fans, sold out all the season tickets and let the "Golden Goose" go. Sneaky stuff!
Enough of that . Time to move on. Let's hope Felton regains his form from 2010, Amare as well and that JR Smith can show some consistency . Let's not forget future Hall of Famer , Jason Kidd. If everybody plays together and up to to their capabilites they can win 50..Then who knows.
So Knick fans, stop crying in your beer. We still got some real pieces, finished strong last year and expectations are high.
Remember , unfortunately we can't put our owner out on waivers!

Reporting Steve "Hoops" Goldman.