However, several recent successes have shown that the campaigners' arguments are not just fantasy.
The Arizona Diamondbacks, the Cleveland Indians and the Texas Rangers — as well as the A's, the subject of "Moneyball" — are all run by the statistically inclined, with limited recent success to show for it.
While the recent success of shows like "Star Search" and "American Idol" have shown that Americans may revel in amateur talent in prime time, it could cease to be a part of the televised Miss America pageant, which has long insisted that it is not just a beauty contest.
With the recent success of shows like Ancient Aliens and films such as Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, it's safe to assume that nothing is off limits, not even history or our national icons, from receiving a pop culture twist.
"With the recent success of shows that feature Latinos in smart ways, most notably with Naya Rivera on 'Glee' and Sofia Vergara on 'Modern Family,' Hollywood seems to be looking for more and more ways to integrate Latinos into their programming, attracting Hispanic and mainstream audiences alike," she added.
The gorgeously gaudy Figs In Wigs will be reprising its recent Soho success, Show Off, and poet Rowan James considers normality and "blending in" in Easy For You To Say.
India has become a rapidly growing economy, the middle class in Brazil and Mexico is flourishing, and recent successes of Ghana and Tanzania show that parts of Africa may be turning the corner as well.
The recent success of vemurafenib shows the importance of selective BRAF V600E inhibition in melanoma.
Activists on the state and local levels were already well in place and found themselves positioned to wage the campaigns for same-sex marriage — as the recent successes in the Northeast have shown.
The Green Party managed to build on recent successes with a strong showing in Berlin that will probably make it Mr. Wowereit's new coalition partner, rather than the far-left Left Party.
