White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen has handled his pitching staff like Goldilocks this weekend, and that has helped cost the Sox the first two games against the Cubs.
In the first game, he took out starter John Danks toooo soon. He'd only thrown 85 pitches over six innings and had the Cubs bats looking weak. Still, he took him out and brought in Octavio Dotel. Dotel only needed six pitches to blow the lead, and the Cubs went on to win in the ninth.
You can make a case that this wasn't really a bad decision, but just bad execution. The Sox bullpen has been pretty reliable this season.
Yesterday, Ozzie took out starter Jose Contreras toooo late. Contreras gave up eight runs in the decisive fourth inning, including four home runs. Two of those were hit by Jim Edmonds, and a third was a three-run bomb by Aramis Ramirez. Mike Fontenot hit the other homer, right after Edmonds first one. Ramirez was the ninth batter in the inning, and eight of those nine hitters had scored before Contreras finally got the hook.
Edmonds greeted the new pitcher Boone Logan with his second blast of the inning, but by then, it was all gravy.
Sox fans are hoping today, Ozzie handles things just right. Of course, tonight, it might not matter. The Cubs are starting Ryan Dempster, who has been unbeatable at Wrigley so far this season. Also, there's a chance of rain, so it might not even get played.
Edmonds, by the way, became just the third Cub to homer twice in one inning. The first was Sammy Sosa in 1996. Mark Bellhorn also did it in 2002, and the switch-hitter hit one from each side of the plate.
It's also the third time the Cubs hit four home runs in one inning. They did it in 1930 and in 2000.
It wasn't all roses for the Cubs though. They put Carlos Zambrano on the DL with a mild shoulder strain. The good news is that he is expected to just miss the two weeks and not longer.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Faith and the Cub fan
Jeff Passan writes a funny-but-true piece on the woes of the Cub fan at Yahoo!
He doesn't specifically mention 1984, which was the most painful moment for me. Ball rolls through Leon Durham's legs in game 5 (the inspiration for former Cub Bill Buckner's gaffe in the World Series two years later). Steve Garvey homers off Lee Smith in game 4. Not having home field advantage in spite of having the best record in the NL.
Not that I'm bitter.
He doesn't specifically mention 1984, which was the most painful moment for me. Ball rolls through Leon Durham's legs in game 5 (the inspiration for former Cub Bill Buckner's gaffe in the World Series two years later). Steve Garvey homers off Lee Smith in game 4. Not having home field advantage in spite of having the best record in the NL.
Not that I'm bitter.
Balls leaving (and entering) the yard
I watched most of two games yesterday with no shortage of dramatic home runs.
First, the opener of the Cubs-Sox series at Wrigley. The Cubs were coming off a sweep at the hands of the Devil Rays (I know, they dropped "Devil," but once you get a little of the devil in you, you can't get it out). That was the Cubs' first three-game losing streak of the season. Still, they had the best record in baseball, percentage points ahead of the Red Sox.
The Sox, on the other hand, appeared to have bounced back from a skid where they lost six of seven by sweeping Pittsburgh earlier this week.
Things looked good for the Sox early yesterday also. Jermaine Dye blasted a shot that still hasn't landed to tie the game in the second. Cub-killer AJ Pierzynski hit a two-run homer in the third to make it 3-1 and there they sat until the seventh.
Octavio Dotel came in to pitch for the Sox and Derrek Lee smacked his first pitch into the right field bleachers to make it 3-2. Just as the crowd was settling down from that shot, Aramis Ramirez made it back-to-back shots to tie it up. Those also cost WGN radio $10,000. They give a lucky listener 10Gs whenever the Cubs go back-to-back in the 7th inning.
The Sox started the 9th with a double against Kerry Wood, but couldn't do anything with it.
Scott Linebrink then came on to pitch the bottom of the ninth, but he didn't last long. Ramirez hit his second pitch into the center field shrubbery for the game-winner.
My nightcap was the College World Series elimination game between LSU and North Carolina.
They actually started the game the night before. Carolina had two runs in and the bases loaded with one out in the top of the first before the rains came and postponed the game to last night. LSU changed pitchers overnight and got a double play to get out of that jam.
It was 3-1 Heels in the sixth when Matt Clark, the nation's leading home run hitter, came up with a man on for the Tigers. Instead of pitching around him, UNC's Brian Moran went right after him. Big mistake. Clark bombs one out and the game is tied.
LSU was threatening again in the eighth with Clark at the plate, two on and one out, looking to duplicate Ramirez, when a streaker ran onto the field. The little delay seemed to suck the pressure out of the situation. Clark walked (NC pitched very carefully to him this time) and then ACC pitcher of the year Alex White got out of it.
On to the top of the ninth, where a single and two intentional walks (the first after a stolen base and the second after a sacrifice) loaded the bases. UNC catcher Tim Federowicz then hit the first grand slam in a CWS in eight years. White made that stand up and the Tar Heels save some face for the ACC.
The ACC entered the NCAA tournament with three of the top four seeds. #1 Miami and #4 Florida St joined the #2 Tar Heels. They all advanced to the CWS and were the top three seeds in Omaha. But Miami and FSU both laid eggs. The Seminoles went 0-2 and were the first ones gone. Miami managed to go 1-2, but their only win came over FSU. Carolina is now 2-1, with both wins over LSU. They will face the other FSU, Fresno St, next.
To see Eric Sorenson's take on the game yesterday, including exclusive photos of the streaker, check out his Extra Innings blog on the former cstv.com.
First, the opener of the Cubs-Sox series at Wrigley. The Cubs were coming off a sweep at the hands of the Devil Rays (I know, they dropped "Devil," but once you get a little of the devil in you, you can't get it out). That was the Cubs' first three-game losing streak of the season. Still, they had the best record in baseball, percentage points ahead of the Red Sox.
The Sox, on the other hand, appeared to have bounced back from a skid where they lost six of seven by sweeping Pittsburgh earlier this week.
Things looked good for the Sox early yesterday also. Jermaine Dye blasted a shot that still hasn't landed to tie the game in the second. Cub-killer AJ Pierzynski hit a two-run homer in the third to make it 3-1 and there they sat until the seventh.
Octavio Dotel came in to pitch for the Sox and Derrek Lee smacked his first pitch into the right field bleachers to make it 3-2. Just as the crowd was settling down from that shot, Aramis Ramirez made it back-to-back shots to tie it up. Those also cost WGN radio $10,000. They give a lucky listener 10Gs whenever the Cubs go back-to-back in the 7th inning.
The Sox started the 9th with a double against Kerry Wood, but couldn't do anything with it.
Scott Linebrink then came on to pitch the bottom of the ninth, but he didn't last long. Ramirez hit his second pitch into the center field shrubbery for the game-winner.
My nightcap was the College World Series elimination game between LSU and North Carolina.
