A Closer Look (newest)

with Anthony Newcombe

August 7, 2024

This month’s topic: How did “Chia” become edible?

Good morning/afternoon/evening wherever you may be. I was thumbing through our provisions cupboard the other day when I noticed something very, very odd. Let me digress a bit first: not to “date” myself too much, but I recall as a youngster that we were inundated with television commercials about a new toy: the Chia Pet.

You’ve probably heard of it too! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzY7qQFij_M

Don’t quote me on it (it’s been a minute) but I believe the goal was to sit it on any desk, hope chest, G.I. Joe© builder set, etc. and sprinkle the chia seeds on a bald-backed beast (a goat, bear, dog or something), add a lil’ water and …VOILÁ …sometime later, that thing would sprout … HAIR!!

Fast forward to the other day in the cupboard. After all these decades, I ran into something called “Chia seeds!” What made it so strange is that nowadays, well, it appears that young people (I house a few of them part-time during the hottest months) have chosen to EAT the same seeds that we sprouted hair with. In fact, I had NO IDEA my Chia Pet was so healthy! Did you?!

Ch-ch-ch-CHIA! https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-chia-seeds

Are they aware of this?  If so, do they even care?  I’m hesitant to ask because I don’t want to have to mop my kitchen floor after they hear they are unknowingly ingesting “hair growth products” and proceed to yak all over the joint.

Do I need to tell them? Or should I do what the parents did in our dayeither just say nothing or tell them to “go out in the street and PLAY!”

What do YOU THINK?

Peace,

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. He can be reached for appearances via our “CONTACT US” PAGE.

A CLOSER LOOK … 

Let’s take a closer look … hey, what am I watching?!!

JOIN US FOR SOME SUMMER FUN!  

CATEGORY: SPORTS

I love golf a lot, but I can’t help after the U.S. Open this past weekend to ask: why do they think that showing the players that have ZERO CHANCE of winning is a good idea? 

I mean, if we’re already playing on a diabolical course, with a par 71, why the heck are we covering players who would have to shoot, well, 51 (Note: never accomplished to date in golf history) to compete with the leader who’s still asleep in his rented, golden bungalow at –7

Seriously, I just turned it off and did a bunch of yard work until the guys with any chance teed off like 6 hours later! At least there was no “chores guilt” with my decision.  

I’m trying, as usual, to keep open-minded on this subject. But I just can’t wrap my head (cover) around the concept of asking me to sink into my couch for all morning plus all day coverage involving players who have looks on their faces much like MINE on the back 9 during our “weekend hack-a-thons.”😕 😕

Luckily for the network(s), they had an interesting finish. Hang in there “Rors,” and congrats to those who actually COMPETED in the darn thing! Let’s keep trying to improve … ALL OF US! 

H.A.G.S !! 🌞🌞

-A.N. 

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. He can be reached for appearances via our CONTACT PAGE.

“SURGE PRICING,” “DYNAMIC PRICING,” ETC. 

(And whether they all perhaps are just different terms for, well, “GOUGING”) 

I don’t know about you, but I think this one might be well worth a shout down. Just imagine being a businessperson and suddenly being able to decide at what time(s) of day (or night) that you would choose to charge for a price for your product or service? 

First, I completely understand the “wish” for this to occur, but what makes no sense whatsoever is how it all fits into a lawful and fair process for those who PAY YOU for your product or service. 

Case Study: The Donut

Peering in from the customer side of things, I would think that a customer who buys a donut at 5 a.m. (before the morning rush) would expect that, with surge pricing, he or she should obtain the BEST price for the donut purchased. This, not only because said donut is certainly “fresher” at 5 a.m., but also because LESS people are competing to purchase the donut at the time.  A different argument could say that the customer should pay MORE because it was just made and will taste best at this hour.

So, where does that leave us? Should the donut be MORE expensive at 5 a.m.? Or, should it be MORE expensive around 7 a.m. when the traffic numbers are much higher? At any rate, trying to even give intelligent answers to these questions seems like a recipe for disaster and it looks like the only places these matters will end up in are the courts!

