Thoughts for the Day, March 3, 2023: Mother Nature has welcomed me back to Ypsilanti.

After two days of travel, we arrived back in Ypsilanti last night. We were able to get out of Alabama ahead of the storm as it was moving Northeast.  Mother Nature caught up with us today and gave us a welcome home party of ice, wind, snow and rain.  After enjoying the mid-80s the last two days in Gulf Shores, it is back to reality.

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The following article appeared as a guest opinion article in the Detroit News earlier this week.  I could not have said it better.

Jonathan Gold is a NRA trained private pistol and gun safety instructor who has logged over 1,000 hours of training aside from teaching. He is the Michigan chapter president ofGiffords Gun Owners for Safety.

Gun ownership is a right, and with that right comes immense responsibility.

I am a National Rifle Association-trained pistol and gun safety instructor who has logged over 1,000 hours of training aside from teaching. I respect our Second Amendment, and I know that we can and should take reasonable steps to save lives in Michigan from gun violence.

That’s why I am the president of the Michigan chapter of Giffords Gun Owners for Safety. And that’s why I support the package of gun safety bills moving through our state Legislature, including background checks, extreme risk protection orders and safe storage of firearms.

So much of the conversation has become aggressive and polarized, but from my years of living in Michigan surrounded by responsible gun owners, I know for a fact that they support gun safety.

Gun owners understand the power of firearms — guns are killing tools. No matter what they’re being used for, whether it is self-defense, hunting, or target shooting, we have seen firsthand what firearms can do. Responsible gun owners take the time to learn how to handle that power safely. Responsible gun owners support common sense gun safety because we know that without that common sense, tragedy is inevitable.

Much of society has become desensitized to the endless mass shootings week after week. A cycle of breaking news alerts and 24/7 coverage on TV and then silence, as we all resume our lives until the next shooting. We cannot let this become a new normal.

We saw the tragic slaying of four high school students in Oxford just 15 months ago. And now, three college students have been murdered and five are fighting for their lives after the horrific mass shooting at Michigan State University.

In Michigan, we’ve seen the heartbreaking reality for many MSU students and Oxford High School alums who have now survived their second mass shooting. We must remember that in some communities this has been their reality for generations. Guns have become the leading cause of death for children in the United States. We can no longer sit idly by waiting for the problem to solve itself. We all must demand the public safety our communities and children deserve.

Some Republican lawmakers in my state and around the country stand up and say that they are speaking for me and defending my 2nd Amendment right by opposing common sense gun legislation. Those lawmakers oppose what I believe, and with their negligence and support of gun abuse, ignore my rights and the safety of our children and schools.

I watch legislators in Washington performatively wear assault rifle pins while college students in Michigan are being murdered. Republican lawmakers expect law enforcement to protect our families and children but leave them under-staffed, under-resourced, and outgunned. Local, state, and federal officers routinely run into the line of fire, lawmakers send thoughts and prayers and applaud bravery, while refusing to actually close the loopholes that allow criminals to easily and legally get their hands on dangerous weapons.

Irresponsible lawmakers no longer defend my 2nd Amendment right, they tarnish it.

As a responsible gun owner and instructor, I have a responsibility to speak out.

I own firearms. I exercise my 2nd Amendment rights and I support gun safety to protect my children, my family, my neighbors and all Michiganians. My representatives in Lansing have a responsibility to pass gun safety legislation — universal background checks, safe storage, and red flag laws — that the majority of Americans, and responsible gun owners, support.

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On Saturday I attended the Nebraska/South Alabama college baseball game with my brother-in-law Larry Nieman, and my good friend Richard Kerns, who played baseball at South Alabama, under legendary coach Eddie Stanky.  During the second inning with a runner on first, the SA pitcher with a 3-1 count on the batter started his motion to home but lost control of the ball which hit the ground directly in front of the pitcher and rolled past the 3^rd baseline before being touched by the catcher. The correct call is the pitch is a ball because it passed into foul territory.  If it had not passed into foul territory, it would have been called a balk.  Originally the batter took first base, and the runner went to second.  The SA coach argued it was a balk and therefore the batter should stay at the plate with a 3-1 count. After a five-minute discussion between the three umpires, they ruled it a balk, which is wrong.

I know the proper call because this has been on the MHSAA umpire exam, and I have had it happen on multiple occasions when umpiring.  I immediately looked up the rule which confirmed the umpires had it wrong.  In the end it worked out well for Nebraska. On the very next pitch, the hitter lined a single to right scoring the runner who was incorrectly awarded second on the balk.  It was a sign of things to come for SA.  To quote Rasheed Wallace, “The ball don’t lie.”  See my Onion of the Day

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Quote of the Day:  “Even Helen Keller would know when she entered Michigan.” Me to Leah as we entered Michigan from Ohio on U.S. 23 yesterday and our car started the bump/bump/bump of Michigan roads.

Orchid of the Day: The players on the Illinois and Michigan men’s basketball teams, for putting on a show of intensity, effort, and will.  It took two overtimes before the Fighting Illini was able to prevail, after Michigan missed a possible game tying three pointer with seconds left.

Onion of the Day: The umpires at the Nebraska/South Alabama men’s baseball game on Saturday. See above story.

Question of the Day: Why do coaches not foul during the last seconds of a basketball game when they are up by 3? It cost MSU and Wisconsin last week and almost cost Illinois last night.

Video of the Day: Sam Elliot’s acceptance speech at the SAG Awards after winning best actor for 1883. He was outstanding in the series.

Sam Elliott: Award Acceptance Speech | 29th Annual SAG Awards – YouTube