RaveGo Niners!Speaking of super-coaches (see rant on this page) how ’bout them Niners? Last year I wrote that the Niners would never be good until they got rid of Alex Smith. I said they didn’t have to get a great quarterback, just a quarterback. Smith, I said, wasn’t a bad athlete or even a bad quarterback: he simply wasn’t a quarterback. Obviously I was wrong. They guy musta’ had more quarterbacking in could be seen from the outside. I have to admit, though, in the interests of full disclosure here, I still don’t think Smith is a great quarterback. When Tom Brady stands in the pocket and surveys the field for open receivers, he looks like a guy at Baskin-Robbins, studying the flavors of ice cream. Smith doesn’t look like that. But that’s okay. When a team is winning as a team, every piece of the team has to do its part–certainly no less than but also no more than its part. Right now, the Niners look to be succeeding because they’re playing that way. The fact that Smith rarely commits errors now, the fact that he almost always makes the right decision given the situation and his own limitations, mean that he’s exactly the right guy for the job–so long as all the others are doing exactly what they should be doing in the larger scheme. Which brings me to the coach. It amazes me that a coach can make such a difference. And it’s obvious to most of the world that Harbaugh produced this turnaround, just as it was obvious that Bill Walsh produced the turnaround of 1980. Who knows where Joe Montana would rank now, in the gallery of all quarterbacks if he’d been playing for Forrest Gregg instead of Bill Walsh? With Harbaugh, though, it’s not obvious to casual observers like me, what exactly he’s done. He’s got pretty much the same team Singletary had. Yeah, the Niners acquired a few stellar new players, including Aldon Smith, but they lost some pieces too. Aldon Smith might be the key to Harbaugh’s strategy though, and not just because of his sacking prowess. It’s his name. You can just picture the confusion in the opposite huddle. “Look out for Smith.” “He’s not in the lineup. We’re on offense now. Alex Smith is their quarterback.” “Not that Smith. The other Smith.” “Reggie Smith? He’s not in there either. He’s–” “Not Reggie Smith. Justin–” ” Justin Poole? He’s–” “Justin Smith. And Davis too–” Vernon–” ‘Anthony–” Just then the whistle blows: penalty. Delay of game. Diabolically clever of you, Mr. Harbaugh, drafting yet another Smith.
Stray MusingsThe Elections Are Coming!I believe I have the measure of this upcoming presidential election: Obama is going to lose–but only if he runs unopposed. If the Republicans put up a candidate–any candidate, it turns out–Obama wins. I saw a curious statistic yesterday. A sizable majority of Republicans think Mitt Romney is the candidate with the best chance of beating Obama. That’s fact one. Fact two: a sizable majority of Republicans don’t want Romney to be their candidate. Hmm. I hold no brief for Romney, but man, I feel kind of sorry for him seeing the parade of bizarre characters who have surged in popularity among Republicans as alternatives to Romney. Imagine what it would be like to run for president and the public says, no, we’d rather have, ummm…who you got? Sarah Palin? Okay, her. Yeah. We’d rather have her. She implodes and the question comes up again. What about Romney? Isn’t he the best candidate still standing? And the public says, no, we’d rather have…who else is there? Perry? Yeah, him. Or maybe the pizza guy, the groper. Or what about the philosopher, what’s his name? The one who keeps having affairs and switching religions? The one who led the impeachment hearings against Clinton for having an affair with a White House intern at the same time as he was carry on on a secret affair with a Congressional aide and getting ready to divorce his second wife? The one who one earned millions working for Fannie Mae, just before the mortgage meltdown, for his advice as a…historian (wink, wink) Gingrich! That’s the guy! Yeah, him! He’d be better than this Romney fellow.
You gotta’ have a tough skin to be in politics. If I were Romney and saw all the characters my base prefered to me, I’d have put my marbles in my pocket and headed home. Incidentally, I didn’t list Ron Paul above, because he’s not a Republican candidate. He’s a third-party something-or-other waiting to happen. As for Mr. Obama, his first three years did not look promising, but if the Niners can go to the NFC championship game one years after they were in the cellar, there’s no telling what the Obama administration can do, especially if it drafts a few more guys named Smith. And maybe gets a new coach?