UBER 🚗

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/03/business/dynamic-surge-pricing-nightcap/index.html

Wendy’s  🍔

https://apnews.com/article/wendys-surge-pricing-tanner-burger-dynamic-9417bc235bbcd13d82966d04a6ba42bd

Jet Blue’s Latest: ✈️

https://viewfromthewing.com/desperate-jetblue-ups-ante-with-new-record-high-dynamic-pricing-for-checked-bags/ 

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. He can be reached directly via our CONTACT PAGE.

3 … 2 … 1 … TRANSFER! 🏈

A Closer Look …

with Anthony Newcombe

Yep, it’s another year combined with another reset.  Be it your personal resolutions, professional goals, bucket list aspirations, or something else involving much less angst and/or effort.  The point is people: it’s time to GET MOVIN’!!

black and white jersey shirt on red wall
Photo by Ricardo Esquivel on Pexels.com

First, let’s get the college athlete transfer portal stuff straightened out.  The author fully supports athletes finally getting both the college program they prefer to play for – as well as earning the income they deserve from risking their long-term health to quench the financial thirst of fans, bettors, university administrators, coaches, boosters, parents, etc.

What is difficult to support is the chaos this current process creates.  We need to figure out a more efficient path and timeline for the portal to work efficiently.  One suggestion floating around is to shift the process beyond the December bowl season and playoffs.  This will allow both teams and players to be able to postpone the decision process until everything is finalized on the field. That sounds less hectic and a pretty good start to me. 

Moreover, we can’t have players moving to and from multiple programs over a 4-5 season college stint.  One player – who shall remain nameless – has already transferred from the East to the West Coast and then back to the East Coast in just a few seasons!  That, to me, is a serious flaw in the system that requires immediate patching.  Personal freedom is fine, but chaos creation should be deemed “the red line.”

Regrettably, the current system mirrors the “Wild, Wild West.” Perhaps some form of “collective bargaining” should be created.  This could be a system which provides some guardrails for a more streamlined and fairer process. 

SOLUTIONS?

We all know college players aren’t “employees,” so it wouldn’t be structured the same as CBAs in the corporate world, but there still is room to introduce an unbiased committee – focused to ensuring fairness and some oversight – while also building a bridge for these young and financially naive players to invest and learn how to build lifelong security in their current NIL earnings.  They should be steered from nefarious characters who, let’s just say, might not have their best interests at heart.

What do YOU think?

Happy 2024 all!

-A.N.

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer.  He can be reached directly for appearances via our CONTACT PAGE.

IT’S TURKEY TIME! 

November 21, 2023 

🥇TURKEY AWARDS 🦃

A Closer Look …

It’s finally here folks! We are announcing our selection of the biggest turkey of the year, and believe you me, the list is long and there are plenty of contenders for the title. Let’s get right to it … 

(Drum roll please) 🥁🥁

Our winner is: George Santos Panza! We affectionately call him “Santos Panza” due to his remarkably similar physical appearance (to Sancho Panza of Don Quixote fame) – coupled with his complete devotion to becoming “the sidekick” of greed, ignorance, and shameless self-absorption. Should we call him Quixote? No, we prefer Santos Panza. 

For more on Georgie, click here >> https://www.tiktok.com/channel/george-santos-memes?lang=en

What the hell was “Santos Panza” thinking?

In a nutshell, it’s practically impossible to believe that someone could think that the people of the United States of America could be so stupid that we would sit back and allow him to do what he intended. 

At some point, those running for office need to learn that we don’t put them there simply for fun and games. Most of us just know what generally needs to be done and hope that our selection (or that of the opposing party) will step in and honestly attempt to make things better. 

If, however, we intended to use our campaign budgets to fund our lavish lifestyle(s), don’t you think we might have just RUN for office ourselves?  You know, like if any of it were LEGAL?!

