Josh in Rogers Park

Seattle state of affairs re: motorists

2009-06-14T21:45:00.000-07:00

Seattle is a city that loves bicyclists more than motorists, at least if you live south of Capitol Hill, because Seward Park and Rainier Valley are viewed as less important to the city power brokers than those who live in Capitol Hill and the North End. Imagine if Lake Shore Drive was closed once or twice a week to bicyclists.

June 12, 2009

Hon. Jan Drago
Council Person
Transportation Committee
Seattle City Council
PO Box 34025Seattle, WA 98124-4025

Re: Transportation from Seward Park/Rainier Valley into center of city substandard

Dear Ms. Drago:

It is my understanding that you are on the Transportation Committee of the Seattle City Council. The reason that I am writing to you is because the transportation from Seward Park/Rainier Valley into the center of the city (i.e. Downtown, Capitol Hill, etc.) is substandard. First, for some unfathomable reason, Lake Washington Boulevard is closed every Sunday and Thursday during the summer, to accommodate the bicyclists. Secondly, on Rainier Avenue, between Martin Luther King Blvd. and McClellan, the city is doing a lot of construction and repaving of the road. I feel that the citizens of the Seward Park/Rainier Valley Neighborhood are being ill served.

In my humble opinion, Lake Washington Boulevard should be open to motorists on every other Sunday. There is no reason why the motorists should have to accommodate the bicyclists like this and deprive themselves of access to the center of the city.

Thank you kindly for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely yours,

Joshua Normand

wy the Miss California controversy matters

2009-05-10T11:17:00.000-07:00

Why is this Miss California thing such a big deal? Because the Political Left and the Democratic Party Establishment want to deny conservatives or traditionalists a platform to reach the public. They have ruined Miss Prejean but when they remove her crown, they will be sending a message to future contestants, toe the line on Homosexuality and other cultural issues or else you will be punished and not permitted to enter. This is very sad and we traditionalists need to wake the hell up (pardon my language) and stop this from happening. The Miss California committee is interested in setting a precedent and message to all traditionalists, you have no place in popular culture. We have to resist this. Not everyone is fortunate enough to be locked away in a religious or traditional setting. Television, movies and music are accessed by more than 85% of the American population and for us to ignore this is foolish.

goodbye

2008-12-20T21:16:00.000-08:00

As I no longer live in West Rogers Park, having moved back to Seattle about two weeks ago, this is my last post on this blog. It was nice to have been in RP, but it's time to move on, and as we hear in the political world, time for change.

Good luck to all Rogers Park and Chicago residents.

Josh

sports ramblings

2008-12-04T09:09:00.000-08:00

1) Congratulations to Gonzaga's men's basketball team on winning the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Florida last week and reaching the fifth spot in the polls. Gonzaga beat Oklahoma State, Maryland and Tennessee to win this event. Unfortunately, the best team in the country is North Carolina and they would beat Gonzaga by at least a dozen. That can wait until March.

2)Oklahoma (or Choke-lahoma), Ohio State and Florida State are football teams that I can NEVER root for. They're a bunch of bullies who run up the score on inferior teams, but lose to the good ones. I bet USC would beat Chokelahoma in the BCS title game by ten to seventeen points.

3) Seattle and Washington state sports teams need to get difference makers if they ever expect to win anything. Nice guys finish last, unfortunately.

Zag hoops

2008-11-25T09:41:00.000-08:00

Gonzaga could win Old Spice in Orlando.

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/27828394/

ND is in Maui, hopefully they will beat the Horns tonight and beat the Heels tomorrow.

college hoops update

2008-11-21T10:16:00.001-08:00

1) Gonzaga is 2-0 after easy wins over Montana State and Idaho.
Next is the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Florida. Oklahoma State is first, followed by Maryland/Michigan State. MSU is ranked. Potentially a Georgetown matchup for the title. As a Big East follower, I would LOVE for Gonzaga to face Georgetown. They will play UConn in Seattle at Key Arena on December 20th.

2) Good win for the Illini yesterday at Vanderbilt over the Commodores, 69-63. McCamey had 23 and Davis had 11 points and 12 boards before fouling out. Next weekend, the Illini are in South Padre Island, Texas for a tournament.

3) To my friend at Chase who's a big Wolverine fan, I love your team even more for beating UCLA in NY last night. Even if the football team stinks, at least the basketball team beat UCLA.

interesting thought

2008-11-20T14:02:00.000-08:00

In light of the historic nature of the presidential campaign, I wish to post these words from a guy named William Hennessy. I don't know if he's a neo-con, leprechaun or paleo-con, but it is worth noting.

Having identified some quintessential conservative groups, I believe I must devote some space to several organizations which do not represent conservatism in any way shape or form, but do provide ammunition for our enemies to use against us. Among these groups are the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), the Aryan Nation, the Skinheads , and the American Nazi Party.

These groups do not support limited government, they support government activism of the worst kind. They do not promote individual freedom, but group hate. They do not advance freedom, but seek to restrict virtually every aspect of life through terror. They oppose seemingly everything but drunk and stupid. These groups, for the most part, seek to eliminate Blacks, Asians, Mediterraneans, Hispanics, Jews, Catholics, liberals, intellectuals, the wealthy, the poor, libertarians, civil libertarians, agnostics, etc.

Seattle sports in the toilet

2008-11-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

With losses by the Hawks, Huskies and Cougars, the three team football total is 3-28. Cougs were shut out 31-0 by ASU and the snake Erickson, Huskies lost 27-7 to the Bruins and the Hawks lost 26-20 to the Arizona Cardinals. That is a total of 84-27 if you're counting.

BTW, Team Affirmative Action, aka Washington Huskies' basketball team, lost at Portland Saturday night, 80-74, two losses to non-BCS teams, lost first round of CBI to Valparaiso. Pretty sad.

Thank G-d for Gonzaga hoops. Maybe they will get on a roll. WSU will be okay, but unless they have an Adam Morrison, I don't expect more than an 8-10 seed and a first round loss to a bigger name school.

update

2008-11-11T15:58:00.000-08:00

Well I haven't blogged here because of some changes in my life. Moreover, when I do feel like blogging or getting things off of my chest, it's usually on facebook (www.facebook.com .

Anyway, we should hope for a good new year both Jewishly, secularly and security-wise regardless of who runs Washington, City Hall, Springfield or Olympia.

Great day for Washington Husky baseball fans, Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants won the 2008 NL Cy Young Award today over Brandon Webb of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the 2006 winner.

Dustin Pedroia

2008-10-20T11:46:00.000-07:00

Dustin Pedroia is the new Derek Jeter, in case anyone who was watching the ALCS on TBS was paying attention. He received accolades like "he plays the game the right way" "he's the heart and soul of the Red Sox", he's a gamer and leader, etc.

Why is Buck Martinez such an expert on baseball. Is he not Canadian and considering how well the Toronto Blue Jays have done in the past ten to fifteen years, hiring a Blue Jay to guide viewers as to how "winners" play is a little silly. Ron Darling, the other analyst, was on the World Champion 1986 Mets so that's a little better. Personally, Paul O'Neill would do it for me.

sports musings

2008-10-07T08:41:00.000-07:00

1) That performance by the Cubs was atrocious. Even the 2001 Mariners waited until the ALCS to lose a series. Get Soriano out of here and send him to Texas, Seattle or Baltimore and eat 2/3 of his salary.
2) The Bears may yet win their division which would mean more Lovie Smith, which isn't good. In order to succeed today, these one-dimensional defensive coordinators who preach defense, ball control and 16-13 games, don't work for more than a year or two.
3) Northwest sports is TERRIBLE. Seahawks, Huskies and Cougars lost by a combined score of 120-23. At least Chicago has the Bears and Illini.

book I recommend

2008-10-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

During Rosh Hashana, I read and re-read Flipping Out, by Yashar Books. In that book, there was a reference to The Outside World, by Tova Mirvis. The book was printed by Knopf Books. It was really good and illustrates the way that Modern Orthodox people grew up in the past 20 years or so.

Shana Tova

2008-09-26T10:59:00.001-07:00

Shana Tovah to all bloggers out there. Enjoy Rosh Hashana 5769.

MLB Awards

2008-09-16T09:49:00.000-07:00

Here are my picks for the 4 major awards in the AL & NL.

NL MVP: David Wright, even if the Mets lose to the Phillies, I think he's the most complete player in the NL. No Phillie deserves the award, good players, not great. Howard strikes out too much, Rollins didn't run out ground balls, Utley doesn't have enough speed.

NL Cy Young: Webb or Lincecum. As of Labor Day, it was Webb's award to lose. Now, with the losses and the Snakes falling behind the Dodgers, give it to Lincy.

NL ROY: Soto, Volquez is second

NL Manager: Torre, yes the Dodgers have a big payroll, but getting the Dodgers in the race was a tremendous job.

AL MVP: Probably Pedroia, give Josh Hamilton a Silver Slugger.

AL Cy Young: Lee of Cleveland, a NO-Brainer!!!

AL ROY: ???, any one have a good idea, let me know.

AL Manager: Maddon of Tampa or Gardy of Minnesota.

quick football thoughts

2008-09-15T10:57:00.000-07:00

1) The NFL does not let the game breathe. There are too many games where a ton of penalties are called. For example, in the Bears-Panthers game yesterday, there were 22 penalties called, 12 on Chicago and 10 on Carolina. 10 of the 14 games played yesterday had at least ten penalties called. One of them was not the Pats-Jets because as we sports fans all know, Bill Belichick is so smart and his team is filled with geniuses who never commit penalties.

