Pope Francis is absolutely right

Pope Francis hit the bulls-eye with his remarks while visiting a war memorial in Italy yesterday.

Pope Francis urged the world Saturday to shed its apathy in the face of what he characterizes as a third world war, intoning "war is madness" at the foot of a grandiose monument to soldiers killed in World War I.

Standing at an altar beneath the towering Redipuglia memorial entombing 100,000 Italian soldiers fallen in World War I, the pope said "even today, after the second failure of another world war, perhaps one can speak of a third war, one fought piecemeal, with crimes, massacres, destruction."

I think these remarks are very perceptive. The third world war is already taking place. I've felt this in my heart for a long time but I confess I'd never put it in such concise terms. Let's repeat the pope's words:

"Perhaps one can speak of a third [world] war, one fought piecemeal, with crimes, massacres, destruction." 

Well said, and I hope the world takes note and adopts this language. The third world war is already being fought.

Scully a whiz at 86

Yay, baseball is back! Well, spring training, anyway. The other day, I had the pleasure of hearing Vin Scully call a Dodgers game. This guy is amazing. At the age of 86 (he'll turn 87 this year), he has the nimble brain of a perceptive 23-year-old. It's as if he's completely immune to the fallout caused by aging.

He's also the only "lone" announcer I can think of. Other baseball teams use two and even three announcers so the load doesn't fall on one guy. Not the Dodgers, though. They have Vin Scully, and that's all you need.

Just listen to a few of the things he said during the game I watched last week:

"And adding to the fun, there are two Marte's in the game, Alfredo and Andy!"

"Tuiososoppo strikes out and takes himself and all his syllables back to the dugout."

(While watching an outfielder run around the park and dive dramatically to make each catch): "He's covering the field, both literally and figuratively."

(And when a veteran hitter faced a rookie pitcher with an unusual name, he said:) "[After all those decades of fine work], here he is, being tested by a young pitcher named Stripling."

The man doesn't miss a trick. Consider how functional you'll be when you're 86. Uh-huh. You'll be lucky if you can stand. Scully is the most together old guy I've ever encountered.

I'm just happy to see him back for another year. May he continue to do this past the age of 100. Watta guy!