Georgie: Did you really think that we would never find out? Wow, you are so deserving of our title. Best of luck in your future endeavors. Hope you enjoyed your Salvatore Ferragamos! You won’t need ’em for your next outfit though!

PROFILE

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. He never attended Baruch College and never played on its volleyball team either (see George: telling the truth is quite easy!) He can be reached for appearances via our CONTACT PAGE.

THE HOUSE SPEAKER VACANCY

A Closer Look …

WHAT’S GOING ON?

SPEAK UP A-HOLES!

OUR PROBLEM

The inept Congress, its vaudevillian cartoon characters, and a genuine potential for a coming crisis for the rest of us.  Thanks for your service guys!

I don’t know about YOU, but I’ve had it with these jokers.  We’ve been super-patient, participate in every voting cycle, and ALWAYS pay our fair share of taxes.

However, the turkeys who we put there act like there’s nothing but time to do anything and everything.  How did they get so disconnected (for lack of another word) from our wishes?

First, it’s “let’s take extra breaks because we can’t get along,” and now it’s “That’s all folks, let’s vote a raise while you give us all the time in the world.”

THE SOLUTION:

Here’s an idea: How about YOU work on commission?  You know, get NOTHING unless and until you PRODUCE RESULTS!  I bet you cheap turds would QUICKLY find your stride.

And as far as whom should elect, just go with Scooby-Doo as your speaker, plug him into the wall, and get something (anything) done for once.

What do YOU think?

LINKS TO THIS ISSUE

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/house-speaker-live-updates-steve-scalise-rcna119971

https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/steve-scalise-struggles-to-build-support-for-house-speaker-post-99be48e6

PROFILE

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer.  He can be reached for appearances via our CONTACT PAGE.

The most qualified “write-in” candidate for House Speaker!(credit: Wikipedia “Scooby-Doo”)

Maui

A Closer Look …

with Anthony Newcombe

Let’s take a closer look … @How could Maui’s fires happen?

Wildfires: How could this happen?

If you believe in attempting to tackle”the unimaginable,” well, now is your time. Imagine a warm, welcoming people in an historic, fun-loving town. Now, bring in a spectrum of colors on the roadsides, along the skyline, and, of course, in the ocean encasing it all. Next, swirl-in a palette of all types of people, gathering from many places of the world. Don’t forget the sounds of the birds, the music, the palms swaying in the gentle trade winds.

Heaven turns to HELL

Now, if you’ll bear with me, the unfortunate “unimaginable.” A spark creates a flame which instantaneously generates a full-blown blast one can only describe as some sort of “apocalypse.” No sirens, no alarms, no whistles, nothing. Just the hellish, furious, roar of death and destruction. Those who are even somewhat “aware” of what is happening have no time to think, but rather are forced to flee for their lives – even if that includes jumping into the ocean – to escape the heat and smoke barreling towards them.

In a flicker of time, all has been reduced to ash and rubble. There is little time to process what has happened. There is no one available to question or to provide answers. An historic town dating back to the kingdom of Hawaii stands no more. We must do all we can to pitch-in to help rebuild this place and its people. And the people need answers … NOW!

PROFILE

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. He can be reached through our CONTACT PAGE.

If you’d like to donate with us to Maui, simply scan our PayPal QR code … many thanks!

How about an AI CEO?

A Closer Look …

with Anthony Newcombe

This month: Here’s an idea: let’s build an A.I. replacement for CEOs!!

You’ve heard it, I’ve heard, we’ve all heard it recently.  “Artificial intelligence is going to replace me, and no one is going to be able to do anything about it!” Whether it’s Hollywood writers & actors, as well as other creators of duplicative content or services, it seems everyone is at risk of being replaced (substituted?) by AI.

WHY THIS MAKES SENSE

Call it alarmist, paranoid, or anything else you wish. The fact is that it’s coming – and FAST!  I recall when I was very young going to the movies and seeing Westworld with Richard Benjamin and a very intimidating Yul Brenner.  I might be too proud to say I was shaking in my boots, but let’s just settle on the fact that I NEVER forgot that movie. If only I’d  known that it was simply a precursor …

Fast forward to today.  It seems the only working people who are the most frightened by this concept are those whose decisions are being made on their behalf. Combine that with a general lack of trust for those in charge and BOOM – we are left with the anger, disbelief, and anxiety that is here.

