March 21, 2016


News Clips For The Day


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/teenager-caleb-fairchild-killed-in-game-involving-bow-and-arrow-west-virginia-state-police-say/

Cops: Teen killed while playing game of "dodging arrows"
CBS/AP
March 21, 2016, 1:39 PM

CHAPMANVILLE, W.Va. -- West Virginia State Police say a 15-year-old boy was killed while playing a game of "dodging arrows."

Trooper Michael Baylous told news media that Caleb Fairchild was playing the game Saturday evening in Chapmanville when he was struck in the head by an arrow.

The accident occurred on Lee Miller Road and police say they were called just after 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, CBS affiliate WVNS-TV reports.

Baylous said Fairchild was taken to Logan Regional Medical Center, and then to Charleston Area Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Chapmanville Middle School, where the teen attended classes, had grief counselors on hand Monday to help students cope with the loss.


I know teenagers are all somewhat low on the “impulse control” level, but no normally sane and intelligent person would do that. I’m sorry for his parents, but they clearly should have paid more attention to him as he grew up. We can’t let our kids do any old thing that comes into their (hormonally disordered) brains, and if they are out of hand the parent should take them to a professional therapist.


THE TRUMP STUMP


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/elizabeth-warren-donald-trump-is-a-loser/

Elizabeth Warren: Donald Trump is a "loser"
By EMILY SCHULTHEIS CBS NEWS
March 21, 2016, 2:40 PM


Republican front-runner Donald Trump is fond of calling people "losers" on Twitter--and on Monday, he got the same treatment from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

Warren, the liberal icon, took to Twitter and Facebook to denounce the GOP businessman in her most extensive criticism yet, saying Trump is a "loser" who "stands ready to tear apart" many key American values.

"Let's be honest--Donald Trump is a loser," she wrote on Facebook. "Count all his failed businesses. See how he kept his father's empire afloat by cheating people with scams like Trump University and by using strategic corporate bankruptcy (excuse me, bankruptcies) to skip out on debt."

She went on to criticize his handling of his family's money:
She continued by noting the offensive comments he's made about various groups like immigrants, women and Muslims, saying his victories thus far should be a "wake up" call.

"Trump seems to know he's a loser," Warren continued. "His embarrassing insecurities are on parade: petty bullying, attacks on women, cheap racism, and flagrant narcissism. But just because Trump is a loser everywhere else doesn't mean he'll lose this election. People have been underestimating his campaign for nearly a year -- and it's time to wake up."

Warren said so much is at stake in the 2016 campaign, like the Supreme Court, health care, Social Security and entitlements, and affordable college tuition.

"More than anyone we've seen before come within the reach of the presidency, Donald Trump stands ready to tear apart an America that was built on values like decency, community, and concern for our neighbors," she wrote. "Many of history's worst authoritarians started out as losers--and Trump is a serious threat. The way I see it, it's our job to make sure he ends this campaign every bit the loser that he started it."

Elizabeth Warren ✔ ‎@elizabethforma
Listen to experts who say @realDonaldTrump might have more money today if he’d put his inheritance in an index fund & left it alone.
12:20 PM - 21 Mar 2016



“Republican front-runner Donald Trump is fond of calling people "losers" on Twitter--and on Monday, he got the same treatment from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Warren, the liberal icon, took to Twitter and Facebook to denounce the GOP businessman in her most extensive criticism yet, saying Trump is a "loser" who "stands ready to tear apart" many key American values. "Let's be honest--Donald Trump is a loser," she wrote on Facebook. "Count all his failed businesses. See how he kept his father's empire afloat by cheating people with scams like Trump University and by using strategic corporate bankruptcy (excuse me, bankruptcies) to skip out on debt." …. "Trump seems to know he's a loser," Warren continued. "His embarrassing insecurities are on parade: petty bullying, attacks on women, cheap racism, and flagrant narcissism. But just because Trump is a loser everywhere else doesn't mean he'll lose this election. People have been underestimating his campaign for nearly a year -- and it's time to wake up." …. "Many of history's worst authoritarians started out as losers--and Trump is a serious threat. The way I see it, it's our job to make sure he ends this campaign every bit the loser that he started it."