2) Too many defensive coaches in the NFL. I like the Bill Walsh approach. Unfortunately, there are too many Lovie Smiths and John Foxes and Mike Tomlins around.

Washington State sports PITIFUL or for the Dawgs

2008-09-14T16:31:00.000-07:00

To all Washington State Sports fans:

Although I live in Chicago, the Midwest, I still follow and root for the Hawks, Mariners, Cougars, Huskies and Zags.

The Mariners got swept by the Angels and helped Frankie Rodriguez (K-Rod) set a record for saves in a season with 58. He will be a wealthy man by Christmas (or Hanukkah).
The Seahawks lost at HOME to the 49ers in overtime.
Washington State flew to Waco to play the Baylor Bears early because of the hurricane and lost 45-17 and Washington embarrassed itself at home against Oklahoma 55-14.

This is the nadir of Washington State sports that I can recall. No Sonics (now in Oklahoma) and every team is pitiful. I hope that Gonzaga has an ENORMOUS YEAR. However, the schedule will be really tough.

By the way, the Bears lost as well, U of I escaped over Louisiana Lafayette and Northworstern romped over SIU. Yippee.

sad story

2008-09-11T10:34:00.000-07:00

Here's a really sad story out of Virginia. Thanks to Mark Levin for telling his audience about this last night. It's a story of the ultimate sacrifice that a father made for his son, can't measure it in money, awards, offices won, etc.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/09/AR2008090903691.html?hpid=moreheadlines

I think that as religious Jews or all Jews (don't mean to be discriminatory) in light of the fact that Rosh Hashana is less than three weeks away, as we read the story of the Akedah, the binding of Isaac to the altar as G-d told Abraham, that we think about this man, Mr. Vander Woude of Virginia who saved his disabled son from death.

Shabat shalom,

Josh

Burleson out for season

2008-09-09T08:08:00.000-07:00

While Nate Burleson isn't a QB, plays in the West Coast and doesn't date anyone famous, his being out for the season is almost as crippling as Tom Brady is to New England.

This year can't get any worse for Northwest sports fans. No NBA team, lousy baseball team, terrible college football teams and a weakened NFL team.

When does Gonzaga practice? Heck when does Tony Bennett and the Cougs practice?

sports thoughts

2008-09-08T10:00:00.000-07:00

1) As someone who attended classes at the University of Washington, and has family members with a lot of contact with UW, I was very disappointed in this weekend's effort against BYU.

In my humble opinion, this game proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Ty Willingham cannot lead this team to a 6-6 record. Giving up two long fourth quarter drives to BYU, as well as the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, shows me that he cannot close the deal. I would fire Mr. Willingham now (today) and appoint someone on a temporary basis for the rest of the season and when the season is over, call Missouri to get Gary Pinkel to come to Seattle.

WSU's performance was abominable, however, the coach is a young guy and the talent level isn't where it should be, but in a couple of years, WSU will be better than UW.

Seahawks shouldn't have been embarrassed by Buffalo. It is a losing organization that was good 15 years ago.

The Toronto Blue Jays have been playing better, yet their GM, J.P. Ricciardi, should not keep his job because he has not improved this team significantly in seven years.

Regarding the NCAA unsportsmanlike conduct rule about excessive celebration. This is a LIBERAL attempt by know-it-all NCAA administrators who are 75 years old and living in 1955 and expecting kids to behave like Wally Cleaver. These people think that we're too stupid to figure out how to behave, so they legislate it. Once you have a rule like that, you have to apply it all the way in all situations. Attacking the referees doesn't address the problem. They simply enforce the rules. I care about the rule-makers and their snobby attitude.

stuff

2008-09-08T09:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I had a nice weekend and saw some good people over shabbos up around Touhy Avenue.

One good thing that happened was earlier in the week, I got back my tallis (tallit) with new tzitzit (fringes) that are stronger than the ones I had previously had. A shout out to Kesher Stam for their good work. It's good to have both Rosenblum's and Kesher Stam, they have different purposes.

On Labor Day, I heard a shiur/lecture on Shidduchim from one of the respected Rabbis in West Rogers Park. While he made some good points, it was geared at a different audience, one younger and frummer. However, the "modern" side does not have a Rabbi or an adequate response, at least over here. Telling someone to go to Shabatons in NY/PA is a dodge, not a good answer.

women sports reporters

2008-09-04T15:07:00.000-07:00

One thing that amazes me is how there are quotas for women sports reporters. There are the tomboys, think Amy Lawrence of ESPN Radio and Suzy Kolber of ESPN TV. Also Jill Carlson of Fox 32 in Chicago. However, then there are people like Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson so as to give men "eye candy" while watching the game.

What gives? For example, why can't Fox 32 hire Sarah Kustok and dump Jill Carlson. Carlson is older and a tomboy and Kustok is younger, prettier and a former athlete.

Thank you Fox 32, www.myfoxchicago.com

Also, please explain to me why Jack (A!@#$%^&*() Conaty is your political reporter. He is a Liberal Hack who loves Daley and the Dems.

sports thoughts

2008-09-04T14:54:00.000-07:00

1) Since my whole life has been spent in Seattle, Chicago and New York, I have never warmed to teams from the South. While the citizens of Texas, Florida, etc. are nice people, their teams really bore me and it amazes me that the Seattle Mariners and Chicago Cubs both lost series this week to teams from Texas. Texas is one of the most unsophisticated baseball states around despite the fact that many good players hail from that state.

2) I like the Saints in the NFC to surprise and if the Seahawks had good running backs or wideouts, I would pick them to win 12 games. 10-6 will be enough in the NFC Worst.

Gustav and the point of a convention

2008-08-31T14:21:00.000-07:00

In light of Hurricane Gustav, the GOP is curtailing some of the activities in the convention.

What is the point of a political convention? To call roll and nominate a ticket (President and Vice President). However, the whole thing should NOT be canceled. Why? Isn't that heartless of you Josh.

Well, the Minneapolis-St. Paul region allocated hotel space and an arena for four days, plus vendors. Additionally, the Minnesota Twins baseball team went on the road for two weeks to accommodate the RNC. Should we send the Twins team down to the Gulf Coast to help with the relief effort?

Let's use a more practical example. Suppose one wants to get married, B'Ezrat Hashem in a nice hall. However, there is a natural disaster in one of the cities of one of the guests. Do you cancel the whole wedding? Not unless there's a death in the family or Lo Alenu a terrorist attack.

All that has to happen at a political convention , whether the Constitution Party, DNC, RNC or the Greens, is to call roll, approve the platform and nominate a ticket. Anything above and beyond that is gravy. If the RNC wants to meet in the Halliburton headquarters, be my guest.

By the way, how come the Democrats didn't get flack for this greek temple set-up at Invesco Field at Mile High? Isn't that elaborate.

There are Rabbis who have proposed a set of guidelines for a simcha, limiting the size of the event, how many guests can be invited and so on and so forth.

All comments are appreciated.

Quick thing

2008-08-26T17:16:00.001-07:00

Check out this citizenship test that I saw on AOL. It cracked me up.

http://noticias.aol.com/inmigracion/quiz/citizenship?icid=100214839x1207903332x1200471466

various things

2008-08-26T16:40:00.000-07:00

1) The weather is quite nice.

2) I wish that Bristol (ESPN) wasn't so East Coast Centric in their selection of teams to appear on Sunday Night Baseball (SNB). Why should the Phillies be on 4 times in 6 weeks, 8/3, 8/17, 8/24/ & 9/7? I don't get it.

3) I have no idea where the 2012 Conventions will be held. But the Dems should hold it in a "red state" like Cincy or Cleveland or St. Louis and the Republicans should hold it in a place like Milwaukee, Detroit or Pittsburgh.

4) For Baalei Teshuva who are "rightish" oriented: Please explain to me why the way you have chosen means that those of us Modern Orthodox/Religious Zionist are somehow "not as good" as you are.

sorry to see him leave

2008-08-18T15:24:00.000-07:00

Last week, someone who I used to listen to on the radio in NYC left the station. His name is Chris Russo (AKA Mad Dog). He was paired with Mike Francesa, formerly of CBS Sports, for close to 20 years.

There will NEVER be another Mike and the Mad Dog. Mac Jurko and Harry couldn't carry their bags. Same with Boers and Bernstein of that loser station 670 the Score.

Good luck to you Doggie. I will miss you when Bob Heussler convenes the Crack Committee in September.

Mariner highlight

2008-08-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

On Thursday night, one of the few highlights of this year, besides Ichiro breaking the career steals record for a Mariner and Niehaus being inducted into the Hall of Fame, happened. Raul Ibanez, a person who I have roundly criticized, hit a walk-off home run against the Tampa Bay Rays. Normally, I say who cares? This year, the Rays are for real.

See above picture. That's Ibanez.

sports tidbits and clarification

2008-08-04T16:15:00.001-07:00

1) Although I would love to head down to Crown Point, an hour and a half in a car to hang with conservatives is a bit much.

2) Now that Niehaus is in the Hall of Fame, I think it's time to put Skip Caray or Tom Cheek in the Hall of Fame. Skip Caray passed away last night, he was the Braves' announcer for at least 20 years. He should be in next summer in Cooperstown. Tom Cheek, who also recently passed away, was the Blue Jays announcer for many years. He called two world champion teams, 1992 and 1993 Blue Jays and called Joe Carter's famous home run in Game 6 of the 1993 World Series against Mitch Williams.

