MichaelLortz.com/JordiScrubbings.com

A few years ago, back in 2006-07, when I was first learning about the groups the US military has been engaging since 2001, I printed out a copy of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and scribbled some notes in the margins.

From the bottom to the top, I labeled “Physiological” and “Safety” as “3rd World Needs“. Next to “Belonging – Love” I wrote “religion, local violence (tribal)“, besides “Self-Esteem” I wrote “terrorist threats/ fighting for Islam, etc“, and next to “Self-Actualization” I jotted “music, arts – 1st world risks“.

Unsure what to do with these notes, I stuffed the print out in a folder labeled “miscellanea”. One day, I thought, I would flesh out the theory and see what I could come up with.

A few weeks ago, I read Dr. Steven Metz’s article “Psychology of Participation in Insurgency” on Small Wars Journal.com. The article, written in January of 2012, breaks down the rational of joining an insurgent group using Maslow’s Hierarchy. According to Metz,

Insurgency arises from a combination of two conditions: significant unmet psychological needs, and the feasibility of violence (via both attitudes receptive to it and the actual tools of armed action).  To grapple with this, a psychological conceptualization of insurgency would be more powerful and useful than a political one.

Metz then breaks down Maslow’s Hierarchy, dividing into two groups:

Five major categories of motives inspire individuals to consider association with an insurgency, associate with it, or actually join.  Based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of human needs, three of them can been seen as part of higher order motivation: fulfillment, empowerment, and enrichment.  Two are lower order: social obligation and survival.

Now maybe being new to Metz, I don’t complete understand his definition of insurgency. For example, I think Metz leaves out a lot when he writes:

I have assumed that the motivational structure of insurgency is similar but not identical to other forms of violent action, particularly terrorism, but also including militia activity and, to an extent, participation in organized crime.

I am not a pro in this field, and have not partaken in the studies Metz has. That said, my analysis and the notes I scribbled on my print out don’t really fit his at all.

According to Metz’s definition, insurgency only takes place in the top three rungs of of Maslow. But that is not the extent of violence. What I labeled “3rd world risks” in the Physiological and Safety levels of Maslow have been the cause of violence for years. To quote the rapper Paris in his revolutionary song “Tear Shit Up“:

When you can’t eat, you can’t sleep/Can’t seem to find peace/ The only thing the streets see is police and poverty

Right there, that is food, shelter, security, and freedom from fear. Sure, mobs usually don’t have the organization of insurgencies, or perhaps even the long term stability, but they can be just as dangerous to a standing government. Mobs can be crushed or suppressed by strong-armed governments, but if they reach a tipping point, mobs can burn down city hall. And if the ideals of a mob reach the military, the government might not have a chance to sedate it.

I’ve thought about putting the Occupy Movement in the bottom two rungs of Maslow. Hardcore supporters of the cause would have the public believe that because of the “Wealthy 1%”, they can not find work for food and shelter, etc. I’m not 100% sure this label is accurate, however. Maybe in some cases it is, but the stereotypical hippie who received student loans and studied art history has little in common with the poor of third world countries. Bad career decisions does not equal 3rd world risks. However, fighting the system is fighting the system.

In regards to Maslow’s third rung, there is not much group violence born of  ”Belonging-Love”. Perhaps this is where we would find domestic disputes and jealous murders, but the need to belong usually doesn’t spawn groups to fight each other. The lack of belonging, however, could be a precursor to individual violence, such as with the Unabomber, although one might argue that his cause de guerre was more from a need for recognition.

Maslow’s 4th rung, “Self-Esteem”, I think is where most of Metz’s essay lies. Metz writes almost directly to Maslow’s 4th level when he says

 The higher level motivations are more important, complex, and interesting.  They overlap but, in a general sense, people associate with or join insurgencies because they will gain power, gain access to money and other resources, or to fulfill needs such as a sense of identity, belonging, and justice.  The best way to describe this is via a typology–a cast of characters if you will.  I call them “the survivors,” “the lost,” “the thugs,” “the ambitious,” “the aggrieved,” and “the idealists”.

Here again, is where I differ from Metz. I’m not sure how “the survivors” meets the criteria of higher level motivations. According to Metz, the survivors are not material survivors in the physical sense, but is ”an insurgent who lives in an environment where it is safer to be part of an armed group than not“. This is Maslow’s “Safety” level.

