The Boss, George Steinbrenner III, principal owner of the Yankees, passed away today from a heart attack. The most famous owner in sports, he was either loved or despised. My wife Linda Dandy, despised him, because he "ruined baseball". I loved him because I am a Yankees fan and because the Boss wanted to win and was great entertainment.

The last few years, he was in failing health and not the old George. But taking a page out of his old bluster page book, only he would choose today,  the day of the Baseball All Star game, to pass away, just two days after the most famous public address announcer in sports, Bob Sheppard, died.

George Steinbrenner is the kind of rich person President Obama would love to rail against while trying to pick his pocket for extra taxes. Most of his fellow baseball owners hated his prolific spending ways, but they always knew when the Yankees were coming to town to fill their baseball parks.

The Yankees have to pay an Obama-like luxury tax because of their huge payroll. This "tax" goes to all the other owners in baseball. The liberal theory is that the rich Yankees need to be taxed in the name of  "baseball justice", a type of beltway blowhard social justice. The tax in turn, can be spent as the other owners wish. What is the result of this "baseball justice" -- many of the owners pocket the money and there are still the same 10 or 12 pathetic franchises that seem to lose almost every year, regardless of how much baseball justice money is spread around.

This redistribution of wealth in baseball works about as well as the progressive/regressive agenda of Obama and his buddies.

George Steinbrenner had a burning desire to win. He said it was "second to breathing". Too bad he wasn't put in charge of the two Iraq wars and the current "war" in Afghanistan. We would have won these wars by now had General Steinbrenner been in charge.

Finally, I can see it now...the scene is the Pearly Gates and George Steinbrenner is banging on the locked gates trying to gain entrance. He hears a familiar voice...it is the voice of Bob Sheppard...

"Your attention, please, ladies and gentlemen, now entering heaven, George Steinbrenner,. Steinbrenner , the third."

REST IN PEACE GEORGE.




George made a lot of money, but spent just as much in his quest to win.