3) Enough with Favre. Mad Dog, you and I are in agreement on this. He isn't the second coming of Paul Bunyan, let alone Paul Revere.

great cafe

2008-07-31T16:10:00.000-07:00

For those conservatives or traditional-minded people (even Constitution Party aficionados and Ron Paul supporters) who dislike Starbucks and Caribou Coffee because of the narcissistic liberalism/Marxism, there's an answer in Northwest Indiana. It's called the Conservative Cafe. Unfortunately for Frum Jews, the food items are not kosher. Maybe someone can contact B&B's Bagels or Bagel Country to provide a similar theme.

Here's the website
http://www.conservativecafe.com

Jewish stuff

2008-07-31T16:06:00.000-07:00

1) In my humble opinion, I think that some people who have the time, should try to organize a small singles event in the Chicago area, preferably around Labor Day weekend. I think that there are enough people in West Rogers Park, Lakeview, Evanston and Hyde Park who would benefit from such an event.

2) Insularity in the Jewish world has a price. Yes, limits need to be set on what comes into the home (Television, racy movies, violent movies, etc.). However, just because some people are fortunate enough to do so, doesn't mean that all Jews, or even a quarter of us, are able to do so.
Since Shabat is Rosh Chodesh Av, and it's the Yahrtzeit of Aharon HaCohen (Aaron the High Priest), I think that we should keep this in mind heading into the Nine Days.

Have a shabat shalom.

Josh

Seattle teams, what SHOULD be done

2008-07-30T15:27:00.000-07:00

As a Seattle fan (although I may end up rooting more for Chicago teams), I feel that the Mariners should do the following in the next two weeks.
Get rid of, by trade or release, the following players.
Raul Ibanez
Willie Bloomquist
Adrian Beltre
Jose Vidro
Jamie Burke
Jarrod Washburn
Miguel Batista

None of these players will help a championship team, in my humble opinion. All are overvalued to some degree.

Seattle Seahawks

Running Back, Tight End and Kicker are potential trouble spots for this team.
Julius Jones is decent, not great, hopefully he'll be motivated to be the Seahawks' number one running back. We need one of the tight ends to be a safety valve for Matt Hasslebeck, just like Shockey was in New York or Witten is in Dallas.

stuff

2008-07-29T16:27:00.000-07:00

1) I am glad that Dave Niehaus was recognized by the Baseball Hall of Fame for his long career and was the recipient of the Ford Frick Award this past weekend. I can't think of a more deserving man for this honor. Next year, Jon Miller of ESPN, San Francisco and Baltimore fame should get it. Here's the text of the speech.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2008/07/27/2008076435.pdf

2) Santo and Hughes are getting worse by the day. Hughes sounds like a know-it-all teacher and Santo is the uncle trying to dance to the Do the Hustle tune. Maybe Bleed Cubbie Blue will provide some insight. www.bleedcubbieblue.com

3) Paul Konerko will likely be gone after this year, IMHO. His bat speed is not what it was and first base is an easy position to replace.

Bears

2008-07-25T08:28:00.000-07:00

Why were David Haugh and Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune www.chicagotribune.com.
so irritated at Devin Hester holding out? McCaskey/Halas are cheapskates and don't pay stars enough, particularly at the skill positions. Urlacher is a very good linebacker, but you win with quarterbacks in the NFL, not linebackers and defensive tackles.

They could have traded for Donovan McNabb of Philadelphia, but the Bears are so cheap and stuck in the Halas era when QB's made 50 thousand a year.

Curious to hear the reaction of the Windy City Gridiron www.windycitygridiron.com

baseball thoughts and poor columnists

2008-07-25T08:16:00.000-07:00

When I mentioned condolences on Tuesday to Chicago baseball fans on the passing of Mr. Jerome Holtzman, I forgot about Bobby Murcer who passed away two weeks ago, right before the All-Star break.

Murcer was a good player, better broadcaster and better human being. I wish there were more Bobby Murcers, I hope that honors his memory.

My five least favorite sports columnists

1) Jay Mariotti, Chicago Sun-Times, why the Sun-Times thinks he's better than Telander is beyond me. Telander isn't loud enough, maybe that's his flaw according to Stu Cink, the editor.

2) Mike Lupica, New York Daily News. A whiny New York-centric pantywaist of a columnist.

3) Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times. His pieces of brilliance are featured on one of my favorite websites, www.firejoemorgan.com. Suffice it to say, he loves the old NL way of playing and if he could put together a team, it would have Juan Pierre, Reggie Willits, Willie Bloomquist, David Eckstein and other hustlers and guys with intangibles.

4) Mike Downey, Chicago Tribune. A walking cliche if there ever was one. Also a pro-Obama guy.

5) Bill Conlin, Philadelphia Daily News. Used 1960's logic in defending Rollins' choice as MVP last year over Matt Holliday, who was clearly a better player.

stuff to think about

2008-07-24T09:04:00.000-07:00

First of all, Chicago has been blessed with a lot of rain this month and no 100 degree days, unlike other parts of the country. Also, thank G-d, we're nowhere near Hurricane Dolly.

Secondly, the citizens of Cook County HAVE GOT TO THROW OUT STROGER and repeal the sales tax hike. No middle class person can afford to have his or her taxes raised.

For all of the progressives and liberals in Rogers Park and other parts of Chicago, explain to me why tax hikes are good.

time away

2008-07-22T15:07:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Facebook and a long and painful fast of the 17th of Tammuz, I have not been blogging.

1) Condolences to the Sun-Times, Tribune and baseball fans in Chicago on the passing of Jerome Holtzman, inventor of the "save" statistic in baseball. While the SABR guys may not have loved him, he was a long time writer and spent a lot of years covering baseball, (also an MOT).

2) Five days until the highlight of the Mariners season, the induction of Dave Niehaus into the Hall of Fame in the Broadcaster's wing. It's pathetic, but consider the alternative, Mariners fans and www.lookoutlanding.com people. Kvetching about Bedard only pitching 4.3 innings because he reached 95 pitches or watching Ibanez hit into another Double play.

3)If there is justice, Israel should not release another prisoner to Lebanon or Hezbollah for at least 10 years. What a black eye for the Jewish people that was. We look like 98-pound weaklings.

4) Also justice to throw out Todd Stroger and any other Chicago do-gooder tax hiker. Spend within your means, not above it.

Josh's First half awards, Baseball

2008-07-14T15:33:00.000-07:00

Here are my 2008 MLB awards for the first half of this year.

AL MVP, Someone other than Hamilton, simply because he plays for Texas. Maybe Carlos Quentin or Manny Ramirez.

AL Cy Young: Francisco Rodriguez (aka K-Rod) of the Anaheim Angels. No way should Cliff Lee, a glorified Jamie Moyer win this award on a disappointing Cleveland squad.

AL ROY: Jacoby Ellsbury, I assume he's eligible.

AL MOY (Manager of the Year): Maddon of Tampa, runner-up Gardenhire (AKA Gardy) of Minnesota.

Bust player: EB or Erik Doofus of the Seattle Mariners.

Boom Team: Tampa and Minny

NL MVP: Geovany Soto or Aramis Ramirez of the Cubs. No Phillie deserves this award, because they have won it two years in a row, under some controversy. Maybe David Wright of the Mets if the Mets overtake the Phillies.

NL Cy Young: Lincecum followed by Webb and or Volquez.

NL ROY: Volquez of Cincy

NL MOY: LaRussa, I know Cubs fans don't like him, but the Cardinals are always in contention. Fredi Gonzalez of the Marlins has done a good job as well.

Bust team: Colorado and San Diego, followed by the Mets

Boom Team: Brewers and Marlins

Worst FO (Front-Office) Move: The New York Mets firing Willie Randolph at 3 AM after a win on the West Coast. Whatever Randolph's faults were, and there are enough to dissect, he still should be treated with respect.

Second worst FO Move: Wade and Chacon smackdown/release. Chacon is no angel, but Wade didn't handle it so well.

Underrated move: Hendry getting Edmonds off of San Diego's scrap heap.

One wish: Can MLB invite AJ and Barrett to the ASG and have a tag team with Big Z?

tidbits

2008-07-13T13:35:00.000-07:00

1) Can someone in the Chicagoland or Illinois area explain to me why Ron Santo is still the lead analyst on Cubs Radio on WGN Radio AM 720 (www.wgnradio.com). All he does is holler when the Cubs win and groan when they lose.

2) Too many Tex-ASS Rangers on the All-Star team. Yes I know that Young, Kinsler, Bradley and Hamilton are doing well. But I wish to reward team success, not individual success.

Besides I despise the Tex-ASS Rangers, because they never win a darn thing. I wish Seattle would win every game against them. They have a hayseed owner named Tom Hicks who overspent to get A-Rod and then had to trade him.

Speaking of Alex Rodriguez, he is a SELFISH human being because of his decision to opt out of his contract on the last day of the World Series, overshadowing the Red Sox championship. Moreover, he was caught with Madonna, who is 15 years older than him, another intelligent move.

oil Companies

2008-07-09T17:39:00.000-07:00

I personally like the Oil Companies. We need them and their ingenuity and creativity in times of spiraling costs of food, clothes, etc.

I challenge any anti-Oil person to a debate on this issue.

baseball thoughts

2008-07-07T08:32:00.000-07:00

Since it's July, and in about three weeks, the trading deadline will be here, I wish to offer thoughts on what teams should do to improve themselves, or at least get rid of dead weight.

