A volunteer, hence an idealist

"Coach," I wrote, "the fact you are a volunteer is indeed germane to how you view baseball."

Volunteer coaches, I fear, are a vanishing species. They are being killed off by training clinics for players, for umpires, even for coaches; by TV; by the general "selfishness" of today's society. Forty years ago, surveys showed that graduating college seniors wanted to do something for mankind. Surveys today show they only want to do something for themselves. The Peace Corps was a resounding success in the 60s. It would fail miserably today.

You are obviously an idealist. You and Robert Browning would have been great friends: God's in his Heaven, all's right with the world. Honesty is the best policy. Winners never cheat, and cheaters never win. Life is just a bowl of cherries. I'm looking over, a four-leaf clover. My parents were life-long idealists — and marvelous people. Idealists always are. They take a lickin', and they keep on tickin'.

Continued...