eating together - our secret weapon

The Golden State Warriors have made a custom of eating out together following road games.

"Our secret weapon" is how Shaun Livingston describes it.

Warriors' ownership rents out a room in a local restaurant for the team's traveling parties, which includes players, coaches, staff and family members.

"Instead of everyone going their separate ways, we have one spot we can go and just enjoy each other's company," Stephen Curry says. "It just continues to build the camaraderie that you need to be successful from year to year."

Livingston has played for 10 teams and he has never played for a franchise that ate together like the Warriors do.

"This is amazing," Anderson Varejao said. "It's great to keep the team together, and it's been especially good for me now, getting to know the guys."

Jordan Brenner

"The Warriors' secret sauce? Team dinners on the road" ESPN. 4/11/2016

as found on RealGM.com

simplistic reductionism

[T]here is [a] temptation which we must especially guard against: the simplistic reductionism which sees only good or evil... The contemporary world, with its open wounds which affect so many of our brothers and sisters, demands that we confront every form of polarization which would divide it into these two camps. We know that in the attempt to be freed of the enemy without, we can be tempted to feed the enemy within. To imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place. That is something which you, as a people, reject.

Our response must instead be one of hope and healing, of peace and justice.... Our efforts must aim at restoring hope, righting wrongs, maintaining commitments, and thus promoting the well-being of individuals and of peoples. We must move forward together, as one, in a renewed spirit of fraternity and solidarity, cooperating generously for the common good.

The challenges facing us today call for a renewal of that spirit of cooperation, which has accomplished so much good throughout the history of the United States. The complexity, the gravity and the urgency of these challenges demand that we pool our resources and talents, and resolve to support one another, with respect for our differences and our convictions of conscience.

Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio)

Speech given to Congress. Time Magazine. Washington D.C. 9/24/2015

never been closer than this

Americans who are tired of politics as usual should demand a clear answer to a simple question from every candidate: What will you do to unite all of us?

Our country deserves a candidate courageous enough to select a member of the other party as a running mate. Our country deserves a president humble enough to see leadership not as an entitlement but as a privilege.

The speculation about my candidacy reminds me of a lesson from a great Jewish leader. A decade ago, I visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem with Nosson Tzvi Finkel, a widely respected rabbi in Israel. As we approached one of the holiest sites in Judaism, the rabbi halted about 10 yards away as a crowd of admirers gathered nearby. I beckoned him further.

“I’ve never been closer than this,” the rabbi told me. Astounded, I asked why.

“You go,” he said. “I’m not worthy.”

Howard Schultz, CEO Starbucks

America Deserves a Servant Leader. The New York Times. 8/6/2015