Studs Terkel, 1912-2008; We Are A Poorer Nation Today

May 16, 1912 was a monumental day for America. Samuel and Anna Terkel of the Bronx had a baby boy. Louis arrived about a month after the Titanic sank. He died today. His was a life epic in scope, passion, activism, publishing, broadcasting and, eternally, advocacy for the "non-celebrated," the working people who have built America and made it go. He learned their value from his tailor father and seamstress mother who raised their four boys by working hard.

Studs Terkel was a working man. He earned a law degree from the University of Chicago (home to the family from 1922), but he never practiced law. He took up government work in Washington, briefly, before joining the WPA. Known to FDR's opponents as "We Pittle Around," the Works Progress Administration had a Writers' Project, with a radio branch. He acted on the radio (becoming Studs when he performed in a program with another actor named Louis, and was reading novels about Studs Lonigan at the time), read the news, and then took up his own show after the obligatory military stint. Studs couldn't be on the radio if he were starting out today. He didn't fit into a format. Hell, he didn't fit into any format. He played what he liked, and that meant opera next to blues next to jazz and traditional American folk music. The radio show generated enough interest that a television program was next. He talked to people, but he listened more, and that set the course for the work that made him famous world-wide. For the rest of his life he published oral histories, regular everyday people telling their stories to someone who wanted to hear them. And Studs really, really wanted to hear them.

He wanted to hear about Chicago, World War II, work, the Great Depression, race relations in America, death and hope. Somewhere in the midst of all that, he finally took a turn for himself, publishing the wondrous memoir, Talking to Myself. Studs' books have been some of my best friends throughout my life. Along with my grandparents and several of Dad's parishoners across the years, Studs' books taught me the value of older people and what they know. They taught me the wonder of listening. They taught me an awful lot of what matters in life. As did Studs, himself. I definitely wouldn't have sought my appointment to minister among the residents of our retirement homes-those known today as The Greatest Generation, although Studs wrote about them long before Brokaw, in The Good War. I'm not sure I would have even considered ordained ministry without Studs Terkel.

Studs didn't just write about working people. He fought for them. Enough that he was blacklisted by the McCarthyites in the 1950's. Studs was an unrepentant FDR liberal. He taught me about that, too. To push for what he believed in, he worked as a community organizer. Hmm, seems I've heard that term lately.

Studs was a fighter to the end. He had bypass surgery at 93 because he had more to do! In 2006 he led a lawsuit against AT&T to make them stop spying on their customers for Dubyer. He knew the evil that government can do through unwarranted intrusion into citizens' lives. He had suffered the effects himself.

Studs Terkel was a great man. He had a clear vision of, and commitment to, what America is supposed to be, and he would settle for nothing else. He inspired generations of Americans to follow in his footsteps in one way or another. He made a difference in his world, always for the good.

We are a poorer nation for having lost this physically small giant. No one can ever fill Studs' shoes in advocating for the average American woman or man. But we have been so enriched by his presence, and we will continue to be instructed by his books, the recordings of his interviews, and by his uniquely American spirit.

I know that you were a professed agnostic, Studs, but God bless you!

Your World Series Champions...The Philadelphia Phillies

When the Nielsen ratings are published for the 2008 World Series, I suspect that the vast American public and I will have something in common: neither of us paid a great deal of attention to the Phils vs. the Rays. That said, I'm glad for Phillies' manager Charlie Manuel. Charlie is a baseball guy.
He was the euphemistically named "utility man" during his brief Major League career of 242 games spread over six seasons. He played in left field more than anywhere else, but was stuck behind such stellar talents as Steve Brye, Brant Alyea and future thirdbaseman Graig Nettles. Tell the truth: you didn't know Nettles played left either, did you?
His career took off when Charlie went to Japan. He packed up his robust 4 homers, 43 RBIs and .198 batting average and headed East. During his Japanese leagues tenure, Charlie became a star. He had seasons of 39, 42, 37 and 48 home runs (the last setting a record for American players in Japan). His career stats in Japan are very different from his ML numbers: .303 cumulative average, 189 homers and 491 RBIs. But it was in Japan.
He came home to manage in the Minor Leagues. For nine years. He won championships in the International League and in the Pacific Coast League, and was Minor League Manager of the Year three times. He served two terms as the Indians' hitting coach. With Manuel guiding the hitters, the Indians went on a rampage. They led the AL in runs scored three times in the nineties, and in 1999 became the first team since the 1950 Red Sox of Williams, Doerr, Stephens and Dropo to score over 1,000 runs in a season.
Charlie became the Indians manager when Mike Hargrove was let go in 2000 after winning five consecutive division championships. Two-and-a-half years later it was Manuel's turn to go, in a contract battle. That's what bad ownership does: get rid of good managers. The Phillies hired him for a front office job after he escaped Cleveland. He was ready to take over when Larry Bowa wore out his welcome in the Phils' dugout after the 2004 season. The team desperately needed a change in temperament, and Charlie Manuel's personality is about as far from Bowa's as any two men could be. Let's be clear: Bowa is a jerk. Charlie Manuel is a tremendous guy.
Manuel's even keel has kept him in perpetual hot water with the Philadelphia fans, as though that is hard to do! Remember, this is the city with a history of booing the pregnant wife of a player, and even Santa Claus! "Charlie don't care!" "Charlie doesn't push the players!" "He doesn't have the fire in the belly!" Those and much worse were the accusations from his hometown fans. A question: have you seen Joe Torre, Bobby Cox, Tito Francona? They are "players' managers" too. They stay positive, never criticize in public, always treat their players with respect. And they have been the most successful managers of the last 15-20 years. And Charlie Manuel has now joined them.
It seems just desserts for a guy who has given his life and health (a heart attack, quadruple bypass and cancer) to the game. He just had to go from winning the National League pennant to bury his beloved 87 year old mother, June. Obviously, he's still grieving that terrible loss. I hope Miss June knows her boy just won The Big One.
Even now, I hope Charlie enjoys this win. He's waited all his life for it. And he's earned the trophy, and, perhaps now, the respect that he should have had all along.

Strange, Infuriating, Frustrating, Scary Days

Matthew Harrison Brady: We must not abandon faith! Faith is the most important thing!
Henry Drummond: Then why did God plague us with the capacity to think? Mr. Brady, why do you deny the one thing that sets above the other animals? What other merit have we? The elephant is larger, the horse stronger and swifter, the butterfly more beautiful, the mosquito more prolific, even the sponge is more durable. Or does a sponge think?
Matthew Harrison Brady: I don't know. I'm a man, not a sponge!
Henry Drummond: Do you think a sponge thinks?
Matthew Harrison Brady: If the Lord wishes a sponge to think, it thinks!
Henry Drummond: Does a man have the same privilege as a sponge?
Matthew Harrison Brady: Of course!
Henry Drummond: [Gesturing towards the defendant, Bertram Cates] Then this man wishes to have the same privilege of a sponge, he wishes to think!
--Inherit the Wind