You go, Girl!! I couldn’t agree more. Now we have to see to it that we do go down and do the footwork – VOTE and put our Democratic votes into action in November. Whether or not you would have preferred Sanders over Clinton or vice versa, rally behind the party and work together. This is not a time for niceties such as “I just don’t like anybody enough to vote for them.” We’re in a national crisis, whether folks want to face that fact or not. It is real!




http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-biggest-winners-under-donald-trumps-tax-plan/

The biggest winners under Donald Trump's tax plan
By ALAIN SHERTER MONEYWATCH
March 21, 2016, 6:00 AM

Play VIDEO -- Is it down to Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton?
Play VIDEO -- Can anything stop Donald Trump at this point?

A cornerstone of Donald Trump's populist appeal to the American electorate is his promise to slash taxes for all, while making the wealthy pay their fare share. "We're going to make our country great again, and we need the rich in order to make the great, I'm sorry to tell you," the Republican front-runner said last week in a speech after winning the Florida, Illinois and North Carolina primaries.

But is such fervent rhetoric matched by Trump's actual policies? Critics say no, noting that by far the greatest proportion of the tax benefits would go to upper-income earners. Some experts also warn that his plan -- barring draconian spending cuts to offset what they say would be a plunge in government revenue from ratcheting down taxes -- would send the nation's debt soaring to dangerous levels.

"To the extent he says he's fighting for working people, his tax plan refutes that -- it's a complete refutation," said Robert Shapiro, chairman of economics and security advisory firm Sonecon and formerly Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs in the Bill Clinton administration. "He's fighting for himself, and those like him, at the very top of the income distribution. That's what his policies do."

Trump proposes to help average Americans by nearly quadrupling the standard tax deduction from $6,300 to $25,000 for individuals and from $12,600 to $50,000 for couples. Single people earning less than $25,000 and spouses making less than $50,000, or some 75 million Americans, would pay zero federal income tax.

The remaining tax brackets would be set at 10 percent, 20 percent and 25 percent, with the top marginal rate being for those earning more than $150,000 and $300,000 for single and married filers, respectively.

Trump's plan would save middle-income households an average of roughly $2,700 per year in taxes, or about 4 percent of their income, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center (TPC). But richer people would net considerably bigger savings.

Those in the top 5 percent would see an average tax cut of nearly $28,000, while 1 percenters would save $275,00, or more than 17 percent of their after-tax income. The top 0.1 percent of households -- those with net assets of at least $20 million -- would see their annual tax bill fall by $1.3 million, or nearly 19 percent of their income.

Another way to think about it, according to the TPC: The bottom 80 percent of taxpayers would see their average federal income tax rates drop by between 0.9 percent and 4.8 percent. For the top 20 percent, the rate would fall 7.2 percent , while the top 1 percent would get a 12.5 percent cut.

In another proposal that has proved popular on both left and right, Trump has also said he wants to eliminate the tax break for "carried interest." That refers to the share of profits that top hedge fund and private equity firm executives get on their investments. Under the law, carried interest is taxed at the 23.8 percent rate on capital gains, rather than as ordinary income.

But Trump's pledge to close the loophole is "meaningless," Shapiro said. That's because the real estate mogul also wants to cut the top tax rate for so-called pass-through entities -- the millions of limited liability, S-Corporation or other tax structures set up to ensure that business owners don't get double-taxed -- to 15 percent, as he would for all companies.

Hedge funds and private equity funds also qualify as pass-through arrangements. As a result, the top rate on carried interest would end up being more than third lower under Trump's plan even if the loophole were closed, according to the TPC.

"He's actually going to provide a much larger tax break to hedge funds and private equity fund general partners than what the carried-interest loophole does," Shapiro said.