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What’s ComingI am currently working on a new book called Afghanistan Interrupted. Over the centuries, a series of global powers have fought over Afghanistan like junkyard dogs fighting over a scrap of meat. Many books have chronicled the last 200 years of this story. Many have explored the “Great Game,” the 19th century struggle between the Russians and the British in Afghanistan; historians have chornicled scrupulously the Soviet invasion of the 1980s, which was opposed through proxies by the United States; and today’s conflict has been covered exhaustively, the conflict that pits an international coalition led by the United States against “the Taliban” and their global Jihadist associates. My book chronicles this same period, this same drama, but it’s not so much about the junkyard dogs. It’s more about the scrap of meat over which they’re fighting. Look for it in September 2012. |
RantMy Problem with Tim TebowToday the Forty-Niners are going to be in the NFC championship game, and I’m sitting here brooding about Tim Tebow and trying to sort out what I find so irritating about his praying-after-every-touchdown ritual. The Chronicle’s Don Asmussen had a Bad Reporter cartoon panel the other day in which the headline read, “God Denies Tebowing During Disasters.” The subhead read: “God accuses NFL of hiding world hunger from him.” Amusing, yes, but I don’t think Asmussen nails it, quite. For one thing, I find myself pondering the premise of his joke: that God would waste time helping Tim Tebow instead of alleviating world hunger or mitigating all these terrible disasters in the world. The joke assumes God can’t multi-task. Actually, the God-concept inherently implies the ability to focus on every conflict, problem, and phenomenon throughout the universe simultaneously. That’s what “omnipotent, omniscient, and ubiquitous” means. If you’re talking about a power who can’t be there if he’s here and can’t be working on this problem if he’s working on that problem, you’re not talking about God but “a god.” Omnipotence, omniscience, and ubiquity are the God-concept . Without those attributes, we’re talking about a super-hero. And if most people who believe in God think of Him as a immense superhero who is on their side, I can see why people fight over religion. Driving around in my car once, I heard an evangelical pop-tune on the radio with a refrain that went: “Our god…is a very mighty god…” That sentence implies the correlative: “and your god … isn’t….” In short, “My god can beat your god.” That’s the premise I’m hearing. And if that’s the premise, then yes: it makes sense for Tim Tebow to kneel and pray each time he wins a football game. He’s celebrating the victory of his god over the other guy’s god. The god he’s thanking is part of the Denver team, like a coach, only higher. In this scenario, football games are actually contests between supernatural super-coaches. We’re back to ancient Greek times and Mount Olympus. But if Tebow’s really thinking of God as an omnipotent, omniscient, and ubiquitous will, then his ritual is perhaps even more offensive, because he’s not just saying “I won because God loves me,” but also “and he doesn’t love you.” I’m one of God’s favored creatures–and you’re not.” It’s that implicit, unspoken “you’re-not” that I take exception to. I can accept that helping Tebow doesn’t mean that God isn’t also saving the Titanic and alleviating world hunger. What puts my back up is the notion that God has a dog in this fight. Why would he prefer one outcome to another in a football game? Is he part of a fantasy football league? Is he betting on NFL games? Speaking of which, if the outcome doesn’t derive from the passion, skill, drive, and determination of the players and their coaches, but from divine intervention, doesn’t that sorta’ undermine the purpose and integrity of the game? A god might do that–they tend to be jealous, petty sorts–but would God? And if that’s not why he threw the game to Tebow, then what was his motive? Was he just rewarding Tim Tebow for worshipping him? If that’s the case, I can’t help but note that the Titanic did sink and that world hunger continues unabated. Philosophers have long wrestled with the problem of reconciling evil with a universe created by a just and loving God. I can get my arms around the problem if I say, “There’s more going on here than I understand.” What doesn’t work for me is the answer embodied by Tebow’s public religious devotions, which seems to be: “God could fix everything, but he only helps people on his team, and the only people on His team are the people who worship Him.”
