At the top of the slippery slope . . .

The House of Representatives passed an amendment to the Constitution yesterday outlawing any physical desecration of the American flag by a 286-130 margin. (Click here to see how your representative voted.) The measure now moves to the Senate, where a two-thirds majority is need for passage. From there, the amendment is sent to each state to be ratified. 38 states must approve it within 7 years for the amendment to take effect.

When pigs fly . . .

Terry Frei posits the ultimate "what-if" for when the NHL returns: Quiet! The commissioner is stepping to the podium. A hush settles over the crowd at the Air Canada Centre, and hockey fans around the world anxiously wait. "With the first pick of the 2005 NHL Re-Launch draft," the commissioner intones, "the New York Rangers select Jarome Iginla." For a moment, the conspiracy theorists who wondered about the, ahem, propriety of the weighted draft-order lottery that led to the Rangers' obtaining the top pick are shouted down. To be fair, it is just a coincidence (well, at least we think so) that Iginla's choice by the Rangers comes on the 20th anniversary of the Knicks' drafting of Patrick Ewing following another lottery that raised eyebrows. And the NHL's Re-Launch is on. Meanwhile, TSN's Bob McKenzie checks in with a more reality-based version of what will happen in about a month or so: This just in, the Toronto Maple Leafs have won the lottery and will pick first overall in the 2005 draft. Sidney Crosby, welcome to T.O. Just one problem for the Leaf Nation, though. This 2005 draft to which we refer is only a mock draft, but if you believe in kismet or fate or whatever, it was the Leafs' ping-pong ball that rolled out of the mock lottery for the mock draft.

Bonus Answer

Well, judging by the flood of responses I got from my last post, I suppose I'll just have to give you the answer to the bonus question. (Though, if you watched the AFI's 100 Greatest Movie Quotes special on CBS last night, you should know the answer.) To refresh, the question was: The title to this piece ("Play it again, Sam") is a sly -- thank you very much -- joke about the umpires missing calls. Can anyone tell me what the joke is? And the answer is . . . No one in the film Casablanca ever says "Play it again, Sam." Rick says: "You played it for her, you can play it for me. Play it!". Ilsa says "Play it, Sam. Play 'As Time Goes By.'" The line "Play it again, Sam" appears in the Marx Brothers' A Night in Casablanca (1946). (Answer courtesy of the Internet Movie Database.)

Play it again, Sam

On Friday, Skip Bayless filed a great piece in support of using limited instant replay in baseball, thus ensuring that calls are made correctly. One piece of evidence he uses against MLB is the home run Mike Lieberthal hit earlier this year against the Giants at CBP that -- replays clearly showed -- was not a home run. Now, rarely does a night pass when we don't see at least one lowlight of a highlight – a "you're blind, ump!" call. The Phillies' Mike Lieberthal was awarded a home run that even he later admitted didn't clear the fence. Replay! The Cardinals' Albert Pujols leaned into the stands to snag a foul pop after it clearly ricocheted off a Cardinals official sitting in a box seat. Replay! I'm more of a perfectionist than a purist. Yet what could be purer than trying to get every call right? Apparently, the baseball gods have a sense of humor. The last out in yesterday's 5-2 loss to Oakland was made by Mike Lieberthal -- on a play where replays clearly showed he was safe. Now, I have always been absolutely in favor of instant replay -- in every sport. (Human beings are imperfect -- there is no disputing this. Why strictly rely on these imperfect eyes and ears to determine the outcome of games?) With MLB, I would have limited its use to determining if a ball was fair or foul, a home run or not, caught or trapped, and whether or not a tag was made. Now, however, I am in support of total use of instant replay in MLB -- from the aforementioned uses straight on through to balls and strikes, even. Umpires have egos, which is why players and coaches are ejected when they dare to disagree with an umpire's call on a pitch. However, when so many calls are missed and there is such variation between umpires -- indeed, between one umpire's own calls -- how can there not be instant replay for everything? The technology exists to make sure that all calls in every game are made accurately. How can anyone argue for it not to be used? Bonus: The title to this piece is a sly -- thank you very much -- joke about the umpires missing calls. Can anyone tell me what the joke is?