CONTENT CREATOR P.O.V. VS. CEO P.O.V.

I think about things like this all the time.  As a content creator, I understand fully the importance of “having a say over my creation(s).”  Conversely, as a CEO, I understand the need to stay ahead of the business/technology curve and to keep costs in check, etc. However, in this situation, I’m going to side with the creators. I’m going to do this for the purposes of this blog entry simply BECAUSE-I-CAN!

THE WRAP UP

Finally, I’m going to propose that we embark on inventing a brand-new CEO in A.I.  It won’t be overpaid, it won’t chastise and intimidate its workforce, and it won’t force others to (Return to Office or “RTO”) drive to the office every day should they prefer to work from home (WFH).

Pretty cool, huh?  You’re welcome.

What do YOU think?

Hope your very hot summer is not so horrible. 

Stay hydrated.

-A.N.

PROFILE

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. He can be reached for appearances via our CONTACT PAGE.

SUPER SUNDAY!

A Closer Look …

with Anthony Newcombe

Hmm, let’s take a closer look …

This month: All the hub-bub concerning the Super Bowl halftime show

Everyone seems to be all in some type of tiff about the show. This year it’s Rihanna. Last year, it was concerning “honoring crime and criminals” with the Dr. Dre/ Snoop/ tribute to Compton. Some years back, it was Beyonce and all the stuff about militancy.

Let me tell you something. Look, Prince is no longer with us, Bruno Mars can’t do it every year, and we live in an era where no one is even considered if deemed a “has been.” I’ll go out on a limb and say, “just ENTERTAIN ME!” As long as the set is entertaining and everyone gets home safely, do we really give a sh*t?! Answer: we should not. Or, should we?

What do you think?

See you guys in the spring!

-A.N.

Profile

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack developer. In addition to this monthly blog, follow his 3 Questions with Anthony Newcombe on ANJET for luxury travel related topics and his book recommendations.

The “New” Lazy

A Closer Look

with Anthony Newcombe

Let’s take a closer look …

This month’s topic: The “New Lazy”

la·zy

/ˈlāzē/

adjective

adjective: lazy; comparative adjective: lazier; superlative adjective: laziest

  1. 1.

unwilling to work or use energy.

“He was too lazy to cook”

Or, how about, “We were too lazy to drive to the drive thru

Our household just received the latest “new thing.” It is, in fact, a digi-coupon from DoorDash informing us (don’t quote me) something like  “… save 15% on our orders from Del Taco in the next 15 days!”

Del Taco? Do you mean the drive-thru Del Taco?” Seriously?! So, let me get this straight. We can’t even rally enough to throw on some clothes and drive ourselves to the drive thru?! In just a few short years of Covid-19, we’ve now become so lazy that we can’t even bring ourselves to do what the formerly lazy people did before the shutdown

It says a lot about how easily we can be persuaded “after the fact.”  We’ve normalized something as simple as getting into our cars and driving a few blocks down the street. We’re even now willing to include a “delivery charge” just to be able to keep ourselves firmly planted in place.  What’s next, having someone to bring the delivery into our homes and arrange our plastic cutlery for us prior to engorging?

Hold on a sec. My security cameras just informed me that “Dasher” is here with my lunch. 

Gotta go!

See you in the new year – have a safe holiday and don’t eat too … well, you know you will! <);^)

A.N.

PROFILE

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author & narrator, and full-stack web developer. His insta handles are @50AINT30 and @anjet123

#ImmediateGratification #WhatHaveWeBecome #LowEnergy

A Closer Look …  😡😡

with Anthony Newcombe 

Let’s take a closer look …

Date: Wednesday March 9, 2022 

This month’s topic:  Why does it feel like anything now means everything?!   

