Lou Gehrig didn't have Lou Gehrig's disease?

Real Sports ran a piece on this that is WORTH seeing. I too lost a very close friend and mentor to ALS a couple of years ago. You think watching someone go through cancer or AIDS is tough...

 

1. He was hit by pitches 47 times in his career (including World Series games). Especially with how pitchers didn't give up the inside half of the plate back then, I would think a few of those might have drilled him in the head, where he wasn't wearing a helmet. Heck, one of the stories on Wally Pipp leaving the lineup had to do with him having a fractured skull after getting beaned.

2. Trainers were equipped with aspirin and liquor bottles. They didn't know the first thing about concussions.

 

Michael J Fox was concussed when he went back in time.

 

Ah.....so maybe getting hit by his grandfather's car after knocking his dad out of the way brought on the Parkinson's??

 

And Biff got knocked out by George, woke up, and got KOed again by Marty. Maybe that's why he became even more stupid.

 

Well, the screech-radio dimwits are already at it: "I guess that means we don't have to give money to it any more," along with rambling hints it's all some kind of government scam.

 

Though I fully understand that you meant this as a joke, JJ, you're probably not far off. At least based on one person I know suffering from that dreadful disease.

And for those wishing to learn a potential ALS breakthrough, watch the latest installment of HBO's Real Sports. Some fairly sharp folks might be onto something.

 

Today, Leary tweeted that they should call it Eric Lindros' Disease.

 

We'll never know for sure since he got cremated.

 

ALS isn't a joking matter. As Sam and I can attest, watching someone you care for suffer from it is very disheartening.

 

Lou Gehrig wasn't diagnosed by some country-yokel doctor: he was extensively examined for months at the Mayo Clinic and then at the Columbia University hospital system. He had literally the best medical care available in the world in 1939.

 

To clarify my earlier post, it's Parkinson's Disease that I'm witnessing, not ALS. Apologies if I've misled anyone.

Both are absolutely dreadful diseases. Understanding that there's no such thing as a great disease, ALS, PD, cancer and MS are among the really awful ones.