Along with who benefits the most under Trump's tax policy, questions are being raised about the plan's impact on the U.S. economy. His tax cuts would reduce government revenue by upwards of $9.8 trillion over 10 years, the TPC estimates, while the advocacy group Citizens for Tax Justice puts the loss at $12 trillion.

America's GDP -- the value of all goods and services -- is roughly $17 trillion.

Shapiro estimates that the revenue losses in 2020 would come to $915 billion. That's equal to the entire U.S. defense budget projected for that year, plus more than 40 percent of Social Security benefits.

Trump describes his proposal as revenue-neutral, meaning that it wouldn't require spending cuts or tax hikes. But he hasn't detailed how his administration would finance such a massive reduction in taxes, which would amount to the largest in U.S. history, topping even President Ronald Reagan's massive cut in 1981.

In some ways, the point might be moot. By their very scale, such cuts would be dead on arrival in Congress, some experts say.

"Nobody's who is at all familiar with the legislative process takes these tax cuts seriously because they claim two things will be used to pay for them -- economic growth and spending cuts -- and the orders of magnitude aren't within the realm of possibility on either count. They're not viable," said Martin Sullivan, chief economist for Tax Analysts, a nonprofit publisher, and a former U.S. Treasury Department economist in the George H.W. Bush administration.

Trump isn't alone in wanting to reduce taxes. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, the real estate mogul's main rival for the Republican nomination, has proposed cuts that would cost $8.7 trillion (The tax plan offered by Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who has dropped out of the race, ran to $6.7 trillion.)

Sullivan calls all of these proposals "irresponsible," saying they would cause fiscal chaos. He noted that America's debt-to-GDP ratio today is 75 percent, three times the level in 1981 when Reagan slashed taxes.

"It could cause a debt crisis," Shapiro added, echoing concerns that tax cuts of this magnitude would cripple the economy. "The international financial markets would say, 'We don't think you can carry this kind of debt.'"

Whether Trump would make the U.S. great again is an open question, but it seems clear his tax plan would make the nation's debt quite great.



“But is such fervent rhetoric matched by Trump's actual policies? Critics say no, noting that by far the greatest proportion of the tax benefits would go to upper-income earners. Some experts also warn that his plan -- barring draconian spending cuts to offset what they say would be a plunge in government revenue from ratcheting down taxes -- would send the nation's debt soaring to dangerous levels. "To the extent he says he's fighting for working people, his tax plan refutes that -- it's a complete refutation," said Robert Shapiro, chairman of economics and security advisory firm Sonecon and formerly Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs in the Bill Clinton administration. "He's fighting for himself, and those like him, at the very top of the income distribution. That's what his policies do." …. Trump proposes to help average Americans by nearly quadrupling the standard tax deduction from $6,300 to $25,000 for individuals and from $12,600 to $50,000 for couples. Single people earning less than $25,000 and spouses making less than $50,000, or some 75 million Americans, would pay zero federal income tax. …. Shapiro estimates that the revenue losses in 2020 would come to $915 billion. That's equal to the entire U.S. defense budget projected for that year, plus more than 40 percent of Social Security benefits. Trump describes his proposal as revenue-neutral, meaning that it wouldn't require spending cuts or tax hikes. But he hasn't detailed how his administration would finance such a massive reduction in taxes …. "It could cause a debt crisis," Shapiro added, echoing concerns that tax cuts of this magnitude would cripple the economy. "The international financial markets would say, 'We don't think you can carry this kind of debt.'" Whether Trump would make the U.S. great again is an open question, but it seems clear his tax plan would make the nation's debt quite great.”