The other four Metz groups (the lost, the thugs, the ambitious, the aggrieved, and the idealists all fall into Maslow’s “self-esteem” category. The lost want recognition, the thugs and the aggrieved both want respect, the ambitious want achievement, and the  idealists want achievement. This is where we find the philosophy of militant Islam, al Qaeda, and Osama Bin Laden, for example. Bin Laden wrote that the West had belittled Islam and made Muslims feel like second-class citizens. To fight for Islam then was to wage war for recognition. One could also put the 1960s Civil Rights Movement of America in the aggrieved group as well, although it sometimes bordered on “freedom from fear”.

A major point here is that in Afghanistan, although many of the Taliban claim to be “fighting for Islam” and recruiting those impressionable enough to give their lives for the jihad, the Taliban is not the same as al Qaeda. The Taliban is a political group that want power and resort to illegal means of political protest, to include violence.

Finally, there is one level Metz didn’t comment on: Maslow’s highest level, “Self-Actualization”. Once one achieves all the lower rungs, they can work on the actualization level. Here is where I think counter-culture blossoms. Here is where art, literature, and songs about the struggle bloom. Here is where those people who can sit and write and sing and campaign spawn ideas about the struggle. Sometimes these ideas are true representations of the struggle and sometimes they help fuel the fight, as revolutionary media does. Sometimes they are misguided and mocked by the general public.  But it is often through the literacy or creativeness of those seeking Maslow’s top rung that those on the bottom are emboldened to fight. Sometimes those on the top rung are used as messengers for those seeking power. The pursuit of innter talent and creativity could be used to for some nefarious marketing and public relations.

Overall, although my philosophies and thoughts differ in parts (I wish he could find more peaceful suggestions than to suggest that one of the best alternatives is a strong military identity that everyone joins), I am really glad I found Metz’s article. It gave me reason to finally get out some my ideas. I hope they made sense. Perhaps one day, I could use this as a spring board for something bigger.

Yet another interesting part of being in Afghanistan is taking interest in the neighborhood here in Southwest Asia, specifically in regards to Pakistan. As much as Afghanistan has been a mess for years, Pakistan isn’t much better, with military coups, religious fundamentalists, and all sorts of other political chicanery and hijinks.

ForeignPolicy.com ran a good article summing up the Pakistan dilemma last week. Entitled “No Country for Armed Men“, author Ahmed Rashid writes about Pakistan and how the nation’s military, which as taken control numerous times in the past 30 years, wants nothing to do with control this time because the political and social discombobulation. It’s a pretty good article and I’d recommend checking it out.

There is however one thing I did not like about Rashid’s article -  the ending. Maybe the problems of the world are so similar that we all need the same things, but I found Rashid’s conclusion so generic it could be used anywhere for any country with issues in the 21st century.

Here is Rashid’s text:

Pakistan desperately needs leaders who can bring a new narrative to the debate, who can effectively criticize the military for plunging us into this ideological backwater for the past 30 years. Pakistan needs inspirational figures who can expose the corruption and ineptness of the politicians and demand economic and fiscal reform so that we can rebuild our country.

Any new narrative requires us as Pakistanis to take ownership of our problems rather than blaming the usual suspects: the United States, India, and Israel. So far, at least, there are no such leaders on the horizon. The best hope for Pakistan may be the promising growth of a young people’s movement led by poets, pop musicians, human rights groups, artists, bankers, and bureaucrats who communicate on social networks and talk constantly about the need for change.

Sixty percent of Pakistan’s 180 million people are below the age of 25, so these young people have the majority on their side. The creaking political establishment has little knowledge of this class of people or their aspirations for a better future. It is these young people who need to develop a fresh narrative about Pakistan’s history and where it is going — a narrative that does not put the army and nuclear weapons at center stage but puts Pakistani citizens first, once and for all.

Here is the same ending with some of the details taken out. Insert your nation of choice!

(________) desperately needs leaders who can bring a new narrative to the debate, who can effectively criticize the military for plunging us into this ideological backwater for the past 30 years.  (_______) needs inspirational figures who can expose the corruption and ineptness of the politicians and demand economic and fiscal reform so that we can rebuild our country.