THIS FIGHTING TAKES PLACE … EVERYWHERE! 

It just seems like any subject we discuss nowadays is like the end of the world. Airports/ airplane aisles, vaccines, masks, reading choices, luxury taxes, hirings and firings, gasoline/ grocery/ ticket lines – you name it – we will fight each other seemingly to the death if we don’t agree with something for it. You don’t like what someone says on a plane? Kick their a**! Don’t like the mask they’re wearing? Kick their a**! Don’t want to pay luxury taxes to small market teams? Refuse to field any players or teams…STRIKE! Not to mention all the unnecessary bombing and warmongering going on in the world.   

ALMOST ANYBODY FIGHTS … EVEN THE ONES WHO CLEARLY CANNOT 

Where did all these a**kickers come from? I’ve never seen so many people (most of whom honestly can’t fight) balling up their fists and letting it rip! Women just the same! It’s just odd to me. I always thought I was the one with had a somewhat of a short fuse, but it appears the saying, “If you live long enough, you’ll see it all” really applies more now than ever.   

WHAT’S THE SOLUTION? 

Perhaps it’s a confluence of so many negative events dovetailing – and combusting – in real time. Or maybe it’s something else. Am I missing something, or are you do you seeing the same thing? If you asked me, I would like to see this kind of energy going towards rebuilding roads and bridges, relieving student debt, cleaning up the environment, and getting a grip on our dependence on foreign energy.  All I know is we need to collectively try another path. Because this one isn’t solving anything.  Otherwise, I don’t see us having a whole lot left to argue and fight over in the end!   

Any ideas?   

See you in the spring!   ☀️🍃 ☀️🍃☀️🍃

-A.N. 

DEUCES WILD !!🏈🏈

A Closer Look

with Anthony Newcombe

Date: 2/2/2022 – Deuces Wild!!

🏈This month’s topic: the NFL, its owners, and its ways 🏈

So, it finally happened.  Just yesterday, as NFL football fans began digesting the results of the playoffs, we ran into some serious image headwinds for the league and its owners.   

The “Circus” 

Brian Flores, the former head coach of the Miami Dolphins (via Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots organization), has filed a class action lawsuit against the league and three of its teams. This ranges everything from bribery (see Stephen Ross, the Dolphins’ team owner) to interview sabotage (against John Elway & Co. with the Denver Broncos).

What else?

It also includes a “preemptive filling of a head coach position” he hadn’t yet interviewed for (with the New York Giants) that was discovered by virtue of a botched congratulatory text intended for a different Brian (new NYG head coach, Brian Daboll, from the Buffalo Bills)!  We couldn’t write a fable for television as intriguing as this is already turning out to be. 

What does this all add up to?

As I’ve been told by elders during my childhood while playing ball and breaking a few windows, it’s not good … at all.  We are talking about a league that is extremely image-conscious, has certain “rules” in place that are clearly ignored, and is run by owners who tend to pay attention only to issues that which will enrich them further as opposed to addressing difficult topics that would make things better for everyone in the long run.   

The real problem 

Call it what you’d like, but I’m going to say what I’ve always said, and that is there is very little “willingness to change” the way the NFL (and its teams) operate today.  Sure, there is a “Rooney Rule” in place, and the majority of the league’s players and starters are Black. However, there is but one (1) head coach (Mike Tomlin) who reflects the number (and type?) of players who are the helm of the sport and league’s  success currently.  

I ask you to look away from the NFL for a moment and towards the National Hockey League (NHL).  Ask yourself:  what would it seem like if the supermajority of players were coached and owned by some other (i.e., non-White) group of people?  Would anyone notice or would nearly everyone notice? That, my friends, is the real problem.  The issues stemming from this area are byproducts of the real problem.   

Find a solution 

Now that the proverbial “cat is (entirely) out of the bag,” we should ask ourselves the hardest questions of all: What is to be done about this? How and who should be compensated for their loss(es), and what will it take to move forward from this and ensure that real change is implemented, and we never see this happen again? 

Any ideas? 

