𝘑𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘚𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘫𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘭𝘺𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘢𝘭: “𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘯! 𝘖𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘱.”

OK, this is peripheral, but it's a big fat sore spot with me:

I get awfully tired of all the comedians, the sportswriters and on-air and online bloviators, the sports bros, and all the rest of the watch-from-the-couch types who think it's cool and edgy and funny to sneer at every single athlete who doesn't win a championship. Some guys made, and still make, something of a career out of deriding every single member of every single team that doesn't win the ultimate prize, whatever it may be, as an abject loser.

Whoever has won an Olympic silver medal, I guarantee that that person worked harder and sacrificed more for their sport than Jerry Seinfeld ever did as a comedian. Calling practically everyone in competitive sports a loser by definition is not edgy realist humor. It's nothing but making yourself, and whoever is listening to you, feel better by tearing down others, which has been an impulse of human beings -- flawed ones -- throughout history.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, of all people, had an eloquent answer for that line of thinking at a press conference, which I wish I had bookmarked. I love listening to that guy. Not only is he very a smart man who makes a lot of sense, but it is such a kick listening to this huge Black basketball player talk with the accent and cadence of my fat little Greek uncles.