Any new narrative requires us as (_________) to take ownership of our problems rather than blaming the usual suspects: (________), (______), and (______). So far, at least, there are no such leaders on the horizon. The best hope for (_______) may be the promising growth of a young people’s movement led by poets, pop musicians, human rights groups, artists, bankers, and bureaucrats who communicate on social networks and talk constantly about the need for change.

(_______) percent of (_______)’s ( X)  million people are below the age of 25, so these young people have the majority on their side. The creaking political establishment has little knowledge of this class of people or their aspirations for a better future. It is these young people who need to develop a fresh narrative about (______)’s history and where it is going — a narrative that does not put the army and nuclear weapons at center stage but puts (_______) citizens first, once and for all.

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

(Update: Skeeters, never stop being you. Seriously.

The same day everyone wrote about how Scott Kazmir was joining the Sugar Land Skeeters, the Skeeters website had a headline that stated “Two-time AL All-Star, former Major Leaguer join Skeeters“. Of course, “AL All-Star” doesn’t always mean American League. In this case, it means Atlantic League. And that convenient comma between “All-Star” and “former”, that can mean two separate players. In this case, it does as the Skeeters signed Steve Moss (Atlantic League two-time All-Star) and Luis Figueroa (formerly of the Blue Jays. Giants, and Pirates). Gotta love the Skeeters.)

A few months ago, Brian wrote about the Sugar Land Skeeters “announcing their presence with authority” by signing a former Major League pitcher named “Liriano”. While most would associate that surname with Francisco Liriano, the Liriano in question was actually former Brewers and Phillies hurler Pedro Liriano.

Issuing press releases like that are par for the course in the bus leagues.

Sometimes, however, there is no ruse to the reports.

On Wednesday, Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com reported that the Skeeters really signed a former Major League All-Star. One without a common surname. One with the last name “Kazmir”, as in former Tampa Bay Rays moundman Scott Kazmir.

The move makes sense for both parties. The fledgling Atlantic League ballclub will get a nice boost in publicity and probably attendance.

For Kazmir, the Skeeters are not far from his home in Houston and should give him a place to attempt to rebuild his career, which disintegrated faster than an Acme Disintegrating Pistol. The Skeeters also have some other ex-Major Leaguers which Kazmir can work with, such as Gary Majewski and of course, the aforementioned “other” Liriano. The Skeeters also have a pair of veteran ex-Major Leaguers on their coaching staff, manager Gary Gaetti and pitching coach Britt Burns.

That Kazmir will be working with Burns is interesting. From 1980 to 1985, Britt Burns was one of the top lefties in the American League, an all-star who twice finished in the running for AL Cy Young. He ended his 8-year career after the 1985 season when a degenerative hip sidelined him. He played his last full season at 26 years old. He attempted comebacks with the Yankees in 1990 and the Red Sox in 1991 before walking away from the game for good. He ended his career with a 70-60 win-loss record and an average season of 13 wins and 12 losses.

By comparison, from 2005 to 2009, Kazmir was one of the top lefties in the American League, a two-time all-star who led the league in strikeouts in 2007. He ended his 8-year career (if it is indeed over) in 2011 when various injuries and a diminshing fastball sidelined him. Although he pitched 1.2 innings for the Angels in 2011, he played his last full season at 26 years old. He ended his career with a 66-61 record and an average season of 13 wins and 12 losses.

I’m sure Brian is happy. The Skeeters finally have an ex-All Star.

(Here is a bit I wrote several months ago that intended to be in the front of a write-up of a concert I went to a posted about a year ago, but after I wrote the whole thing, I felt like I took way too long to get to the point. So I chopped this part off. But I still think is really good and being that I am not going to any more concerts in 2012, I guess this is the closest I will get to writing about live music until I get back to the states.)

According to most studies, roughly 70% of people believe in God. Of them, 40% or so attend a religious service weekly. Organized religion provides the sense of community, bonding, and support many people need to get through their daily grind. They look forward to their time of brotherhood, when they can gather and rejoice among like-minded believers.