Seattle: Bad team, fired its manager, general manager and hitting coach. Next week, they need to release Richie Sexson, as Sexson no longer hits for a high enough average to be a MLB-Caliber first baseman or DH (Designated Hitter).
Next is trading Erik Bedard, preferably to a bad team. This guy is the biggest underachiever in the major leagues in a long time. His idea of a good game is 5-6 innings with 1-2 runs and 6-9 strikeouts. He won't pitch more than six innings because he's been trained to think that the starting pitcher is only supposed to last 6 innings or 100 pitches. Also, Raul Ibanez should be dealt to a dumb NL team who thinks that because he has a couple of 100 RBI seasons that he's a "run producer", when his RBI total is a result of his spot in the lineup.

Chicago Cubs: Outfield help (such as Ibanez). Since C.C. Sabathia was traded yesterday to Milwaukee, I don't have to wait for more nonsensical speculation on how coveted he is and how every contender should mortgage its future for three months of his services, before he gets $80 million dollars by Chanukah.

Here's a name that I would recommend, Roy (Doc) Halladay of Toronto. He's pitched in the majors for over ten years, has 121 wins, a Cy Young Award (2003) to his credit, and when healthy, averages 6-7 innings a start, unlike the doofus EB (Erik Bedard). Toronto is a sad franchise in a town that loves hockey, even if its current team stinks, the Toronto Maple Leafs. J.P. Ricciardi, do us lower 48 fans a favor and send Halladay to a real team that will play meaningful games in September and October.

San Francisco Giants: Dump these four overpaid veterans, Randy Winn, Ray Durham, Omar Vizquel and Rich Aurilia.

Cincy: Trade Ken Griffey Junior to a real team and turn the page on Adam Dunn. Better yet, an AL team should take a flyer on Dunn, he could also DH.

Los Angeles Dodgers: Get some offense, don't be afraid to deal your young but unproven players, (Kemp, Loney and Ethier) for some proven talent.

Anaheim (not LA) Angels: Boost your offense. Get someone like Carlos Lee from Houston.

Arizona: Hitters, Dunn, Ibanez, Lee and Willy Mo Pena (Washington) are good ideas. Even Pat Burrell of Philly, the hitter's version of Erik Doofus would be a help.

happy holiday

2008-07-02T13:37:00.000-07:00

Well, in less than 48 hours is the Fourth of July. It's a good holiday and a chance to be grateful that we live in a great country.

I am also inspired by people like Jon Will, George's son, who was born with Down's Syndrome, yet lives a productive life and works in the Washington Nationals clubhouse. As a matter of fact, I would suggest to his father (George) that Jon is eminently more qualified to be a general manager or assistant GM than many of the current GM's in Major League Baseball today. Seattle fans will agree with me on this point.

The point is, here's a guy who was dealt a poor deck and has made a decent life for himself.

political stuff

2008-07-01T09:27:00.000-07:00

1) Thanks to Todd Stroger and Mayor Daley and Bernie Stone, the sales tax in Chicago is now 10.25%. We need a strong LOCAL opposition party. Otherwise, these clowns will raise sales taxes every two years.

2) My friend's brother, Abe Katsman, wrote two good columns on Barack Obama and John McCain.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1204473064711&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1214492529435&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter

Enjoy these columns. I think one of them was linked to Drudge. www.drudgereport.com

random thoughts, sports and others

2008-06-30T15:29:00.000-07:00

1) I am so glad that interleague play is over in baseball. I know it's here to stay (unfortunately), but why 18 games? Who was riveted to the Jays and Braves matchup this weekend or the Pirates and Rays?

2) I have blogged before on this topic so I will sound like a broken record, but the NL style of play is INFERIOR to the AL style. The main reason is because the AL uses the DH and the NL doesn't. For example, the White Sox, a slightly above-average AL team, swept the Cubs at US Cellular Field this weekend and the Dodgers were held hitless by the Angels this weekend. Dodgers won 1-0. The next game, the Angels beat the Dodgers 1-0. This offensive ineptitude in baseball is ruining the sport. It will turn baseball into soccer (European football).

3) Good move by the Nets in trading Jefferson and turning the page on the Kidd era.

4) There was an editorial in this weekend's Tribune by Radley Balko of Reason Magazine about how Chicago is a very restrictive city in terms of a number of categories, Alcohol, Tobacco, Drugs, Sex, Gambling, Guns, Movement and Food. This is quite shameful, in my humble opinion. I thought we lived in America, not the Netherlands or some other weenie European country. Las Vegas was the least restrictive city, among the top 35. Louisville and Kansas City were also more relaxed on these issues.
Even if as a religious Jew, I can't partake in some of these activities, it is the overall attitude of the City officials that is troubling.

Think Bush is a cowboy

2008-06-25T10:15:00.000-07:00

Look at this cover photo of the Latest Limbaugh Letter. I would love to see this on the cover of Newsweek or Time.

This photo sponsored by KBR.

good fun spot

2008-06-24T15:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I went to the ESPN Zone on Ohio and Wabash to "take a break". It's a nice place. They have a lot of sports themed games, and I got to pretend that I was 16-19 for an hour.

Cubs-Sox series was fun to an extent. I personally don't care for interleague, because why should we tie up 11.1% of our schedule (Cubs, Mariners, etc.) with a team from another league with different rules? For every Cubs-Sox, Yankees-Mets and Dodgers-Angels series, there's a Nats-Mariners, Reds-Jays or Rockies-Royals series.

Thursday night is the NBA Draft and the Bulls have the number one pick, in case one hasn't heard. My hope is for the Bulls to snag Rose and trade Gordon or Hinrich.

Link to Sal's book

2008-06-20T11:03:00.000-07:00

Here's the link to Sal's book on amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/Paolantonio-Report-Overrated-Underrated-Players/dp/1600780253/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213984978&sr=8-1

sports book review

2008-06-20T10:51:00.000-07:00

Enough with Politics, luggage repair shops and shidduchim. Now it's time for a book review.

Recently, I rented The Paolantonio Report, by Sal Paolantonio of ESPN and the Philadelphia Inquirer. Go to www.amazon.com for more info.
It's a book about overrated and underrated NFL players, coaches and moments.

I don't agree with every one of his choices, but it makes for good debate.

One of my favorites is the overrated Quarterbacks section. Number one is Joe Namath, Namath is in the Hall of Fame because of the guaranteed upset of the Baltimore Colts 40 years ago. Outside of that game and 1967, in which Namath was the first professional quarterback to throw for over 4,000 yards, his career was pretty much pedestrian. Sorry Joe Benigno and other Jet fans, Joe Willie Namath is number one in overrated quarterbacks.

Bear fans will love this next selection and Cheeseheads will hate this. Brett Favre is #2. Yes he has 3 MVP's, won a Super Bowl in 1996-1997 and broke Marino's records for TD's and yards. However, he has also come up small in the playoffs, like the game in St. Louis when he threw 6 interceptions. Imagine if Grossman or Chris Chandler did that. But he's Brett Favre, the recipient of EVERY WHITE SPORTSWRITER'S adulation in the last ten years, and he's an American icon. Listen to Frank Caliendo, Fox's funnyman when he does his John Madden impression.

Running backs, Tiki Barber was #2 and Shaun Alexander was #4 in terms of being overrated. Barber was a decent back who got a lot of attention because he played for the Giants, not the Chiefs. Alexander has come up short in big games. However, I don't maintain that Alexander is a HOF-Caliber back. That being said, he's the best back in Seahawks' history. It's too bad that he won't be able to attain the heights of a Payton or Barry Sanders.

Most underrated backs: Ottis Anderson, former St. Louis Cardinals back who later played in NY and won a ring in Super Bowl 25 against the Bills. Also underrated was Roger Craig, back on the 84, 88 and 89 title teams of the Niners.

Sal, don't agree with everything, but it's a thought-provoking book and for that, me and other pigskin fans are grateful.

Luggage Repair Store

2008-06-19T07:55:00.000-07:00

This week, I went to a shop in Lakeview on Belmont and Broadway, to repair a broken handle on my briefcase. This shop did an excellent quality job at a reasonable price (under $20). I wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone in Lakeview, Rogers Park and all parts of Chicago.

The name of the store is New Quality Repair Shop II. Their address is 610 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago, IL 60657. Phone # is 773-281-7163 and they're open on weekdays from 8:30 am to 8 or 8:30 pm.

sports journalism not as good as it used to be

2008-06-17T15:46:00.000-07:00

One thing that I have noticed over the past five to ten years is that the quality of sports journalism is not as good as it used to be. It seems like there is more of it, but less of good quality than before.

First of all, you have the extremely idealistic/progressive columnists such as Harvey Araton of the New York Times and Rick Morrissey and Mike Downey of the Chicago Tribune. I feel like I am reading DNC talking points when I read their columns.

In addition, we have the John Kinkades and Phil Mushnicks who wish that we had a culture circa 1975.

Then we have the feminists or girls can do the same things that boys can. That's why we have the Sally Jenkins, Selena Roberts and Jill Carlsons of the world.

Finally we have the Metrosexuals/hip guys like Mike Greenberg and Erik Kuselias of ESPN.

Very few sports media figures are like Chet Coppock, currently of WMVP ESPN Radio 1000 in Chicago. He's practical yet somewhat old school in his approach.

In any event, these are my thoughts. If anyone out there, wants to comment, feel free to do so.

good weekend last week

2008-06-12T10:34:00.000-07:00

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending the annual Lawyers and Government Agencies Dinner sponsored by the JUF. It was good to meet different types of people in my field and outside of it.

There was a moving video in the beginning of the program, that lasted about ten minutes long, telling us what types of people JUF helps. It could be the Jewish Community and Hillel at Virginia Tech, after last year's massacre. It could be elderly folks at the CJE or it could be families in Israel.

