The Daily Dose/November 26, 2018
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
In The News
It is not, of course, reasonable to expect the Saudis to prosecute anyone in the death of one of their own, writer Jamal Khashoggi. Perhaps if international pressure becomes too great they will offer up some low-ranking royal to take one for the team, but that’s about it. No one of any significance who had anything to do with Khashoggi’s murder will be tried in Saudi Arabia. This is hardly a bulletin.
All right, where can they be tried?
Turkey, of course, has jurisdiction, since the murder happened in their country. Embassies and consulates are properties of their countries and are inviolable, but they are not sovereign. You cannot do whatever the hell you want inside them. They remain under the jurisdiction of, and subject to, the laws of their host country. Their diplomats do enjoy immunity, but if Turkey can rustle the suspects up and they were not accredited diplomats, they could be prosecuted and punished in accordance with Turkish law.
They can also be tried in the international court that is the world stage.
America has already announced to the world that we don’t care about the murder, but let’s pretend we hadn’t. What could we do? The G20 summit is coming up at the end of the month in Buenos Aires and the Saudis, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, will be there. America sending regrets for this would send a strong moral message, with the added benefit of not causing any disruption in the world’s economy, a point we cannot be completely insensitive to.
We had no control over the murder or its aftermath. The only thing we have control over is our reaction to it. One moral statement by us might well lead to moral statements by others. Enough people shun the Saudis – even while continuing to do business with them – and invariably something will happen.
Today at the Site
The Diary of a Nobody: Sparrow dreams about golf, even though he doesn’t golf, plus there is more dreidel nonsense at the retailer.
Sally and I might be the only people on the planet who didn’t know what a dreidel was…It came up again today…Jasmine is working Aisle 5 and I’m walking past and my buddy Rob is in line so I stop and say howdy and we chat a bit and I ask him if he knows what a dreidel is and he shrugs as if this was common knowledge and says sure, Sparrow, of course, I know what a dreidel is.
On This Date
In 1986 – John Demjanjuk, a Ukranian-born American citizen, goes on trial in Jerusalem, accused by Israel of being a guard at the Treblinka concentration camp. Demjanjuk would be found guilty, but the conviction was overturned by the Israeli supreme court in 1993 and Demjanjuk was returned to the US. In 2009 Demjanjuk was deported to Germany and found guilty of being an accessory to murder at the Sobibor concentration camp, but he died before his automatic appeal could be heard, legally innocent.
In 1917 – The National Hockey League (NHL) is founded, the successor to the National Hockey Association (NHA). Four teams began play on December 19, though only three finished the season. The Toronto Arenas won the first NHL title and later defeated the Vancouver Millionaires of the Pacific Coast Hockey League for the Stanley Cup. Though initially expected to last one year, until the NHA could resume play, today the NHL has 31 teams and the Stanley Cup is in its permanent possession.
In 1983 – All Night Long by Lionel Richie is the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 for the third of four consecutive weeks, the third of five solo #1 songs by Richie. The song also went to #1 in South Africa, Australia and the Netherlands, went to #2 in Great Britain and was also in its sixth of seven consecutive weeks at #1 on Billboard’s R&B chart. Richie later admitted some lyrics thought to be from a native African language were actually gibberish made up by him.
Quotebook: The primary sign of a well-ordered mind is a man’s ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company. – Seneca
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
The longest-running play in Broadway history is The Phantom of the Opera, which has been playing continuously at the Majestic Theater in New York City since January 20, 1986. It remains the only show in Broadway history with over 10,000 performances.
Today’s Stumper
How many charter NHL teams are still in the league? – Answer Next Time!
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