They actually started the game the night before. Carolina had two runs in and the bases loaded with one out in the top of the first before the rains came and postponed the game to last night. LSU changed pitchers overnight and got a double play to get out of that jam.
It was 3-1 Heels in the sixth when Matt Clark, the nation's leading home run hitter, came up with a man on for the Tigers. Instead of pitching around him, UNC's Brian Moran went right after him. Big mistake. Clark bombs one out and the game is tied.
LSU was threatening again in the eighth with Clark at the plate, two on and one out, looking to duplicate Ramirez, when a streaker ran onto the field. The little delay seemed to suck the pressure out of the situation. Clark walked (NC pitched very carefully to him this time) and then ACC pitcher of the year Alex White got out of it.
On to the top of the ninth, where a single and two intentional walks (the first after a stolen base and the second after a sacrifice) loaded the bases. UNC catcher Tim Federowicz then hit the first grand slam in a CWS in eight years. White made that stand up and the Tar Heels save some face for the ACC.
The ACC entered the NCAA tournament with three of the top four seeds. #1 Miami and #4 Florida St joined the #2 Tar Heels. They all advanced to the CWS and were the top three seeds in Omaha. But Miami and FSU both laid eggs. The Seminoles went 0-2 and were the first ones gone. Miami managed to go 1-2, but their only win came over FSU. Carolina is now 2-1, with both wins over LSU. They will face the other FSU, Fresno St, next.
To see Eric Sorenson's take on the game yesterday, including exclusive photos of the streaker, check out his Extra Innings blog on the former cstv.com.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Two big TV deals
Two big TV deals were announced today.
First, NBC announced an extension of their contract to cover Notre Dame home football games. NDBC will now carry on through the 2015 season. The current deal, which paid the Irish $9M per year, was set to expire in 2010. No word on financial terms of the new deal. Notre Dame games on NBC had their lowest ratings ever last season.
The interesting thing about this deal is that it requires Notre Dame to play seven true home games and one off-site "home" game per year beginning in 2009. So, Notre Dame will play only four true road games per year. That will certainly making getting into a BCS game a lot easier.
Also, the war between the Big Ten and Comcast finally came to an end with a peace accord that will put the Big Ten Network on the cable provider's systems.
Comcast will initially offer the network on its expanded basic package in the Big Ten states. However, in Spring of 2009, Comcast will be free to move it to a more expensive (to the customer) digital package.
Outside the Big Ten states (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin), the provider can offer it up any way it wishes, including as part of a sports package.
Comcast will also be able to offer up some BTN programming through its video-on-demand service.
There were no details on the amount Comcast will charge subscribers as a "Big Ten Tax." Look for that line item on your next bill.
First, NBC announced an extension of their contract to cover Notre Dame home football games. NDBC will now carry on through the 2015 season. The current deal, which paid the Irish $9M per year, was set to expire in 2010. No word on financial terms of the new deal. Notre Dame games on NBC had their lowest ratings ever last season.
The interesting thing about this deal is that it requires Notre Dame to play seven true home games and one off-site "home" game per year beginning in 2009. So, Notre Dame will play only four true road games per year. That will certainly making getting into a BCS game a lot easier.
Also, the war between the Big Ten and Comcast finally came to an end with a peace accord that will put the Big Ten Network on the cable provider's systems.
Comcast will initially offer the network on its expanded basic package in the Big Ten states. However, in Spring of 2009, Comcast will be free to move it to a more expensive (to the customer) digital package.
Outside the Big Ten states (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin), the provider can offer it up any way it wishes, including as part of a sports package.
Comcast will also be able to offer up some BTN programming through its video-on-demand service.
There were no details on the amount Comcast will charge subscribers as a "Big Ten Tax." Look for that line item on your next bill.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Stretching the truth
It's not unusual for teams to fudge a little when listing the height of a player, especially in basketball. Guys who are really 6'1" show up as 6'2" or sometimes even 6'3" in the media guide. Since I cover basketball and get close to players, I can usually tell which ones are a little inflated and which ones aren't. That's especially true of guards, who are closer to my own height (6'1").
On rare occasion, you'll find a guy who looks taller than his listed height. Stephen Curry of Davidson is one of those guys. He's still growing, so when I saw him in Detroit, he looked a little taller than his listed 6'2".
The Bulls lucked into the #1 pick in the NBA draft, which means they'll choose between 6'3" Memphis G (and Chicago native) Derrick Rose and 6'10" F Michael Beasley of Kansas St. Beasley was in for a workout yesterday, and the big news out of that workout is that he only measured 6'7". A three-inch difference between listed height and actual is pretty remarkable.
Rose comes in later this week. Maybe we'll find out he's only 5'6".
On rare occasion, you'll find a guy who looks taller than his listed height. Stephen Curry of Davidson is one of those guys. He's still growing, so when I saw him in Detroit, he looked a little taller than his listed 6'2".
The Bulls lucked into the #1 pick in the NBA draft, which means they'll choose between 6'3" Memphis G (and Chicago native) Derrick Rose and 6'10" F Michael Beasley of Kansas St. Beasley was in for a workout yesterday, and the big news out of that workout is that he only measured 6'7". A three-inch difference between listed height and actual is pretty remarkable.
Rose comes in later this week. Maybe we'll find out he's only 5'6".
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Florida St goose-eggs
When I made my College World Series picks, I said I was risking making a fool of myself, and I did just that. Florida St, my pick to get through bracket 1, slinked home again without the trophy.
In the Noles first game against Stanford, they came back to tie it with three in the bottom of the eighth, only to give up 11 in the top of the 9th to lose 16-5.
In their elimination game yesterday with archrival and #1 Miami, they out-hit the Canes 18-11, but still lost 7-5. They left a whopping 17 runners on base. That's one short of a two-per-inning average.
So, FSU has now made 19 CWS appearances without winning it.
I did have Georgia at 2-0, so my picks weren't a complete disaster. The Bulldogs await the winner of Miami-Stanford, the two teams they beat.
In the Noles first game against Stanford, they came back to tie it with three in the bottom of the eighth, only to give up 11 in the top of the 9th to lose 16-5.
In their elimination game yesterday with archrival and #1 Miami, they out-hit the Canes 18-11, but still lost 7-5. They left a whopping 17 runners on base. That's one short of a two-per-inning average.
So, FSU has now made 19 CWS appearances without winning it.
I did have Georgia at 2-0, so my picks weren't a complete disaster. The Bulldogs await the winner of Miami-Stanford, the two teams they beat.
Here, the dead just vote
A village in Romania elected a dead person to be their mayor. There are cities here that might want to consider this option.
This would get Americans into soccer
Austria wins the preliminaries, but Germany won the one that counted. The Germans advance to face Portugal in the Euro 2008 quarterfinals.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
College World Series
The College World Series starts today, and I might get to watch it for a change. I have always been a big fan of this event, but I haven't been able to watch much of it the last few years for various reasons. I started watching when I was in college. At that time, someone I played little league with (Pete Stanicek) was playing for Stanford.