Somewhere along the way, I opted out of organized religion. While I still believe in a higher power, religious organizations just aren’t my bag. I understand their place and I have nothing against them, but they aren’t where my soul seeks solace and camaraderie.

It might seem unorthodox to some, but I find my comfort at rock concerts. Not in huge festivals either, although those are fun, but in dark, smokey, sweaty, rock bars, where the music penetrates the mind, the crowd sways and ebbs as one, and the lead singer hold court like an ancient shaman. Where Dionysus dances on stage to the primal rhythms of life. Where the annoying repercussions of tinnitus stay with you for several days – an accepted unhealthy reminder of your mental inebriation.

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

Being in Afghanistan, I am missing a lot of Florida baseball. I’m missing the Rays and I am also missing the Florida State League. The FSL All-Star Game was played this past Saturday in Port Charlotte, home of the Charlotte Stone Crabs and roughly an hour and half south of where I used to live. Had I been in the country, I surely would have been at the game.

Fortunately, Jim Donten, formerly of Claw Digest and now of RaysProspects.com, did go. And he took pictures. A lot of great pictures. I’ve posted a few below and posted a link to Jim’s photo album. Please check out the rest.

Cody Asche – Clearwater Threshers

Mike O’Neill – Palm Beach Cardinals

Wilmer Flores – St. Lucie Mets (FSL All-Star Game MVP)

Jon Talley – Dunedin Blue Jays & Mikie Mahtook – Charlotte Stone Crabs

Check out the rest of Jim Donten’s pictures here. A big thanks to Jim for allowing us to showcase his work here at Bus Leagues Baseball.

Wow. A few days ago, I realized I have already been in Afghanistan for three months. Hard to believe, honestly. But time flies when you are having fun. Or when you are working 12 hours a day, everyday.

As the kids say, “same difference”.

Three months in Afghanistan means I am pretty much confident in what I am doing and almost becoming a subject matter expert in my job, at least as far as the everyday rigmarole goes. Although I am working as part of a two-man team, during the last month the other guy had to leave Afghanistan for a few weeks and I was required to do the job solo. Which although I had to turn in some 15 hour days, made me fully understand the job top-to-bottom, inside and out. Which actually made for a better team when he thankfully returned.

In the past month, I have also been able to try some Afghan food. They have a very good rice meal that mixes brown rice with raisins, nuts, carrot slices, and lamb. It is tasty. Perhaps I will do the foodie thing and take pictures next time I eat local cuisine.

Working with local Afghans also has another interesting advantage: teaching American slang and terminology. I’ve mentioned before on this site that some of the locals I work with have an interest in American movies and watch them quite often on the office television. A few weeks ago, the movie “Dead Presidents” was the cinema du jour. That led to an interesting discussion on the term “dead presidents” which then led to a conversation on American money and who we have on our currency and why they are there. When one of the locals asked me if American presidents can put their own picture on the national currency it reminded me how little power our leaders have compared to more power-hungry rulers in other parts of the world. I think if an American president tried to replace Washington, Lincoln, Franklin or any of our founding fathers with his own visage he would be laughed out of office.

I’ve also stepped on to the “football pitch”, or “soccer field” as it is known in America for the first time in 20 years. My predominantly international office routinely reserves the base field for soccer once a week. It is a great team-building event and helps bring together a lot of people from various countries who might typically keep their relationships work-related. Playing sports creates bonds of friendship and camaraderie. Needless to say, however, I was not very good. I was counselled quite often by some of my European teammates. But I wasn’t that bad when put in goal. My Italian collegue complimented my play and one of my Slovak co-workers actually invited me out to the next week’s contest. At this rate, in a year, I might be below average on the European scale. That’s my goal.

Three months here also now makes Afghanistan my second longest military-based trip, surpassing my jaunt to Qatar a few years back and behind only my excursion to Bosnia back in 1998-99. So much is different between this adventure and the Bosnia mission. For one, communication. When I was in Bosnia, the internet was in its infancy and email was something I did maybe once a week. Today, as evident in this post, I am able to communicate with almost the same ease I would in the states. I can blog, tweet, post on Facebook, and most importantly, Skype. Back in 1999, video teleconferencing was barely an option, and was primarily for the married troops, and for only five minutes at a time.