See you next month (after most of you guys thaw out!) 

-A.N. 

Profile

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, author, and narrator. He can be reached for appearances through our Contact Page.

A Closer Look … Misuse-of-words-English-People-Incorrect-Wrong-

A Closer Look

with Anthony Newcombe

Let’s take a closer look

A “Blast from the Past” Edition (so much fun, we’ll re-publish it!) 

Flubbing our words and phrases?   

nother vs. another (“That’s a whole nother world”) 

Uh, NO it is not.  But it IS a whole incorrect sentence.  I’ve sat in professional meetings, witnessed intelligent people on television and interacting on large city streets misuse this term over and over.  How about “a whole OTHER” perhaps? It’s easy to remember because all you have to do to not be wrong is simply drop one tiny letter, the “a” 

uncharted vs. unchartered (“We’re in uncharted territory”) 

Here lies another constant.  It is used with such frequency that even we may, at times, become confused as to which is the correct choice.  When navigating areas (or waters) that are unfamiliar are we “in uncharted waters” or are we in “unchartered waters?”   

I always believed, being part of the general “charter” community, that the correct usage would be unchartered; meaning “not ever having sailed through these waters.”  However, if we think of “uncharted” waters, we could reflect on our childhood where gold, treasures & stuff existed – and envision other option of “attempting to navigate a map without any defined charts.”   Who knows…? 

pacificly vs. specifically (“I was pacificly talking about the last time I saw him”) 

We probably first heard this one around the holiday dinner table spouted from the mouth of our Aunt Ida.  ‘Pacificly’ is NOT a word.  Just noticing all of the red underlining will tell you that spellcheck specifically disagrees with you.  However, “pacifically” IS an actual word, but is still incorrect if used in this situation.  It may refer to a large body of the earth’s ocean separating numerous islands that we would love to charter (or chart). 

relevant vs. relative (“It’s all relevant!!”) 

No, it is NOT.  My understanding is of ‘relevant’ is that which is pertinent to or important to something else.  ‘Relative’ is more of an “it depends” or “relates to.”  See? It’s easy to remember… 

supposably vs. supposedly  (“She was supposably the one…”) 

Supposably is just horrible all the way around.  (Again, see all of the red in spellcheck if you don’t trust me) It sounds like you took the wrong advice of your Uncle Vito from that fantasy sports commercial.  However, it is a never-ending misuse of a pretty cool word…supposedly.  “Supposable” is supposedly a word, whereas “supposably” is a sign of, well, incorrect grammar. 

misconfuse vs. misconstrue  (“He misconfused what I said to him”) 

This was one I heard about a decade or more ago on one of those live court television programs where an actual hitman in a criminal case testified using (or misusing) one big word after another.  It was so amazing that I couldn’t turn the television off and was late to the office as a result.  However, it continues to be a source of humor that my spouse and I still occasionally giggle about to this day. 

One final note 

Back in high school (a few years back), I recall a hilarious moment in English class when our teacher informed us that one of her students required a tongue-lashing for incorrectly using a transition.  In a nutshell, the student stated his idea in one sentence but then attempted to transition it with a new sentence beginning with “Another words” instead of “In other words.” Though I felt bad that the teacher publicly shamed him (she’d probably be fired for it in today’s class), I must admit that I laughed at it as much (and as loudly) as anyone.   

A ‘word to the wise’ (Oops, I mean “words” to the wise) 

  • K.I.S.S. (no, not the Gene Simmons variety) 
  • K-E-E-P 
  • I-T 
  • S-I-M-P-L-E 
  • S-I-M-P-L-E-T-O-N 

Anything you have to say? 

-A.N. 

And the winner (again) is … Benjamin Franklin!💰

THE PGA TOUR COMBINES WITH THOSE CONTROLLING THE LIV TOUR

A Closer Look …

💰💰💰

Where’s that MONEY?!!

with Anthony Newcombe

Well, it happened again.  There’s a saying in sales that “the only loyalty in this business is to Benjamin Franklin (i.e., the $100 bill).  Indeed, Benjamin Franklin DID win yet another battle. But it wasn’t in the sales world.  Or was it?

