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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Mercy Flights miffed at Josephine commissioners Woman sentenced for harboring Jackson County Jail escapee Cow Creek Umpqua Tribe announces layoffs Downtown Grounds burglarized Work will close west Medford alleys Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Woman sentenced for harboring Jackson County Jail escapee Downtown Grounds burglarized White City house fire displaces couple Emergency Services, Feb. 2 Emergency services Politics and Elections Amid rising scrutiny, governor says fiancee won't have role in administration Ashland aims for diversity, but numbers show shortfall Kent Bush: The keys to decoding the State of the Union address Oregon Legislature convenes, session starts Feb. 12 Education SOU students targeted in Drive Less campaign Parent files discrimination complaint against Ashland schools Some gains, some losses Medford reconsiders full-day kindergarten State boosts class time expectation Environment Commissioners won't object to BLM road closures Mt. Ashland Ski Area crew dips to five Public sounds off on gas pipeline Mt. Ashland ski area announces layoffs Bear cub headed to rehabbers in Idaho State News 'Seven Wonders' ads pay off, Oregon park officials say Sales call leads to rescue of beaten woman Feds: Oregon logging rules don't protect fish, water Amid rising scrutiny, governor says fiancee won't have role in administration Oregonians face Feb. 15 health insurance deadline Nation - World Obituaries Nordica Mae Irvin William (Bill) Earl Shewman III A Celebration of Life for Karen Weaver Joseph Richard �Rich� Halliday, Jr. Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable Sports Latest Stories Beavers turn focus to UCLA Koepka rallies to win Phoenix Open Whiteside comes up big for Heat in win Ducks have some work to do Detroit downs Houston, ends four-game skid Varsity 541 College Sports Beavers turn focus to UCLA Ducks have some work to do Kennedy earns 200th win as Raiders roll Defense keys No. 7 OSU's rout of USC Duke knocks Virginia from unbeaten ranks Pro Sports Koepka rallies to win Phoenix Open Whiteside comes up big for Heat in win Detroit downs Houston, ends four-game skid Bucks cap fine week at Blazers' expense Sons represent Seau at Hall ceremony Community Sports Local Events Business Latest Stories Ride & Drive: The 2015 BMW M4 Silvio Calabi: Jeep’s Patriot earns respect Blog: Aussies send Erickson's Elvis into retirement Homes for the long haul Blog: Better than Ordinary...Extraordinary! Real Estate News Homes for the long haul New owners of Medford Center promise a hands-on approach: Home loan rates continue to fall, applications soar Jackson County real estate market headed back to normal People In Business People in Business Transportation The heart of Brammo will remain Want to be an investor? Four companies will be pitching their plan to you Medford airport traffic flies to new heights Agriculture Nine companies pitch investment opportunities in Medford Darigold to shutter Medford plant, putting 29 out of work Opinion Latest Letters to the Editor, Feb. 2 Our View: Wood-fired steam plant at SOU makes sense Letters to the Editor, Feb. 1 Help wanted: The Medford School District needs you George Will: Our annual season of wretched excess Editorials Our View: Wood-fired steam plant at SOU makes sense Other Views: Nothing to see here; move along Our View: Improving graduation rates isn't easy Our View: Revving up the gas tax debate Our View: Updating Oregon's presence in the U.S. Capitol Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Feb. 2 Letters to the Editor, Feb. 1 Letters to the Editor, Jan. 30 Letters to the Editor, Jan. 29 Letters to the Editor, Jan. 28 Guest Opinions Help wanted: The Medford School District needs you Guest Opinion: Market forces work against LNG project's success Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose gas pipeline A fair shot for all: addressing our low-wage crisis Guest Opinion: SOU biomass burner would be big mistake Lifestyle Latest stories Blog: HAIKU MONDAY: On Monday Mourning and Worst Play Ever Gail Ciampa: Spinach contains an alphabet of vitamins Kitchen Call: Don’t wait to get your game-day wings Ride & Drive: The 2015 BMW M4 It Is What It Is: No parent wants to play favorites Food Gail Ciampa: Spinach contains an alphabet of vitamins Kitchen Call: Don’t wait to get your game-day wings Community blog: Raise a cup of bone broth to better health Good to the Bone Gail Ciampa: Marcona almonds make this a salad with substance Home and Garden Home Help: 3 upgrades sure to turn kitchen time into quality time Dear Monty: Is a home ‘trade-in’ a good idea? Buying a home? Consider its walkability Home Help: 5 ways to revamp your outdoor living space this year Paint a room or two in a weekend Health Community blog: Five "Must Haves" Health Watch: Don’t let your fitness resolutions fizzle out Community blog: Toxic Love: How to Identify an Abusive Relationship Community blog: A Higher Walk To Better Health HealthStyle: Are you in an unhealthy relationship? Hiking Biking Faith Religion briefs Religion briefs, Jan. 23 Religion briefs Old stained-glass windows face threats Milestones and Achievements 50 years and counting: Bulebar Wedding: Lindsey-Maria Rios New arrivals Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Camelot presents Playwright Richard Manley's 'A Question of Words' Here it is! Live Music in Local Clubs Terrapin Flyer plays Historic Ashland Armory Eric Johnson and Mike Stern at The Rogue Theatre Alcyon Massive and Frankie Hernandez play acoustic at Howiee's Theater Camelot presents Playwright Richard Manley's 'A Question of Words' Classics, premiers highlight '15 season for OSF Randall Theatre presents playwright Charles Ludlam's comedy "The Mystery of Irma Vep" Roy Orbison tribute hits high note Thanks for the Memories Theatre presents 