This isn't about politics. I believe the wealthy should pay more taxes than the middle or the poor. Others see tax policy other ways. I believe that the US shouldn't start wars, and should work with other nations to resolve differences diplomatically. Others see foreign policy in other ways. That's why we debate issues and have elections.
This isn't about religious doctrine. I'm of a tradition that believes in baptizing infants, because baptism is the start of the journey rather than the finish line. Others hold to baptism as a marker that God is done with them. My branch believes in redemptive involvement in the world in God's name as part of our responsibility as Christian disciples. Others believe that we are to separate ourselves from the sinful world as a sign of our identity. That's why we have different churches and different theologies.
This is about something else.
A friend asked me yesterday about the dinosaurs that Noah had on the ark. Her child attends a "Christian" school where the "science" textbook teaches that human beings and dinosaurs lived at the same time. And that Noah included them in his menagerie on the ark.
Gov. Palin, in the same speech where she promised that a McCain-Palin administration would dramatically increase funding for research and assistance for special needs children, ridiculed a government-funded study on fruit flies in "Paris, France. I kid you not." Ignorance and jingoism in one sentence! Since the moment when modern science began understanding genetics, mutation and disease, fruit flies have been humanity's great partner, serving as the research tool in a multitude of issues.
But then again, have you seen the video (check YouTube) presenting a "pastor" in a "church" laying hands on the Governor, praying that "in the name of Jesus" she will be "protected from every form of witchcraft"? Friends, this isn't Salem, and my calendar doesn't read 1692.
The creationists have opened a museum in Kentucky. It has become a really hot vacation spot. For imprisoning children in the Dark Ages!
School districts are having trouble deciding what to do about the growing numbers of unvaccinated children in their schools. They are unvaccinated because, like some replay of the 1950's fluorination hysteria, parents are trying to "protect" their kids. By leaving them vulnerable to all of those childhood illnesses so easily prevented. And putting at risk other kids more recently vaccinated, whose antibodies are still building.
This sort of business is willful ignorance. And some days it is terrifying; others it seems so ridiculous it has to be a joke; still others it too closely echoes the moments when other great nations have begun their inexorable decline.
How does an adult keep a straight face when telling children that there were dinosaurs on the ark? Or even that there was a literal boat with historical animals on it? Why would anyone want to strip the story of all its power by reducing it to a 960 hour sea voyage?
How did the church go from being a place where learning and progress were matters worth dying for (even if it was at the hands of other Christians) to a place fearful of the wonders that might be discovered next? Not to mention the human suffering that can be challenged and defeated through the grace of God, by the use of our minds-the greatest tools God has ever given us?
I think that we have reached the point where, since so much is easy and within our grasp, we think everything should be. And so, we blame autism, for example, on the shots that save peoples' lives, rather than on the fact that we run risks when we put off having our children until our mid- and now late-40's, ages when so many risks are increased! We want it all; we want to work for 25 years, and still get to act like we're in our 20's. And life just doesn't work like that.
But we are Americans, and the notion of American Exceptionalism is so pervasive in this culture that we tend to believe that if we want it, we should have it, and it should go perfectly, whatever it is.
Kind of like that place that Israel reached in Amos' time. When they got arrogant and comfortable and decided that since they were the Chosen, God would bless whatever they did, because it was them doing it! We have no more license to be ignorant and willful than they did. We have no more right to claim special privileges over others than they did.
But, like them, we will pay a price if we keep it up. And that price will be very, very steep.

Award Season Begins...Spectacularly!

Baseball's postseason recognitions kicked off with the naming of the 2008 Roberto Clemente Award recipient before Game 3 of the World Series on Saturday night. Albert Pujols is that honoree. Albert is, of course, off to an historic career on the field. He is the only man in baseball history to have a .300-plus batting average, 30-plus home runs and 100-plus RBI's each of his first 8 seasons in the big leagues. He missed by one run scored in 2007 adding 100-plus runs scored every year, too. And as great as the 2005 NL MVP has been on the field, he is an even finer person off it. The Pujols Family Foundation sponsors events throughout the year for St. Louis-area families living with Down Syndrome. The background: when Albert met his wife, Deidre, she avoided telling him for some time that she was the mother of a daughter, Isabella, who has Down Syndrome. Her experience had told her that no one would be interested in the mother of a special needs child. When the time finally came, Albert had a very clear response: "I love you, and we will raise our child together." Albert married Deidre, adopted Isabella, and they now have another daughter, Sophia, and a son, Albert, Jr., in the family. Albert's experience of Isabella led him to use his wealth, name, time and energy to assist others less fortunate than his own family.
He has also made caring for people in his native Dominican Republic a major part of his agenda. Each year, he organizes trips back home, bringing doctors and dentists into areas where there is no medical care throughout the rest of the year. And Albert isn't content to do things the easy way. Dominican officals quickly share that Pujols makes his trips into areas where even the police do not willingly go. He believes that he must reach out to and make a difference in the lives of those most afflicted by poverty, crime and hopelessness. The Pujols Family Foundation also funds sports programs for children and youth in those difficult areas of the Dominican.
Albert has been the Cardinals' nominee for the Clemente Award each of the last four seasons before being given the Award this year. His emotion was evident at the newsconference where Bud Selig made the announcement. As a latin-born player, Albert talked about his sense of connection to Clemente, and the responsibility to give back to those in need that Clemente was living out even as he died in a plane crash attempting to deliver relief supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.
Like the National League MVP award, Albert could be given the Clemente Award every year, and baseball would have nothing to apologize for.
Kevin Youkilis and Aramis Ramirez were honored before Game 4 of the World Series with the Hank Aaron Award for the best hitter in each league. Ramirez provided much of the power and run production that led the Chicago Cubs to the best record in the National League, and their second straight Central Division title. He was the Cubs' best clutch hitter this year, and did all of that while playing Gold Glove-caliber third base. It was Ramirez' first Aaron Award.
Keving Youkilis was the Red Sox' constant in a year full of change in 2008. When Manny Ramirez was traded, and Mike Lowell was injured for much of the second half, Youk stepped into the cleanup slot, and led the team in homers, RBIs, slugging percentage and on base percentage. He provided that quality of offense even as he was bouncing back and forth between first and third bases defensively.
There was a rumor around the trade deadline that the Red Sox had offered Kevin Youkilis, Jacoby Ellsbury and Justin Masterson to the Braves for Mark Teixeira. I don't believe that such an offer was ever made. I base that conclusion on 1) the fact that Theo Epstein has not been committed to a mental institution and 2) Braves' GM Frank Wren would have been utterly out of his mind to have taken the Casey Kotchmann package from the Angels instead of the Red Sox package. Shall we suffice it to say that without Ellsbury, Masterson and certainly Youkilis, the Sox don't make the postseason, no matter how good Tex might have been in Boston?
Youkilis' recognition is his first Aaron Award as well.
Come what may with the other awards, these selections are outstanding!

Baseball is Life Decrees: The Verdict on Varitek

I have looked at multiple lists of this season's free agent catchers. I have thought about dealing with Scott Boras (something that I simply would not do if I were a team owner, period). I have considered the likely price tag for a front line catcher, if any of the few teams with one would even agree to part with him.
The Sox need to resign Tek.
Let's consider the free agents. To me, the most attractive free agent, by age and performance, is Josh Bard. Josh Bard. Yes, that Josh Bard. No, the Sox probably shouldn't have traded him a couple years back. But he's never been a full time catcher. He shouldn't be for us.
Trades? Who? Brian McCann is probably the best catcher out there, although many would argue for Russell Martin. But neither the Braves nor the Dodgers is going to part with a player like them, a catcher like them. Why would they? And how expensive would it be if they did? Ellsbury, Buchholz and Masterson? You could have had Johann Santana for less, and this would be more wrong than that would have been.
Bring Tek back. Not for four years. But I would go three. Yes, I know that the Yankees crippled themselves by giving a broken down Posada four years last winter, and giving Tek three now equals the length remaining on Jorge's contract. But Tek isn't injured, as far as we know. And he still manages the pitching staff. I know that it appeared clear that he can't hit any more. But he will enter the 2009 season with his divorce settled, and having been there myself, I can vouch for the fact that in the midst of that party, nothing is right. I have to think just being out of that circus, he'll be no worse at the plate next year than in 2008. Bat him ninth. Just keep him in charge of our pitchers. And let him run the clubhouse.
Remember 2006? When Tek went down in August, the Sox were in first. Didn't last long, did it? They didn't fade; they died. He makes that much difference in the pitchers' confidence. I still wonder if Rick Ankiel would have melted down as he did in the Cardinals' 2000 postseason if Mike Matheny's wife hadn't given him the hunting knife that ended his season when Mike missed the sheath putting it away, and sliced the tendons in his middle finger. Tek makes that much difference, especially with the youth of the Sox staff this year--and likely even more next year. His presence also makes Tito's job easier. With Tek in the clubhouse, Tito doesn't have to address every little thing that happens. That's why he was named Captain in the first place! It was simply a recognition of what was already fact.
Don't break the bank, Theo. And if Boras makes stupid demands in years, let him go. But if there is any reasonable way to keep The Captain, it's clearly the best way to go.