I’ll be the first to say that I know very little about the science of Economics, if it is a science, but one thing I’m sure of. The Republican rants of “no new taxes” etc. are completely unrealistic for the maintenance of the overall economy and especially for the welfare of our citizens. A slogan like that is just a way to rile up the masses and bring the worst aspects of “conservatism” out to the top of the political mixture. Then along comes their Great Leader, Donald Trump, to blame Islam, perhaps soon Judaism and Mormonism, and of course those horrible immigrants especially. We are becoming not merely more and more uneducated, but more ethically unsound as well. For our leaders to pretend that things like MCR, MCD and Social Security are extravagances is to me simply immoral, and it might end eventually in the kind of bloody street fighting that most people want to avoid.



https://www.yahoo.com/music/concert-pianists-2-daughters-killed-wife-stabbed-texas-150118130.html

Texas pianist finds 2 daughters dead, wife faces mental exam
DIANA HEIDGERD and PAUL J. WEBER, Associated Press
March 18, 2016


DALLAS (AP) — An internationally renowned concert pianist arrived at his estranged wife's home in Texas to pick up their two daughters and found the girls slain in their beds, police said Friday. Authorities say their Russian mother, who had suffered knife wounds, faces a mental health exam.

Vadym Kholodenko stopped Thursday morning at the suburban Fort Worth home where he formerly lived to pick up Nika, 5, and 1-year-old Michela, Benbrook police Cmdr. David Babcock said. The Ukrainian-born musician found his wife, Sofya Tsygankova, in an "extreme state of distress" and discovered the dead girls. The pianist then called 911, police said.

Kholodenko, who won the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth in 2013, is not a suspect and is cooperating with police, Babcock said. Police said no suspects were being sought in the deaths of the girls or the stabbing of Tsygankova, who was recovering Friday at a Fort Worth hospital.

Babcock, when asked, declined to say whether police believe the stab wounds were self-inflicted. Tsygankova was being held on a mental health evaluation, Babcock said. Asked if she was a suspect in the girls' deaths, he declined to say.

"We are still looking at all avenues," he said, but added that authorities don't believe there's any immediate risk to others in the area.

Autopsy results were pending on the children, who had no visible trauma, police said. Tsygankova's wounds were from a knife, said Babcock. He declined to say whether a knife was recovered at the home.

Kholodenko and his family moved to Fort Worth in 2014 after he won the $50,000-prize Cliburn competition, which resulted in Kholodenko touring and playing with major orchestras.

"The Cliburn family is mourning the loss of the precious Kholodenko girls. We are heartbroken and offer our prayers to Vadym and all affected by this overwhelming tragedy," said Maggie Estes, a spokeswoman for the Cliburn competition.

Hospital officials declined on Friday to release a condition on Tsygankova, who was born in Russia.

The couple had married in 2010 and filed for divorce in November, according to Tarrant County court records. Babcock said police had responded twice in 2014 to disturbance calls at the suburban Fort Worth residence but would not disclose details on the nature of the visits. Kholodenko routinely picked up the children from the home in the mornings, Babcock said.

Kholodenko and his wife told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in 2014 that the decision to move from Moscow to the U.S. was a combination of spontaneity and medical problems with Nika's skin.

"Nobody could help us with this problem, and we had a very hard time with her," Tsygankova told the newspaper. "We wanted to be together, with Vadym, to be a family, and for us, maybe it was the only choice for us to come here."

She told the newspaper she hoped to improve her English so she could teach kids in Fort Worth.

The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition is named for the celebrated classical pianist and held every four years in Fort Worth. Cliburn died in 2013. Pianists audition around the world for the Cliburn competition, and finalists are picked to perform in Fort Worth. Kholodenko was among 30 finalists from 12 countries in 2013.

Kholodenko had been scheduled to perform this weekend with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. Another soloist, Alessio Bax, was replacing him, the orchestra said.

Weber reported from Austin.

