And a Happy Friday to all of you out there on the InterWebz. My Thursday night was nearly ruined by the New York Jets completely outplaying the Buffalo Bills but still barely managing to hang on to win, 37-31. Hey, I’ll take it, a win’s a win.
First up on Good News Friday today: It’s so, so rare that I get a chance to praise the NCAA, because they so rarely deserve it. But hey, a blind squirrel finds an acorn every once in a while (has anyone ever actually seen a blind squirrel? I mean, I love the expression, just wondering if such a creature exists) and so does the NCAA.
This week the oft-criticized NCAA made a smart, compassionate, dare I say moral, move, pulling seven championships out of the state of North Carolina because of its disgusting and homophobic HB 2 law. Most of the events pulled would have a negligible economic impact, but the biggie is the loss of an NCAA Tournament first and second-round regional in Greensboro next March. Those events pump tens of millions of dollars into the local economy, with hotels, restaurants and other businesses counting on that money.
This trickle of events abandoning North Carolina is turning into a flood. I just don’t see how even bigoted lawmakers who rushed this bill through can fail to see how damaging it is.
Good for the NCAA for taking a stand here. Let it please continue.
**Next up today, this is an awesome little good deed. A 19-year-old Detroit woman named Hannah Spooner recently won a year’s worth of free Little Caesar’s pizza in a raffle, and decided to donate it to Covenant House instead.
Covenant House is a wonderful nonprofit that offers shelter, food, and job training to homeless and runaway youth all across America. (Full disclosure: My wife and I support this charity financially each year).
Spooner told a local FOX affiliate that she always knew she’d donate the pizza if she won — even when her boyfriend asked her whether she’d keep just a couple pies for herself.
“I just know there are other people out there who have nothing,” she said. “And I don’t think I should be eating a year’s worth of free pizza when there are people who go hungry at night.”
Great young lady. Now, some of you might argue that eating Little Caesar’s pizza is worse than being hungry, but hey, let’s not pick nits here!
**Finally today, a cheerleader in California who is suffering from leukemia was surprised with a bouquet of roses from the football team she cheers for.
Before they played their game on Sept. 3, Foothill High School’s football team honored cheerleader Ashley Adamietz, who was diagnosed with leukemia in August. As each player entered the field, they left an orange rose (orange is the color for leukemia awareness) by Adamietz’s feet — the whole gesture was a total surprise for her.
Awesome job, fellas. Just look at how touched Ashley is by this gesture.
Wide World of Stuff