If you’re keeping score at home, I’m talking about what’s going on in the professional sports world at the moment.  If you really want to know, I’m precisely referencing the “kowtow bow” the PGA Tour and its leadership extended to those on the other side.  Just a few majors ago, I recall seeing interviews containing the words “integrity, honor, principles, and loyalty (yes, the other “L” word).

Today, it’s “We need to make this work,” “We apologize to our constituents,” blah, blah, blah.  Since when did running an elite global sports organization entail working across the aisle talk?  So, EVERYTHING sounds like D.C. politicians now?  Here’s a word for you: BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

The fact of the matter is that Goliath (as usual) kicked the piss out of David (ditto).  Unfortunately, we all are accustomed to “Goliath” being what was revealed as “David.”  What I’m saying is it’s usually the tour that sets the tone and leans its weight and might on the weaker opponent. Here’s an idea guys: why not just be straight with everyone and TELL them that you were being strong armed all along. 

Especially the players who stood by you and sacrificed friendships, reputations, and oh, MONEY to fall on the sword for YOU. If cash was so tight, why didn’t you say it originally? Perhaps we in your “fandom” might have felt some empathy for you and either circled a global hat, opened a GoFundMe account or something of the like. So, the payout was MUCH BETTER on the other (quieter) side? I see. Okay, good luck with that one!

💰💰💰💰

So let me digress. You may think “who am I to tell anyone to be brave.”  I’m not even going to try that one.  However, what I WILL say is: think about everything you did when you “put this deal together.” Think about all the people for whom you were making decisions. That way, the next time you host or attend a youth charity event demonstrating the importance of the teachings of golf, I hope you can stop yourself in your tracks from lecturing others about those four words I opened with: integrity, honor, principles, and loyalty.  Because if you use these words, you will only be demonstrating one real word: hypocrisy. 

There’s a bigger name on the other line.  Gotta go. Have a great summer, hope the Opens go well and “we’ll see you at the bank!”

  • A.N.

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author and narrator, and a full-stack web developer.  He hits the golf ball a long way but often struggles to find it.  He enjoys landscaping and tinkering in his backyard on weekends. Anthony’s social media handles are: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter

HE DID WHAT?!  THE SUPREME COURT

⚖️What’s going on in our Supreme Court? ⚖️

A Closer Look … 

with Anthony Newcombe 

⚖️This month’s topic: Allegations of bribery in our Supreme Court  ⚖️

I guess it really does not matter which side of the aisle you put yourself. The bottom line is there cannot be rampant bribery allowed at the highest levels of the judiciary! Period. 

Even if we were talking about a Supreme Court Justice whom you agreed with, the fact that we are even in the midst of something so destructive to our country should be enough to make your skin crawl.  

Let me digress. Imagine if we simply sat back and allowed criminals to rob us of our belongings, kidnap our children, or beat us to a pulp when we are standing in a line at a convenience store.  

Imagine if we allowed a random shooter to wind his way through the city and mow down everyone and everything in his sight. How about thinking about enabling a rogue police officer to roam about the city having his way with anyone he encounters? 

The answer is (or at least hopefully is) we would never stand for any of these. So, if we really want to show the country that we care for it, we’d better hitch up our straps, think seriously and DO SOMETHING before NOTHING IS PUNISHED. 

We cannot keep looking the other way. We need the concept of law & order to come from the very top. If not, we cannot expect our citizens to behave. No “self-policing,” “honor system,” or the like. We spend enough taxpayer money on so many things that aren’t nearly this consequential to our future. We can do better in this area too, correct? What is there to hide?

We need independent oversight with teeth. If we do not get it straight, we cannot expect those committing the crimes to do it for us. Exactly like we expect it done in our communities. 

What do YOU think? 

-A.N. 

Anthony Newcombe is a 4-time entrepreneur, published author, narrator, and full-stack web developer.