SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

TRIUMPH OF THE GOOD – FROM DAILY MAIL:   The Dallas Mavericks have played the national anthem before a home game against the Atlanta Hawks, just hours after billionaire team owner Mark Cuban relented to the NBA's demand that the song be played at all games.  A recorded version of the Star-Spangled Banner was played before Wednesday night's game at American Airlines Center, while Mavericks and Hawks players and staff stood lined up on the court.  As the anthem concluded, the smattering of fans in attendance broke out in applause and cheers. The Mavericks are currently allowing 1,500 fans at home games, with tickets available to vaccinated healthcare and essential workers.   It came hours after the NBA issued a stark statement saying 'all teams will play the national anthem', forcing Cuban to reverse course after he announced the practice would be discontinued, saying the Star-Spangled Banner does not represent 'all communities'.  The big loser here is Mark Cuban, who has probably committed political suicide.  There'd been much talk of his entering politics.  The big winner is the United States of America. 

I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT – FROM THE HILL:    MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell on Wednesday apologized for wrongly correcting Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) about the source of the quote “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”  “@SenTedCruzsays #ImpeachmentTrial is like Shakespeare full of sound and fury signifying nothing. No, that’s Faulkner,” Mitchell tweeted. The quote “It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing” appears in the fifth act of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” William Faulkner’s 1929 Southern Gothic novel derives its title from the quote.  “I clearly studied too much American literature and not enough Macbeth. My apologies to Sen. Cruz,” Mitchell said in a followup tweet, after numerous tweets correcting her.   Well, I guess anyone can make that mistake, but Ms. Mitchell's error reflects the general level of research done in today's news industry. 

February 10, 2021