It was kind of funny back then. For a couple of years, our little league team had a future major leaguer (Pete) and the worst hitter in the history of organized baseball (me).
College baseball is a little harder to follow than football and basketball because it doesn't get nearly the TV coverage, but that is improving. I was able to follow the end of a pretty decent season by my Boilermakers on the Big Ten Network, and if you get one of the cable/satellite sports packages, you can see most of the good teams play in the regular season. Also, ESPN covers some of the tournament regionals on its basic channels. That's how I saw Stanford, which is the only CWS team I saw more than a few innings of this season.
Like every sport, the college game is different than the pros in the level of ability (advantage pros), and the spirit with which the game is played (advantage college). Baseball is the only one I'm aware of where there is a significant difference between the colleges and the pros in the equipment used. College baseball uses aluminum bats, which is a huge advantage to the hitters, especially if the ball doesn't hit the sweet spot. Bats don't break and balls travel farther. As a result of that (and the fact that pitching and fielding aren't as good), there's a lot more runs in college baseball.
And, if my friend and CSTV colleague Eric Sorenson is right, it might really be bombs away.
So at the risk of making a complete fool of myself, here are my picks for the CWS.
Bracket 1 (Miami, FSU, Georgia, Stanford)
Florida St over Stanford and Georgia over Miami today.
Miami eliminates Stanford, Georgia beats FSU.
FSU eliminates Miami, then beats Georgia twice to get to the title round.
Bracket 2 (North Carolina, Rice, LSU, Fresno St)
Fresno St over Rice and UNC over LSU tomorrow
LSU eliminates Rice, UNC over Fresno
LSU eliminates Fresno, but loses to UNC to send Tar Heels to the title round.
UNC beats Florida St 2-1 to win championship.
It was kind of funny back then. For a couple of years, our little league team had a future major leaguer (Pete) and the worst hitter in the history of organized baseball (me).
College baseball is a little harder to follow than football and basketball because it doesn't get nearly the TV coverage, but that is improving. I was able to follow the end of a pretty decent season by my Boilermakers on the Big Ten Network, and if you get one of the cable/satellite sports packages, you can see most of the good teams play in the regular season. Also, ESPN covers some of the tournament regionals on its basic channels. That's how I saw Stanford, which is the only CWS team I saw more than a few innings of this season.
Like every sport, the college game is different than the pros in the level of ability (advantage pros), and the spirit with which the game is played (advantage college). Baseball is the only one I'm aware of where there is a significant difference between the colleges and the pros in the equipment used. College baseball uses aluminum bats, which is a huge advantage to the hitters, especially if the ball doesn't hit the sweet spot. Bats don't break and balls travel farther. As a result of that (and the fact that pitching and fielding aren't as good), there's a lot more runs in college baseball.
And, if my friend and CSTV colleague Eric Sorenson is right, it might really be bombs away.
So at the risk of making a complete fool of myself, here are my picks for the CWS.
Bracket 1 (Miami, FSU, Georgia, Stanford)
Florida St over Stanford and Georgia over Miami today.
Miami eliminates Stanford, Georgia beats FSU.
FSU eliminates Miami, then beats Georgia twice to get to the title round.
Bracket 2 (North Carolina, Rice, LSU, Fresno St)
Fresno St over Rice and UNC over LSU tomorrow
LSU eliminates Rice, UNC over Fresno
LSU eliminates Fresno, but loses to UNC to send Tar Heels to the title round.
UNC beats Florida St 2-1 to win championship.
Replay coming to baseball?
An AP story today reports that replay may be coming to Major League Baseball as soon as August.
According to the story, the rush to implement replay comes from a "rash of blown calls" lately, but the only two that are mentioned are home runs by the Mets' Carlos Delgado and the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez that were ruled incorrectly (supposedly - I never saw the plays myself).
I wonder if there would be such a rush to get replay going if the missed home runs were by players on the Pirates or Royals. New York whines about something and all of a sudden, it's an emergency. boo hoo.
Replay is already in use in most major sports in at least some fashion, but I have never been a big fan of using it in baseball. In general, the umps do a good job of getting calls right, and using replay could slow the game down tremendously.
Just recently, MLB instructed the teams and umpires to try to speed up games by doing things like shortening mound conferences and batters' pre-pitch preparation ceremonies. There are some guys who step out after every pitch and adjust their batting gloves, helmet, cup, shin guards, elbow pads, pine tar, makeup and 401Ks before getting back into the box. I understand the need for a routine, but that's ridiculous. .
There really aren't a whole lot of practical uses for replay in baseball, however determining whether something is a home run or not is one of them. Especially in the situation where the ball is over the fence, but bending around the fair pole, because the ball is dead whether it's fair or foul. Since those situations are relatively rare, the delays would be minimal.
The situation where the ball hits a wall near a yellow line that divides home runs from in-play doesn't work as well. If baseball decides that these plays are reviewable also, then umpires will be inclined, if not forced, to rule that anything close is still in play so that reversing the call is easy. You see something similar in football. Refs are now reluctant stop a play where there is any chance that a fumble occurred because once they stop the play, it can't be reversed.
In this situation, if the ump lets things play out, and then if the replay shows that it was a home run, it's no big deal. If the ump calls it a home run first, but replay reverses it, there's no way to remedy the situation. I suppose they could simply treat it like a ground rule double, but nobody knows what might have happened if the correct call had been made to begin with. More than likely though, the call would not be considered reversible, which defeats the purpose of replay.
The same problem occurs with fair/foul rulings on the lines, or any other play where the ball is either alive or dead, depending on the call.
Replay would also be very impractical on the bases and for balls and strikes. If those calls were reversible, baseball would turn into cricket, where games sometimes go on for several days.
So, until the Cubs lose a World Series because some ump blows a home run call, I'd like to see things stay as they are.
According to the story, the rush to implement replay comes from a "rash of blown calls" lately, but the only two that are mentioned are home runs by the Mets' Carlos Delgado and the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez that were ruled incorrectly (supposedly - I never saw the plays myself).
I wonder if there would be such a rush to get replay going if the missed home runs were by players on the Pirates or Royals. New York whines about something and all of a sudden, it's an emergency. boo hoo.
Replay is already in use in most major sports in at least some fashion, but I have never been a big fan of using it in baseball. In general, the umps do a good job of getting calls right, and using replay could slow the game down tremendously.
Just recently, MLB instructed the teams and umpires to try to speed up games by doing things like shortening mound conferences and batters' pre-pitch preparation ceremonies. There are some guys who step out after every pitch and adjust their batting gloves, helmet, cup, shin guards, elbow pads, pine tar, makeup and 401Ks before getting back into the box. I understand the need for a routine, but that's ridiculous. .
