Rusty Rubin, Managing Editor
www.ringsports.com

I must be honest, I am very disappointed with the lack of interest in our cruise for two former world champions, Greg Page and Gerald McClellan.

At first I wanted to just give up in frustration, and maybe just retire to a life of writing about other things. I won’t because I’ve never been a quitter and I don’t want to start now, as I approach retirement age. Our sport needs help, and I want to remain in a position to do just that.

I’m not sure who to be disappointed with. The average fighter probably can’t afford the cost, and the top names probably haven’t gotten the message. Same can be said of the entertainment industry, who attend the fights but forget who provided the excitement afterwards.

I don’t know what a person has to do to motivate the fans or the big names who either haven’t gotten the message or don’t give a rats ass about giving back.

Let’s be fair here. Guys like Angelo Dundee, Wayne McCullough Joel Casamayor and Evander Holyfield have stepped up to the plate, and we’re most grateful for that. And many websites have also picked up the baton, but the message still hasn’t reached those that will put asses in the cabins.

We still have about two weeks to fill about 30 cabins or we will have to cancel the cruise, which is a giveaway at $669 per person, inclusive of everything but airfare.

But we still have two weeks and I refuse to give up. I believe boxing people care and will be on board with us on Nov. 23-30.

But here’s a challenge, suggested to me by Roland Munoz of our NJ business office. Since Carnival Cruise Lines was going to donate $80 per cabin sold, how about those who can’t make it for whatever reason, to donate that $80 to the Retired Boxers Foundation to be forwarded to the two ex-champs.

After all, helping those less fortunate is the main objective of this project.

Glove2Glove:

Please say a prayer for the return to health of boxing promoter Moe Smith, who had a four by-pass surgery on Thursday. Moe has done much for our sport. Cards can be sent to Moe at: 2713 E. 1st St., Post Falls, ID. 82854.

Your prayers have worked and Martin Sommers is no longer in Hospice care, and in fact, is at home recovering. He and his family pass along their heartfelt thanks, and ask that your prayers continue.

Also down but not out with cancer is Kathy Cerola, sister of top referee Elmo Adolph, and my best friend and co-founder of Glove2Glove, Susiey Walker.
Needless to say we need prayers for the return to health of both former champs Greg Page and Gerald McClellan, both confined to wheelchairs.

Glove2Glove is a non-denomination group set up to aide those boxing folks and their relatives in need of prayers and cards. We accept no money and only contact our members when someone is in need. It’s free to join. Simply send us your e-mail address. And even if you’re not a member, feel free to contact us if you are aware of some boxing person in need.

If you can make the cruise, please e-mail us at rngsprts@cs.com or Lslovin@aol.com. Thanks.

Touching on politics briefly:

To my fellow Americans, it’s that time of year again, the time we look ahead to the inevitable, which this year has come on us late, but with a vengeance.

I refer to the unnecessary rise in prices at the gas pumps, which happens before every Labor Day, with varying excuses, which are almost always contrived.

I admit that my vehicle uses more gas then most. But I need a big car, not just for comfort, but also to help deliver papers from time to time. And, my old Mercury, which uses more gas then I’d like to count, has saved me from serious injury or worse, because it’s made of steel, not aluminum like the newer cars are.

On June 26, I was rear-ended, while sitting in heavy traffic, on my way to do a radio show.

I was hurt, but the fact that I was wearing a seat belt probably saved me a lot of extra injury, and the fact that I was driving this old gas guzzler, could literally be called a life-saver. The car that hit me was an 1987 Toyota, now known as an accordion.

Because of the year of my vehicle, 1989, the insurance company wanted to total it, but I knew it would cost far more to replace it, and since I had the car for a long time, I new what I had, and certainly had no intention of trying to replace it, and, I didn’t.

But I digress. There are a lot of folks out there who love their gas guzzler, and that’s their right, just as it’s my right to keep mine. But it’s not the right of the gas companies to have their annual rip-off of Americans, although they seem to lay claim to it.

In fairness, even with the gauged prices at our gas pumps, people in other countries are ripped off even worse, or at the very least pay much higher prices.

Any feedback on any part of this article is most welcome, and the best responses will be printed.

Political feedback:

In response to some recent comments by a Salim Valli, a Muslim gentleman in the UK, we have this response:

“Riad Z. Abdelkarim & Jason Erb reported the following in MediaMonitors.Net (9/20/02)

“Some media pundits and other well known figures…have accused Muslims of remaining silent after the terrorist attacks.” The writers then go on to dispel this misconception with various examples of Muslim leaders in the US condemning those responsible for the 9/11 tragedy.

“I may have been mislead by media coverage, but obviously I was not alone in not having come across such statements of outrage by Muslim leaders.

“Since 9/11, we in the US have hear over and over that Islam does not condone violence in any form. But I think it would be more helpful for Mr. Valli to explain this to some of his fellow Muslims (read Taliban, Hamas, Al Qaeda, etc.) And I don’t know if he’s in a position to accurately quantify ‘majority of Muslims’.

“Mr. Valli makes some good points. I would concede that US media does not have the tendency to be pro-Muslim. But is there a news media in any Arab nation that gives impartial coverage of the US or Israeli prospective? Have we forgotten Al Jazeera?

“As an immigrant and now a US citizen, I respect the culture and beliefs of my neighbors while appreciating the democracy and freedoms (plural) I am afforded in my adopted nation. Obviously in this great city of NY, I come across people of all backgrounds. And that includes Muslims. It’s not the ‘people’ I have problems with but rather the governments and leaders of Muslim nations.

“Currently, it seems that all over the world there is more terrorism and injustice perpetrated in the name of Allah, then in the name of Jehovah, Jesus or Buddha combined. And maybe the US mainstream media is as slanted as you imply, but I would be hard pressed to give an example of three, no make that ONE Muslim nation whose government within the last 5 years was not either a corrupt monarchy (Saudi Arabia) a terror-harboring oligarchy (Iran) or a ruthless dictatorship (Libya, Iraq, etc.).

“I don’t know Mr. Valli’s personal history, but I do know that you are currently living in the UK, which is run by a representative democracy whose laws are based on Judeo-Christian tradition. Perhaps you take that kind of democracy for granted or appreciate it as much as I do. But the fact is that you live in a democracy, and thus we are not very far apart.

“I trust that you would denounce the fact that according to the new Sharia laws in the Islamic northern region of Nigeria, a woman was recently convicted of out-of-wedlock pregnancy and sentenced to ‘death by stoning.’

“And since you are reading a boxing website, I assume you disagree with the hateful words of contender and fellow Muslim Anthony Mundine, following 9/11, who claimed that the US brought 9/11 upon itself.

Unfortunately, no news is good news, and anything positive with regard to a celebrity’s comments or a government’s actions will not make headlines. It’s what needs to be changed that is cause for concern and worthy of media coverage.

“On that fateful Tuesday, 9/11, Mr. Valli, I watched from my midtown office as the twin towers crumbled like a deck of cards. My only cousin in the US worked in the basement of Building One, and thank God he escaped without injury. Upon learning that the responsible parties were Muslim extremists, many Americans I know (Jews, and Christians) did not paint all Muslims with the same terrorist brush. To do so mould make us not much better then the terrorists themselves.

“When the broadcast media such as Al Jazeera and leaders of Muslim nations acknowledge the tolerance that DOES exist in the West, and when the US media becomes more objective, I believe we may more a bit closer towards understanding each other.”

Ralph Martinez, NYC

Comments: Write to us at rngsprts@cs.com