As much as I love major league baseball, there is something very special about minor league ball. I’ve posted before about the fun that can be. Generally, men playing in the minors are pursuing their dreams with little immediate gratification other than the dream itself.
As we get ready to leave the town we’ve lived in for nearly 25 years, this town decides to get its very own minor league team! The Bradenton Marauders, a high A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates are playing their inaugural season in what is arguably the sweetest ball park in all of Florida.
My wife, son, and I took in the inaugural game a few weeks ago, and loved every minute of it. I could easily see me following this team regularly. I mean, they play less than ten minutes from my house. We could… oh, yes, that’s right: we’re moving.
Every move has its share of excitement and sadness. We are excited about the move. But ‘twould have been nice had the Pirates installed this team a couple decades ago!
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One could hope, however, if Arizona does not repeal it’s awful new immigration law, that some major league teams will choose to relocate their spring training programs to Florida. If any major league GMs are reading this, I know of 16 prime acres in Oviedo, Florida for sale. Call me.
MagistraCarminum
I don't feel your pain exactly, but i can imagine it…And maybe the "awful" AZ law doesn't look as awful to those of us living in the border states, who have talked to ranchers who have thousands (not hundreds) of people pass over their land in a decade, who live in a state where everyone can get driver's licenses, and where police are not allowed to ask for documentation. Our immigration policies stink, and need to be over-hauled. But one can hardly fault people for trying to secure their borders against an onslaught. Ducking now as tomatoes start to fly my way…
Randy Greenwald
Duck away. But some are pretty good aims.We lust for security and stability and safety. I know that. But the dominant power in any culture will not hesitate to assail the rights of any of the powerless in order to gain that. And that is a tendency that we need to stand against.We decry big government when it seems to be set against our own freedoms. But we hail it when it seems to only cause a lack of freedom for others. We should never let our own lust for security be a motive to strip freedom from others. There i no question that the immigration issue needs an overhaul. But to do so in a way that makes someone subject to special attention because of his or her race is a step backwards. And, by the way, don't think that this is written from a racially monolithic place. The predominant language spoken in the Walmart a mile from my home is English, but just barely.So, yes, I think we can fault people if their trying to fix something goes far in the wrong direction.
Gail and Keith
Very well said, The Reverend Mr. Randall Greenwald!
Anonymous
As a Naturalized American Citizen, I must make my comments. We are a nation of immigrants and we have laws governing proper immigration. That is why I SUPPORT THE ARIZONA IMMIGRATION LAW 100%.Are we forgetting that horrible terrorist attack in New York? Our Nation was attacked, we must protect our country! The Home Land Security is responsible for that and be it at the Atlantic border or the Pacific or the Canadian,no person can enter the United States without the proper security clearances and documentations. Are we racial profiling against the Europeans or Asians or Canadians? No! This the law. We always welcome immigrants but not illegal lawbreakers.For some reason this very same law is being ignored on the south border and this puts our security at risk. So the State of Arizona is trying to correct it. More power to them.Paul Der USA Citizen.