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49ers- a fourth reason, or as we East Bay’ers call it- the fourth bore: The Yorks. when they took the club from Eddie D they killed it. Every coach since, a death spiral. The legacy is Bill Walsh, creativity and offensive genius, and the Yorks bring Mike Nolan and Singletary, two defensive lugheads. No imagination. A spit at the Walsh legacy. Is there a possible worse fit for an open city like SF to have a clenched down coach like mike singletary? Couldn’t agree more re: Alex and Hill. Now they have a real quarterback and he’s on the practice squad because apparently he doesn’t practice well, only plays well in games. Imagine that? Nice sight!
I’m with ya’ on the Yorks. Fish rots from the head, they say.
Ouch! The CCC talk only runs 1 hour, from 12:30 to !:30 PM. Looking forward to hearing you and seeing you.
How much is a cow worth? I would say two men.
Good morning,Sir,so kind of you.What I feel I must tell you.This Af./Pak/Mainland India/B’desh-all this region is one and the same, ie,OLD HINDUSTAN.Today they are four nations, but basically one.In older times,after Iran, it was Hindustan.Af.became separate due to weakening of Mugal Indian Empire in late 18th century;Pakistan was born due to dissolution of British Indian Empire.Durand Line/Radcliffe Line, these are artificial lines created by the British.Punjab has always been one,Bengal has always been one, and cannot be divided just because one follows a particular religion and the other,some different one.They are all the same people,sharing so much common in culture and history.
Why not leaders of Kabul/Islamabad/Delhi/and Dhaka sit together in Delhi and find out some suitable solution.Problem would not solve in Berlin,London, or Washington;it will solve in Delhi which has been the traditional/historical centre of the region.
We must understand that the Afgans are basically INDIANS.This vital truth has not been given proper attention which is needed most.
You can understand my point as you are an expert and an Afgan also.This whole AfPak region is the birthplace of ancient Indian civilization.May I be allowed to say that Afganistan is the REAL INDIA(ARYAN INDIA).The old Aryan/non-Aryan contradiction took a form of Hindu/Muslim contradiction in the times of Arab/Muslim Imperialism era.Aryan/non-Aryan problem could not take that explosive form which the later-day Hindu/Muslim problem took-thanks to British Imperialism and their policy of “divide and rule”.Pakistan is a fallout of British Imperialism.The Minister of Culturs in Saur Revolution days, Ms Anahita Ratabzad once described Pakistan as “that gruesome ABORTION of British Imperialism”.(see Indian Envoy J N Dixit’s book “Afgan Dairy”.
Why not efforts are made to integrate this whole region(ie South Asia)which has always been one since times immemorial.Whatever religion we might have embraced,we are after all one and the same people.So the need is to reestablish the missing link and eternal bond which we have among ourselves.This is my firm view and belief.
I have yet to get hold of your works,which I am sure I would have soon.
With thanks and warm regards,
Yours Sincerely,
-S R Wakankar, Bhopal(Central India)
I’ve heard Iranians say “Afghanistan is really just a province of Iran,” and your comment is not the first time I’ve heard it said that “Afhganistan is really just part of India.” I think most Afghans would disagree with both these statements–and historically, Afghanistan has always been an entity distinguishable from both Iran and India. Both of those are the heart of a distinct, homogenous civilization; Afghanistan has always been the quintessential cross-roads civilization–the place where Turk-Mongol, Indian, and Persian civilizations overlapped.
I found your comment interesting! As Radmin put it, Afghans strongly disagree with your ideas and on the contrary, Afghans believe that India and Iran were part of and was ruled by the Afghans, as you put it the Mogul Dynasty. Afghanistan is a unique country with jealous neighbors who throughout the history have tried to bring it down and have not been successful. Even the British and the Russians failed to do so.To some up my point-If Afghanistan were part of India, the British would not have ruled it for over two hundred years and if part of Iran, The Mosadeq regime would have stayed in power-Iran. The point: AFGHANS are AFGHANS fiercely INDEPENDENT people!