Another interesting aspect of this trip compared to others has been my observation and understanding of the human side of people, both the Afghans and the other people who are here for whatever reason. Back in my military days and even probably a little beyond that, I don’t think I cared as much and regarded the people around me as just playing accompanying roles in my journey. Now I ask them how they are doing and try to learn at least a little about them: where they come from, their family back home, where they want to go from here, etc. Whether I know them for a month, a week, or the whole year, it’s best to make the best connections possible as we are all in this together and I might never know when I’ll need their support or they might need mine. This might be based a bit on the fact that unlike my other trips, I came here by myself and will leave by myself. In this sort of environment, the people around me will come and go, again some for longer time than others.

Sorta like life.

In lighter news, I’ve been studying comedy a lot in my spare time, finally reading a book on the art I bought while taking a stand-up course a year and half ago. I’ve also been watching early episodes of Saturday Night Live almost every night and taking notes on what makes them funny. I am almost through Season 1 and have  Seasons 2-4 in my footlocker ready to be opened. This increased exposure to comedy has also led to me writing comedy bits about the base and working in Afghanistan. I hope to find my way on the base club’s stage soon. It’s going to be interesting performing in front of an international audience, but I’m going to give it a shot.

Finally, one last Bosnia-Afghanistan comparison: my trip to Bosnia was where I created the nom de guerre “Jordi Scrubbings”. Here I am 13 years later writing on JordiScrubbings.com, still using the moniker. I guess the more things change …

It seems like I beat on this drum quite often. But I really think this is the future and it shocks me that we aren’t there yet.

I’ve written often about how I think transportation attitudes and culture will rapidly change as the world becomes more interconnected digitally. Whereas we once relied on person-to-person connection and the need to transport ourselves to see the person we wanted to talk to, the increase of digital communication methods will soon create a tipping point where individual travel is not necessary. And if one must travel, he or she will opt for a method of transportation that allows them to stay in touch as they move.

How they get there will not be a consideration. We see this with reports that the newest generation of legal-age drivers consider staying in touch more important than transportation.

As recently as 1998, 64.4% of potential drivers ages 19 and younger had drivers licenses, according to the Federal Highway Administration. As of 2008, that amount had dropped to 46.3%. Additionally, 46% of drivers aged 18 to 24 report that they would choose Internet access over owning a car, according to research firm Gartner.

I would like to see a breakout of urban to rural here, but I would guess this attitude is accurate across demographics. This will cause a considerable impact on the private transportation (read: automobile) industry. Less car use will equal less automobile-making jobs, and an increase in communications usage will mean more people will be needed in that industry. I also would think that telecommunication jobs require a higher education, and that might hurt the “average American”, but I could be wrong here.

As we incur this cultural shift, however, we are seeing the wrong kind of attitudes and resulting legislation. We see governments across the world attempt to push people away from telecommunication methods through texting tickets and other banial laws. These laws will not curtail the incentive to stay in touch while moving. Consider that people still drink and drive, and the temptation to communicate is far more overarching for most people than the desire for an overwhelming amount of alcohol consumption.

Repeat: these laws will not curtail the incentive to stay in touch while moving. We are past the point of discouragement. We are not yet however in the point of alternative encouragement.

There was an interesting article on National Geographic.com recently that discussed how to reduce traffic flow during rush hours in major cities across the world. It mentions incentives for people to stay off the road during prime driving hours in order to reduce fuel consumption and reduce labor time wasted. According to Nat Geo:

Traffic congestion wastes billions of hours of drivers’ time each year, and adds to the global burden of carbon emissions as cars spew pollution without going anywhere. In the United States alone, the Texas Transportation Institute estimates the cost of gridlock, based on time and fuel wasted, will swell to $900 per commuter in 2015, from $750 in 2010. And the amount of fuel burned in U.S. traffic jams will reach 2.5 billion gallons in 2015, up from 1.9 billion gallons in 2010, the group predicts. With more than 1 billion cars on roads today around the world, a number expected by some to double by 2020, the search for answers is urgent.

My biggest problem with trying to convince people to be off the roads during rush hour is that it is not a “bottom-up issue”. If your boss says you have to be in by 8am or you are fired, you can’t argue by saying arriving at 8:30am will be better for the Earth. It doesn’t work that way.