Online: http://vadymkholodenko.com/



“An internationally renowned concert pianist arrived at his estranged wife's home in Texas to pick up their two daughters and found the girls slain in their beds, police said Friday. Authorities say their Russian mother, who had suffered knife wounds, faces a mental health exam. Vadym Kholodenko stopped Thursday morning at the suburban Fort Worth home where he formerly lived to pick up Nika, 5, and 1-year-old Michela, Benbrook police Cmdr. David Babcock said. The Ukrainian-born musician found his wife, Sofya Tsygankova, in an "extreme state of distress" and discovered the dead girls. The pianist then called 911, police said. …. . Police said no suspects were being sought in the deaths of the girls or the stabbing of Tsygankova, who was recovering Friday at a Fort Worth hospital. Babcock, when asked, declined to say whether police believe the stab wounds were self-inflicted. Tsygankova was being held on a mental health evaluation, Babcock said. Asked if she was a suspect in the girls' deaths, he declined to say. …. Hospital officials declined on Friday to release a condition on Tsygankova, who was born in Russia. The couple had married in 2010 and filed for divorce in November, according to Tarrant County court records. Babcock said police had responded twice in 2014 to disturbance calls at the suburban Fort Worth residence but would not disclose details on the nature of the visits. Kholodenko routinely picked up the children from the home in the mornings, Babcock said.”


Sad, sad news! It is so much like the case some ten or fifteen years ago of a US mother of 5, all under ten years old, who just flipped out one day and killed them all, some by a knife and one or two by drowning them in the bathtub. It was theorized that she had a severe case of post-partum depression, and had become overwhelmed and increasingly irrational.




http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/03/21/471270295/tennis-executive-apologizes-after-lady-player-comments-spark-anger

Tennis Executive Apologizes After 'Lady Player' Comments Spark Anger
BILL CHAPPELL
Updated March 21, 20162:49 PM ET
Published March 21, 201612:09 PM ET

Photograph -- Serena Williams, seen here during the final of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., responded to comments by the tourney's director, saying, "Last year, the women's final at the U.S. Open sold out well before the men. I'm sorry, did Roger play in that final, or Rafa or any man play in that final that was sold out before the men's final?"
Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images


His comments about female tennis players were in "poor taste and erroneous," Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore says, after a backlash over his comments that women are along for the ride in a sport that's carried by men. Among those displeased: Serena Williams.

Here's part of what Moore said Sunday that caused the outcry:

"In my next life, when I come back I want to be someone in the WTA," Moore, 69, said with a laugh, "because they ride on the coattails of the men."

Moore, who was speaking at a news conference Sunday, continued:

"They don't make any decisions and they are lucky. They are very, very lucky. If I was a lady player, I'd go down every night on my knees and thank God that Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal were born, because they've carried this sport. They really have. And now the mantle has been handed over to [Novak] Djokovic and [Andy] Murray, and some others."
Moore is the tournament director of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif. He went on to say of his tournament, one of many elite events on the tour that awards equal prize money to male and female athletes, "We have no complaints."

Moore also drew criticism for what he said moments later, when he said that several "very attractive players" could lead their sport the way Serena Williams has. When asked whether he was referring to their physical appearance or their game, he answered, "I mean both."

A former player from South Africa, Moore has been associated with the Indian Wells tournament since at least the 1980s. He became the head of both the tournament and its home facility in 2012, taking over for longtime friend and business partner Charlie Pasarell.

When he spoke Sunday, Moore called Serena Williams "arguably the best female player of all time" and said that the quality of women's tennis has improved greatly. But those admiring words, and the showcase day of the tournament he runs, were overshadowed by Moore's remarks about women's place in the game.

Williams, who won her first Indian Wells title in 1999, sharply criticized Moore's comments Sunday afternoon, saying they left no room for interpretation as anything other than offensive.

"I speak very good English. I'm sure he does, too," she said. "You know, there's only one way to interpret that. Get on your knees, which is offensive enough, and thank a man, which is not ... we, as women, have come a long way. We shouldn't have to drop to our knees at any point."

Williams is the world's No. 1 in the WTA's singles rankings — a spot she first held in 2002, and which she has currently held for three years. On Sunday, she admitted being surprised at Moore's remarks. And she cited some recent history to counter his view:

"Yeah, I'm still surprised, especially with me and Venus and all the other women on the tour that's done well. Last year, the women's final at the U.S. Open sold out well before the men. I'm sorry, did Roger play in that final, or Rafa or any man play in that final that was sold out before the men's final? I think not."

In addition to selling out of tickets for its women's final before its men's contest, the U.S. Open also saw a spike in ticket prices, as fans clamored to see Williams vie for winning all four majors in the same season.

