COFFEE BREAK 9

+ April is a wonderful month.

+ Baseball is back!

+ I agree with Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe who wrote Day late, a perfect way to start. Excerpt: "It came a day late, and the festivities were pared down, but once the game started, everything at Fenway felt so good, so good."

+ The Red Sox beat the Rays 5-3 behind the expert pitching of Josh Beckett in the opening game for both teams yesterday at a chilly Fenway Park. The Tampa Bay Rays are the defending American League champions. They edged out the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox won the 2004 World Series and the 2007 World Series. They are the only team to win it twice in this century!

+ I'm optimistic about the economy. I think the worst is over even though we will probably see the unemployment rate (now at 8.5%) go higher. There are signs that people are ready to buy items that they have been putting off. The big question is: Have we learned our lessons about greed and inequality and will we build an economy of sustainable abundance for all in the future?

+ At 10:00am, the Diane Rehm Show guests will discuss Gay Marriage. Vermont has become the fourth state to approve same-sex marriage. The decision comes one week after the Iowa Supreme Court cleared the way for gay-marriage in that state. The topic is: "A look at gay marriage in America." Guests: Lara Schwartz, staff counsel for Human Rights Campaign; Mathew Staver, Founder of Liberty Counsel and Dean of Liberty University School of Law; Dante Chinni, Christian Science Monitor; Camilla Taylor, Senior Staff Attorney, Lambda Legal. You can listen to the Diane Rehm Show at any time on your computer.

+ At 11:00am, Diane Rehm's guest on the Diane Rehm Show will be William Greider and the topic wil be Come Home America (book title). He will explain why America is losing its global leadership position and how ordinary people can use profound global changes at hand to build a more equitable society. Greider is the National Affairs Correspondent for The Nation. You can listen to the Diane Rehm Show at any time on your computer.

+ Coffee Break 9 welcomes input and is open for editing and additions until Coffee Break 10 is posted.