I Should Have Known Better

I don't like being overly exposed online. My name is not on this blog. That isn't an accident. I like having a little place of freedom where the thoughts are my own, and can run free. An awful lot of my existence is at the mercy of others' opinions. These are mine. I write this for my own entertainment, and that of a few people that I have shared it with. If you aren't one of those, you are trespassing; get out, please!
A couple of acquaintances have written on their own little acres of the internet of their experiences with Facebook. Unhappy experiences. Dissatisfied experiences. I find those acquaintances to be people of some significant intellect. I should have listened to them.
I have a very difficult time telling the baby girl "no" about anything. Great big daddy flaw, not terribly uncommon. So when she was putting up a Facebook page for the roommate last night, and I walked in in the middle of that procedure, she said she'd like to do one for me. The "no" was fully formed in my mind. It was working its way to my lips. And yet, when it emerged, it sounded remarkably like "yes."
It didn't even take 24 hours before there were notifications. People who already have more than ample, multiple means of access to me were asking to be added to various Facebook categories. To me, calling a person a friend means something. Friendship runs right past the "How's your family" or "How's your church" niceties. After all, if you're friends, you already know those things. Friendship means, for instance, that we will spend time together outside of working hours. It means that we share interests, and will probably spend some time pursuing those interests together. I don't have many friends, by my definition. And I don't need many. I pretty much have four. They are exceptional people, every one. They love music and baseball. They are fun and they are funny. They are even forgiving of my corny/sarcastic/just plain bad jokes. They graciously seem to generally tolerate me, and I deeply enjoy each of them. There are few times more precious to me than time spent with them. They are about all I need.
Typing sentence fragments on someone's "wall" does not, to me, constitute friendship.
As soon as I can catch up with the baby girl, my Facebook sojourn will come to an end. I'll try a little harder to listen to my acquaintances next time.
Even if it means saying "no" to the baby girl.

For the Last Word...The Commissioner

That would be the late, great, A. Bartlett Giamatti. Bart Giamatti was a scholar of English Renaissance Literature, with a particular passion for Edmund Spenser. He was President of Yale University. He and his wife, Toni, were the parents of three children, including the wonderful actor, Paul Giamatti. Bart was President of the National League. And on April 1, 1989, he was named the seventh Commissioner of Baseball. He served in that post until his tragically untimely death on September 1, 1989.

Giamatti was a life-long Boston Red Sox fan.

He wrote the most beautiful, most powerful and most accurate elegy for the end of any baseball season, The Green Fields of the Mind. It captures everything that needs to be said whenever your team ends your baseball season, whether in last place or hoisting the World Series trophy. First published in Yale Alumni Magazine, it was later included in a small volume of Giamatti's writings on baseball, A Great and Glorious Game.
The first paragraph captures the despondency that accompanies The End:

"It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops."

Some Nights You Just Have to Tip Your Cap

Lester was good. Garza was better.
That's the story on Game 7. That, and a brilliant move by Joe Maddon. He used David Price for a third of an inning in Game 1, and then two-thirds of an inning in Game 2, earning him the win. He pitched his prize rookie just enough to get him settled in and comfortable. then Maddon held Price back. No more appearances in Games 3 through 6. And then, tonight, when Maddon emptied his bullpen in the eighth inning, David Price was the last man his manager brought in to pitch. Price faced five batters. One walked. One hit a weak ground ball to second. The other three struck out. The game was over. The Red Sox looked as overmatched against Price as other teams usually look against Papelbon.
We may have seen Jason Varitek's last atbat in a Sox uniform in the top of the ninth. Like too many of his turns this year, Tek swung badly at a slider off the plate. If it is over, The Captain's place is secure in the hearts and minds of Red Sox Nation. Mike Timlin and Curt Schilling may also have completed their time calling Fenway home. We wouldn't have won one World Series without these men, much less two. We are indebted to you forever!
Now it will be time for Papi's wrist to get well, Lowell's hip to be attended to (as it will be in the morning; Get Well Soon, Mikey!), Drew's back to heal up, Beckett's oblique to rest. Theo will go to work on the bullpen and thinking about a bat to protect Ortiz next year.
One thing we know: John Henry, Tom Werner and Larry Lucchino will make available what is needed to continue this great run of seasons that began in 2003. Only two teams will play after the Sox' elimination. There are only 27 other Major League teams who would trade places with the Sox tonight. We didn't win the Series. We discovered that we can lose an ALCS under Francona. But it was a great season.
And Next Year is now officially on the clock. Good luck, Rays and Phillies. The countdown to Spring Training begins now.

Are You Kidding Me? or, Game 7 Tomorrow!

Lifeless! Hopeless! With No Direction Home! A Complete Unknown! How Does It Fe...sorry, channeled Dylan there for a moment.

Anyway, the Sox had no pulse on Tuesday night. Down 3-1. Not competitive. No pitching. No hitting. Bad managerial moves. Time to pack it in for the season.

Then the Thursday miracle. Now a strong performance by a still-ailing Josh Beckett, and awesome work by the bullpen, with timely hitting, including Tek's first hit of the series, a home run in the sixth that was the game-winning run.

Now, one game, tomorrow night, winner take all for the World Series!

Four times in the American League Championship series have teams been down either 3-0 or 3-1 and come back to win. Three of those teams who came back were Boston Red Sox teams.

They used to talk about Yankee ghosts and mystique.

Jon Lester v. Matt Garza for all the marbles.

I believe in Lester.

And Red Sox magic!

You shoulda beat us Thursday night!

Game 6 Preview

Want to know what's going to happen between the Red Sox and the Rays tomorrow night?
Watch the game!
Sports talking heads have been spouting off straight time since last night's game ended, with pretty much every option being offered up. James Shields won't live up to his nickname (Big Game James--he really should apologize to James Worthy of Your Showtime LA Lakers!). Tito Francona will start Jon Lester in Josh Beckett's place. Beckett's injury is really a torn oblique! How on earth would you pitch, even badly, with a torn oblique? Papi's back and ready to break out. Papi's still lost in the woods and last night's homer was luck. Gabe Gross should be deported. (Yeah, he was born in Baltimore, but by Gov. Palin's measure, that's too close to Washington to be a Pro-American part of the country, so, get him out of here!) Evan Longoria is too green to trust in late innings of ALCS games. Hint: the Rays wouldn't be in the ALCS without their soon-to-be-named Rookie of the Year. Papelbon, Wheeler, Howell, Masterson and pretty much anyone else from either bullpen you'd care to name have pitched too many innings to be effective from here on. BJ Upton will cost you as many runs in the outfield as he'll get you at the plate. And so on.
Here's the dead sure certain straight dope: with the performance of the Boston Red Sox in this decade's playoffs, no one has any idea what is going to happen tomorrow night. Or, potentially, Sunday night. This team defies prediction, common sense, logic, gravity and any other laws you've got.
Tune in. You may very well see something that none of us have every seen before!