'Cardenio' Music Here it is! Live Music in Local Clubs Jesse Cook plays the Craterian Theater Shybo Torres plays South Stage Cellars Terrapin Flyer plays Historic Ashland Armory Trio Valtorna plays SOU Music Hall Community Events Comedian Susan Westenhoefer pulls no punches Paula Poundstone performs at the Craterian Len Dickson's 'Fall Harvest' to grace Belle Fiore wine label A look at the life and vision of Martin Luther King Jr. Ty Barnett and Ian Harris are 'Divided' Dining Sandwiches and burgers are hits at The Rogue Chef The Vine offers a taste of Italy Cheeseburgers on the cheap Valley View — It's all in the family Patty Groth's Morning Glory is still a delight Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Mercy Flights miffed at Josephine commissioners ... Woman sentenced for harboring Jackson County Jail escapee ... Cow Creek Umpqua Tribe announces layoffs ... Mercy Flights miffed at Josephine commissioners ... Woman sentenced for harboring Jackson County Jail escapee ... Cow Creek Umpqua Tribe announces layoffs ... ANOTHER VIEW George Will: Our annual season of wretched excess Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted Feb. 1, 2015 @ 12:01 am Posted Feb. 1, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Social News Beer, Benjamin Franklin supposedly said but almost certainly didn't, is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. Without cannonballing into deep theological waters, perhaps Deflategate proves the same thing. This scrumptious NFL pratfall — think of someone insufferably self-important stepping on a banana peel; hello, Donald Trump — has come to lighten the mood of America's annual Wretched Excess Season. It consists of the days — this year, 12 of them — between the State of the Union address and the final merciful tick of the clock of the Super Bowl. The State of the Union has become, under presidents of both parties, a political pep rally degrading to everyone. The judiciary and uniformed military should never attend. And Congress, by hosting a spectacle so monarchical in structure (which is why Thomas Jefferson sent his thoughts to Congress in writing) deepens the diminishment of the legislative branch as a mostly reactive servant of an overbearing executive. Catching the State of the Union's rising wave of choreographed spontaneity and synthetic earnestness, the nation then surfs into the long run-up to the Super Bowl. This storm before the storm delivers hurricane-force gusts of anticipatory analysis forecasting the minute nuances of enormous people throwing their weight around. The chatter culminates in 60 minutes of actual football — men risking concussions and other crippling injuries for our amusement. And for selling beer (see above) and other stuff. Game Day XLIX (Roman numerals are attached to Super Bowls as to popes, but with less reason than for the bishop of Rome) will be swaddled in many pre-game hours of advertising leavened by eruptions of patriotic kitsch. So, herewith a suggested pre-game reading: Ben Fountain's Iraq War novel "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk." It is set not at a Super Bowl but at a Thanksgiving Day NFL game in Dallas, so the difference is of degree, and not much of that. Anyway, this year the tedium of Wretched Excess Season has been relieved by Deflategate, itself a permutation of wretched excess. Unless you have allowed yourself to be distracted by the dismemberment of Ukraine, Islamic State beheadings and counting the U.S. military personnel in Iraq that are not wearing real boots that are actually on the ground, you know this: When the New England Patriots won a Super Bowl berth by defeating the Indianapolis Colts 45-7, 11 footballs in the Patriots' custody, and for the team's use on offense, were filled with less air than NFL rules require, making them easier to pass and catch. Perhaps the 11 balls spontaneously lost exactly the same amount of air in the 2 hours or so between when the officials checked them and kickoff. Religions have been founded on less startling occurrences, but judge not lest ye be judged to be judgmental. The Patriots' head coach, Bill Belichick, a detail-obsessed martinet of Prussian severity but without even a Junker's flair for jollity, says he is stumped. Perhaps a rogue equipment manager decided on his own to put deflated balls into the famously and exquisitely sensitive hands of the Patriots' $27 million quarterback, Tom Brady, who never noticed. There has not been such an unmysterious mystery since an 18-and-a-half-minute gap occurred in President Nixon's White House tapes of a conversation between Nixon and his chief of staff in the Oval Office three days after the Watergate break-in. Concerning cheating, let the sport that is without sin cast the first scuffed baseball. Baseball players have tampered with themselves (e.g., performance-enhancing drugs) and their equipment (e.g., corked bats). Teams with creative groundskeepers have given an outward tilt to infield foul lines when a team adept at bunting comes to town. And on at least one occasion a gifted base stealer has reached first base only to find himself standing in a muddy swamp on an otherwise dry infield. But let us not allow fallen humanity's sins to spoil today's fun. On the second-highest calorie-consumption day of every year (second to Thanksgiving), we celebrate the end of Wretched Excess Season by gathering around our televisions, as around a continental campfire. In this communal experience we say: Take the day off, better angels of our nature, because nothing says America like football played indoors in air conditioning on grass in the desert. Tomorrow, we will still not be sure who or what blew up the USS Maine in Havana harbor on Feb. 15, 1898. But it would be good to know the whereabouts of the Patriots' equipment manager that day. George Will's email address is [email protected]. 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