Also, we had the privilege of listening to Bob Costas, the esteemed sportscaster, tell us some funny stories from his broadcasting career, whether in baseball or basketball or even in the Olympics. He will be anchoring NBC's Olympic coverage starting August 8th.

Then last shabat, I went down to Lakeview for shabat. It was the first time that I went when my cousins weren't there, as they moved to Skokie last year. I liked it, it was a little different, but a good and NEEDED change of pace.

The last thing that I want to comment on this post is how I feel that Modern Orthodox Judaism will separate into three camps. The first is the Modern Orthodox Machmir camp, which is modern in terms of secular education and livelihood (number of attorneys, accountants, etc.) but closer to the Yeshiva world in terms of dress, commitment to learning and aversion to mixed meals and other events where men and women would mingle.

The second camp is what I call the old-school Modern Orthodox. This camp is a little more well off than some of the members of the first camp. In general, women in this camp aren't as careful about covering their hair and wearing long skirts. Their numbers are diminishing, as evidenced by the fact that Camp Moshava, which used to have four or five locations, now only has three or four. This camp is traditionally Orthodox, and would not be comfortable with women leading the Tefillah or a Woman's megillah reading.

The last camp is what has been referred to by some as Open Orthodoxy. They are open to changes, particularly within social areas like justice for the disadvantaged, making sure the slaughterhouses are humane, and other related causes.

This camp may be closer to Conservative Judaism in some respects, particularly with respect to the gender role in Judaism. My hope is that these three can find some more common ground.

Chicago on an upswing

2008-06-11T15:58:00.000-07:00

Chicago sports is on an upswing, despite the best efforts of some running backs.

One, the Cubs are a major league best 27-8 at the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field at the Corner of Clark and Addison.
Two, the Sox lead the AL Central by over six games over the Twins (aka the Piranhas) and by over seven over the Cleveland Indians.
Three, last night, the Chicago Wolves beat the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Penguins 5-2 to win the Calder Cup, the Stanley Cup of the AHL, a triple A hockey league. I saw the Wolves crush the Icehogs over Thanksgiving Weekend and thought that they had a chance to go a long way. Wolves are a good team. Now if the Blackhawks can start winning then we'd have something going.

Also, the Chicago Rush (arena football team) have clinched their division and are going to the AFL playoffs again. They won the AFL title in 2006, not as impressive as Da Bearss, but still quite good.

Vinny Del Negro was hired by the Bulls. Give Pax 2 months and he can find you a coach.

Dvar Torah for Shavuot

2008-06-05T12:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a good dvar torah for Shavuot.

Good dvar torah I heard this afternoon. In Parshat Naso we read about the story of the sotah, woman accused of adultery. She drinks water with a potion and a piece of paper on it with Hashem's name. Hashem's name is erased. Why is this done? To maintain shalom bayis (marital harmony) in the home. This Rabbi's chavruta said an interesting vort, in Judaism we would rather erase Hashem's name to preserve peace. The Yishmaelim (Muslims) kill themselves in the name of Allah.He also said that Avraham represents Chessed (kindness), Yitzchok represents Gevurah (strength) and Yaakov represents Torah. Chessed is great but it can be misused and lead to arayot (promiscuity), Gevurah is good, but if it's misused, it can lead to shefichat damim (murder). Torah is the right balance between Chessed and Gevurah.

Shabat shalom and Moadim L'Simcha.

congrats to Wings

2008-06-05T10:26:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to the Detroit Red Wings who won the 2008 Stanley Cup last night, with a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins last night in Pittsburgh at the Mellon Arena. Another hockey team inched closer to a championship in Wilkes-Barre, PA. as the Chicago Wolves beat the SWB Pens last night 6-1. In any event, good win for the South Siders last night at the Cell as Paul Konerko hit a walk-off homer in the 15th inning to give the Sox a 6-4 win over the Royals.

Cubs finally lost a game last night in San Diego. Maddux didn't win but pitched well.

As far as Clemens and Bonds are concerned, I think here's an important lesson. Sometimes, a proud star athlete stays around too long and then people take shots at him. I still maintain that both of these guys are slam-dunk Hall of Famers.

In honor of Dave Niehaus being inducted into Cooperstown, on the top of this post is a picture from February with the Press Conference indicating that he won the Frick Award.

sorry but have to mention politics

2008-06-04T09:22:00.000-07:00

Recently, I said that most of this blog would not be devoted to politics. Well, after last night, I have to break that "pledge".

Congrats to the Obama campaign for finally ending this primary process. From the national point of view, this race shows how much we've slipped as a nation. A man with little national experience, who was a community activist who speaks decently (not as great as Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann make him out to be) who happens to be African American and be 6 feet tall with large ears is the Democratic nominee. The Democratic Party was the party of Harry Truman, Warren Magnuson and Scoop Jackson, even Zell Miller. Now it's the party of Harry Reid, Barack Obama and Charles Schumer.

On the Republican side, we have a war hero who has been in Washington for over 20 years and is against free speech, originalist judges and vulnerable to the global warming hoax. The Republican Party was the party of Robert Taft, Barry Goldwater, Jesse Helms and Ronald Reagan. Now it's the party of Lindsey Graham, John McCain, Susan Collins and the country clubbers.

Before I jump in with Chuck Baldwin and the US Constitution Party, I must say that I like the Constitution Party for local offices such as state senator, representative and Governor, even US Senator. However, with their isolationist tendencies, it would be really hard for me to pull the lever for them in November. I will try, but I need to see more and read more from Baldwin and his group.

Of course, I may be put in Cherem (excommunication) for such ideas. Just join Jack(A!@#$%^) Conaty and the Chicago political establishment and vote Democratic early and often. The Chicago Democratic Machine makes Moscow or Warsaw look like Salt Lake City or Birmingham, Alabama.

favorites and non-favorites

2008-06-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

In the following sports, here are my favorites

MLB: Seattle Mariners though they're out of it now.

Other teams I will root for, Philadelphia, Cleveland and if they make it, Colorado.

Don't like the Yankees but I respect them and I do confess that I enjoy John Sterling, their bombastic play by play announcer. It is High... It is Far... It is GONNE!!!!!!!!!!!!

An A-Bomb for A-Rod and of course, ballgame over, Yankees win.... th-UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Yankees win!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Take that Phil Mushnick of the NY Post.

NFL: Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears aka Da Bearssssss!!!!!!!!

AFC New England Patriots, spying or no spying.

Can't stand the Lions and the Raiders. Don't get the fascination that everyone has every year about the Arizona Cardinals. They're the LA Clippers of the NFL.

sports thoughts

2008-06-02T08:25:00.000-07:00

One, The Cubs are playing great, if they play decently on the road, starting tonight in San Diego, I expect them to be playing in October for a trip to the World Series.

Two: Kudos to WMVP, ESPN Radio 1000, for carrying Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Saturday, between Pittsburgh and Detroit. Detroit won 2-1 and has a commanding 3-1 series lead. Game 5 is tonight. I expect by 10 pm Chicago time that the Wings will be getting ready to hoist the Cup.

Three: Is it possible for ESPN to have one of these teams on Sunday Night Baseball? Florida, Arizona or Anaheim? I would say Colorado but they have a terrible record because their top four players are on the Disabled List (DL).

various thoughts

2008-05-29T15:16:00.000-07:00

A few things on my mind.

One is my dislike of the self-righteous attitude that the National League has in its steadfast refusal to utilize the DH. How can it be that every minor league in the US as well as the AL uses it but the sanctimonious National League refuses to on the grounds that they're either a) "old-school" or b) too pure? If National League pitchers could hit, then it would be one thing. However, most pitchers do not hit particularly well. There are a few exceptions, such as Micah Owings of the Arizona Diamondbacks. I would like to hear from both sides of town about this issue, White Sox and Cubs fans.

Two: A few weeks ago, Richie Sexson, a fading player for the Seattle Mariners, threw his batting helmet at the Texas Rangers pitcher and instigated a fight. He was suspended for five games. The Texas announcers ripped him roundly. To all Tex-ASS Rangers fans, let me say this:

Your team is in no position to give lectures on sportsmanship and winning. I will accept lectures from Red Sox and Yankees fans, but not rural Texas fans with pickup trucks.

Three: Speaking of the pot calling the kettle black, Dan McNeil of ESPN 1000 is in no position to lecture recently deposed talk show host Mark Madden of ESPN Radio in Pittsburgh. This guy McNeil was suspended for over two weeks last year for calling a Comcast Chicago female employee the B word (ask me offline what that word is) and in 2006, got into a major tussle with co-host Harry Teinewitz where both parties were suspended for a couple of weeks. No wonder ESPN 1000 likes DeFalco. Even if he doesn't have wide horizons, he stays out of trouble.

Stanley Cup finals not what I want

2008-05-27T08:37:00.000-07:00

The Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins are playing this week for the Stanley Cup. Detroit has won the first two games by a combined score of 7-0. I don't like these teams or cities because a) they're union cities, Detroit for autoworkers and Pittsburgh for steelworkers and b) These cities aren't big enough to draw fans who aren't from Detroit or Pittsburgh. New York and San Jose would have been my preference. The Rangers would draw New York fans and people who hate New York teams winning.

In any event, the Chicago Wolves are playing the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Penguins on Thursday for the Calder Cup, the AHL (Triple A hockey) Championship. Good luck to the Wolves.

For more information log onto www.chicagowolves.com or www.theahl.com .