You Don't Think...

"You better beat us tonight!" Kevin Millar to Derek Jeter, Oct. 17, 2004, before ALCS Game 4

Going into the bottom of the 7th, behind 7-0, the Red Sox were dead in the water, deader than Julius Caesar, deader than any doornail you ever saw. The Rays had scored early and added on. And added on. And still, at the end of the game, the scoreboard at Fenway read: Red Sox 8, Rays 7.

They cowboyed up like 2003. They played those last two-and-a-half innings like idiots from 2004. Tito went crazy and brought Pap into the game in the top of the 7th! Papi homered! Drew came through. Twice! Petey singled to knock one in and Youk busted his tail, taking nothing for granted, as always! Masterson got Pena (who doesn't hit into double plays) to hit into a fabulous 4-6-3 double play with the lead run on second and only one out!

Four in the seventh. Three in the eighth. One more beautiful run in the ninth. Game!

Joe Castiglione's signature call was never more appropriate: "Can you believe it?"

Deja vu all over again? We'll have to wait two more games to see. But there will be a Game 6 Saturday night in Florida. And Josh Beckett can't be that bad three times in a row, can he?

You shoulda beat us tonight!

OK, Now I've Watched the Debate

John McCain is a tool. He is not in the pocket of Corporate America. He's straight up their collective [anatomy]! He has the audacity to sit before the American public, the wage-stagnated, foreclosed-on American public, and ask Barack Obama why he wants to raise taxes on any American. McCain said, "The whole premise of Sen. Obama's plan [is] 'conduct class warfare'..." I wish to God it was!
I'll say this slowly, so that you can understand, Sen. McCain: you, and those who have bought and sold jerks like you for the last almost 30 years, have been conducting class warfare. You are the people who shut down any increases in the minimum wage. You legislated deregulation of business to the point that jobs could be shipped out, unions could be shut out, and wages have pancaked as a result. You sat by and presided over the loss of pension funds through deregulation of the Enrons, where millions of working Americans--people who are struggling to hold on to just the one house they have, Senator--lost their futures, their opportunities to educate their children, and their dreams of not being "burdens" to their children. You have presided over the greatest redistribution of wealth in American history. The disparity between CEO/CFO salaries versus the average salary in any given company is today greater than it was in the Roaring Twenties, because YOU MADE IT HAPPEN! You declared war on the middle class, and reduced it dramatically. You declared war on the poor in limiting welfare and unemployment benefits. And you shifted trillions in responsibility for our national debt to the middle class and working poor through your Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans during your illegal war! Back when you were a man of integrity, you knew that that policy was atrocious. Since you've needed the Neocons to get you to the White House, you've kissed every policy [anatomy] they've stuck in your face! You have bankrupted the nation through your unquestioning support for George W. Bush's personal vendetta against Saddam Hussein and his people. And now you want to tax the insurance benefit of working Americans? Because your contributors don't like having to lay out that money for their employees? You say that Sen. Obama wants to spread the wealth around? What about your work to move the wealth into the fewest hands possible? How you have the [different anatomy] to accuse anyone else of calling for class warfare is beyond me.
You have moved into a special place: I have long held King George II to be the most reprehensible public figure of my lifetime. You, sir, have displaced him. The reason is simple: the moron believes his own [fertilizer]. You knew better, Senator. You knew better until you decided that the only way to get the brass ring was to bring in Bill Kristol and Karl Rove and all of the other [illigitimi] that have destroyed this country over the last eight years. You asked tonight how the Democrats could talk about spending more when the deficit is $10 trillion. You ran up that deficit every day of your immoral war in Iraq. You did this, you and your cronies. You are a liar. Just as George W. Bush has done to our country, you have squandered every bit of integrity you ever held. Now, you are even inciting violence toward Sen. Obama through your incendiary rhetoric to the enlightened voters who make up the 22% of the American public who still approve of the Occupier of the White House.
You should be ashamed of yourself. You once knew better.

That's Entertainment!

I know that the Phillies beat the Dodgers for the NL pennant tonight, but I haven't watched it yet. Missed the presidential debate, too. Had another engagement.
Lyle Lovett and John Hiatt played the Orpheum tonight.
Theirs was as fun as any concert I've attended in, like, forever. Two guys, obviously friends of long-standing, obviously caught up in a mutual admiration society professionally speaking, seated together in chairs with guitars. They played and cut up for two and a half hours. It went by like minutes.
Hiatt is one of my very favorite musicians. He's like Willie Nelson in that he came to prominence with other people recording his songs. His performances of them are always superior. His lyrics are worlds apart from most of the crap being peddled today, but that's the saddest part of the record companies' desire to market everything to the average 12 year old girl. I loved my daughters dearly when they were at that stage, but I didn't listen to their "music." John writes and performs grownup songs for grownups. Oddly, there were no preteens in the building tonight. Heaven!
Lyle Lovett is one of the most wonderful human beings on the planet. He may be the smartest person writing songs today. His work is just a little off-kilter, a rhyme a letter off, a beat missing-or added-every now and then. He's also just plain funny.
The format let the performers' personalities out tonight. They talked, like the old friends they are, between each song. They took turns, helped each other on a couple of tunes, and provided a thoroughly delightful evening for all in attendance.
Just one objection: what is it that tells middle-aged people (of which I am one) that it is still alright to get loaded and act like jerks in public? I do remember my first beer, and how stupid it made me; it's just that for me, that came at age 16. Attention, my fellow suburbanites (not by choice in my case!): drunk and obnoxious at 50 ain't cute any more. Grow the hell up! And while you're at it, try to remember that we all paid good money to hear the artists. No one, especially your humiliated wife, came to watch/listen to you make a complete and total jackass out of yourself! Why not save that for the next fit you pitch at Southwind after hitting into the lake on number six? At least that way, I won't have to experience your moronic behavior.
Back to the enjoyable: we had dinner at Cafe 61 before the show. It was our first visit. Holy cow, will we be back again! Kingston scallops appetizer (sauteed in jerk sauce) followed by Scallops Henri (me) and Pecan-crusted Catfish with Sauteed Shrimp (the boss lady). Too good to be legal! Give the place a try. It's worth it.
So, the National League crowned a champion, the Presidential race moved...forward(?), the economy remains in the crapper, but it was a stellar night for the roommate and me. I'll take that anytime!