There really aren't a whole lot of practical uses for replay in baseball, however determining whether something is a home run or not is one of them. Especially in the situation where the ball is over the fence, but bending around the fair pole, because the ball is dead whether it's fair or foul. Since those situations are relatively rare, the delays would be minimal.
The situation where the ball hits a wall near a yellow line that divides home runs from in-play doesn't work as well. If baseball decides that these plays are reviewable also, then umpires will be inclined, if not forced, to rule that anything close is still in play so that reversing the call is easy. You see something similar in football. Refs are now reluctant stop a play where there is any chance that a fumble occurred because once they stop the play, it can't be reversed.
In this situation, if the ump lets things play out, and then if the replay shows that it was a home run, it's no big deal. If the ump calls it a home run first, but replay reverses it, there's no way to remedy the situation. I suppose they could simply treat it like a ground rule double, but nobody knows what might have happened if the correct call had been made to begin with. More than likely though, the call would not be considered reversible, which defeats the purpose of replay.
The same problem occurs with fair/foul rulings on the lines, or any other play where the ball is either alive or dead, depending on the call.
Replay would also be very impractical on the bases and for balls and strikes. If those calls were reversible, baseball would turn into cricket, where games sometimes go on for several days.
So, until the Cubs lose a World Series because some ump blows a home run call, I'd like to see things stay as they are.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Benson Gets Bum's Rush
The Cedric Benson Era mercifully ended Monday with his release. The Bears now enter their 22nd season of looking for Walter Payton's replacement.
In 1986, Payton's last year as the every down starter for the Bears, he ran for 1333 yards. Since that time, only Thomas Jones has surpassed that total (1335 yards in 2005). That's not good when you are primarily a running team. Remember, the Bears are still looking for the second coming of Sid Luckman at QB.
Neal Anderson was the Bears leading rusher for the seven years beginning in 1987, but he only surpassed 1000 yards three times and failed to hit 750 in four of those years.
The Bears have used three first round draft choices on running backs since that time. Benson was a first round choice (4th overall) in 2005. Before that, Curtis Enis was picked 5th overall in 1998, which precipitated the release of Rashaan Salaam, who was the 21st overall pick in 1995.
Only Salaam ever did anything of note. He was the rookie of the year in 1995 with 1074 yards rushing. He only had 606 yards in the two years following.
Enis had 1497 yards in three seasons with the Bears. That was his entire NFL career. Benson finishes the Bear portion of his career with 1593 yards in three seasons.
Benson wasn't cut just for being unproductive though. He was cut for being stupid and unproductive. When you're job is hanging by a thread (the Bears took RB Matt Forte in the second round of this year's draft), you need to keep your nose clean, and Benson didn't do that.
He has been arrested twice in the last month for OWI-related offenses. The first came on his boat, and the second was last weekend in a car.
So, before we say good riddance, let's review some of the highlights of the Benson Era, thanks to the Chicago Tribune for helping to fill in some of the details.
April, 2005 - Bears pick him fourth overall. He cries, but not tears of joy. He's upset because pre-draft talks between his agent and the Bears were way off on contract basics, which meant a likely contentious negotiation.
August, 2005 - That turned out to be true, because he held out for 36 days before finally getting on board.
November, 2005 - Finally makes his first start against the 49ers, but blows his knee in the first half and his next appearance is in the final game of the season.
August, 2006 - Leaves the bench during an exhibition game, then misses a team meeting.
February, 2007 - Injured early in Super Bowl and misses the rest of the game. Finishes with -1 yard on 2 carries.
September, 2007 - Now the starter after Thomas Jones was traded in the offseason, he carries 24 times for 101 yards against KC, his only triple-digit rushing total of the season. Despite this game, he only has 538 yards on 177 carries (3.04 ypc) through the first nine games.
November, 2007 - After finally having another decent performance the week before, he injures his ankle against Denver and misses the rest of the season. It turns out to be his final game as a Bear.
May, 2008 - Legal troubles begin as he is arrested for OWI on a boat and resisting arrest.
June, 2008 - Arrested for DUI on last Saturday, cut by the Bears on Monday.
So, the Bears enter the new season with an offensive line in need of repair, a QB that is either unproven (Orton) or a proven disaster (Grossman), a rookie RB (Forte), and a receiving corps that is perhaps the biggest question mark of the unit - and obviously, that's saying something.
Hope that defense is really good.
In 1986, Payton's last year as the every down starter for the Bears, he ran for 1333 yards. Since that time, only Thomas Jones has surpassed that total (1335 yards in 2005). That's not good when you are primarily a running team. Remember, the Bears are still looking for the second coming of Sid Luckman at QB.
Neal Anderson was the Bears leading rusher for the seven years beginning in 1987, but he only surpassed 1000 yards three times and failed to hit 750 in four of those years.
The Bears have used three first round draft choices on running backs since that time. Benson was a first round choice (4th overall) in 2005. Before that, Curtis Enis was picked 5th overall in 1998, which precipitated the release of Rashaan Salaam, who was the 21st overall pick in 1995.
Only Salaam ever did anything of note. He was the rookie of the year in 1995 with 1074 yards rushing. He only had 606 yards in the two years following.
Enis had 1497 yards in three seasons with the Bears. That was his entire NFL career. Benson finishes the Bear portion of his career with 1593 yards in three seasons.
Benson wasn't cut just for being unproductive though. He was cut for being stupid and unproductive. When you're job is hanging by a thread (the Bears took RB Matt Forte in the second round of this year's draft), you need to keep your nose clean, and Benson didn't do that.
He has been arrested twice in the last month for OWI-related offenses. The first came on his boat, and the second was last weekend in a car.
So, before we say good riddance, let's review some of the highlights of the Benson Era, thanks to the Chicago Tribune for helping to fill in some of the details.
So, the Bears enter the new season with an offensive line in need of repair, a QB that is either unproven (Orton) or a proven disaster (Grossman), a rookie RB (Forte), and a receiving corps that is perhaps the biggest question mark of the unit - and obviously, that's saying something.
Hope that defense is really good.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
We moved!
Last night, a series of tornadoes ripped through the area. The Chicago Tribune story details the damage, but also notes that Lake County is in now northeast Indiana. That must have been some storm if it picked up an entire county and moved it (Wizard of Oz-style) all the way to the eastern part of the state!
I was at a graduation party for the daughter of a friend of ours in St. John, IN when the sirens went off. We went outside to have a look and it looked very nasty just to our north and west. Where we were, it was just raining and it appeared to be clearing up.
I've lived in this area nearly all of my 44 years and have never seen a funnel cloud, let alone an actual tornado. I could go 44 more years without seeing one and wouldn't feel like I missed anything.
I was at a graduation party for the daughter of a friend of ours in St. John, IN when the sirens went off. We went outside to have a look and it looked very nasty just to our north and west. Where we were, it was just raining and it appeared to be clearing up.
