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David Dodd

David Dodd is a Reader contributor. See staff page for published articles.

Avocados, Ron Roberts, and religion spur letters

Best bunch of letters to the Reader in quite some time. So far as avocado prices falling, how about large avocados in Bakersfield for $1.29? Each? At times, I can find the small ones on sale, got 'em 5 for $1.00 the other day. Truth be told, from my perspective, Mexican avocados have always been superior to those grown in the Northern climates of the U.S. And one story that will likely never be told is that when Mexico began to export avocados to the U.S., it wrecked the ability of Mexicans to purchase that awesome fruit in their own country because the purchase price became highly prohibitive. When I arrived in Mexico back in the early '90's, I would go to the local Sobre Ruedas (sort of an open-air market) and buy a large bag of that luscious fruit for an American dollar. Like, maybe two dozen. Now? In Mexico, while still a little less expensive than in the U.S., avocados are now barely affordable for the working class. My, how times change. While there is no official language in Mexico, obviously they had their Spanish imported and that is the prevalent language there. The word "avocado" is "aquacate" in Mexico. It is actually derived from the Aztecs, their word, "ahuakatl" is the root. I'm going to guess that California began ahuakatl orchards way back when California was Mexico, and I'm going to guess further that the fruit simply doesn't grow large so far away from where it began in Southern Mexico. It isn't worth my time investing in the research, but it seems logical. Even corn tortillas don't taste the same up here, doesn't make any difference that the corn flour is imported.
— April 23, 2016 11:30 a.m.

Attempt to print something of quality

Love the "neighborhood nitwit" letter. Stringers and other contributors is what gives the San Diego Reader the charm and eclecticism that provides free entertainment, and the ads, well, that's why pages are made to be turned (and hey, where else can a plastic surgeon advertise?). But to Quent Koenig, that's a wonderful idea but there are billions of reasons in the form of U.S. dollars that it won't happen. The Packers (Green Bay Packers, Inc.) are in direct violation of franchise ownership policy. Sometime in the 1980's, policy was created to where the head of an ownership group (A) had to own at least 30% of the franchise, and (B) could have only up to 31 other part-owners in the group. The Green Bay Packers were exempted from this policy, their publicly-held type organization was "grandfathered" into the new policy (much in the same way that the Dallas Cowboys are exempt from having to share merchandising revenue with the other 31 teams). Around six years ago, the policy was relaxed to where the head of an ownership group had to own at least 10% of the franchise, but the limit of 32 people in an ownership group remains. What this ensures for the other franchises is the ability to control their collective destinies, especially monetarily. While this SEEMS patently unfair, there is no arguing that it seems to work, especially when you consider the unarguable popularity of the sport in spite of its shortcomings. In other words, if it ain't broke, they ain't gonna fix it.
— December 23, 2015 2:37 p.m.

California imposes no-chew law for big leagues

Most ball players no longer chew, that was a part of the older sub-culture. I didn't know Peavy well, but I got to know Kotsay, we have a little history in common from his days playing at Cal State Fullerton. One afternoon I was sitting in the dugout before a game, waiting to shoot pics of the guys taking BP. Kotsay is interviewing with a gal reporter for FOX Sports SD, and he's talking about his first manager, Jim Leyland, when Mark came up with the Marlins. Kots looks at me and says, "Hey, this isn't for reporting." Leyland used to sneak cigarettes in the dugout near the bat rack between innings. I told Mark I already knew about it, it wasn't a secret, television even caught him in the act back in the day. I know that Kotsay doesn't smoke, but I believe at one time he did chew. I believe he quit several years prior to joining the Padres. I also told Mark about growing up in Los Angeles watching the Dodgers play. We all caught former catcher Steve Yeager sneaking a cigarette now and then in the tunnel leading to the club house. The modern ball player doesn't smoke and I doubt that many chew, I didn't notice it in the 2+ years I covered the Padres. I doubt that the Player's Union will gripe about this California law, it simply isn't the issue it once was. These days the players are very conscious of what goes into their bodies, the minimum salary in MLB is close to 1/2 million per season. That, and clubs like to protect their investments.
— October 12, 2015 10:05 p.m.

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