A Fascinating Moment in the Campaign

Tuesday mornings bring one of my favorite hours of the week: a Bible Study with a lovely group of ladies who have, in some cases, just reached retirement age, and in other cases, have long since passed that point. The youngest member of the group is about 63. The eldest, 84. I am fairly certain that they are all voting for Sen. McCain.
But this morning, I left the meeting stunned. As we were concluding our look at Esther, with my comment on how the Jews in that story went from trying to hide their identity when Haman (look it up if you need to) was running the show, to seeing others trying to claim Jewish identity when Mordecai (again, look it up if you need to) got the reins.
At that moment, the lady who sort of leads the group said, "Why don't they ever call Obama white?" Another immediately jumped in, "Yes, his mother was white. He is as white as he is black." Others contributed that they had wondered why this child of a biracial marriage is considered black.
I have read the polls for weeks. I have pored over realclearpolitics.com, electoral-vote.com and fivethirtyeight.com constantly. I have watched Barack's numbers rise. But I don't know that I ever really believed he could win this election until this morning. If a group of rural, southern, older, white women who have probably voted Republican since 1968 can sit together wondering why the junior Senator from Illinois isn't generally considered a member of their own racial group, then this remarkable man has this election in the bag!
Because their comments mean that they have digested all of the charges about his religion, his education, his pastor, his tangential relationship to William Ayers, and all the rest of the garbage that has been thrown at him, and seen through it all. It means that they have recognized the son of a single mother, the young man who worked his way through college, the husband and father, the Harvard-trained lawyer who went to work for the poor and unemployed of Chicago, the brilliant young man who has risen through the Illinois legislature to the United States Senate, and inspired tens of millions of people across the country in his amazing campaign for the presidency, and they have decided that, even if they are still voting for his opponent, Barack Obama is ok with them.
And if Barack is ok with that group of ladies, the United States of America has made progress that we can all be proud of!

Ugly, Uglier, Ugliest (I Hope)

Games 2, 3 and 4 of the American League Championship Series are in the books. And those are some lousy books for Red Sox fans.
Facing a 3-1 deficit, Sox fans are busy reminding ourselves that ours is the team that has made an art form of coming back in the ALCS. Last year, Cleveland was ahead 3-1. In 2004, Glorious 2004, the Yankees were up 3-0. 1986 saw the Angels up 3-1. In fact, the Red Sox have been the victors in half of the League Championship Series when a team has gone down 3-1 and come back to win. That's comfort, I guess.
There are only two problems.
First, the Rays are good. Make that, very good. They may well be better than the 2004 Yankees. I am confident that they are better than the '07 Indians or '86 Angels. Joe Maddon leads an excellent squad, with no real holes evident to date in this Championship Series.
Then, there are the absences. The only two Red Sox ever named World Series MVP aren't playing in this series.
One is Mike Lowell. Is anyone ever going to acknowledge Mikey's importance to this team? He is as vital a presence as Varitek; he just doesn't have the "C" on his shirt. As great as Beckett has been, nobody simply calls it "the Beckett deal" any more. Mark Kotsay has done a remarkable job handling first base this postseason. But it simply cannot be argued that the Sox are stronger with Kotsay at first and Youk at third than they are with Mike Lowell at third and Youk at first. Mike is having surgery on his hip next Monday. God bless, and get ready for Spring Training. We need you back!
Finally, He Whose Name Shall Not be Spoken is out West. He likes the big stage; the Dodgers wouldn't even be in the playoffs without his performance with all the cameras rolling. He had become too big a pain in the ass to overlook any more. The deal had to be made. Jason Bay has been excellent in his place. But the predecessor will be remembered in baseball history as one of the top five right-handed hitters in the game. Ever. (My top five: HWNSNBS, Jimmy Foxx, Rogers Hornsby, Hank Aaron and Honus Wagner. Albert Pujols may very well knock someone out of this group someday. Albert had his elbow surgery yesterday. God bless, and get well soon!) David Ortiz has not been the same since the trade. There is a lot of speculation that Papi's wrist is still bad; or perhaps it's the knee. But it may be between the ears, lacking his partner, where the big man is hurting the most.
They can certainly pull this off. They have, indeed, done it before.
But the Rays are good. And we're not as formidable as when those two World Series MVPs were in the cleanup and five spots.

Baseball Will Drive You Crazy

They win the first game behind a very questionable pitcher.
The best postseason pitcher of his generation gets shelled in the second game, and the manager leaves him in to take the beating, inning after inning after inning.
In the third game, this season's best pitcher gets beat all to pieces and the team is routed.
Game four is tomorrow.
Points 1-3 are among the reasons the game makes you feel sick.
Point 4 is always why you come back for more.

Go get 'em, Wake!

A 1-1 Tie in the ALCS

Five hours and 28 minutes after it began, the Rays scored on a sacrifice fly to take a 9-8 decision.
It wasn't pretty. Seven home runs and 14 walks? Five walks in the final inning? And at the end, Joe Maddon had to use a kid that threw his first pitch as a professional player in late May, while Terry Francona was left with a 42 year old reliever who hadn't pitched since September 28, and wasn't even on the roster for the Divisional Series. At the end, David Price had his first Major League win, and Mike Timlin had taken a very hard loss. We needn't go into how hard Sam Holbrook was squeezing Sarge; John Farrell's ejection--the so even-keeled John Farrell?--says all that needs to be said there.
Some will say that J.D. Drew's failure to get some momentum toward the plate on Upton's fly is a sympton of his back problem. I say it's a sympton of his indifference toward the game, but that's just me.
If someone had offered Francona a split before the series started, he'd have taken it. After tonight, there's still some disappointment. But Jon Lester will pitch Monday afternoon, and Dan Wheeler pitched a full week for a closer tonight (48 pitches). And home field has shifted to the Sox. Mission accomplished. The series isn't over, but mission accomplished.
And not like Bush claimed it on the ship.

Holy Mackerel!

The pregame question has certainly been answered: Josh Beckett is most certainly not right. But then again, neither was Scott Kazmir.
The Sox and Rays have tied a Major League postseason record with seven home runs hit between them, and they are only through the top of the fifth! Fortunately, the Sox had three of them in this inning, to take a 6-5 lead. Beckett could still get a win, if he can get through another half inning!
Concern will be high for both teams, as each has watched their ace fall far, far short of an ace's performance.

ALCS Game 2 Advisory

Red Sox Nation will get a clue early in this game whether or not Josh Beckett is going to be able to be Josh Beckett. If he is himself, someone in the Rays' lineup-and I would guess Evan Longoria-will get a visit, and will get it early.
There was a strong sense in the Sox' clubhouse last night that Grant Balfour came in toward J.D. Drew's head with purpose. Of course, J.D. fortunately shrugged quickly enough to take the ball off of the top of his shoulder. Josh Beckett has never, ever, needed to be told to answer a challenge. If Josh is well--read that as if he is confident--he will respond for Drew. If he doesn't, I will have questions about his health.

Words-Even Politicians' Words-Matter

When you are the leaders of your party, the candidates for the two highest offices in the land, what you say matters. No one who has risen in American life to those kinds of positions should have to be told that.
And yet, Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin don't get it.
They are trying to get a handle on why their crowds have spent the last week screaming out that Sen. Barack Obama is a "terrorist" or "Arab" or "Moslem" or "socialist" or "off with his head" or even "kill him." McCain, in particular, seems to almost be frightened at the insane tone some of his supporters have taken in regard to Sen. Obama.
Where did all this come from?
Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin.
When you tell people that someone spends his time "palling around with terrorists" or that he is a "danger to our way of life" or that "he has put ambition over country" or that Obama and Biden would "wave a white flag of surrender in Iraq," you cannot deny responsibility for people taking those statements to heart. Unbelievably to me, somewhere around 43% of the people in this country trust you.
You have both behaved despicably. Your rhetoric has gone far beyond anything that is acceptable. Obama and Biden have criticized your policies. They have not questioned your love for our country. They have not lied about your faith. They have not attacked your friends in the clergy, and, Sen. McCain, you have hung out with John Hagee for goodness sake!
Let's take the logical step.
You both should understand that if any of your supporters decide that they need to put action to their words, you, ultimately, will be responsible for that, too.
Sober up. Look for some sort of decency. Debate all of the issues you wish. That's what elections are for. But stop lying to that segment of your cretins who don't understand about your political bullshit on who Barack Obama is.
You shouldn't want to bear the responsibility for what some of those people might do.

