Samsung Strikes Again. USA v Europe. Che Guevara. Bobby Dodd Stadium. More Reality TV.

Quality Control Issues.  Like Golf or Not, an Awesome Competition.   The Dictator and his Lieutenant.  Can’t Start the Inaugural Season on the Road.  Hilary and Donald: How About Pretending to be Presidential?

• Ok Samsung, enough.  I mentioned in an earlier post how I felt about corporate America pushing new products and technology to market too fast.  The lack of quality control with the likes of Samsung and Tesla are a bit alarming.  The Samsung S7 Note battery issues, with some of those phones’ batteries catching fire, resulted in the Consumer Product Safety Commission enacting a mandatory recall of the product.  So what does Samsung do?  They take the product off the market, offer their customers an apology and free change out of the S7 Note.  Too fast and not enough product testing as a replacement S7 Note caught fire on a Southwest plane before takeoff (thankfully).  I am a Samsung customer, using the regular S7 phone, but you have to have your head examined if you purchase the S7 Note anytime soon.
• Many people find watching golf on TV a bit boring.  Understandable, especially if you don’t play and have no idea how difficult it is to consistently put up a respectable score.  With that said, last weekend’s Ryder Cup was exciting, compelling and presented a very high level of competition.  The format is well thought out with the three-day competition ending with twelve single matches.  Even with the majority of players from both the European and American teams being multi-millionaires, the pride these players take in winning the Ryder Cup is unprecedented.  I was happy to see the Americans take back the Cup and enjoyed the competitive spirit between Rory McILroy and Patrick Reed during their singles match.  Fun stuff.
• Ironic that the USA’s men’s national team was in Havana on Friday to play Cuba in a friendly.  The result really doesn’t matter.  What does matter is how far Cuba and the USA have come to try and repair some level of foreign relations and understanding.  Especially considering that today marks the 49th anniversary of socialist revolutionary and guerilla leader Che Guevara’s execution.  Back in the 1950s, it was Guevara who met up with Fidel Castro and his group of exiled revolutionaries. Guevara played a key role in Castro’s seizure of power from Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959 and later served as Castro’s right-hand man and minister of industry. Guevara strongly opposed U.S. domination in Latin America and advocated peasant-based revolutions to combat social injustice in Third World countries. Castro later described him as “an artist of revolutionary warfare.”  Accused of ordering the executions of thousands of Cubans, including political prisoners, Che Guevara, sometime in 1965, broke away from Castro’s regime and somehow was recognized by some as a symbol of anti-imperialism and revolution. When Guevara eventually ended up in Bolivia, the USA helped the Bolivian government hunt down and execute Guevara. As I watched yesterday’s game in Havana I thought about all my Cuban friends and their families whose lives were and continue to be forever changed by the likes of Fidel Castro and his lieutenant, Che Guevara. “Motorcycle Diaries” is a fact-based movie based on Guevara’s life.  Probably worth the watch on a rainy day.  Sometimes time does not heal all.
• Atlanta United rolls on.  This past week, another example of the excellent management team Arthur Blank has put together to run this Club.  Steve Cannon, Darren Eales, and Carlos Bocanegra bring a high level of experience that will pay great dividends with United.  The Bobby Dodd stadium play is a fantastic solution to overcome the delays with the new Mercedes Benz stadium.  Playing on the road to start the inaugural season presented many issues, from both a financial and team performance standpoint.  Bobby Dodd’s location, seating capacity of 55,000 and the 72-yard field width will play well with Gerardo Martino’s high pressure tactics and mentality.  Well done United.  Good bet that season opener at Bobby Dodd will sell out.
• As I have stated this blog will not go down the path of religion and politics.  Not that I take Donald Trump’s sound bites lightly, but let’s hope tonight’s debate, produced in a ‘town hall’ format, stays away from the reality TV syndrome we witnessed in the first debate. Note:  you can always record the 90-minute debate and watch Sunday Night Football.

Adios and Happy Funday Sunday!