Indiana Jones and other weekend stuff

2008-05-27T08:27:00.000-07:00

Well, my Dad came in for the weekend. He was working in Indiana so it was easier to stop over in Chicago for shabat. It was a nice time.

Sunday afternoon I went with my cousins to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. It was a good movie, maybe not as good as the previous Indiana Jones movies of the 1980's, but good nonetheless. As an observant Jew, it is harder and harder to find good movies to watch. Most of them have schmutz (literally means filth, in practice, is used to described nude/sex scenes in movies) or some of these movies are shoot-em-ups which are boring. See the Rambo movies or anything with Steven Segall. Some are politically oriented such as Fahrenheit 9/11 by Michael Moore.

I don't want to totally give away the movie but there are some twists in this movie involving the Jones family. There were previews for some other summer movies such as Hancock, starring Will Smith. I would consider seeing that one. Wall-E a Disney animation film is coming out soon as well.

random sports thoughts

2008-05-20T16:03:00.000-07:00

Some of these thoughts are Seattle-related, others more general.

The Mariners are in for a long year, even if they somehow can pry Ken Griffey Jr. out of Cincinnati. The team has too many singles hitters on it and not enough multi-talented players.

I really hope that the Seahawks can make one more trip to the Super Bowl before the core of the team gets too old. It may be a while before they get back if they can't do it this year. Arizona and San Francisco will get better and are much younger without the age that the Hawks' stars have.

It's a good thing that the Cubs and Sox are off to decent starts, because we don't have much else in this town to feel optimistic about. I have no confidence in the Bears or Bulls and even if the Blackhawks young talent base makes the playoffs next year, they won't be a Stanley Cup contender for a couple of years. Usually a team needs to take its lumps in the playoffs before breaking through.

The San Antonio Spurs sure are good. A smaller city version of the New England Patriots. Even one of their stars is married to an attractive actress, just like the Pats' Brady is with Gisele Bundchen. I think they will top the Lakers in 6 or 7 games.

Question for people

2008-05-16T08:32:00.000-07:00

In the last few months, the price of gas has shot up tremendously, and we are now paying over $4 a gallon for gasoline. It used to be around 2-3 dollars a gallon. One thing that I advocate is drilling in ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge). I know that there are a lot of environmentally conscious people in Chicago and other parts of the country who are adamantly opposed to such a thing. We keep importing oil from the Saudis and another reason why food prices are up is because we are using more corn to produce ethanol. That leaves less corn available for food.

While I personally take mass transit, A) I don't care for it so much B) It is less convenient in Chicago than other eastern cities and C) Many people NEED cars to get around. How can this oil problem be solved?

Rooftop event

2008-05-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

Well the Rooftop event was good. I met a lot of nice young professional people. Moreover the Ark hopefully raised a decent amount of money. While the cover charge was steeper than normal, they had to pay to rent the Rooftop, food and personnel.

It's too bad that the only single people who attend these types of events are either really Modern WRP types or Lakeview/Gold Coast types. However, it is the loss of those who use "frumkeit" as an excuse to avoid meeting members of the opposite sex.

Enough about that. The game was great, although after the sixth inning, when it was 12-2, I lost interest in it since the other team, San Diego, doesn't have the offense to come back from ten runs down.

Zambrano pitched well and the whole offense contributed. I don't remember anyone with more than 2-3 RBI's.

A Cub game is a happening. If there are Sox fans who frequent this site, I am sure that Sox games are fun, but Bridgeport is not Wrigleyville.

The neighborhood surrounding Yankee Stadium is not a place for the young professionals and the same goes for Shea Stadium. I don't know about Boston and Fenway Park. Red Sox fans can let me know about the atmosphere near Fenway Pahhk.

Flipping Out? a few 18 year olds or a whole community?

2008-05-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

I bought Flipping Out?Myth or Fact: The Impact of the “Year in Israel” by three YU scholars, Shalom Berger, Daniel Jacobson and Chaim I Waxman. The book was a study about the impact that many Jewish Orthodox teenagers do today which is to spend their "freshman year" in Israel studying in a Yeshiva or Seminary.

It is a good book and one can get it through the following website: www.yasharbooks.com/Flipping.html

I found it revealing and quite interesting. It seems that the year in Israel (or two or three) has more of an impact than 16-18 years in the US. One of the reasons why the Modern Orthodox community of today has shifted to the "Right" is because of close to a couple of thousand young men and women who studied in a Yeshiva or Seminary and have changed their priorities while studying in Israel. Here's an example from the book. There was a woman who wanted to work for an American Yeshiva in the office. Her mother and grandmother never covered their hair. However, she wanted to work there without covering her hair. One of the authors told her that if she didn't cover her hair, she couldn't work there. Dynamics have changed in the Orthodox community. Part of it is a reaction to the world around us and part of it is because people feel more comfortable doing things in a group and if the group is more involved in Jewish study, doing Chessed, etc. then consequently that is what those people will do.

friend on CNBC

2008-05-07T09:42:00.000-07:00

A childhood friend of mine, Aaron Katsman, made aliyah about 10 years ago and was on CNBC on the "Squawk Box" with his partner Zack Miller, a former Floridian discussing hot Israeli stocks and the investment opportunities in Israel. They did this as part of a series today called Israel at 60.

Here's the link.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=733311291

For more about Israel Newsletter, go to www.israelnewsletter.com

Boys of summer slumping

2008-05-06T07:44:00.000-07:00

The Cubs have lost 8 of 11 and the White Sox got swept by a Canadian baseball team. The Bears "starting" running back was arrested on BWI (Boating While Intoxicated). The NBA team is looking for a coach. They should be looking for a GM as well.

What is going on in the City of Big Shoulders?

NHL Final 4: Detroit and Dallas in the West and Pittsburgh and Philadelphia in the East. My question is will Obama and Clinton drop the first puck in this series?

NBA: LA-Utah and New Orleans-San Antonio in the West and Boston-Cleveland and Detroit-Orlando in the East.

Had the Rangers beaten the Penguins, the ratings for the East Finals would be more attractive. Sorry Pittsburgh fans, we can't afford a small market team in Hockey. Same goes for Carolina and Atlanta.

events to look for

2008-05-04T10:58:00.000-07:00

Well, for all Jewish singles, Orthodox or not, there is a nice event next Monday, May 12th at the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field. The ARK, is having a young leaders event at one of the rooftops, or buildings near Wrigley Field. For a decent amount of money, you can see the Cubs and Padres play, have a Kosher Dinner and meet cool and interesting Jewish people.

For more information go to www.arkchicago.org

Since these types of events are few and far between in Chicago, I decided to promote it and give kudos to this organization.

The Cubs are doing well so far this year so that's another plus. Even if they play poorly, they still draw nearly 3 million a year to Wrigley.

sports media critique

2008-05-02T11:14:00.000-07:00

One thing that Chicago DESPERATELY needs is a more vigorous critique of sports media, particularly sports talk radio. In New York City, there's a guy name Phil Mushnick who does it quite well for the New York Post. Sometimes he's self-righteous, but he keeps the FAN yakkers honest.

Let's start with some of the back benchers at ESPN 1000. Marc Silverman is not particurlarly gifted and is a Mariotti wannabe. Carmen DeFalco is too limited in his background and life travels for my taste. Yet he is considered to be a rising star at ESPN 1000. Had I been 11 years younger and not Orthodox, I might gun for his job.

Mike Downey and Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Tribune are pretty lame as sports columnists. I would can Downey TODAY that is how bad he is. Moreover, he's a partisan liberal hack with that column he did on Obama's brother-in-law. Let's see him write 900 nice words on a relative of a Republican official who's a sports coach.

Carol Slezak of the Sun-Times (or Sun-Slimes) is a feminist stuck in 1975 when all of the mean men weren't giving her a chance to participate in sports. She wrote a silly article on Danica Patrick's win of a race in Japan. Patrick is attractive but the sheen has worn off and she's just another driver.

hockey and basketball playoffs

2008-04-30T09:01:00.000-07:00

First of all, the second round of the NHL playoffs have been a bore. After getting in last night, I heard the overtime and winning goal that the Stars scored last night to go ahead 3-0 on the San Jose Sharks. Mattias Norstrom scored the winning goal. Detroit is up 3-0 on the Colorado Avalanche and Pittsburgh is up 3-0 on the New York Rangers. Philly has a 2-1 lead on the Montreal Canadiens. I can't imagine that too many Canadian hockey fans who aren't Montreal fans will be pulling for the Habs.

Lakers swept the No-guts I mean Nuggets. New Orleans knocked out Dallas and San Antonio knocked out Phoenix. What a joke the Suns are in the playoffs. This may be good news for the Bulls as D'Antoni and Avery Johnson will be available if their owners fire them.

One other note, a TERRIBLE DRAFT by the Chicago Bears. No impact players whatsoever, particularly at the skill positions (QB, RB, WR). Even Seattle did better than that. They got a lineman and a Tight End from Notre Dame, John Carlson, no relation to the conservative talk show host in Seattle on KVI AM 570.

Good move by Atlanta in drafting Matt Ryan of BC to fill the QB position.

Mazel Tov

2008-04-30T08:59:00.000-07:00

I want to wish my brother and sister-in-law a Mazel Tov on the bris of their son (and my nephew) Naftali on Monday. It was a nice bris. One of the reasons why I haven't been blogging as much is because of the holiday of Passover and going to New Jersey for a few days.

In any event, the weather was decent in New Jersey and it was nice to see the family and extended family. May there be more occasions to meet for simchas.

hockey follow-up

2008-04-23T13:13:00.000-07:00

Well, I got the East right, Montreal and Philly won as did the Pens and Rangers.