Seminar: Why Terry Francona is So Good!

The Sox entered the bottom of the eighth inning tonight with a 2-0 lead. Daisuke Matsuzaka had pitched a better game than anyone (including me) had a right to expect. Dice was sitting at 108 pitches. He had given up only two hits, along with the requisite pile of walks (4). Iwamura led off Tampa's eighth with a single to left-center. Upton followed with a hometown-scored single off Youkilis' glove. First and second, none out. Dice was obviously gassed, at 116 pitches.
Tito came to get Dice, and put Okijima in for Carlos Pena, the Rays' primary (that means only) consistent deep threat. Sure, that looks like the standard lefty-lefty matchup. But Oki hasn't been nearly as good this year as last at stranding inherited runners. Last year, nobody scored on him. This year, not so good. But Tito has to have a confident Oki to win the World Series. So the manager showed confidence in his man. Oki proceeded to dig a 3-0 hole, but Pena couldn't bring himself to take a strike. It took a running J.D. Drew catch, but Pena lined out. One down. Five outs to go. And Oki got his job done!
Papelbon? We have another game tomorrow night. Five outs tonight means no Pap tomorrow. Tito went for Justin Masterson. Justin's a rookie, but he's been the designated "Get us a double play" guy since he came up. At 2-2, sure AL Rookie of the Year Evan Longoria accommodated Red Sox Nation with a beautifully turned 6-4-3 DP. Two pitchers who need to be good, were. And the bullpen is stronger mentally (Oki and Masterson) and physically (Pap pitching only the 9th).
So, lead intact at 2-0, Pap comes on for the bottom of the ninth. At 1-2, Carl Crawford waves weakly at a 95 mph burner; one out. Cliff Floyd looks old and tired watching pitches at 96, 96, 94 and 95, popping the last one halfway up the third base line where Youk took it in foul territory. Two down. That left Navarro. 95-strike, 91-ball, 95-fouled weakly, 91-in the dirt, swinging strike three. Three down, game over, and that's that.
Everyone's up. Everyone was put into a position where they could do their job. Everyone's available tomorrow night.
And the Sox lead 1-0.
Because their manager is as good as anybody in the business.
Nice job, again, Tito!

Happy Birthday John

I took this picture a little over three years ago. The mosaic lies in the Strawberry Fields section of Central Park. It is across the street from The Dakota, where John Lennon lived with Yoko and Sean. Walking up Central Park West, I saw it grow in front of me until the size of the immense building became obvious. Twenty-five years, then, after John was murdered, it gave me chills to be there. Nobody had to tell me which building it was. I couldn't have forgotten the images from the night he was shot if I had tried.
One of the happiest October 9ths I have experienced happened six years ago tonight. Paul McCartney was playing the venue then known as the Savvis Center in St. Louis. Shannon and I were fortunate to be in the audience. Paul's shows are always fun, but on that night, he acknowledged that it was John's birthday, and seemed to choke up for a moment. Then, in response to a call from the front of the crowd, he led us in an impromptu "Happy Birthday" to his late partner. Later in the show, Paul played "Something" on a ukelele that George had given him, as a tribute to another departed friend. It was a world away from the anger and hurt of the band's breakup. It truly felt like a little glimpse into the love that the lads from Liverpool had felt for one another.
John should be 68 today. He should be enjoying grandchildren with Yoko. He should still be making his beautiful, startling, searing music. "Double Fantasy" had just served notice that John was still up to the task when his life was cut short.
One of the generational divides: my parents and their contemporaries remember where they were when JFK, MLK and RFK were shot and killed. People my age talk about where they were when Howard Cosell interrupted the broadcast of another dopey Monday Night Football game with the announcement:
"This, we have to say it, remember this is just a football game, no matter who wins or loses. An unspeakable tragedy, confirmed to us by ABC News in New York City: John Lennon, outside of his apartment building on the West Side of New York City, the most famous, perhaps, of all The Beatles, shot twice in the back, rushed to the Roosevelt Hospital, dead on arrival."
The murderer involved actually shot John four times, in front of his wife.
And that night, December 8, 1980, is precisely when the Sixties ended.

Thus Saith The Beer Baroness!

Cindy McCain joined the Lying Express All Stars yesterday. Her Foaminess declared that Barack Obama should try wearing her stilettos (That's her term, not my sarcasm!) for a day. That's because she has a son in Iraq, and Barack voted to cut funds for the troops!
Now...the rest of the story, ie: the truth. Barack Obama voted against a defense appropriation bill for the Iraq war because it did not contain a timetable for bringing home the troops. Here's what Her Royal Kegger left out: her husband, Sen. John McCain, voted against another defense appropriation bill for the Iraq war because it did contain a timetable for bringing home the troops!
Surely Mrs. Drunken Driving Enabler will be back on the hustings today, decrying the lack of patriotism, not to mention fatherly responsibility, that her husband exhibited in denying their own son the bucks to be safe! I would suspect that she will be filing for divorce by the end of the week! How could she, or any mother, stay married to such an irresponsible politician as John McCain?
The reality, of course, is that votes like those described above are usually procedural matters that allow members of the Senate, just like those in the House, to make their stands for the policies that they advocate. The troops were never, are not now, and never will be in fear that they will be stranded in combat zones with no ammunition, inadequate or faulty equipment, or...oh, wait...that's just how those great troop supporters Bush and Cheney sent them into war in the first place!
How many of our kids would be alive, or whole, today if they had had body armor, properly fitted Humvees and everything else they should have had before anyone even thought about sending them into action. Now, there is something to righteously bitch about, Lady Lager!

Voter Caging

Caging is a really patriotic, Constitution-loving and respecting little political strategy. Here's how it works: you take a list, any list, and send postcards, marked "Do Not Forward" to everyone on that list. If any of those postcards are returned to you, you challenge that voter at the poll as registered under a false address. This stunt has been pulled for years, exclusively by Republicans, almost always in poor communities where there is a higher rate of residential turnover.

Now, here's the truly evil, 2008 version: Republicans in Michigan announced (no kidding) that they were going to take lists of those whose homes have been foreclosed and pull the old caging stunt on those foreclosed upon. Get it? Yes, the Republicans, who love democracy so much that they will destroy your country and kill all your people to make sure you have it, fostered the foreclosure crisis through their orgy of deregulation and making those subprime loans with no money down at 125% of the value of the house, and now intend to benefit from it by challenging the victims--disproportionately lower income, disproportionately darker skinned people. That would be, the very people overwhelming likely to vote for Barack Obama! This scheme makes Jeb Bush and Katherine Harris look like amateurs. Hanging chads, indeed!

Is it a coincidence that after Obama's legal team filed challenges in Michigan to the Republican party's stated intention, the McCain campaign pulled out of that state? Sort of a confession that, playing by the rules and showing common decency, they couldn't compete, don't you think?

This is merely the first volley of the Republican battle to steal another election. They believe that they can do it, because they already got away with it in 2000 and 2004. Watch these assholes; they'll do it again if they get half a chance!

