Sherlock Holmes’s Tuesday Morning News

 

The stereotypical Holmes

Good Tuesday morning readers!  Today we celebrate one of the most significant anniversaries in the history of the written word.  On this day in 1887, the first published copy of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes series was sold in London.  In over a century since the work’s release, the fictional British detective has become an international symbol of quick wit and investigative prowess.  Detailed over the course of 56 spectacular short stories, Sherlock Holmes was the prototypical nineteenth century renaisannce man; a virtuosic violinist, highly educated, scientifically trained bachelor who was admired by many and despised by even more.  Well ahead of his time, Doyle’s character possessed a keen sense of behavior analysis that when wed with an astute level of observation that rivals today’s more technologically advanced CSI agents.  Despite his flaws- and there were many- Sherlock Holmes remains the most recognized detective in modern literature and drama and serves as the focal point for this holiday season’s most anticipated Hollywood film.

 

On to the news-

1) Yesterday afternoon, Democratic Congressman Maurice Hinchey accused the Bush Administration of intentionally allowing Osama bin Laden to escape in order to justify the subsequent invasion of Iraq.  This hypothesis rivals the idiocy of some of the republican conspiracy theories.  All information points toward the early establishment of overthrowing Saddam Hussein, but I have a hard time believing any government official would compromise American interests abroad to do so.  In retrospect, President Bush obviously lost sight of the importance of capturing the man who bankrolled 9/11 as a result of his Iraqi obsession.  But claiming the administration did so intentionally with the end goal of misleading the American people when a plethora of potential justifications for expanding the war after bin Laden’s capture exist defies logic.  True, I believe that the Bush White House intentionally misled the American people with fairy tales of weapons of mass destruction, but lying about non-existent weapons and ceasing the search for Osama bin Laden are two substantially different issues.  George W. Bush made an inordinate number of mistakes during his Presidency, but calling off the search for al Qaeda was not one of them.

The answer is yes, but he's not that stupid

2) Last night in Louisville, the fourth ranked Kentucky Wildcats (7-0) pounded UNC-Asheville 94-57 in their final tune-up before hosting reigning NCAA champion North Carolina on Saturday.  Led by freshman John Wall’s record threatening evening, the Cats were in control from the opening tip- running out to a 22-point halftime lead.  Once again, Wall was phenomenal; posting 14 assists and 6 steals, both of which were one away from the school record, to go along with his 12 points.  The freshman superstar was unstoppable all night- eviscerating the Bulldog zone defense, highlighting the passing skills that have NBA scouts drooling.  But Wall was not the only star on display.  After a painful conclusion to the Stanford game, freshman center Demarcus Cousins responded with 24 points and 10 rebounds in only 17 minutes of action- including converting eight of ten free throw attempts.  Once again, Patrick Patterson had an outstanding game, falling just one rebound short of a double-double.  But perhaps most importantly, the Cats made perimeter shots- led by Darnell Dodson’s 15 points.  Now things get a little more difficult for John Calipari’s young team, as the next three games include North Carolina, 2009 Final Four team Connecticut, and the team’s first true road game- at Indiana.  After watching the team enjoy substantial development over the first three weeks, the game Saturday before a rocking Rupp Arena crowd should be fantastic.

My reaction mirrored theirs

3) After two weeks on the road, the annual circus trip mercifully ended for the Chicago Bulls, who fell in Milwaukee 99-97.  The loss marks the team’s fifth in a row and given the contagious nature of losing, it is safe to say that things in the Windy City now concerning.  Unlike the Lakers and Nuggets teams that embarrassed Vinny del Negro’s team on this trip, the Bucks are not a highly talented group.  But once again, the Bulls produced a lackluster effort for most of the first half before a ferocious comeback fell just short.  This game epitomized everything that has gone wrong through 15 games: the Bulls got little production from anyone outside the Rose/Noah/Salmons/Deng quartet, Derrick Rose disappeared at times, the questionable shot selection bug reared its ugly head late, and a flawed final play cost the team a shot at victory.  Aside from that, the game was a complete success.  Obviously, the Bulls have suffered from the loss of two starters, but unless they find some way to hemorrhage the sudden implosion the chances of a playoff berth, and signing a big 2010 free agent, will disappear before Christmas. 

Pretty much sums up the night

 

4) As many who follow football expected, Notre Dame fired head football coach Charlie Weis yesterday after his third consecutive unsuccessful season in South Bend.  In five seasons at the helm, the former New England Patriots offensive guru did everything asked of him- recruit top ten classes, improve offensive numbers, exude confidence from every pore in his morbidly obese body- except win.  Irish fans are giddy over the prospect of a new coach, despite the prevalent national perception that the Notre Dame job is a coaching graveyard.  As a fan of the basketball equivalent of South Bend football, allow me to offer some advice to both fans and the administration about how to handle this coaching search.  Head coaching candidates break into roughly four categories: former professional coaches, established elite NCAA coaches, college coaches who have consistently won but never at the highest level, and the hot up and comers.  During my lifetime, Kentucky has hired a basketball coach from each of these groups with varying degrees of success.  Given this experience, allow me to share some thoughts on how each category could work for the Irish.  First of all, Notre Dame will not hire another NFL coach in the foreseeable future as a result of the Charlie Weis experiment, so toss Bill Cowher and Mike Shanahan out of the mix.  Luring an elite NCAA coach is typically difficult unless the specific coach has won big at a school that is not a historic powerhouse (i.e. John Calipari at Memphis or Urban Meyer at Utah).  Many football writers have thrown Florida’s Urban Meyer, USC’s Pete Carroll, and Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops names into the mix, but I have a hard time seeing any of those men depart jobs that are unquestionably among the best in college football.  This leaves the Irish to go after NCAA consistent winners or hot up and comers (I do not thing Notre Dame will go after an assistant coach again).  Hiring an up and coming head coach is always difficult because there is no substantial litmus test to determine whether the success is a flash in the pan or based on substantive ability.  Consider a pair of basketball coaches who were once up and comers- Kentucky hired Billy Gillispie in 2007 after he won National Coach of the Year awards twice in four years; Florida hired Billy Donovan in 1996 after similar honors at Marshall.  Gillispie mentally imploded under the pressure of the Kentucky job and Donovan thrived as a Gator.  As Notre Dame cannot afford to risk their football program on even a minor probability of a coaching flameout, I do not expect them to go this route- leaving the established winner category.  Coaches who win consistently are normally safe choices for a program upgrade (see Tubby Smith at Kentucky), but the ideal Notre Dame candidate must be a national recruiter who wins with a variety of players.  As a result, solid coaches who work out of a geographic recruiting base (Boise State’s Chris Peterson and Stanford’s Jim Harbaugh) will likely not enjoy consideration.  At this point, there are really only two men who fit the mold- Cincinnati’s Brian Kelly and TCU’s Gary Patterson.  As a UC alum I hate to say it, but I truly believe the Bearcats’ head coach will prowl the sidelines in South Bend in 2010.

 

He will be in navy and gold next year

Have a good Tuesday everyone!