The key to both the growing use of communication dilemma and emissions problem is the same: PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.

Over two years ago, I outlined six ways public transportation organizations can influence people to safer, more efficient means of transportation. These ways included:

• Engaging riders’ sense of adventure and participation
• Increasing routes through college and young professional residential areas
• Ensuring routes have good signal 
• Embracing social media
• Targeting parents

I would also add two more to this list:

• Work with Legislators and Lawmakers
• Pair Up with a Creative Advertising Firm

Public Transportation needs to combine the emissions problem and the “communicating while moving” problem. They need to use the same type of advertising we use to discourage drinking and driving and cigarette use to encourage safe transportation. Just seeing the facts or being legally ticketed won’t discourage behavior. Providing a safe and practical alternative will.

Public transportation needs to have supporters in government who believe it is a safe and viable alternative. Supporters that will ensure that if public attitudes do shift, their will be funding for alternative transportation methods. Perhaps monies received from texting and walking and other violations can go towards buying more buses, trains, and other methods of group movement. That might a small start.

Pairing with a creative advertising or marketing firm could also help change the perception of public transportation from a low-income alternative to one used by the middle class. Appealing to sympathetic attitudes on pollution to a public that already doesn’t feel like it does enough might be a start. I already mentioned appealing to parents to encourage their young people to use public transportation if they plan on communicating, but appealing to those same young people in regards to climate change would also be a good idea.

This is such a no-brainer. I don’t get it.

(Interesting idea one: maybe a privately owned taxi service could run with this ball instead of public transportation. Maybe privately owned buses or vans that have roving wi-fi and will pick up on demand is the answer.)

(Interesting final note: the National Geographic article mentions the University of South Florida Center for Urban Transportation Research. A quick look at the USF CUTR page says they include “experts in economics, planning, engineering, public policy, and geography”. I hope they include anthropologists and possibly even marketers on their team.)

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

Every so often, we like to talk to other writers who spend long hours chronicling the exploits of those in the Minor Leagues. Kevin Gengler of RaysProspects.com is one such writer. Kevin has been covering the Rays system for several years and has become one of the premier go-to subject matter experts on things minor league Rays-related.

Kevin has been an e-migo of the site for a while, having Mike as part of the RaysProspects 2011 Predictions and working with Scott on the RaysProspects Future Considerations podcast. So it was only natural that we have him here.

Bus Leagues Baseball: How long have you been blogging about the Rays minor league system and what got you interested in the Rays minor league teams and players?

Kevin Gengler:I had started and stopped a Rays prospect blog in 2006-2007, mainly because it wasn’t just something I could commit to every day. And with the strong work being done by DRaysBay and RaysIndex even back in the losing seasons, there wasn’t much of a niche to carve out.

BLB: Why blog about it? Did you feel there was a gap to be filled in the blogosphere?

KG: RaysProspects in its current form came to be in mid-2008, and I do think the team winning and the increased interest created a gap. Doug Milhoan created a blog to write about the team’s pitching prospects, so I e-mailed him asking if he’d be interested in having me on and we could cover the whole system.

BLB: Were you a minor league baseball fan before you started blogging about the Rays minor league system?

KG:The minor leagues and prospects were always interesting to me, as far back as seeing Nomar Garciaparra with the Trenton Thunder as a kid. Some years down the road I stumbled on a link to a Baseball America Top 100 prospects list, and to read these scouting reports and projections was pretty fascinating.

BLB: Did you look at any other organization-based blogs before starting RaysProspects and if so, what influences did you take from them?

KG: I don’t think we were influenced much early on by other sites. Over the years we’ve tried to adapt some things from other sites (like SoxProspects and Phuture Phillies) and tweak them, but overall there really hasn’t been much that we’ve seen and said “we should do that here.”

BLB: How do you follow each team? Do you watch all of their games, get your information from their websites, or get your news via twitter, etc?

KG: MILB.com is obviously the biggest source of information with the boxscores every night. Being on Twitter is nice too, in addition to the teams I follow three beat writers who do a great job (Adam Sobsey for Durham, Stacy Long for Montgomery, and Micheal Compton for Bowling Green). If the Rays are off or played an afternoon game, I’ll listen to a radio broadcast online or check out the Bulls on MILB.tv.