I've lived in this area nearly all of my 44 years and have never seen a funnel cloud, let alone an actual tornado. I could go 44 more years without seeing one and wouldn't feel like I missed anything.
Saturday, June 07, 2008
Two major political cogs go down
This was a tough week for local politicians in this area as two dealmakers were found guilty on corruption charges.
In Chicago, Tony Rezko was found guilty on 16 counts of fraud and corruption charges. He was guilty of taking kickbacks to funnel state teachers' pension fund money to certain brokerage houses. Rezko has been a rainmaker for both Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich and senator and presidential candidate Barack Obama, though both have tried to distance themselves from Rezko since his indictments. Yes, that's plural. He has at least two more trials coming.
This is the latest in the string of victories for US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald in Chicago. Fitzgerald (not to be confused with Northwestern football coach of the same name) came to the Northern Illinois district in 2001 and has been taking down corrupt pols ever since, including former governor George Ryan. Many of us are waiting to see if he ever gets to the big fish, Blago and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley.
Rezko was also allegedly part of a group of local pols that included former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert that tried to get Fitzgerald pushed out of his job and this investigation killed, but that plan failed, obviously.
The Tribune's John Kass writes that Rezko may not just be trouble for Obama, but even some republicans.
Lake County, Indiana has a level of corruption that not only rivals, but surpasses what happens in Chicago. Our county's reputation for shenanigans was the reason local officials were the butt of a national joke on the day of our primaries when they couldn't promptly count and release vote totals.
One of the reasons why corruption goes on unfettered, and barely under the table, is because we don't have a Peter Fitzgerald willing to take on the politicians. Perhaps that is finally changing.
Yesterday, a key Lake County political dealmaker, Bob Cantrell, was convicted on 11 fraud and corruption related counts. Cantrell got kickbacks for arranging for local judges, including his daughter Julie, to send people to a friend's addiction counseling service company. He also got hit with tax fraud charges for not reporting that income.
The NW Indiana Times has a blog detailing the trial.
So, maybe the feds will use the momentum from this verdict and go after more local pols. It's a well that will never run dry.
In Chicago, Tony Rezko was found guilty on 16 counts of fraud and corruption charges. He was guilty of taking kickbacks to funnel state teachers' pension fund money to certain brokerage houses. Rezko has been a rainmaker for both Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich and senator and presidential candidate Barack Obama, though both have tried to distance themselves from Rezko since his indictments. Yes, that's plural. He has at least two more trials coming.
This is the latest in the string of victories for US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald in Chicago. Fitzgerald (not to be confused with Northwestern football coach of the same name) came to the Northern Illinois district in 2001 and has been taking down corrupt pols ever since, including former governor George Ryan. Many of us are waiting to see if he ever gets to the big fish, Blago and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley.
Rezko was also allegedly part of a group of local pols that included former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert that tried to get Fitzgerald pushed out of his job and this investigation killed, but that plan failed, obviously.
The Tribune's John Kass writes that Rezko may not just be trouble for Obama, but even some republicans.
Lake County, Indiana has a level of corruption that not only rivals, but surpasses what happens in Chicago. Our county's reputation for shenanigans was the reason local officials were the butt of a national joke on the day of our primaries when they couldn't promptly count and release vote totals.
One of the reasons why corruption goes on unfettered, and barely under the table, is because we don't have a Peter Fitzgerald willing to take on the politicians. Perhaps that is finally changing.
Yesterday, a key Lake County political dealmaker, Bob Cantrell, was convicted on 11 fraud and corruption related counts. Cantrell got kickbacks for arranging for local judges, including his daughter Julie, to send people to a friend's addiction counseling service company. He also got hit with tax fraud charges for not reporting that income.
The NW Indiana Times has a blog detailing the trial.
So, maybe the feds will use the momentum from this verdict and go after more local pols. It's a well that will never run dry.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Money can't buy you brains
Last week, Michel Fournier tried to set a world record for the highest and fastest free-fall. The plan was to float 25 miles high in a special balloon and jump. According to news reports, he spent two decades and $20M of his own money to make this happen.
Then, when the balloon was filling with helium, it took off by itself because it wasn't properly attached to the capsule.
I don't know anything about ballooning (I'm afraid of heights), but you would think "Attach balloon to capsule" would be near the top of the pre-flight checklist.
Then, when the balloon was filling with helium, it took off by itself because it wasn't properly attached to the capsule.
I don't know anything about ballooning (I'm afraid of heights), but you would think "Attach balloon to capsule" would be near the top of the pre-flight checklist.
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Indiana Palms and the Temple of Baseball
With much trepidation, I wanted to try to take the entire family to a Cubs game this year. It's a quest fraught with peril, because you have to first find tickets, then get to the game, keep the younger ones entertained so the rest can enjoy the game, and finally, you have to get the whole exhausted brood back home. Oh, and you have to finance the adventure, but fortunately, rates are reasonable right now.
The hardest part is the first one, finding the tickets. Finding five tickets together, either online or over the phone, is impossible for two reasons: the games are near sell-outs and the system for purchasing the tickets isn't really designed to be helpful.
Everything is based on the date of the game, which makes sense of course. Most people want to go on a specific day or, say, weekend. We had a lot of flexibility though. We wanted to go to just about any day game. To get tickets online, you first pick the date. Then a screen comes up to choose a pricing level (or best available) and the number you need. Then you are taken to another screen to enter one of those security codes, where they put numbers and letters in a box that has lines and stuff in it to make it hard to read. Then, you can finally get to the screen where you can buy the tickets - or in my case, find out that what you need is not available.
Not very useful. Now imagine doing that for every day game, for three or four different pricing levels, and you can see how frustrating that can be. I didn't do that of course. I eventually gave up and called the ticket folks.
That didn't work either. It appears that they have no better way to find tickets for you than you can do for yourself online.
So I turned to a friend who I had hoped might be able to put me in touch with the right person. One of the many people who regularly interview me during basketball season is David Kaplan of WGN in Chicago, which just happens to be the station that carries the Cubs. He did better than put me in touch with the right person. He found me tickets for some pretty nice seats.
When you have four kids, going anywhere, even places like the grocery store, is an adventure. Wrigley Field is tough to get to by yourself. You can drive, if you don't mind the traffic and paying $40-50 to park within walking distance of the park. The other option is to take the L (train), which is very crowded, but much cheaper and drops you a block from the park. That's the way to go, even for us. Our biggest problem is getting a double stroller on a crowded train, but we have always managed it so far. We also still have to pay to park downtown, but that is much cheaper than parking at Wrigley. And the kids, especially the younger ones, love riding the trains.
Another place the stroller can be an issue is the ballpark itself. Last year, when we went to a game, we sat upstairs and stashed the stroller in a corner by the bathroom entrance. That actually worked surprisingly well.
This year, as we walked in, the ticket taker said we could check the stroller for free at the customer relations office. That's a nice feature.