The Week in Blogdom

Taking a page from Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, today's post is a review of some interesting things I found online this week: Monday -- Tom at Balls, Sticks, & Stuff posts about his trip to Citizens Bank Park for Sunday's game against the Brewers. . . . I purchased and consumed my first Schmitter. If it weren't for that glorious sandwhich, I may not have had enough stamina to survive the day. Burrell and Utley hit homeruns and Lidle pitched great, but that sandwhich was the MVP of the day. I couldn't agree more, Tom. Tuesday -- Jason at Beer Leaguer posts a review of the Phillies pitching situation. I couldn't agree more about Terry Adams, though it does make one wonder what the hell Ed Wade was thinking signing him in the first, er, second place. Wednesday -- Tom at Shallow Center checks in with his take on the new Jimmy Rollins contract and the situation that has developed in the starting rotation due to Randy Wolf's injury. Thursday -- Jeff at Minutiae swoops in with an excellent review of Batman Begins: The greatest thing about Batman, as a superhero, is that he has no powers. He's just a man. He's real. Director Christopher Nolan taps into this big time, crafting a Gotham that feels more real than in any other Batman movie and characters that seem like real people, something that can be hard to do with a comic book. . . . The acting is superb, as you can gather from what I've already said. Nobody disappoints. I heard people suggest that Bale's deep growl for the Batman voice was weak, but I think it was outstanding. Oldman plays Gordon perfectly for the story, getting stronger as it progresses. Holmes, too, is great - though it doesn't hurt that she's beautiful. And if you need to be introduced to what Batman villains are like, look no further than Murphy's Scarecrow. Good work, Jeff. You're spot on about Cillian Murphy. I loved him for his "He's here - the Bat-Man." line, let alone the rest of his work in the film. (I heartily recommend the only other thing I've ever seen him in, 28 Days Later.) I'd also like to throw a spotlight on one Tom Wilkinson, playing Gotham's mob boss Carmine Falcone. Wilkinson's work has ranged from solid -- see In the Bedroom and The Full Monty -- to spectacular -- see Shakespeare in Love -- over the years, but nowhere does he perform with such obvious joy than in Batman Begins. All in all, I give the movie 3 stars out of 4 and agree heartily with Jeff that "it feels too early to tag anything with 'best movie of the year,' or even of the summer. But I've had a night to sleep on this after seeing Batman Begins, and I can't help but give it high praise." Friday -- Eric at Off Wing Opinion posts quotes from and links to two other blogs discussing rampent racism in the MSM coverage of missing persons.

Good food, good music, and good baseball

After listening to me rave all last year about The Schmitter, my girlfriend finally took the plunge last night. She was duly impressed, though it was tough to tell which she enjoyed more, the sandwich or the view from our seats -- which are in Section 143, directly behind Pat Burrell. A quick tip of the cap to David Bell and/or the Phillies public address staff for choosing the Weezer song "Take Control" as Bell's intro song when he came to bat in the third inning. As for the game itself, there were several things to note: the taunting of Brewers' left fielder Carlos Lee, the National League RBI leader, by the (mostly) soused fans in the back of sections 142 and 143, and his acknowledgment thereof; the mixtured reaction for Ugueth Urbina, making his second appearance as a Phillie -- his first after being shellacked on Thursday; that Charlie Manuel did NOT have closer Billy Wagner warming up in the bullpen in the ninth inning in case Urbina got in trouble; he chose instead to have Robinson Tejada warm up; the lack of a deafening crescendo of boos as Geoff Geary left the game having given up the lead; any other previous season -- hell, even earlier THIS season -- and Geary would have had to leave the field under police protection; that, despite Geary coughing up the lead, not only did the team not get down on itself but neither did the fans; apparently this new attitude the Phillies have has rubbed off on the crowd as well; the standing ovation -- by sections 142, 143, and 144 -- given to Burrell upon taking up his position in left field in the top of the eighth inning, after crushing the first pitch he saw from former Phillie Ricky Bottalico into the seats in 142 to give the Phillies back the lead for good; that I came this close to catching the ball that Burrell tossed into the stands after getting that applause. All in all, it was a good night. I was able to enjoy a night out with my girlfriend, visit with some family, enjoy fantastic food -- the Schmitter has to be one of the top five ballpark sandwiches in the country, right? -- drink, and an all too brief spot of good music, and watch my hometown team win their 5th game in a row -- their 11th win in the last 12 games.

Phils hold on for sweep

The Phillies managed to hang to a six run lead last night before Billy Wagner finally closed the door on the Rangers in the 9th. New acquisition Ugueth Urbina managed to turn a 104 lead into a 10-8 lead in his rather ominous debut. This marks the second Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday sweep in as many weeks for the Phils, who -- since May 15 -- have the best record in baseball at 16-6. The recent surge has propelled them to second place in the NL East -- a game-and-a-half behind Washington, itself 14-9 in the same span -- and to the top of the NL Wildcard standings, with a half-game lead over the Chicago Cubs. While resisting the urge to write an I-told-you-so piece in light of last night's "effort" by Urbina, I shall instead employ a wait-and-see approach and also point you to a post on Balls, Sticks, and Stuff that has some interesting information about Urbina's recent travels. (A must-read is the comments section for some insight from a Tigers blogger.) The Phils welcome the Milwaukee Brewers to CBP this weekend -- I'll be at Saturday's game -- while the Nationals play host to the Seattle Mariners.

Polanco traded . . . finally

Phillies GM Ed Wade -- ever the epitome of Tom Hagen -- is back at it. His 30-something reliever of choice this time around is one Ugueth Urbina. Wade was also able to snag utility infielder Ramon Martinez in the deal. (Quick aside: Martinez, though raised in Puerto Rico, was born right here in Philadelphia.) Kudos to Wade for managing to not include any Phillies' prospects -- what few are left -- in the trade. Around the horn, Balls, Sticks, & Stuff is pleased with the deal, while the Philling Station weighs the acquisition of Urbina and Martinez against the loss of Polanco. I understand that with the way the bullpen has been struggling recently there's need for another capable arm. It just seems to me that with the numbers Polanco has put up this year -- .316 avg, .376 OBP, .793 OPS -- he was/is more valuable than Urbina. Time will tell, I suppose. Boy, do I hope Urbina proves me wrong.