The Rotation is Set

Tito Francona will go to battle with the Rays with his starters in this order:

Game 1, in Tampa or St. Pete or where ever that awful park is: Daisuke Matsuzaka
Game 2, down there, again: Josh Beckett
Game 3, in America's Most Beloved Ballpark: Jon Lester
Game 4, Fenway again: Tim Wakefield

Genius! The man is brilliant.
Daisuke will give you basically the same game, regardless of where he pitches it (9-3, 3.34 at home; 9-0, 2.37 road). He will leave two men on base, minimum, each inning. He will surpass 100 pitches late in the fifth or early in the sixth. I warned The World's Most Generous Friend about what we were in for in Baltimore last August with Dice on the mound. He thought I was joking pregame. About halfway through he turned to me and said, "You weren't kidding at all, were you?" That's Daisuke! He will leave the game with the Sox up a run or two, tied, or down a run. Highly unlikely it will be any more than that in either direction. Perhaps when you are from Japan, everything feels like a road game. Good choice to begin the series.
Josh comes back for the second. He will not be bothered by pitching on the road. In fact, his road ERA was barely half of his home ERA this year (away: 2.85; home: 5.65). He will have a start (Division Series Game 3) under his belt. If he is well, as he says he is, then the rust should be knocked off a bit, and giving him an extra day won't hurt under any circumstances.
Lester in Game 3 is insurance, plain and simple. He has been utterly brilliant at Fenway this year (11-1, 2.49 at Fenway; 5-5, 4.09 away) and any missteps in Games 1 or 2 will be corrected with the best starting pitcher on the staff going in the first home game of the series.
Wake gets the Game 4 start. He earned it this year (7-4, 3.10 at the Fens; 3-7, 5.14 away) and for the last 13 years (Guess who holds third place all time in Red Sox wins? Yep, Wake. With 164 he trails only a couple of guys named Cy Young and Roger Clemens, tied with 192). I like Wake's knuckleball after Beckett and Lester throw hard for a couple of games. Tim went 10-11 this year, but when you look at his ERA (4.13), as the game has changed, he deserved better. He has been effective throughout his career against Tampa, and will be again.
Projecting out through the whole series, if it goes long, Lester will be positioned to pitch a Game 7, which would be outstanding-probably more exciting than I need!
Tito doesn't miss much, and he surely did not miss a foreseeable trick lining up his staff for another ALCS.

John McCain: Lying Bastard

In the 2000 Republican primary in South Carolina, John McCain was the target of one of the ugliest, most vile examples of dirty politics in American history. This atrocious attack was perpetrated by Karl Rove on behalf of the governor of Texas, soon to subvert the Constitution of the United States of America by stealing an election won by Al Gore. The lie went like this: Rove, following the example of his guru, the thoroughly evil Lee Atwater, set up a phone bank that posed as a polling agency. The Bush operatives then called Republican voters throughout South Carolina asking those who answered the phone this question: "Would it affect your opinion of Senator McCain to learn that he fathered a mixed-race child out of wedlock?" The reality is that John McCain and his wife had adopted a Viet Namese child, a genuinely noble act. But that little darker-skinned girl looked to many South Carolinians like a black child, and since she was with the Senator and his wife as they campaigned, the Bush campaign scored an upset victory (after having lost in the early primaries to Sen. McCain), and were set on the road to the Republican nomination and, ultimately, their occupation of the White House.
At the time, McCain decried that kind of politics.
As recently as April 24, 2008, McCain told Fox alleged News that he would not engage in negative campaigning, as it had no place in American life.
The Senator has had an epiphany.
He is losing the election to Sen. Barack Obama.
So, now, with Karl Rove on board the "Straight Talk Express" (more of a joke every day), McCain and his Pitbull in Lipstick have labeled Obama a terrorist (his alleged "connection" to Bill Ayers-see the earlier post), have taken up Hillary Clinton's trick of identifying Sen. Obama by his middle name (which I'm guessing he did not choose, as most of us don't), and even, at one of Gov. Palin's rallies today, failed to challenge a shout from the audience for someone to kill Sen. Obama.
These people, these pathetic people, have realized that they are losing the election to Sens. Obama and Biden. And they have decided that the means, any means, will be justified by their ends. But this is what Republicans do.
Look up Katherine Harris from 2000. Look up Kenneth Blackwell from 2004. Look up the Swiftboaters. Look up Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. When elections don't go the way that Republicans want, they lie, cheat, and, ultimately, steal those elections.
And "maverick" Senators act just like every other piece of garbage that Karl Rove has worked for. Not much rebellion in that. No change, whatsoever, in evidence there. Just the same old garbage we have suffered through for the last eight years!

Whew!

Jon Lester deserved a win! The defacto ace of the Boston Red Sox was himself tonight, after Josh Beckett wasn't much like himself last night.

Lester's line: 7 innings pitched, 4 hits, O runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts.

The bullpen gave up the lead in the eighth, but Lester was awesome!







The cliche says that baseball is a game of inches. The truism was proved again when Jason Varitek chased down Reggie Willits on a failed squeeze bunt attempt by Erick Aybar. The slow-footed, veteran catcher chased down one of the fastest men in the game by running him back to the base, ball in hand ready to throw--in other words, textbook execution of the rundown. That's why Tek is The Captain. The inches reference? Tek tumbled over third base after tagging Willits. As he flipped and hit his mitt on the ground, the ball came loose. Third base umpire Tim Welke ruled a good tag.


At the end, it was Jed Lowrie knocking in Jason Bay. Jed Lowrie and Jason Bay? Lowrie started the season at Pawtucket, expected to jump to the big club next spring. Julio Lugo was the shortstop for the Sox. But Lugo played poorly all year, and wound up injured. Jed got his chance. He made the most of it. He just hit the walkoff single that won the Division Series!
Jason Bay played for Pittsburgh. The Pirates. Going nowhere, no hope, no fans, no nothing. Then Manny was Manny one time too many, or 100 times too many, and Jason wound up in front of the Green Monster. And has provided all of the grit, hustle, determination and daily availability that the Sox have been missing in left field for the last few years.
Lowrie and Bay represent, as the tip of the iceberg, the ability of the front office to do the right thing to build this team and constantly make it better.

Bring on the Devil Rays!

This Is the Best They Can Come Up With?

This is William Ayers in 1968. He was a member of the Weather Underground. They opposed the Viet Nam war and anything else the US government was up to. They did bad things. Some of those bad things were bombings. In one of their bombings, a San Francisco police officer was killed. In another, the bomb went off unexpectedly, and killed three members of their own group.





Barack Obama was 8 years old when the Weather Underground bombings took place.



















This is William Ayers today. In the 1980s, Ayers earned two Masters Degrees and a Doctorate in early childhood education, curriculum development and instruction. He became a respected authority in his field, publishing many articles and books. He was used by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley as a consultant in remaking the city school system. He served on the board of the Woods Fund, a Chicago charity fighting poverty.


He was an author on an Annenberg Foundation grant that brought $49.2 million to the Chicago city schools.

A young community organizer named Barack Obama was named to the board that oversaw the spending of the Annenberg grant.

When Obama first ran for office, Bill Ayers hosted a fundraiser for him.


Pitbull with Lipstick is now spewing her talking points, attempting to make Barack Obama a terrorist via his "ties" to William Ayers.
I'm glad she's not after me. Because if Obama is a terrorist through William Ayers, I must be a dictator. After all, I've read a book about Adolph Hitler. And another about Josef Stalin. But then again, in a world where the view from some portion of your state constitutes foreign policy experience, I guess it makes sense(?).

Recap: As an 8 year old child, Barack Obama was responsible for the behavior of the Weather Underground.


That brings us to this fine fellow.
This is the mug shot of Charles Keating.

