Defense!

 

Witchcraft

Those fingers in my hair
That sly come hither stare
That strips my conscience bare
It's witchcraft
And I've got no defense for it
The heat is too intense for it

So if you do have a defense, how good is it?

For those of you watching Ted Lasso ( and for those of you who are not, you are missing the best show on Television.  Season 2 Episode 4 is going to be on constant repeat at my home during the holiday season), in Season 2 Episode 6, Assistant Coach Nate Shelby executes  a surprise move in the closing minutes, by calling for a focus on defense rather than on offense when a winning goal is needed. Richmond FC is able to score the winning goal when the opposing FC makes a mistake.  While the media is surprised by Nate’s move, it should not be a surprise to any sports fan who know that, while it may not be exciting,  it is true that it is defense that wins championships.  The best defense is a good offense is exciting, but wrong.  A defensive strategy is also the Minimax strategy from Games Theory,  which is minimizing the maximum score by your opponent.

This is true of any repeating two-player game.  In the two-player game in the US Senate, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell seems to be particularly adept at this strategy ( “100% of my focus is on blocking this administration’s (Biden’s ) agenda”).  This is not necessary the best long-term strategy for society.  That is why there are 100 senators .  They are supposed to not simply play a two-party game but play a 100 Senator Game for the good of all society, not just Republicans.