A few random thoughts, after spending the day flying from lovely Florida to bitterly cold Boston.

1) As always, I flew JetBlue. At some point in the not too distant future, I will publish an article on why JetBlue is the best of all airlines. Today’s experience was more of what I’ve gotten used to – travel perfection, right up until the time I stepped out into Boston and a -20 degree wind chill savagely greeted me. But that really wasn’t JetBlue’s fault.

2) Before you do anything else, please go read Michael Yon’s latest dispatch from Iraq. Michael has traveled 1200 miles up and down Iraq over the past month. His companion has been command Sergeant Major Jeffrey Mellinger who works directly for David Petraeus. As always, Michael sees things in Iraq that no one else does because of his experience in Special Forces and his own amazing writer’s eye. Nobody does it better. Please read his entire report, and if you have the means and inclination, please consider supporting the incredible work that he’s been doing. One of the major battles we have in this war is getting the truth out. Micheal Yon does that better than anyone else, even when the truth is something we don’t necessarily want to hear.

3) While I was flying, I got to hear of the fate of Scooter Libby in real time because, once again, I fly JetBlue. You’ll note I’ve never made any comment on the Libby trial. That’s because I haven’t bothered to familiarize myself with all of the ins-and-outs of the matter. As far as I know, he may be guilty as sin or he may be innocent as a newborn babe. With the great work that Tom Maguire has been doing, anything I might have added would have been superfluous, anyway.

Though I have nothing of any worth to offer specifically regarding the Libby trial, I can offer some generalized observations on prosecutors gleaned from first hand observations working among them.

Prosecutors exist to get people thrown in jail. That’s their job, and the good ones love it. The close cases, the tough ones, are the ones that quicken their pulses, not the slam dunks. The guilt or innocence of the defendant has less to do with the prosecutor’s zeal in an individual case than does his love of the game and the size of his quarry. That’s why so many prosecutors get so excited when they get a famous person in their crosshairs.

Again, because I know little about the subject, I can’t opine knowingly on whether or not Scooter Libby was guilty of perjury (a serious crime) or not. I can, however, tell you that the resources devoted to pursuing his conviction had no correlation with either the magnitude of his crime or the indisputable nature of his guilt.

4) Crazy About Camillo – The Honda Classic was held next door to me this past weekend, and Latin heartthrob Camillo Villegas almost won his first PGA tournament, losing on the third hole of sudden death. I really wanted to see him win. I’m convinced that Tiger Woods will remain unchallenged until someone like Villegas emerges.

Tiger set the new paradigm for golfing excellence – he lives his sport, and constantly strives to improve. The way he repeatedly laps his most significant contemporary rivals, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson, provides a satisfying ongoing morality tale. Ernie and Phil seem like swell guys, but compared to Tiger they are wanting. Where Tiger’s still lean and hungry even long after he’s established himself as the best golfer that’s ever lived, Phil and Ernie are puffy and self-satisfied. Where Phil and Ernie are mellow and easy-going, Tiger drives himself relentlessly. It wouldn’t be fair if Tiger didn’t beat such men.

Obviously, none of Tiger’s contemporaries have the combination of talent and determination necessary to seriously threaten him. Golf never saw anything like Tiger Woods, and only golfers who grew up watching Tiger will have a bone-deep understanding of what separates Tiger from the pack. Phil and Ernie are the Moses generation – they will never be worthy of truly challenging Tiger. The Joshua generation will be full of guys like Villegas who pattern themselves after Tiger. There, Tiger will finally find competitors with the same reverence for excellence that he has.

I think Villegas will be the first guy to emerge. The sooner the better, because when he does, it will be fun.

5) I know, I know – I’ve fallen behind on my wildly unpopular book review series. Not to worry – I have plans to remedy that. Coming tomorrow – reviews of David Mamet’s last two books!

6) In the post I made before taking off, I neglected to place a link to my story about Walter Reed. Here it is.

Compliments? Complaints? Contact me at Soxblog@aol.com.