The Far Middle: No Room for Boredom

In Episode 190 of The Far Middle, Nick once again takes “constant listeners” on a journey through a string of connections in the spirit of Dr. James Burke’s Connections television series. The discussion tips-off with a sports dedication highlighting the fascinating story about how NBA legend Bob Cousy unexpectedly became a Boston Celtic. Despite being passed over in the 1950 NBA draft by the Celtics' coach Red Auerbach, Cousy ended up with the team through a series of unlikely events. After being drafted by Tri-Cities and traded to the Chicago Stags, which went bankrupt, Cousy's fate was decided by a random draw from a hat. The Celtics, who initially didn't want him, were forced to take him, inadvertently acquiring one of the greatest players in NBA history (including six NBA championships, 13 consecutive All-Star selections, led the NBA in assists for eight straight seasons, and more). “Fate can have a sense of humor as well as a sense of irony,” says Nick. “So Episode 190 is dedicated to how Bob Cousy became a Celtic, proving truth in the adage that sometimes it is indeed better to be lucky than good.” Nick then shifts to more serious matters, beginning with the ongoing war in Ukraine. While reaffirming his support for Ukraine against Russia, he criticizes Western media's portrayal of the conflict. He highlights Ukraine's challenges in mobilizing young men for military service, noting the disproportionate burden on rural areas for conscription and the need for Ukraine to demonstrate self-help to maintain Western support. Turning to domestic issues, Nick recounts the killing of an airport executive in Little Rock, Arkansas, by ATF agents during a raid related to firearm sales. He also comments on the case of "Peanut the Squirrel" in New York, where state agents killed a pet squirrel due to licensing issues. These incidents are further examples of continued government overreach, “the threat of omnipotent government is greater than most Americans realize,” says Nick. From the growing power of government’s overreach, Nick shifts to a warning of a potential energy crisis in the United States as he cites grid regulators’ concerns over power generation retirements. Nick looks back at the past decade of damage done to our collective energy security: “Every time you heard energy transition, net zero, clean energy or tackling climate change, that was code oftentimes for forcing the retirement and abandonment of ‘reliable’ on the grid, which is coal, nuclear, natural gas power plants, and mandating their replacement with the ‘unreliables’ of wind and solar, which was coupled to coincide with a mandated electrification of everything.” The push for so-called net-zero carbon emissions in the power sector is not only impractical, but is threatening grid stability and by extension our energy and economic security. Nick concludes by criticizing mainstream media for failing to report on government overreach, ignoring Ukraine's internal challenges, and not covering the potential energy crisis. Instead, media focuses on trivial matters like reducing or eliminating homeowners’ lawns. In closing Nick notes the episode’s January 8 premiere date falls on both Elvis and David Bowie’s birthdays. He references a couple great Bowie quotes, including, “I don't know where I'm going from here, but I promise it won't be boring.” Stay connected to the Far Middle, as there’s never room for boredom! For prior Celtics’ tributes, listen to Nick’s dedications to Red Auerbach, John Havlicek, and