Good Thing Koufax Didn't Run Marathons

How is anyone able to schedule around everything to make everyone happy? Like the article says planning this marathon happens months in advance to make sure most people can make it, area businesses can handle it and things like that. Best way to handle things like this is pick a date and use the corresponding date the next year and so on. But the calander moves around and things come up.

How many of the race participants are Jewish? If it's a significant number then the organizers need to do a better job because they are not appealing to their "customers". But if it's a small number then there isn't much to be done.

You can't please everyone.

Where we get into a problem, in our society today, is the feeling of entitlement. People feel they are entitled to certain activities and feel cheated when a conflict arises that is not corrected. People are not entitled to run in this marathon. Anyone can run in it, but no one is harmed by not running in it.

If enough people choose to not run in it due to the conflict, that it hurts the race turn-out, the organizers will be forced to take this conflict into consideration the next year, or deal with the reduction in participation.

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Is that you papi? Way in the back? With that huge squirt bottle full of Bosco© laced skim milk? Next to the guy chowing down on a corn dog?

Hey? Anyone got another packet of mustard?



Seriously...I think EC_Dad has summed it up very well.




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It's a decent point that, even if not required, event organizers should be sensitive to the needs of large segments of the populace. First, it's just good manners. Second, it's good marketing/PR -- good for business, so to speak.

But it's also a decent point that the entire objective of fasting, and of observing holy days generally, is to emphasize that devotion to God comes first, and only by making real sacrifices is that commitment truly proven. If we accommodate everyone's wants and desires, there is no sacrifice. That would seem to be self defeating, no?

וי וויי, אַזאַ איז לעבן. לעבן גייט אויף.

Now RJM I took two years of Latin in high school but I still can't read that.

It's not Latin. Oy vey. Such is life. Life goes on.

Oh I knew that! It's Hebrew, right?

I have no idea how to do the characters from my keyboard. I copied them from a translation page.

Sandy might have been Jewish but all the praying was done in the batter's box.

EC Dad I think summed up this argument very well. Choosing between your religious beliefs and the marathon is a personal decision and shouldn't have any correlation with the committee's decision on when to start the event. At the same time, if they find it to be a huge issue, it should be changed. I'd be curious to find out how many of the marathon participants are Jewish...I don't believe it could be too many percentage-wise.

And for the record, I think the Koufax story is a bit skewed. While he did refuse to pitch a World Series game during Yom Kippur, it wasn't like the Dodgers were hard pressed to find another starter to replace him. Don Drysdale won 23 games that year and had a 2.77 ERA. Ironically, both Drysdale and Koufax lost games 1 and 2 of the '65 WS, but the Dodgers beat the Twins in 7 games. While Koufax honored his Jewish faith and many commend him for this, the Dodgers had another future Hall of Famer as their #2. Not exactly like they had to beckon Maury Wills in from shortstop to throw a few innings.

JH,

Good points about the 1965 Series. Another is that in those days managers did not hesitate to throw a pitcher on TWO days rest and Koufax came back to clinch the Series on short rest.