Responding to Moore's comments, both Williams and Victoria Azarenka, her opponent in Sunday's BNP Paribas final, invoked tennis legend Billie Jean King, who founded the WTA and blazed a trail for women as professional athletes.

King had her own thoughts about Moore's words, saying in a tweet that he was "wrong on so many levels."

Apologizing later for his comments, Moore said they "were in extremely poor taste and erroneous. I am truly sorry for those remarks, and apologize to all the players and WTA as a whole."

The men's winner Sunday was Djokovic, who said that Moore's comments were "not politically correct," as the BBC relays — but the news agency adds that the Serbian star also called for men to fight for more money. From the BBC:

"Djokovic, 28, said women 'fought for what they deserve and they got it,' but claimed prize money should be 'fairly distributed' based on 'who attracts more attention, spectators and who sells more tickets.' "

The BNP Paribas tourney at Indian Wells carries a total purse of more than $10 million. As one of several elite mandatory tennis tournaments featuring both men's and women's fields, it awards prize money equally. Those tournaments rank one slot below the four Grand Slams, which have awarded equal prize money since 2007 — when Wimbledon followed the same path the U.S. Open took back in 1973.

Moore's initial comments came on the same morning as the women's final, in which Williams fell to Azarenka, 6-4, 6-4.

Addressing the controversy after her match, Azarenka said she has a problem in general with men making derogatory comments about women.

Making what she called a simple case, Azarenka said: "Every single person on Earth was brought ... was born by a woman, right? I think that's a good comment. And I think people should remember that sometimes."



http://www.history.com/news/billie-jean-king-wins-the-battle-of-the-sexes-40-years-ago

Billie Jean King Wins the ‘Battle of the Sexes,’ 40 Years Ago
By Jesse Greenspan
SEPTEMBER 20, 2013


On September 20, 1973, women’s tennis star Billie Jean King faced off against Bobby Riggs in an exhibition match dubbed the “Battle of the Sexes.” The 55-year-old Riggs, a former Wimbledon champion, believed he could still beat any woman player, and, after much prodding, King eventually took him up on the challenge. Riggs hyped the contest with a slew of misogynistic comments, including that “the best way to handle women is to keep them pregnant and barefoot.” Yet King ended up eviscerating him 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in front of more than 30,000 fans at the Houston Astrodome, then the largest crowd ever to watch a tennis match. King’s victory—along with the passage of Title IX, an anti-gender-discrimination law—is often credited with sparking a boom in women’s sports.

Despite losing much of his prime to World War II, Riggs was once considered the best tennis player in the world. In 1939 he won the men’s singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles at Wimbledon, purportedly collecting over $100,000 in the process by betting on himself. He also won a few U.S. championships, both as an amateur and a professional. Craving a return to the spotlight, Riggs decided in early 1973 to challenge some of tennis’ top women players. King, who at that point had already won 10 major singles titles, repeatedly turned him down. But then-No. 1-ranked Margaret Court took the bait in return for a $10,000 payday. On May 13, Riggs used a variety of lobs, drop shots and spin shots to defeat Court 6-2, 6-1 in what became known as the “Mother’s Day Massacre.” “I didn’t expect him to mix it up like that,” Court told reporters afterward. “We girls don’t play like that.”

Riggs immediately turned his sights back on the 29-year-old King, whom he called the “women’s libber leader.” “I’ll play her on clay, grass, wood, cement, marble or roller skates,” Riggs said. “We got to keep this sex thing going. I’m a woman specialist now.” This time around, King agreed. At a July press conference announcing the $100,000 winner-take-all match (plus at least $75,000 each in ancillary money), Riggs said, “I’ll tell you why I’ll win. She’s a woman and they don’t have the emotional stability.” King responded by calling him a “creep.” A media blitz then ensued in which Riggs promised to jump off a bridge if he lost. He also resumed his male chauvinist rants, declaring on one occasion, “women belong in the bedroom and kitchen, in that order.” Another time, he said, “Women play about 25 percent as good as men, so they should get about 25 percent of the money men get.” In contrast to the extensive training he did before the Court match, Riggs reportedly spent most of the summer partying and schmoozing. King, on the other hand, continued with her normal routine on the women’s tour.