The ballpark staff was generally very nice, which includes the Octogenarian Ninja Ushers. If you have ever been to Wrigley, you will have undoubtedly noticed that the ushers in the seating area are all very senior citizens. I even saw one wearing one of those oxygen backpacks.
Don't let the grandmotherly (or grandfatherly) look fool you though. They are not pushovers and they'll get after you if they need to. If you go where you don't belong, they go right down there and grab you by the ear and take you away.
I wanted to get down by the wall to say hello to another media friend of mine who was on the field before the game, but the ONU wouldn't let me get there. I got out before I got the ear-pull though.
We saw the Padres when they were in town on May 15th, which is back before Spring started around here. Spring this year was from May 25-June 3. It's now Summer, but I digress.
The point is, it was cold. My wife and kids were all in their winter gear. I refuse to wear a winter coat in May, and especially to a baseball game.
The weather kept the crowd down a bit. There were a lot of no-shows around us, and a few of the people were clearly not interested in the game. Like, for example, the lady across the aisle from me who was there by herself and doing her knitting.
We also had the requisite loudmouth half a section behind us, but fortunately, he kept it clean. Even better, he ran out of hot air half way through the game.
Most people wear Cubs gear to the game, but one young lady in front of us must not have had anything, so she wore a blue Cub Scout neckerchief as a bandanna. I guess that's the best she could do.
We sat about 15 rows from the field, looking right up the first base line. We were just at the edge of the net, which was nice because with the kids, we can't spend every second watching for line drives to come back at us.
The game itself was pretty good. The Cubs won 4-0, getting all four runs in one inning off of former Cub Greg Maddux. He got a standing O as he left the field because many of his think it might be the last time he pitches at Wrigley. The game was played quickly (under 2:30), so we weren't out in the cold any longer than we needed to be.
Our younger kids were entertained by the two kids sitting in front of us that were about the same age. Although, I have to say, my two-year-old daughter liked the game itself. She still doesn't talk much, but one of the first words she ever said was "ball," and she loves playing and watching anything with a ball. She's the only two-year-old in America who would rather watch Big Ten Tonight than Teletubbies. At the game, when she would see someone swing the bat, she would swing her arm across her body to mimic that. Now, when ever she sees the Cubs logo, she yells "Ball!" and swings her arm.
After the game, we waited around for the crowds to die down so we were among the last ones out. Before we headed to the train, we walked over to check out the new Ernie Banks statue, just on the third base side of the entrance at Clark and Addison. The sculptor did a great job capturing Ernie. It's a great tribute to Mr. Cub.
Getting home was relatively easy, except for some rush hour traffic. The car was a lot quieter as some of us slept. A great time was had by all, and it was definitely worth the effort.
The hardest part is the first one, finding the tickets. Finding five tickets together, either online or over the phone, is impossible for two reasons: the games are near sell-outs and the system for purchasing the tickets isn't really designed to be helpful.
Everything is based on the date of the game, which makes sense of course. Most people want to go on a specific day or, say, weekend. We had a lot of flexibility though. We wanted to go to just about any day game. To get tickets online, you first pick the date. Then a screen comes up to choose a pricing level (or best available) and the number you need. Then you are taken to another screen to enter one of those security codes, where they put numbers and letters in a box that has lines and stuff in it to make it hard to read. Then, you can finally get to the screen where you can buy the tickets - or in my case, find out that what you need is not available.
Not very useful. Now imagine doing that for every day game, for three or four different pricing levels, and you can see how frustrating that can be. I didn't do that of course. I eventually gave up and called the ticket folks.
That didn't work either. It appears that they have no better way to find tickets for you than you can do for yourself online.
So I turned to a friend who I had hoped might be able to put me in touch with the right person. One of the many people who regularly interview me during basketball season is David Kaplan of WGN in Chicago, which just happens to be the station that carries the Cubs. He did better than put me in touch with the right person. He found me tickets for some pretty nice seats.
When you have four kids, going anywhere, even places like the grocery store, is an adventure. Wrigley Field is tough to get to by yourself. You can drive, if you don't mind the traffic and paying $40-50 to park within walking distance of the park. The other option is to take the L (train), which is very crowded, but much cheaper and drops you a block from the park. That's the way to go, even for us. Our biggest problem is getting a double stroller on a crowded train, but we have always managed it so far. We also still have to pay to park downtown, but that is much cheaper than parking at Wrigley. And the kids, especially the younger ones, love riding the trains.
Another place the stroller can be an issue is the ballpark itself. Last year, when we went to a game, we sat upstairs and stashed the stroller in a corner by the bathroom entrance. That actually worked surprisingly well.
This year, as we walked in, the ticket taker said we could check the stroller for free at the customer relations office. That's a nice feature.
The ballpark staff was generally very nice, which includes the Octogenarian Ninja Ushers. If you have ever been to Wrigley, you will have undoubtedly noticed that the ushers in the seating area are all very senior citizens. I even saw one wearing one of those oxygen backpacks.
Don't let the grandmotherly (or grandfatherly) look fool you though. They are not pushovers and they'll get after you if they need to. If you go where you don't belong, they go right down there and grab you by the ear and take you away.
I wanted to get down by the wall to say hello to another media friend of mine who was on the field before the game, but the ONU wouldn't let me get there. I got out before I got the ear-pull though.
We saw the Padres when they were in town on May 15th, which is back before Spring started around here. Spring this year was from May 25-June 3. It's now Summer, but I digress.
The point is, it was cold. My wife and kids were all in their winter gear. I refuse to wear a winter coat in May, and especially to a baseball game.
The weather kept the crowd down a bit. There were a lot of no-shows around us, and a few of the people were clearly not interested in the game. Like, for example, the lady across the aisle from me who was there by herself and doing her knitting.
We also had the requisite loudmouth half a section behind us, but fortunately, he kept it clean. Even better, he ran out of hot air half way through the game.
Most people wear Cubs gear to the game, but one young lady in front of us must not have had anything, so she wore a blue Cub Scout neckerchief as a bandanna. I guess that's the best she could do.
We sat about 15 rows from the field, looking right up the first base line. We were just at the edge of the net, which was nice because with the kids, we can't spend every second watching for line drives to come back at us.
The game itself was pretty good. The Cubs won 4-0, getting all four runs in one inning off of former Cub Greg Maddux. He got a standing O as he left the field because many of his think it might be the last time he pitches at Wrigley. The game was played quickly (under 2:30), so we weren't out in the cold any longer than we needed to be.
Our younger kids were entertained by the two kids sitting in front of us that were about the same age. Although, I have to say, my two-year-old daughter liked the game itself. She still doesn't talk much, but one of the first words she ever said was "ball," and she loves playing and watching anything with a ball. She's the only two-year-old in America who would rather watch Big Ten Tonight than Teletubbies. At the game, when she would see someone swing the bat, she would swing her arm across her body to mimic that. Now, when ever she sees the Cubs logo, she yells "Ball!" and swings her arm.