7 for 8 isn't bad, missed on the Wild-Avalanche series.

No matter. I expect the Wings to take care of the Avalanche and Sharks to down the Stars.

As far as the Senators are concerned, they got what they deserved, when they canned Paddock in the middle of the year. They need to re-make their team pretty fast as their window of opportunity to win a cup is shrinking, if it hasn't shut already.

Cubs are off to a great start at 14-6. Not as great as the Mariners 20-5 in 2001, but plenty good.

hockey award predictions

2008-04-16T17:45:00.000-07:00

Here are my fearless award predictions in the NHL

Hart Award: Alex Ovechkin, Washington, not even close.

Vezina: Evgeni Nabakov, San Jose, won 46 games, third on list for wins in a season, sorry Marty.

Calder: Patrick Kane, Chicago. Sorry for the homerism, but he scored 71 points and is part of the nucleus that is making the Hawks relevant in Chicago again. Only way he loses is if it's decided by writers, who think that Chicago is a lousy hockey town and decide to vote for someone else.

Adams: Probably Montreal's coach, Guy Carbonneau or Minnesota's coach, Jacques Lemaire.

new site

2008-04-13T11:21:00.000-07:00

There's a new site that I like checking out sports stuff on, it's called Deadspin. Founded by a guy from Central Illinois, named Will Leitch, it's good at reviewing stuff that happens on ESPN and other networks. Its motto is Sports without Access, Favor or Discretion.

www.deadspin.com is the website.

Well, Dallas won it's second game of the playoffs last night with a 5-2 win in Anaheim over the defending champ Ducks. That means that the Stars will win a playoff series for the first time in 5 years. I probably will follow the Stanley Cup Playoffs more closely than the NBA playoffs for reasons that I have previously explained.

As of this morning, Dallas and Detroit are up 2-0 in the west, San Jose and Calgary are tied 1-1 as are Minnesota and Colorado.

NY, Montreal and Pittsburgh are up 2-0 and Washington is up 1-0 and their second game is this afternoon on NBC.

nice shabat

2008-04-13T11:17:00.000-07:00

I had a nice shabat up on Touhy and Howard. I read my bar mitzvah parsha this shabat and it was a good experience. My goal and hope is to move near Touhy so that I don't have to walk as far to Sephardic Congregation and Shaarei Tzedek.

In any event, there's a part of me that misses Skokie and Chovevei Zion. I wouldn't mind being there more often. With G-d's help, I will go there again after Pesach.

NHL Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions

2008-04-09T08:25:00.000-07:00

Well, tonight starts the NHL's playoffs. For the fifth straight year, the Blackhawks are not a part of the festivities.

Here are the match-ups and my predictions:

Eastern Conference
1- Montreal
8- Boston

Montreal in 6, Boston will win a game or two, but that's it.

2-Pittsburgh
7- Ottawa

I am a big Ottawa fan, but they have slumped so badly down the stretch that it's hard to have confidence in them. That being said, Pittsburgh is very talented, but they have yet to play as a favorite. Pittsburgh in 5, though Ottawa's top line if healthy can give Pittsburgh problems.

3- Washington
6- Philadelphia

Washington won the Southeast Division, a very weak division. Alex Ovechkin is the Caps' star, scoring 65 goals and leading the NHL in Goals scored and Points. Usually a center wins the Scoring title, because it's easier to rack up assists than goals in hockey. I like the Flyers in 6 or 7.

4- New Jersey
5- New York

New Jersey has Brodeur, a great goaltender, that's about it. Rangers in 6.

I am sure that the NHL wants the Rangers to nail the Devils for marketing and ratings purposes.

Western Conference

1- Detroit
8- Nashville

Detroit in 5. The Predators are lucky to be in the playoffs. We don't need Southern teams in a winter sport.

2- San Jose
7- Calgary

Sharks in 6. San Jose is a better overall team with Joe Thornton and Cheechoo and Patrick Marleau. However, Calgary has Jarome Iginla, who was third in scoring and is one of the ten best players in the NHL, so he can win a game or two for the Flames.

3- Minnesota
6- Colorado

Some experts like the Avalanche (Colorado). I don't. Colorado is an older team without the overall skill that they used to have about 5-8 years ago. Minnesota in 7.

4- Anaheim
5- Dallas

Anaheim is the defending champ and should win, but I think Dallas is ready to break through.

Dallas in 6.

Next round I like Montreal over Philly and New York over Pittsburgh, setting up a Rangers-Canadiens final and I think that the Rangers will win the East.

West. Detroit-Dallas and San Jose Minny, Detroit over Dallas and San Jose over Minny leaving us with a Wings-Sharks final and the Sharks will win their first West championship as well as hoist the Cup in June by beating the Rangers in 6.

follow-up to last post

2008-04-08T09:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I posted a little bit about Rabbi Goldwicht of YU coming to the Chicago area for shabbos and how that was my kind of scholar-in-residence. He represents YU and what I call the Hesder brand of Yeshiva. In any event, I wish that the Chicago area would be fortunate enough to have people like him here more often.

One person who would fit that description is the current YU President, Richard Joel, who will be at KINS in West Rogers Park June 13-14, right after Shavuos.

With Passover (Pesach) coming up soon, it is good to take stock of the things that we've done and should be grateful for. I am glad that we have Modern Orthodox Synagogues like Chovevei Zion and KINS so that the Modern Orthodox people have a place to go to and have speakers and Rabbis that suit their needs.

Rabbi Goldwicht

2008-04-07T08:23:00.000-07:00

This weekend I had the privilege of being in Skokie to hear Rabbi Meir Goldwicht. Rabbi Meir Goldwicht is a Rabbi who teaches at Yeshiva University. He gives classes to three of the four programs at Yeshiva College, IBC, BMP, and MYP (Isaac Breuer College, don't remember BMP, Mazer Yeshiva Program, equivalent to a good Yeshiva study at a Chofetz Chaim, Ner Yisrael, etc.)

Rabbi Goldwicht spoke about Pesach and the right perspective that one needs to have.

This was my kind of Scholar-in-Residence.

great thought by Malusis

2008-04-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

Marc Malusis of WFAN had a great point the other week about how the "experts" hype certain players at the expense of others.

From last Wednesday's wfan.com website on the NCAA tournament.

New York, NY (WFAN) -- We have hit the 2nd week of the NCAA Tournament. The games have been great so far, the action should get even better as we get going on Thursday night.Shame on Dick Vitale. Why? I can't take the screaming on how the major college programs did not recruit Davidson star Stephen Curry. Hey Dick, he has grown 4 inches since entering college. There are hits and misses every year on the recruiting trail. Why not just give the kid credit for putting in the hard work to make himself the player that he is? Here is my question for Vitale. Were you screaming how Davidson got a 'Diaper Dandy' in Stephen Curry when he was a freshman? I didn't think so. Sometimes you are just flat out lucky. Villanova guard Scottie Reynolds was set to go to Oklahoma, but after Kelvin Sampson left for Indiana, he no longer wanted to be a Sooner. So, his high-school coach called 'Nova Coach Jay Wright to see if he would be interested. He was, but did not have a scholarship to offer until Kyle Lowry declared for the NBA Draft. Where would Villanova be without Reynolds? I do know one thing. They would not be in the Sweet 16.

The point is that Vitale, Packer, etc. hype certain people at the expense of other high school stars. Is it any wonder that no one knew about Stephen Curry until 3+ weeks ago.

spring

2008-04-03T06:30:00.000-07:00

It's springtime in Chicago, even if the temperatures aren't where we would like them to be. We should be seeing flowers blooming and trees with buds on them, instead of empty branches.

In a week or so, I will be offering thoughts on Passover, right now I am still in sports mode.

Baseball started and so far, Chicago is 0 for 4 as both the Cubs and Sox dropped their first two games to the Brewers and Indians respectively. I think Cleveland is doing better than Chicago, not only in baseball but in football (Browns went 10-6 and should have made the playoffs, until the Titans backed into the playoffs because of the Colts resting their starters) and basketball, Cavs made the Finals last year.

Great hire by Indiana University in hiring Tom Crean of Marquette University to take the basketball head coach position. I had been banging the drums for this guy for two years. It's kind of similar to Niehaus winning the Frick Award. As far as potential NCAA sanctions for IU, I think by sacrificing Sampson, they will get off somewhat easily, also IU is a name program and the NCAA likes to protect them. Yes I know that they nailed Kentucky in 1989-1991, but it's Kentucky not North Carolina or Duke.

Sports potpourri

2008-03-31T16:20:00.000-07:00

Well, the NCAA tournament is like the NBA. The favorites win. Four number one seeds is boring for me. I think North Carolina will win, UCLA doesn't score enough.

Saw the Chicago Blackhawks keep their faint playoff hopes alive with a 5-4 Shootout win over the Hockey team from Columbus, Ohio. Hawks are 3-4 points out of a playoff spot.

Baseball is opening this week, thank G-d. Good win for the Washington Nationals over the Braves. Ryan Zimmerman is their Derek Jeter. He hit a walk-off homer to win the game. Oh, Bush threw out the first pitch and joined Miller and Morgan in the ESPN booth.

calling all sports fans and Patriots

2008-03-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

This is really cool. ESPN before an NIT game (not North Carolina-Duke or Yankees-Red Sox) aired the entire national anthem. Kudos to Sean McDonough for going to the National Anthem and not trying to fill the air with twaddle.

http://awfulannouncing.blogspot.com/search/label/ESPN%20Actually%20Does%20Something%20Right

Let me thank the blog, Awful Announcing for use of this video.

http://awfulannouncing.blogspot.com

Washington State

2008-03-26T06:43:00.001-07:00

Let me explain why I don't like Washington State.