Afghans are a mix of all types of people, and although at one time they were under the Hindustan rule (which please remember, the term Hindu is a Persian construct), the people were always different than the genetic code of those of originally from south India. Afghanistan has multiple ethnicities, and those that are of Pashtun descent have a distinguishable look different than those of the Indian origin. Studies have been made and there is actually a closer link to those of Euro and Jewish descent. So, it seems that your nationalist agenda is completely incredible when speaking in terms of facts and theories.
really enjoyed reading your book destiny disrupted ,given it to my son to read.love the way u made all that history such easy reading,would like to know when u visit southern california,thank u
Just saw you at CWU and I have nothing but good things to say about it. I’m only 19 so the war we’ve been in has been a constant for most of my life and for the first time I got an insight of the “enemy.” It’s easy to forget during times of war that the people we’re fighting are good people too and not savages that the media make them out to be. Because of this I’m writing a turn paper about your presentation and wanted to thank you for the inspiration. I was wondering though which of you’re books focuses the most on that topic? I seriously want to learn more about Afghan people and help stop the idea that we’re fighting an entire country.
West of Kabul, East of New York is the one that talks about Afghanistan mostly.
I am not in the habit of writing to luminaries, politicians, magazines or writers. What for? So I don’t know how I should be protocolar and address you.
Dear Tamim, if you allow me.
A thank you letter. Thank you for the superb “Destiny disrupted”. Since I arrived, new country, new culture, I try to read as many books as I find helping me understand a little tiny little bit the people accepting me among them. I am no cleric nor academic and dread jargon and boring stuff. Just a French baker in Kabul.
I want to thank you for making your text so clear, fun to read, eye opening and, again, very pleasant to read.
In my always renewed small library, I would put it with “Le royaume de l’insolence” from M. Bary, different texts of E. Said, I mean books that helped me some in my quest.
If I may, you should organize lectures to wake-up people pretending to be in Afghanistan to help.
I wouls be delighted to help organize them.
Gratefully yours
Dan
Dan de Mirmont
dan@mirmont.com
+93 (0) 796377298
Tamim-
How about an article on the subject of your brother Riaz. Do you have any contact with him?
Tamim,
I have a copy of an article you wrote a number of years ago entitled “Why Learn a Second Language”,I would like to use it in a college speach class I am in and would like your permission to use it in that venue. I also need information on when and where it was first published for my bibliography. Can you Help me? I really appreciate it, it was a wonderful perspective.
Thankyou.
Regards,
“Zameer”
Ken Hauenstein
Tamim, it’s great to discover your lucid musings (ooh, that sounds like a medical diagnosis, somehow). I am so with you about Facebook (although it was another virtual community from which I awakened, Rip Van Winkle-like, 10 years later, and groaned “OMG”). Your film opinions pretty much accord with my own–although I could not help thinking that George VI’s fresh ability to orate was, indeed, prelude to the loss of much life . . . in WWII; and “Avatar” explored one of the oldest (if not the only) Great Plots: finding one’s way back home.
Now I’m off to relish more of your writing.
At last: something worth reading on the Web.
I read your book “Destiny Disrupted” it is a book that puts things in a different and realistic perspective for you. The amount of research you did is apparent throughout the book. In one chapter you mentioned Maulana Rumi and the story of Flute. This resonated with me as I truly admire his work. A renowned Pakistani Singer Tina Sani sang that same piece you mentioned in Urdu and did it so beautifully that I thought you might enjoy it even if you do not know Urdu.
http://www.cokestudio.com.pk/default.aspx?SeasonId=2#page=video.aspx%3FvideoId%3D1054%26SeasonId%3D3
Thoughtful comments, as always, Tamim. As much as I appreciated the bin Laden column, though, the continuum column struck me even more. As an old political scientist, and now as a practitioner of the non-continuum art of employee ownership (Is it left, right center; capitalism or distrubutionist; all of these?), it has long seeemd to me we need to focus on what works and worry a lot less than where it fits. Some liberal ideas work, some conservative ones do, some combinations work, etc. But then again we seem so uncomfortable with being undefined. Can I be am ambiguist?