No option but to fire Golfweek editor

Noose on cover of magazine
was fateful call made by 1 man

First, full disclosure:

* I was once managing editor of Golfweek magazine (1992-98), then became editor of Golfweek.com, and in 2001 fell victim to a staff reduction when Callaway Golf pulled its sizable ad schedule in reaction to a column written by editor Dave Seanor that criticized Callaway endorser Arnold Palmer. The column carried a lamentable headline referring to Palmer as "Benedict Arnold."

Now, some "insider" information:

* The scuttlebutt is that the decision to use a photo of a noose on the Jan. 19 cover of Golfweek was made by Seanor alone, over the objections of nearly everyone on the editorial staff. Several people that I talked to, inside the company, said they were adamantly opposed to the cover, and are sickened by the resulting controversy.

* That Seanor chose to use the cover does not surprise me. He once worked for the New York Post, and always had a bit of a tabloid streak in him. He likes to agitate, which it a trait highly regarded in journalism. He's a good newsman, and not afraid to take bold approaches to stories and coverage. Some call it pushing the envelope, but in this case he pushed way too far.

* Why no one stepped up to challenge Seanor and stop publication is a mystery, but it might have something to do with the fact that the president of the company lives in Connecticut, the publisher lives in Dallas, and Seanor was making the fateful call in Orlando.

* I worked a long time for Dave Seanor, we raised more than a few pints together and played many memorable rounds of golf on far-flung courses. He is a friend. And I'd like to think that if I was still working for him last week he'd still have his job -- because I would have fought him, literally come to blows if necessary, to stop him from making one of the worst decisions in the history of our industry.

Sadly, there was no option but to fire him.

All that being said, if the opportunity ever presents itself, I'd work for Dave Seanor again. And if I ever have the chance, I'd hire him to work for me. Making one big mistake doesn't make Seanor a bad journalist or a bad guy.

Dan Fogelberg: 1951-2007

A tribute to Dan Fogelberg: "Leader of the Band"



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'Chance of a lifetime in a lifetime of chance,
so it's high time you joined in the dance'

Dan Fogelberg died Sunday (Dec. 16). It wasn't huge news; USA Today had a story on page D2.

It was, however, a huge loss for music lovers.

Most people remember Fogelberg for his touching -- some say sappy -- ballads of the 1970s and '80s, but I'll always remember him as a great live performer and one of the poet laureates of my generation.

I saw him and his band perform at the long-gone Richfield Coliseum near Cleveland years ago, and it was an electric night, literally and figuratively. It was a rock concert in the true sense -- hard, driving electric music; strong, rollicking lead vocals; and great electricity in the crowd. We sat a row in front of Eric Carmen -- another great rocker known more for love songs -- and he and his mates were on their feet applauding Fogelberg along with the rest of us.

It was a memorable night, because it showed off all of Fogelberg's talents.

But remember him we will, too, for the hits. Links to a couple are above and below.

I think of him whenever I see my Dad, because "Leader of the Band" is the best song ever written by a son for a father.

I'll think of him on every first Saturday in May, because "Run for the Roses" is the new theme song for the Kentucky Derby.

I'll think of him when "the snow was falling Christmas Eve," and every New Year's Eve when the radio plays "Same Old Lang Syne."

Godspeed, Dan.

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"Run for the Roses" (here as a tribute to Barbaro)



"Same Old Lang Syne" (live)

'You Can't Do That' -- The Beatles best song?

For my money, this is John Lennon's finest performance -- "I told you be-fo!" -- and The Beatles best song:

Time to change Cleveland's team name

Not only is 'Indians' racist, it's stupid;
it's time to sacrifice money for dignity

I'm a lifelong Cleveland Indians fan. I had a big Chief Wahoo flag hanging on the front of my house for their run in the playoffs. I wore logo lapel pins and stickers. I wore the hat, and shorts.

I felt bad doing it.

I made a presentation to my department colleagues last Thursday, the day of Game 5 versus the Red Sox. Mostly English professors, they are a liberal leaning bunch. (One scolded me when I was about to drop a newspaper in the trash can -- "Recycle!" she yelled.) Before the meeting, I decided to take off the Chief Wahoo sticker I had been wearing around campus all day.

I realized I was embarrassed by it.