The last time that the crooked Republicans (redundant, I know) decided to take all the regulations off of financial institutions, it was the Savings and Loans in the 1980's. Thieves like Keating, operator of Lincoln Savings and Loan, saw their opportunity, but, at the same time, wanted to cover their asses. So, Keating bought protection, in the form of several US Senators, via his campaign contributions. One of those protectors was John McCain.

Keating went to jail for 5 years for his shenanigans. McCain, examined by those rough investigators-his fellow senators-escaped with a reprimand for his "poor judgement."

Today, we're encouraged to elect John McCain our President based on the solidity of his judgement.

What must those ever-vigilant Republican watchdogs think of this fellow, found at age 58 to have protected a crook who stole from grandmas and grandpas all over America? After all, if an 8 year old is responsible, what must be the responsibility of someone almost 60?

This is the best they can do to come up with "dirt" on Barack Obama?

On the Other Hand...

Smiling Dodgers' manager Joe Torre is thinking...

a) I'm glad I don't have to drink anymore of that State Farm wheatgrass drink!

b) It sure is good to advance in the playoffs!

c) I really do love L.A.!

d) Manny can be Manny as long as he wants!

e) I wonder what the Yankees are doing these days?

f) Kiss my warm, L.A. loving, still in the playoffs ass, Hank Steinbrenner!


(The correct answer is f!)

Winter Dilemma in the Fall

As I write, it is Dodgers 3, Cubs 0 in the top of the 8th inning in Game 3 of the NLDS. If that score holds up, the Cubs will be eliminated from the postseason. They will be swept for the second consecutive season.
No major league team wants to be there. But that result will pose a quandry for the Cubs ownership (whoever that may become--Please, God, make it Mark Cuban!), General Manager Jim Hendry and Manager Lou Piniella. It will be much the same dilemma that the Mets and Tigers (both defeated by a poor Cardinals team that caught fire at the right time to win the World Series) had to wrestle with after the 2006 postseason: are we what we looked like in the regular season, or are we what we looked like in the postseason?
The Cubs were the National League's best team most of the summer, but there has been precious little of that ability on display this October.
Dodgers 3, Cubs 1, moving to the bottom of the 8th.
Ryan Dempster became the staff ace as he moved from the closer's role in 2007 to a starting spot this season. Was he worn out in his Game 1 start from all the additional innings he pitched this year? Is Carlos Zambrano Nuke LaLouche, or a fiery latino with tremendous ability? Or is he injured? Is Derek Lee in decline? Or just having a couple of poor seasons, by his standard? Is Kosuke Fukudome a major league player or not? Is Ryan Theriot a starting major league shortstop? Does Jim Edmonds have anything left? Is Reed Johnson an everyday player? Can you afford to have Alfonso Soriano stay in the leadoff role when he is as streaky as he's always been?
Or did they just have the misfortune of having to deal with this year's team of destiny, who got hot at the right time, from the biggest trade deadline acquisition of the year: Manny Ramirez. We'll know more about the Dodgers as they move on to the League Championship Series, and, perhaps, the World Series.
We'll have to wait a bit to know what the Cubs' brass will make of their situation.
There are a lot of questions that another early exit will force upon the Cubs' leadership. I, for one, hope they take their time, get a little distance from this moment, take a deep breath, and think hard about where they are. It may not be as dark as it looks right now.
I just hope Ron Santo lives to see them win it all.

(Note: it ended at 12:10 am, Sunday morning, on a check swing by Soriano. Let the questioning begin.)

Poor Red Sox

They did well to make the postseason. Really a credit to them. But obviously they are just too banged up to do any good in the playoffs. Don't even know if half of them will be able to play, and not having Manny...and that Bay kid, he's never been in the postseason.

Kevin Youkilis, playing third for Mike Lowell, spectacular catch on foul pop in 9th.
J.D. Drew, herniated disk, 3 for 5, 2 runs scored, 3 rbi; game winning 3-run homer in the 8th.
Jason Bay, 5 for 9, 2 runs scored, 5 rbi, 2 homers and a double in the first two games.

Game Two: Red Sox 7, Angels 5

Boston leads the series, 2 games to none.

Red Sox' Major League record postseason winning streak versus the Angels: 11.

Beckett at Fenway Sunday Night.
Life is Good!

Note: One of my favorite people in the entire world is a dedicated, life-long Angels fan. You know who you are. I feel your pain. I am genuinely attempting to be as circumspect as possible in my little reflections here. Please pardon my enthusiasm. I'm being as gentle as I can.

Vice Presidential Debate Prep

Wasilla City, AK, population (2000 US Census): 7,028
Humboldt, TN, population (2000 US Census): 9,467

Alaska population (2000 US Census): 670,053
Memphis population (2000 US Census): 674,028

Gov. Sarah Palin's tenure governing 670,053 people: 1.5 years
Mayor W.W. Herenton's tenure governing 674,028 people: 18 years

Humboldt, TN, Mayor James Hill holds a part-time job. His city is approximately 33% larger than the town Sarah Palin served as Mayor.

No one seems to be mentioning James Hill or W.W. Herenton as candidates for Vice President of the United States of America. Odd. They each have more experience than Gov. Palin.
Regardless of the view from the Aleutian toe of her state.

Vote Obama-Biden. For God's sake. And ours.

Somewhere in America, Earlier this Afternoon

Angels fan: "I'm sorry Josh Beckett's hurt, but now we get to face Jon Lester tonight, instead. We're lucky!"
Red Sox fan: "Really?"

Lester's line: 7 Innings Pitched, 6 Hits, 1 Run, O Earned Runs, 1 Walk, 7 Strikeouts

Red Sox 4, Angels 1.

Boston leads, 1-0.

Red Sox' Postseason Winning Streak versus the Angels: 10.

Good Management

Joe Torre managed the 1982 Atlanta Braves to a Division Championship. He later had some small degree of success with the New York Yankees: four World Series Championships, six American League pennants, ten Division Championships and two Wild Card playoff entries. Plus this year's Dodgers' NL West Championship.
Terry Francona has led the Boston Red Sox into the postseason in four of his five seasons at the helm. He won the 2004 and 2007 World Series.
Lou Piniella has won an American League Wild Card, six Division Championships and the 1990 World Series.
Ozzie Guillen has won two Division Championships and the 2005 World Series.
Mike Scioscia has won an American League Wild Card, four Division Championships and the 2002 World Series.
Joe Maddon is a baseball lifer who served for several years as Mike Scioscia's bench coach.
Charlie Manuel is a baseball lifer who has won four Division Championships.
Dale Sveum has all of twelve major league games managed under his belt. He did, however, serve as Terry Francona's third base coach for several years. (He replaced Ned Yost, who managed the Brewers through the first 150 games of this season. Yost worked for Bobby Cox for the better part of a decade.)
Torre played for Birdie Tebbets, Chuck Dressen and Red Schoendienst. Terry Francona played for Dick Williams, Pete Rose and Bill Virdon. Piniella played for Billy Martin, Bob Lemon, Jack McKeon, Virdon, Dick Howser and Yogi Berra. Scioscia played for Tommy Lasorda. Ozzie Guillen played for Tony LaRussa, Jim Fregosi and Bobby Cox. Charlie Manuel played for Billy Martin, Bill Rigney and Walter Alston. Dale Sveum played for Fregosi, LaRussa, Piniella, Jim Leyland and Joe Torre. In their playing careers, these managers performed under a Who's Who of baseball managers. (Joe Maddon never played in the Major Leagues.)
These are the eight managers left standing for baseball's postseason. These guys are good. Good managers make good teams great.
Success and/or a good pedigree matters.