After the game, we waited around for the crowds to die down so we were among the last ones out. Before we headed to the train, we walked over to check out the new Ernie Banks statue, just on the third base side of the entrance at Clark and Addison. The sculptor did a great job capturing Ernie. It's a great tribute to Mr. Cub.
Getting home was relatively easy, except for some rush hour traffic. The car was a lot quieter as some of us slept. A great time was had by all, and it was definitely worth the effort.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Thank you, sir! May I have another?
Gas around here shot up over $4 per gallon for the first time today. At the rate it's going, we'll see $5 before the 4th of July and $6 by Labor Day.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Don't spend it all in one place
Last week, I was among the many who received property tax rebate checks from the county as a result of a cap passed by the state legislature a few months ago. However, even something good like this provides another example of how inefficiently our local government operates.
Thousands of Lake County taxpayers received rebate checks for $0. The county spent whatever its postage rate is x however many people got those checks to let them know they got nothing. I wonder if anyone tried to cash them.
And speaking of incompetent customer service resulting in paltry rebates, I heard back from American Airlines. They supposedly sent me a check for my hotel for the extra night I spent in San Antonio. I should have stayed in a nicer place.
The e-mail I got announcing that my reimbursement was on the way said, they would work hard to prevent future schedule disruptions. Of course, that completely misses the point. Schedule disruptions happen. It's the insufficient response to those problems that needs to be prevented.
Thousands of Lake County taxpayers received rebate checks for $0. The county spent whatever its postage rate is x however many people got those checks to let them know they got nothing. I wonder if anyone tried to cash them.
And speaking of incompetent customer service resulting in paltry rebates, I heard back from American Airlines. They supposedly sent me a check for my hotel for the extra night I spent in San Antonio. I should have stayed in a nicer place.
The e-mail I got announcing that my reimbursement was on the way said, they would work hard to prevent future schedule disruptions. Of course, that completely misses the point. Schedule disruptions happen. It's the insufficient response to those problems that needs to be prevented.
Thursday, May 08, 2008
1...2...5 (3, sir!)
Lake County took a lot of national abuse for not getting ballots counted promptly on election night. It was well after 10 PM Central time before the county began reporting any numbers.
Many folks in the national media assumed some kind of shenanigans was going on. This is, after all, the most politically corrupt county in the nation. One CBS reporter contacted the Post-Tribune (a local paper) and asked if Lake was borrowing from Cook County (Chicago) politics, but really, the Cook County folks are jealous of what goes on here.
CNN and Fox News had a field day with Lake County also. Here is a link to a snippet of Wolf Blitzing Gary Mayor (and county Dem chair) Rudy Clay.
The official explanation was that the county decided not to release numbers until after the over 11,000 absentee ballots had been counted. Counting that many ballots takes a lot of time. After all, each counter only has 20 fingers and toes (in most cases).
I think they were just trying to get a little spotlight on themselves by reporting last, and by possibly changing a close presidential race. If that was the plan, it failed because the Clinton-Obama race wasn't that close.
However, the race between the democratic candidates for governor, Jim Schellenger and Jill Long-Thompson, was neck-and-neck all night, with Schellenger up by a slim margin before Lake County reported. The late Lake numbers were enough to put Long-Thompson past Schellenger for the win. Long-Thompson had been endorsed by the steelworkers union, so it was expected she would do well here.
The play for attention worked, though, but probably not the way they hoped. Now, the entire nation thinks our county is either run by idiots who can't even count, or is so corrupt that they'll try to fix an election even in the bright spotlight of the national media. Correct on both counts.
The best and most ironic comment on this was in the Times (another local paper) this morning. George Van Til, the county surveyor, said we (the county) look "stupid" because of all this. This comes from a guy who won reelection in spite of the fact that he stole gas from the county and let his teenage son drive his county-issued car around - until he got caught. It's not the inability to count votes that makes us look stupid. It's continuing to elect guys like him.
Many folks in the national media assumed some kind of shenanigans was going on. This is, after all, the most politically corrupt county in the nation. One CBS reporter contacted the Post-Tribune (a local paper) and asked if Lake was borrowing from Cook County (Chicago) politics, but really, the Cook County folks are jealous of what goes on here.
CNN and Fox News had a field day with Lake County also. Here is a link to a snippet of Wolf Blitzing Gary Mayor (and county Dem chair) Rudy Clay.
The official explanation was that the county decided not to release numbers until after the over 11,000 absentee ballots had been counted. Counting that many ballots takes a lot of time. After all, each counter only has 20 fingers and toes (in most cases).
I think they were just trying to get a little spotlight on themselves by reporting last, and by possibly changing a close presidential race. If that was the plan, it failed because the Clinton-Obama race wasn't that close.
However, the race between the democratic candidates for governor, Jim Schellenger and Jill Long-Thompson, was neck-and-neck all night, with Schellenger up by a slim margin before Lake County reported. The late Lake numbers were enough to put Long-Thompson past Schellenger for the win. Long-Thompson had been endorsed by the steelworkers union, so it was expected she would do well here.
The play for attention worked, though, but probably not the way they hoped. Now, the entire nation thinks our county is either run by idiots who can't even count, or is so corrupt that they'll try to fix an election even in the bright spotlight of the national media. Correct on both counts.
The best and most ironic comment on this was in the Times (another local paper) this morning. George Van Til, the county surveyor, said we (the county) look "stupid" because of all this. This comes from a guy who won reelection in spite of the fact that he stole gas from the county and let his teenage son drive his county-issued car around - until he got caught. It's not the inability to count votes that makes us look stupid. It's continuing to elect guys like him.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Former President visits
Last week, those of us in Schererville got a chance to see something we had never seen before. A former President of the United States came to visit.
Bill Clinton made an appearance to stump for votes for his wife, Hillary, in advance of Indiana's primary today.
Those of you who have read my profile know that I don't favor either party particularly. However, I always vote, and in the primary, I always vote in the Democratic. That is because Lake County, where I live, is so heavily Democratic that the primary is the only chance I have to vote for local officials. The Democratic primary is the de facto general election locally. The fact that I always vote in their primary means that the local Democrats think I'm one of them.
It also means I get to vote for Hillary or Barack Obama, the Senator from Next Door, so I thought it might be useful to hear what Bill had to say. I also thought it would be a good chance for my older boys (11 and 9) to see a former President and get a taste of the process.
But first, we had to hurry up and wait.
The doors to the little banquet hall that Clinton would be speaking at opened at 2:45. We were not told when Bill would actually speak, but we were prepared for a long wait.
The crowd waits breathlessly
We showed up right at 2:45 and had to wait in a little bit of a line to get in. Security was not as tight as I would have expected for a former President. Bags were checked, but that's about it. In fact, I went through a more thorough security check to get into the arenas for the NCAA tournament.