If I owned the team, the first thing I would do is change the name. Something generic, like the "Cleveland Clubs," with the globally recognizable playing card symbol as the logo.

Or maybe something blatantly corporate, like the "Cleveland Clydesdales." Need I suggest who the primary sponsor would be?

Indians is a racist name, and a stupid name. Chief Wahoo is an offensive caricature.

One argument against changing the name and logo is tradition. The name is nearly 100 years old.

It’s still racist and stupid.

The team’s name has changed several times. They were once the Spiders, the Forest Citys, the Broncos.

Change it again.

Another argument is business driven -- Indians hats are among the biggest sellers worldwide. In the MasterCard commercial running on TBS and Fox, little kids are playing baseball in the streets in Japan, and one is wearing a Chief Wahoo hat. They’re popular, but they're still offensive. (How would those kids feel if the team name was the "Cleveland Japs?" . . . Wait, didn't Ohio governor Rhodes suggest that once?)

The team and Major League Baseball need to sacrifice a little money for some dignity.

Have any ideas for a new name? Leave them as comments!

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More ideas (alliteration division):

Cleveland Clowns
Cleveland Clockers
Cleveland Clubs
Cleveland Classics (tuxedo-like uniforms?)
Cleveland Clydesdales
Cleveland Clamor (don't you hate those kind of nicknames -- Magic, Fire, Surge, etc.)

More ideas (general division):

Cleveland Plain Dealers
Cleveland Polka Kings
Cleveland Rocks (just big hunks of stone, scattered all over town)
Cleveland Lakers (quick -- name a lake in Los Angeles)
Cleveland "At Least We're Not Columbus"
Cleveland Spiders
Cleveland Barons (steal it)

Books just keep on comin'

Group reading projects take off,
at church, at home, at Valencia

It's a good thing I have a couple weeks off until the start of the fall semester -- I need time to catch up on all my reading!

* Our pastor at Grace Fellowship, Mike Adkins, challenged the congregation to spend a month getting closer to God by reading the "One Minute Bible: For Starters," over 30 days (Aug. 6 through Sept. 3). He plans to blog about the journey (click here), and I plan to participate in the discussion by commenting along the way.

Debbie will be joining me as we spend a little time each day detaching ourselves from the world and attaching ourselves to the Father.

* I threw out the idea about "The Big Read" (see entry below) to the librarians at Valencia's West campus, and it morphed into a full-blown community reading program. The school will purchase 1,000 copies of "The Kite Runner," by Khaled Hosseini, and many professors will be assigning the book to their students.

The object will be to read the book prior to the release of the movie Nov. 2. There will be campus discussion groups, special events, etc., and we're working on a private screening of the film for those who participate.

* My new nightstand companion is "Into The Wild," by Jon Krakauer. That movie opens Sept. 21, so I have to hustle. (It's only 203 pages, so it shouldn't be a problem!)

Time for some summer reading

'The Big Read' program inspires
a jump into several new books

The National Endowment for the Arts sponsors a program called “The Big Read,” which encourages community organizations to choose one book to promote. The object is to get as many people as possible to read, and talk about, that one selection.

Here is a list of the titles offered by “The Big Read:”

“Bless Me, Ultima,” by Rudolfo Anaya
“Fahrenheit 451,” by Ray Bradbury
“My Antonia,” by Willa Cather
“The Great Gatsby,” by F. Scott Fitzgerald
“A Lesson Before Dying,” by Ernest Gaines
“The Maltese Falcon,” by Dashiell Hammett
“A Farewell to Arms,” by Ernest Hemingway
“Their Eyes Were Watching God,” by Zora Neale Hurston
“To Kill a Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee
“The Call of the Wild,” by Jack London
“The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter,” by Carson McCullers
“The Shawl,” by Cynthia Ozick
“The Grapes of Wrath,” by John Steinbeck
“The Joy Luck Club,” by Amy Tan
“The Death of Ivan Ilyich,” by Leo Tolstoy
“The Age of Innocence,” by Edith Wharton

How many have you read? Sadly, I’ve read just “The Call of the Wild,” and that was last year, listening to an audiobook on my iPod.

I am working with the librarians at Valencia Community College to get the college involved in “The Big Read,” and I plan to assign the students in all of my classes this fall to read “Their Eyes Were Watching God.”

