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When players and fans gather at 15 Major League ballparks today, with every uniform on the field bearing the same No. 42 and ceremonies at new Citi Field leading the annual celebration of one of America's true heroes, the message will be said without a word: All of our lives have been touched by Jackie Robinson. On the 62nd anniversary of the day he crossed the color barrier in baseball and led millions of others to break through it not only in the sport but across American society, Robinson's legacy lives on in his credo: "A life is not important,...

Once upon a time, when radio was still paying my bills, I took the calculated risk of veering away from all of the easy Monica Lewinsky chatter and dedicated an hour of airtime to the idea of retiring the number "3" throughout Major League Baseball in honor of the game's most important - and arguably greatest - player of all, Babe Ruth. Jackie Robinson's "42" had recently been retired - something that seemed perfectly fine to me - but it occurred to me that if Robinson was being honored by such an unprecedented move, it made at least as...

Are the growing numbers of players planning to wear Jackie Robinson's No. 42 on Sunday too much of a good thing? Minnesota Twins outfielder Torii Hunter thinks so. "This is supposed to be an honor," Hunter told USA Today, "and just a handful of guys wearing the number. Now you've got entire teams doing it. I think we're killing the meaning. "It should be special wearing Jackie's number, not just because it looks cool," Hunter told the newspaper. "It kind of waters it down," Cleveland Indians pitcher C.C. Sabathia told USA Today. "I could see the Dodgers since that was...

by Mark Finkelstein July 24, 2006 - 09:22 Complete this sentence: The American Dream is the notion that all Americans, regardless of race, country of origin or obstacles to overcome can succeed, providing they . . . I'm guessing that for most people, the answer was along the lines "work hard." Not for the Boston Globe. In an editorial of this morning, American Dream Hopes, the Globe has managed to stand the American Dream on its head. What is required to achieve the American Dream is not self-reliance, hard work, gumption, etc. No, what we need to succeed are government-provided...

So the largely faceless and mostly mediocre Dodgers are in town. No big deal. Ah, but when the Boys of Summer came calling, that was a very big deal. In the late 1940s and early '50s, the Brooklyn Dodgers frequently played exhibition games against the Senators at old Griffith Stadium before the Bums girded their loins for another fierce National League pennant race and the Nats prepared for their annual struggle to avoid the American League cellar. Griffith Stadium, located at Seventh Street and Florida Avenue NW where the Howard University Hospital now stands, usually was a good place to...

The life and faith of Jackie Robinson “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”—Jackie Robinson By George Mitrovich Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947 with the Brooklyn Dodgers, recently received posthumously the Congressional Gold Medal, the nation’s highest civilian honor. The presentation of the Gold Medal to Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, took place at a 90-minute ceremony on March 2, 2005 in the great rotunda of the United States Capitol. President Bush, House Speaker Denny Hastert, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, House and Senate Democratic Leaders Nancy Pelosi and Harry...

President Bush had some strong words to Syria to get out of Lebanon, noted here. He and Vice President Cheney welcomed and congratulated the World Series Cham-peens, the Boston Red Sox, who ended a drought of Biblical proportions with their first World Series win in 86 years. With Speaker Hastert and Senator Stevens, he presented the Congressional Gold Medal to Jackie Robinson's widow, Rachel Robinson, in the name of her husband. In Arnold, Maryland, the president participated in a job training and education dialogue, linked here. Secretary of State Condi Rice attended a one-day London meeting, info here, to discuss...

Spectators again in 2004 Posted: June 2, 2004 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2004 Creators Syndicate, Inc. About George W. Bush, Americans seem to have made up their minds, and enough seem prepared to replace him that this election will be about John Kerry. And the forum where the nation takes the measure of Kerry will be the presidential debates. These debates have often proved decisive. In 1960, JFK won by appearing confident, charismatic and the equal of two-term Vice President Richard Nixon in knowledge and communications skills. In 1964 and 1972, Presidents Johnson and Nixon, sitting atop mountainous leads, declined...

President Bush signed legislation Wednesday awarding Congress' highest honor to Hall of Fame baseball player Jackie Robinson more than half a century after the former Brooklyn Dodger broke major league baseball's color barrier. Congress voted to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Robinson earlier this month, recognizing his achievements in sports, civil rights and business. A four-sport letterman at the University of California, Los Angeles, Robinson became the first black player in the major leagues since the 19th century when he played for the Dodgers on April 15, 1947. He retired after 10 years, winning six pennants and one World...

<p>October 30, 2003 -- WASHINGTON - President Bush signed legislation yesterday awarding Congress' highest honor to Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson more than half a century after the former Brooklyn Dodger broke Major League Baseball's color barrier.</p> <p>Congress voted to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Robinson earlier this month, recognizing his achievements in sports, civil rights and business.</p>