On September 20, 30,492 fans squeezed into the Houston Astrodome to witness the so-called “Battle of the Sexes,” while an estimated 90 million people worldwide watched on television. King entered the court a la Cleopatra, riding in a gold litter held aloft by toga-wearing members of the Rice University men’s track team. Riggs, meanwhile, came in on a rickshaw surrounded by scantily clad women known as “Bobby’s bosom buddies.” King then presented Riggs with a squealing baby pig and in return received a large “Sugar Daddy” lollipop. In keeping with the carnival-like atmosphere of the contest, King wore blue suede sneakers, and Riggs played the first three games wearing a yellow jacket with the “Sugar Daddy” logo on the back.

Normally a serve-and-volley player, King made a conscious effort to wear Riggs down with baseline rallies. She won the first set 6-4, striking a number of winners and securing the final point on a Riggs double fault. Though Riggs broke King’s serve in the first game of the second set, he would go on to lose it 6-3. Visibly tiring, he then lost the third set 6-3 as well. When he hit a high backhand volley into the net on match point, King flung her racket into the air in celebration. “I thought it would set us back 50 years if I didn’t win that match,” she said later. “It would ruin the women’s tour and affect all women’s self-esteem.” For his part, Riggs told reporters that King simply “played too well.” The two eventually became friends, and even spoke a few days before Riggs died of prostate cancer in 1995.

Over the years, rumors surfaced that Riggs threw the match for money. Just last month, a former assistant golf pro in Florida told ESPN that he had overheard two mob bosses discussing Riggs’ proposal to lose intentionally. In return, Riggs allegedly had $100,000 in gambling debts wiped clean. Riggs himself never admitted to this, nor did the executor of his estate. Moreover, a mafia lawyer accused by the former assistant golf pro of arranging the fix didn’t mention it in his tell-all book, even as he took credit for, among other things, playing an indirect role in President John F. Kennedy’s assassination. “That was not really in Bobby’s interest in any way to lose that match,” King told ESPN.

Either way, the “Battle of the Sexes” turned King into arguably the first superstar female athlete in the United States. After receiving her $100,000 check from boxer George Foreman, one of the many celebrities on hand at the Astrodome, King landed a string of endorsements for such products as Adidas sneakers, Wilson tennis rackets, Colgate toothpaste and Sunbeam hair curlers. The following year, her income reportedly neared $1 million. King retired from competitive singles tennis in 1983, having won 12 major titles, including six Wimbledons and four U.S. Opens. She also helped found a women’s players union, a women’s sports magazine, a nonprofit advocacy group for female athletes and a team tennis league. Yet she still remains best known for a single victory. “I know that when I die, nobody at my funeral will be talking about me,” she once said. “They’ll all just be standing around telling each other where they were the night I beat Bobby Riggs.”


NPR -- “His comments about female tennis players were in "poor taste and erroneous," Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore says, after a backlash over his comments that women are along for the ride in a sport that's carried by men. Among those displeased: Serena Williams.” …. The BNP Paribas tourney at Indian Wells carries a total purse of more than $10 million. As one of several elite mandatory tennis tournaments featuring both men's and women's fields, it awards prize money equally. Those tournaments rank one slot below the four Grand Slams, which have awarded equal prize money since 2007 — when Wimbledon followed the same path the U.S. Open took back in 1973.”


This is the kind of article that makes me feel a little bit good and a little bit bad. It’s good that people when they (finally) realize they have been really unkind and unfair will feel the need to apologize, but it’s a shame that so many men are still disparaging toward women/other races/other religions/etc., and it’s apparently the case that up until recent years, male players were systematically awarded higher prizes than were the women. It’s like the old jibe “When did you quit beating your wife?” Clearly, “we have a ways to go,” as we used to say in the South when I was growing up.