Zora Neale Hurston lived for many years in Eatonville outside of Orlando, and there is an annual festival there celebrating her life and career. Seems like a good first choice. I’ll assign a different title every semester until I’ve read all 15!

Want to join in the fun? “Their Eyes Were Watching God” was available at my local Sam’s Club for $9.97, so if you see it, buy a copy and get in on the discussion.

And by all means, promote reading with your kids, your friends, your colleagues. If we don’t keep the tradition alive, Ray Bradbury’s world with no books – the scenario in “Fahrenheit 451” – could become a reality.

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You might notice that the “What I’m Reading” section to the right has been updated. I just finished “The Tender Bar,” J.R. Moehringer’s excellent memoir about coming of age with the help of a ragtag cast of characters in a local pub. It was well written, sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, often touching, and always entertaining. It was my “nightstander” for months, so at 4-5 pages before dozing off it took me a while to finish it, but a dedicated beach reader could knock it off in a weekend.

• “Made to Stick” is a book offered through a reading circle at Valencia, and we’ll have a campus-wide discussion of it July 19. I’ll have to get on the stick, pun intended.

• “The Assault on Reason” is my current drive-time audiobook selection. Will Patton – a coach in “Remember the Titans” and the bad guy in “No Way Out” – is the narrator.

Finally, on my 6,011-mile road trip in May, I listened to “Mary Mary” by James Patterson, “The Hard Way” by Lee Chill, “Shadow Man” by Cody McFadyen, “At Risk” by Patricia Cornwell, “The Interpretation of Murder” by Jed Rubenfeld, and “Winston Churchill: Man of the Century” by John Ramsden.

That works out to one book every 1,000 miles! I think I could be a cross-country truck driver as long as the iPod is working!

Message in a bottle? Guzzle this one ...

Americans spend $15 billion on bottled water,
despite the fact we can simply turn on the tap

The other day I bought six cases of bottled water at Sam’s Club, planning to restock the home and office refrigerators.

I actually stood there and debated whether to buy the Nestlé PureLife “purified water” for $4.24 a case (32, 16.9 ounce bottles), or the
Zephyrhills “natural spring water,” which was premium priced at $4.46 a case.

I decided “natural” had to be better than “purified,” so I sprang for the spring water, splurging an extra 22 cents a case.

At $4.46 for 32 bottles, that works out to a fraction under 14 cents a bottle. (By comparison, a 32-can case of Diet Coke at Sam’s Club runs about $7 — or 22 cents per 12-ouncer.)

As I pushed the very heavy flat-bed cart to the cash register — I’ve since learned that water weighs 8-1/3 pounds per gallon, so I was about to load 221-1/4 pounds of water into my car — I wondered, “How the heck do they make money on this water?”

There are 32 plastic bottles with screw caps in each case. Each one has a printed paper label on it. Each case consists of a sturdy cardboard bottom that is shrink-wrapped with printed plastic. Of course, there’s water in each bottle.

The water provider has to make money, the bottler has to make money, the bottlemaker and the label/shrink-wrap printers have to make money, the shipper/distributor has to make money, and Sam’s Club has to make money ... otherwise, no one would undertake the job of making a case of water available to me for $4.46 — 14 cents per bottle.

How do they chop up that 14 cents? How can there be any profit margin in a 14-cent bottle of water?

There is an answer. Fast Company magazine this month has a fascinating story about the bottled-water industry. It’s long, but it’s incredibly interesting. Here are few sips from it to wet your whistle:

• Americans spent more money last year on bottled water than on iPods or movie tickets: $15 billion. It’ll be $16 billion this year.

• In Fiji, a state-of-the-art factory spins out more than a million bottles a day of the hippest bottled water on the U.S. market, while more than half the people in Fiji do not have safe, reliable drinking water. Which means it is easier for the typical American in Beverly Hills or Baltimore to get a drink of safe, pure, refreshing Fiji water than it is for most people in Fiji.

• In San Francisco, the municipal water comes from inside Yosemite National Park. It's so good the EPA doesn't require San Francisco to filter it. If you bought and drank a bottle of Evian ($1.35 at retail), you could refill that 16.9-ounce bottle once a day for 10 years, 5 months, and 21 days with San Francisco tap water before that water would cost $1.35. Put another way, if the water we use at home cost what even cheap bottled water costs, our monthly water bills would run $9,000.

To drink up the whole story, click here