For the occasion, in honor of Hillary's drinking habits, I wore my most obnoxious Boilermakers shirt.
The place was standing room only, but not because it was overly crowded. There were no chairs, so all we could do was stand. The room was a little less than half full, maybe about 200 folks. It was almost all adults too. My kids were the only grade school age children there. There were a couple of babies and toddlers, and a few HS kids as well. There were also a few media types, and seemingly every Schererville cop. It would have been a good day to rob a bank.
I was about 40 feet from the podium, which meant I could see OK, but it would have been better if I'd worn heels. My kids had trouble seeing, but they could find an angle on occasion.
Clinton started around 3:30, so it was only a 45-minute wait. Bill has a reputation for being a charismatic speaker, and he did not disappoint. He was concise, by his standards, funny, and at times blunt. And his style wasn't typical of most politicians. Politicians generally speak as if they are talking to idiots. In many cases, they are. They'll pause. After. Every. Word. As if you need a few minutes to process each one. I can't stand that. Bill spoke like he had somewhere else to go (which he did), even though he went on for 40 minutes.
He was giving us some of the main points of Hillary's platform (jobs, energy, health care, education, balance the budget, get out of Iraq, etc), the details of which I'll leave out here. You can get that in other places.
Bill doing his thing
His speech didn't end until ten minutes after the doors opened at his next stop in Crown Point. Those folks undoubtedly had a longer wait than we did.
Even though he was campaigning for his wife ("I'm just here as a volunteer campaign worker."), I expected to see more presidential stuff. Perhaps this is against protocol - I certainly wouldn't know - but I thought the presidential seal would be on the podium, but it wasn't. He does have security, though. I saw four Secret Service guys total. There was one on each side of the stage when he spoke, and two others joined the party when Clinton shook hands afterwards.
My sons and I got close enough to shake his hand, so we did. He and I actually chatted a few seconds about No Child Left Behind, which I think is useless and which he said Hillary wants to do away with.
And then he was gone, off to Crown Point.
One strange thing about this event was that there was no handouts, which is a sign, I suppose, of how cash-strapped Hillary's campaign is. There were no buttons, stickers, pins or signs given away. They did have a place to sign up to help, but as you can see, they weren't getting much interest.
Little help? Please?
They did give us a black-and-white flier on the way out, but I wasn't sure what we were supposed to do with it. It wasn't any different than the one I received in the mail earlier that week.
Bill and Hillary hit this region hard. We hardly saw Obama in NW Indiana, but the Clintons were here at least once a week. We'll see today if that pays off.
Bill Clinton made an appearance to stump for votes for his wife, Hillary, in advance of Indiana's primary today.
Those of you who have read my profile know that I don't favor either party particularly. However, I always vote, and in the primary, I always vote in the Democratic. That is because Lake County, where I live, is so heavily Democratic that the primary is the only chance I have to vote for local officials. The Democratic primary is the de facto general election locally. The fact that I always vote in their primary means that the local Democrats think I'm one of them.
It also means I get to vote for Hillary or Barack Obama, the Senator from Next Door, so I thought it might be useful to hear what Bill had to say. I also thought it would be a good chance for my older boys (11 and 9) to see a former President and get a taste of the process.
But first, we had to hurry up and wait.
The doors to the little banquet hall that Clinton would be speaking at opened at 2:45. We were not told when Bill would actually speak, but we were prepared for a long wait.
We showed up right at 2:45 and had to wait in a little bit of a line to get in. Security was not as tight as I would have expected for a former President. Bags were checked, but that's about it. In fact, I went through a more thorough security check to get into the arenas for the NCAA tournament.
For the occasion, in honor of Hillary's drinking habits, I wore my most obnoxious Boilermakers shirt.
The place was standing room only, but not because it was overly crowded. There were no chairs, so all we could do was stand. The room was a little less than half full, maybe about 200 folks. It was almost all adults too. My kids were the only grade school age children there. There were a couple of babies and toddlers, and a few HS kids as well. There were also a few media types, and seemingly every Schererville cop. It would have been a good day to rob a bank.
I was about 40 feet from the podium, which meant I could see OK, but it would have been better if I'd worn heels. My kids had trouble seeing, but they could find an angle on occasion.
Clinton started around 3:30, so it was only a 45-minute wait. Bill has a reputation for being a charismatic speaker, and he did not disappoint. He was concise, by his standards, funny, and at times blunt. And his style wasn't typical of most politicians. Politicians generally speak as if they are talking to idiots. In many cases, they are. They'll pause. After. Every. Word. As if you need a few minutes to process each one. I can't stand that. Bill spoke like he had somewhere else to go (which he did), even though he went on for 40 minutes.
He was giving us some of the main points of Hillary's platform (jobs, energy, health care, education, balance the budget, get out of Iraq, etc), the details of which I'll leave out here. You can get that in other places.
His speech didn't end until ten minutes after the doors opened at his next stop in Crown Point. Those folks undoubtedly had a longer wait than we did.
Even though he was campaigning for his wife ("I'm just here as a volunteer campaign worker."), I expected to see more presidential stuff. Perhaps this is against protocol - I certainly wouldn't know - but I thought the presidential seal would be on the podium, but it wasn't. He does have security, though. I saw four Secret Service guys total. There was one on each side of the stage when he spoke, and two others joined the party when Clinton shook hands afterwards.
My sons and I got close enough to shake his hand, so we did. He and I actually chatted a few seconds about No Child Left Behind, which I think is useless and which he said Hillary wants to do away with.
And then he was gone, off to Crown Point.
One strange thing about this event was that there was no handouts, which is a sign, I suppose, of how cash-strapped Hillary's campaign is. There were no buttons, stickers, pins or signs given away. They did have a place to sign up to help, but as you can see, they weren't getting much interest.
They did give us a black-and-white flier on the way out, but I wasn't sure what we were supposed to do with it. It wasn't any different than the one I received in the mail earlier that week.
Bill and Hillary hit this region hard. We hardly saw Obama in NW Indiana, but the Clintons were here at least once a week. We'll see today if that pays off.
Friday, May 02, 2008
Sports(wo)men of the year
The leaders in the clubhouse for the Sportsmen of the Year award should be the ladies of the Central Washington University softball team, who literally carried Western Oregon University's team to victory in a game last week. It wasn't just any loss for CWU either. It ended their postseason hopes.
Credit CWU first baseman Mallory Holtman for thinking of the idea to carry WOU's Sara Tucholsky around the bases. I would have never thought of that, not because I wouldn't have wanted to help, but because I would thought it would be illegal. She asked anyway, and found out it wasn't.
Credit CWU first baseman Mallory Holtman for thinking of the idea to carry WOU's Sara Tucholsky around the bases. I would have never thought of that, not because I wouldn't have wanted to help, but because I would thought it would be illegal. She asked anyway, and found out it wasn't.
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