BRAVES TO BE BOUGHT BY PORNOGRAPHERS!!!

I know that this protest by Focus on the Family and assorted other groups of theocrats won't amount to a hill of beans, but I did get a kick this morning out of reading that the sale of the Braves to Liberty Media is being criticized not because they're a distant group that has no emotional stake in the team's success, but rather because they provide On Demand movies in hotel rooms. G-d forbid that they, you know, provide a service that the market desires. Leaving aside the idiocy of their analogy to Larry Flynt buying the team (do you think there's a wee bit of a difference between someone who produces porn and a giant media entity that simply distributes a large number of movies, including some with naked people copulating with other naked people) or the argument that buying a ticket from the Braves equates to supporting pornography (as if Liberty Media doesn't have, you know, different divisions and the money doesn't all end up in one immoral swirl), I personally wouldn't mind Liberty Media spicing up a trip to the Ted. For instance, if a Bravo Club reward for amassing 500 points was a free On Demand movie instead of lunch at McDonald's, I certainly wouldn't complain. Of course, that would require Liberty Media bringing back the Bravo Club in the first place, grumble grumble grumble.


And in left field for the Braves...

Speaking of the Braves, I went to sleep last night with the team leading by three runs and woke up this morning to find that they had won by three runs. Of course, I went to sleep with the game 8-5 in the 5th and woke up to find that they had won 15-12 in 11 innings after Jorge Sosa blew not one, but two leads. The game did nothing to dispell the Braves' weaknesses from the first half - atrocious work by the bullpen, not to mention disappointing work from opening day starter Tim Hudson - and it reminded us that this team can hit the ball. 15 runs and five homers at Petco is nothing to complain about. Dare I start getting a tingle of excitement that the team is 5.5 games out of a wildcard spot? If they can cure their bullpen deficiencies with some new personnel, then the tingle might get stronger.

In other news, John Thomson appears headed for the DL because of shoulder tightness, despite the fact that there is nothing structurally wrong with his shoulder. I seem to remember seeing a Bond movie once and the Bond girl's last name was "Galore," but I can't quite put my finger on her first name...