BLB: In recent years, there has been a large growth of Rays blogs, both at the major and minor league level. Do you think this is a good thing, and has it affected your blogging at all? I noticed for example, you have incorporated several other writers on to your site.

KG:I think it’s a good thing, and for us, bringing Jim Donten into the fold was great. He’s provided pictures and info from Charlotte in addition to notes on the system as a whole as he’s done a lot of the recapping work. He and Nick Hanson, who was also in Charlotte, are great to get the boots-on-the-ground perspective. BurGi, a fan from Germany, has done a terrific job on the stats side.

BLB: What Rays prospect do you think your audience follows or has followed the closest since you started?

KG: Tim Beckham, because he was the #1 overall pick, is always going to be a hot topic of conversation, especially when it gets into a pedigree vs. production debate. Henry Wrigley’s just about the opposite of that, an unheralded guy who’s been a run-producer, but he’s a lot more popular with our audience than I would’ve expected.

BLB: Some of the Rays prospects through the years have been as close to “can’t miss” as you can get. But are there any “under the radar” prospects that have really piqued your interest? Did they end up making the big league club?

KG: My track record on sleeper prospects isn’t terribly great (Jason McEachern and Ty Morrison were two of my favorites, but neither has made “the leap”), but Alex Cobb is a player I was higher on than most after his season at low-A in 2008. He has taken steps forward each year and it looks like he could settle in as a back-end starter. As a site, we were also “in” on Jeremy Hellickson pretty early.

BLB: Have you seen any/all of the Rays minor league teams live?

KG: Living in New Jersey makes this pretty tough, as the teams are mainly located in the south. I’ve been able to see the Hudson Valley Renegades, who play in NY, but the Durham Bulls are the only other team that plays in a league with teams relatively close.

BLB: You have a podcast with Scott Grauer, who also writes for us. Can you tell us a little about that, how that is going, and what has the reception been?

KG:For me, it was something that I had just wanted to try my hand at for a while, and to bring a different dimension of coverage to the site. It’s been going well, I feel, and the experience really makes you appreciate the podcasts that do a really great job. It’s nothing huge, but we’ve had Jim Callis (of BaseballAmerica) and Kevin Goldstein (of Baseball Prospectus) on for episodes and people definitely liked hearing two guys who write about prospects for a living talk about the system.

BLB: Do you feel a sense of pride when some of the prospects you have been writing about for years make it to the big league club? Do you ever feel as if you are handing over one of your own to the MLB-level bloggers?

KG: I’m not sure about pride, but I do like when a player is called up and he’s not a complete mystery because I’ve followed him for the past few years. A nice of example of this is when some chatter was out there earlier this season that Matt Moore might have been tipping pitches. It made sense immediately to me because I had noticed that same thing watching him on MILB.tv last season, so I was able to jump into the video from his major-league start and, along with Scott, make a post on DRaysBay showing it.

I’m not necessarily handing them over, but I hope our coverage is able to give fans a better idea what to expect when a player does get the call.

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

Like baseball, pro wrestling is as American as apple pie, Mom tattoos, and the 4th of July. Pro wrestling is part athletic spectacle, part entertainment, and in most cases, inexpensive fun for the whole family. Characteristics shared with Minor League Baseball.

Way back in 1999, I attended a Brevard County Manatees game that featured special guest Mick Foley, aka WWE legend Mankind/Dude Love/Cactus Jack. Foley was in town promoting his new book and signing autographs. I took my brother, who was a huge wrestling fan, and he got Foley’s John Hancock in his book. Foley threw out the first pitch, grappled with the mascot, and his son filled the role of ball boy for the Manatees.

Foley has made a lot of appearances at Minor League games throughout his long wrestling career. So too have many other wrestlers. Inspired by George “The Animal” Steele’s recent highlight-producing appearance this past weekend in Rochester, I decided to look up some other upcoming Minor League Baseball wrestling-themed promotions which include appearances by some of the biggest names in the history of the squared circle.

