Quote of the Day (George Orwell, on Power and Temporary Invincibility)

“Power worship blurs political judgement because it leads, almost unavoidably, to the belief that present trends will continue. Whoever is winning at the moment will always seem to be invincible. If the Japanese have conquered south Asia, then they will keep south Asia for ever, if the Germans have captured Tobruk, they will infallibly capture Cairo; if the Russians are in Berlin, it will not be long before they are in London: and so on. This habit of mind leads also to the belief that things will happen more quickly, completely, and catastrophically than they ever do in practice. The rise and fall of empires, the disappearance of cultures and religions, are expected to happen with earthquake suddenness, and processes which have barely started are talked about as though they were already at an end.”—British essayist/novelist George Orwell (1903-1950), “Second Thoughts on James Burnham,” in The Orwell Reader: Fiction, Essays, and Reportage (1961)

Quote of the Day (Rich Cohen, on the Plight of Today’s Cub Fan)

“A Cubs fan is unique and even necessary, a symbol of defeat in a fallen world, a world where everyone will eventually perish. If my team wins, they will become ordinary. If my team wins, they will later lose. Then they will have become just another team that has won, not very long ago, but is not winning anymore. In winning, the Cubs will make a lot of people happy, but the happiness will fade, and, once it’s faded, what will we have given up? The certainty and distinction and grandeur of epic failure. The humility and holy rags of degradation, the very quality that sets a Cubs fan apart and above. Gone will be the chance to prove the purity of our love for the game. Anyone can look good while winning. Only an aristocrat can be graceful in defeat.”—Rich Cohen, “A Cub Fan’s Fear of Winning,” The Wall Street Journal, July 17, 2015

When I checked the standings this morning, the Chicago Cubs’ record stood at 63-48—which translates to 8½ games back of division-leading St. Louis, but still in the hunt for a wild card spot for the playoffs. This will be something to watch, win or lose, the rest of the season.

Quote of the Day (Baseball’s ‘Leo the Lip,’ on His Win-at-All-Costs Rep)

“I never did say that you can't be a nice guy and win. I said that if I was playing third base and my mother rounded third with the winning run, I'd trip her up.”—Longtime baseball manager Leo Durocher (1905-1991), disputing his widely quoted statement that “Nice guys finish last,” quoted in Robert Cantwell, “Leo: Under the Sunset Gun,” Sports Illustrated, February 18, 1963