June 12 – Bret “The Hitman” Hart – Richmond Flying Squirrels – Richmond, VA

June 13 – Bret “The Hitman” Hart – Bowie Baysox – Bowie, MD

June 14 – Bret “The Hitman” Hart – Wilmington Blue Rocks – Wilmington, DE

June 15 – Bret “The Hitman” Hart – Reading Phillies – Reading, PA

June 16 – Bret “The Hitman” Hart – Lakewood Blue Claws – Lakewood, NJ

June 23 – Jerry “The King” Lawler – Hickory Crawdads – Hickory, NC

June 27 – David Otunga, Zach Ryder, Lilian Garcia, Natalya – WWE Anti-Bullying Night – Brooklyn Cyclones – Brooklyn, NY

June 28 – MWE Wrestling Night – Harrisburg Curve – Harrisburg, PA

June 29 – SGT Slaughter – Daytona Cubs – Daytona Beach, FL

July 5 – SGT Slaughter – Lakeshore Chinooks – Grafton, WI

July 24 – SGT Slaughter – Portland Sea Dogs – Portland, ME

July 27 – Hacksaw Jim Duggan – Frederick Keys – Frederick, MD

July 28 – SGT Slaughter – Columbus Clippers – Columbus, OH

July 29 – Matt Hardy, Carlito, Tommy Dreamer, and Rhino – Baseball Brawl III – Mahoning Valley Scrappers – Niles, OH

Aug 3 – Hacksaw Jim Duggan – Myrtle Beach Pelicans – Myrtle Beach, SC

Aug 6 – Hacksaw Jim Duggan – Akron Aeros – Akron, OH

Aug 24 – SGT Slaughter – Military Appreciation Night – Lynchburg Hillcats -Lynchburg, TN

Sept 1 – Midget Wrestling – Richmond Flying Squirrels – Richmond, VA

As for my brother, the wrestling fan who wanted Mick Foley’s autograph thirteen years ago, he is currently a pro wrestler himself. He is the Heavyweight Champion of WWE Hall of Famer Afa The Wild Samoan‘s Central Florida-based World X-Treme Wrestling. Coincidentally, they are having an event on August 3rd in Pat Thomas Stadium in Leesburg, Florida, current home of the collegiate summer league Leesburg Lightning and former home to the many Florida State League teams that called Leesburg home from 1937 to 1968.

Living and working in Afghanistan provides for some interesting experiences. None perhaps are more interesting than the conversations you can have with people from all over the world. And among those, some of the more interesting are with some of my fellow Americans.

As could be expected, most of the people working with the military in Afghanistan lean to the conservative side politically. They talk about things like “the left-wing media” and say things like “if you are under 30 and conservative, you have no heart. If you are over 50 and liberal, you have no brain.”

These statements are others of their ilk are not only ignorant, they are completely hypocritical considering the current problems of Afghanistan. These people need to poke their heads out of their myopic little holes, see the greater world around them, and stop making mountains out of what they believe are American problems.

For whatever reason, conservatives believe the “media” is an anti-military, anti-American, Communist machine. Besides the painfully ignorant fact that they only define “media” as cable television, they fail to appreciate the ability of people in America to write, say, or broadcast what they want. Americans are not jailed, beaten, or killed for blogs, videos, or tweets as they are under oppressive regimes. Many conservatives are too busy complaining and bitching about the problems they believe are with a small segment of the America media to acknowledge that American problems are not truly problems.

In Afghanistan, there is no freedom of press. If the Taliban doesn’t like what you write, they kill you. There are few Afghan media voices here documenting corruption, writing about the atrocities of the Taliban, or even telling the stories of everyday Afghans. Most of the press here is international. Few Afghans have running water, no less the ability to go online and blog, tweet, or create a youtube video. There is little press, no less conservative or liberal leaning.

There is an index called the Press Freedom Index put out annually by Reporters Without Borders. In its latest release, America was ranked 47th. Meanwhile, Afghanistan is currently ranked 150th. Syria is ranked 176th, China is ranked 174th, and Saudi Arabia is ranked 141st. What does that tell you about the Afghan freedom of press?

So before American conservatives can talk about what cable station is liberal and why it is un-American for its Globalist outlook, they should talk about the freedom of Afghans to say or broadcast what they want. They should help build successful media networks here instead of complaining about what they think is a problem back home.

Americans should be all about freedom, right?