I grew up in Seattle. Very few people that I knew would have considered attending that school because a) it's far away from Seattle and b) it isn't such a great academic school.

In my humble opinion, people who attend Washington State from the Seattle area go there because they can get in there and don't want to go out of state.

For example, I knew people who attended the University of Washington, Bellevue Community College, University of California-Berkeley, Columbia, Brandeis U (Waltham, MA) just to name a few of the schools.

Jewish people, whether really Orthodox or just three day a year types don't want to go to a school which is 85% white (or thereabouts).

Yes the University of Washington isn't perfect, both academically, religiously and athletically. However, it's going to take more than two wins over Winthrop and Notre Dame to get me to join the Crimson and Gray bandwagon.

If Sedihawk and Brinkhater and the rest of the folks at WSUFOOTBALL.BLOGSPOT.COM want to argue these points, I would be happy to engage them in a discussion.

Perhaps they don't have Jewish friends and all of their fellow Cougar fans celebrate Easter and not Passover.

I mentioned this before, but I am expanding on a previous point. Moreover, I would be willing to bet that Christine Gregoire, the incompetent governor of Washington State has a lot of folks in her administration from WSU.

Here's the link to Cougar faithful

http://wsufootball.blogspot.com/

Another great coach

2008-03-23T09:29:00.000-07:00

Another great coach who gets very little respect outside of the Great Lakes area is Tom Izzo of Michigan State. His team beat Pittsburgh yesterday in Denver 65-54 to advance to the Sweet 16. I was very high on Pittsburgh to advance to the Final 4 figuring that they were due, but Michigan State out-toughed them.

You always hear Dick Vitale, Doug Gottlieb and Seth Davis talking up Mike Krzyzewski, Roy Williams and Jim Calhoun. Rarely do I hear how good Izzo is.

I think that he is a no-frills guy, he's not a self-promote like the egotistical John Calipari of Memphis.

I fully expect Michigan State to beat Memphis next round and possibly advance to San Antonio.

NCAA

2008-03-23T09:12:00.000-07:00

Good job by San Diego, at least one of the WCC teams won a game. St. Mary's didn't show up and Gonzaga lost a close one to Davidson.

WSU beat Notre Dame by 20. I openly was rooting for Notre Dame as I dislike WSU. I think that Washington State is a hayseed school with people from Yakima, Spokane, etc. I grew up in the Seattle area, which is five times bigger.

Maybe this will convince the AD to can Romar and bring in someone who can match wits with Bennett.

Here's a pic from yesterday's win.

Let's see the Cougs get to San Antonio and then a lot of people will leave the Purple & Gold bandwagon.

Purim

2008-03-23T09:07:00.000-07:00

Purim was okay, I heard the Megillah on Thursday night at Mikor Chayim, it was a little long but still pretty good. In any event, I do NOT suggest working on Purim if possible. Purim is not quite Shavuot, but there are so many things to do that working even 4-5 hours is difficult.
Also, the snow and waiting over 30 minutes for a bus, didn't help.

Shabbos was good as I spent it nearby the hood. Didn't want to walk up to Touhy or Howard.

A question for people, why do the Ashkenazic single women have a hangup with speaking to guys? The only ones that do go to Sephardic Congregation. I can conclude that the Ashkenazic single women are unfriendly or cowards or have some other hang-up with single men.

quick thought on Gonzaga-Davidson

2008-03-20T16:05:00.000-07:00

Here's my thought. Both are good teams, experienced teams who play in lesser-known conferences and have strong non-conference schedules. No surprises, whoever plays better will win. Home court is a little advantage for Davidson, but GU won in Philly against St. Joe's and in Boston against UConn.

Jewish thoughts

2008-03-19T16:03:00.000-07:00

Let's take a break from the NCAA tournament, bubbles, brackets and Cinderellas and focus on something else.

A great rabbi in NYC was sent to the hospital recently. He is the Rosh HaYeshiva (Dean) of Yeshivat Chofetz Chaim in New York. Hopefully he will have a Refuah Shelema.

Also, there was a Rabbi in Israel who was stabbed recently. We all heard about the shooting at Mercaz Harav. But there are a lot of attempted killings, homicide attacks that don't make as much news.

One thought, why is it that a number of people are reluctant if they are single to have a meal in mixed company (i.e. single men and women together). Especially if they are over say 25 years old. I really don't grasp this concept of isolating oneself from the opposite sex. Shadchanim can only do so much. I know that the Yeshivish world does this, but I think that this disease, which I formerly called galophobia or something similar, is plaguing the Modern Orthodox world as well.

A very interesting shiur that I heard recently focused on the crisis of Modern Orthodox education. It was a shiur on www.mesora.org given by Rabbi Moshe Ben-Haim and Rabbi Pinchas Rosenthal, formerly of TALI (Torah Academy of Long Island) and now of the Manhattan Jewish Experience. One of the points made was that the Modern Orthodox Yeshiva day school curriculum is a carbon copy of Europe. A lot of memorization and Gemara, with some Halacha and not enough emphasis on why we are Jewish and what we reject theologically about other religions. In America today, you can't just assume that people will be Jewish and embrace it. The world is too open and diverse for that. Perhaps I can add to this another time.

Happy Purim and Go ZAGS!!!!!!!!!! Also go WINTHROP as I DESPISE WSU!!!

2008 PC Picks for NCAA Tournament

2008-03-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

This is for all of my conservative friends, like Raphael, Bill Cunningham in Cincy, Mark Levin in DC. I combine the NCAA tournament with current political analysis.

Let's tackle the Charlotte Region first, North Carolina against Mt. St. Mary's or Coppin State. Coppin State would be preferable because they're from the MEAC which is a historically black college.

Indiana versus Arkansas. Hoosiers versus Razorbacks. Razorbacks are hogs which are nice animals. Arkansas.

Notre Dame versus George Mason. Fighting Irish versus Patriots. Notre Dame. George Mason is named for a dead white male (DWEM). Moreover, Patriots is a negative connotation for liberals because of the Patriot Act and warrantless wiretapping as well as the spying that the New England Patriots did in the NFL.

Washington State versus Winthrop. Cougars versus Eagles. I think the Cougars are an endangered species. Eagles are the American national bird. That's too provincial. We need to be global citizens. WSU.

Oklahoma vs. St. Joe's. Sooners versus Hawks. Hawks. Oklahoma is where a lot of oil companies are and it's a RED STATE (meaning one that voted for Bush).

Louisville vs. Boise State. Cardinals versus Broncos. Cardinals because Cardinals are nice peaceful birds and the Broncos are part of the Wild Western culture which is insensitive to nature.

Butler versus South Alabama. Bulldogs versus Jaguars. Bulldogs are similar to the dogs that Michael Vick tortured so let's take Butler.

Tennessee vs. American. Tennessee. How can we good PC people choose American U.? Let the Rush Limbaugh's root for them.

Detroit Region

Kansas v. Portland State. Jayhawks vs. Vikings. Vikings were DWEMs who raped children and women and ruined the environment. Kansas in a walk.

UNLV v. Kent State. Runnin' Rebels v. Golden Flashes. Kent State was the site of a famous antiwar protest during the Vietnam era, so Kent State is our pick.

Clemson v. Villanova. Tigers v. Wildcats. Villanova is our pick because Clemson is in South Carolina which is a red state and they put up the Confederate flag on the Capitol.

Vanderbilt v. Siena. Commodores v. Saints. Both nicknames are politically incorrect, Commodore is a rank in the military and Saints are religious figures, and as the Left reminds us, we have separation of Church and State in America. However, Vanderbilt is in Tennessee and Siena is in Albany, New York and add the fact that Albany is suffering because of the Spitzer scandal, so we pick Siena.

USC v. Kansas State. Trojans v. Wildcats. Kansas State because USC are Trojans who are Dead White Males.

Wisconsin v. Cal-State Fullerton. Badgers v. Titans. Titans are big and mean and Badgers are harmless animals. Wisconsin.

Gonzaga v. Davidson. Zags or Bulldogs v. Wildcats. Pretty even, but former White House press secretary Tony Snow went to Davidson. Gonzaga by a nose.

Georgetown v. UMBC. Hoyas v. Retrievers. UMBC has never been to the tournament, so like all good liberals, we'll pick the Retrievers.

Houston Region

Memphis v. UT Arlington. Tigers v. Mavericks. Mavericks are dissenters, so we'll take them.
Texas v. Austin Peay. Longhorns v. Governors. Texas is home of Bush, Rove and Halliburton, so we'll take Austin Peay. Besides governors, especially those in New York and New Jersey need a break.

Stanford v. Cornell. Cardinal v. Big Red. Cornell is in the Ivy League, so that's the pick.

Pittsburgh v. Oral Roberts. Panthers v. Golden Eagles. Pitt is the choice for three reasons
1) Oral Roberts are the Eagles, and we need to be global citizens and not so jingoistic.
2) Oral Roberts was a fundamentalist preacher who wasn't as likable as Mike Huckabee
3) Da Coach (Ditka) went to Pitt.

Michigan State v. Temple. Spartans v. Owls. Temple because the Spartans are DWEM's.

Marquette v. Kentucky. Golden Eagles v. Wildcats. Eagles again, so Kentucky is the choice, However, Marquette is in Milwaukee a blue city in a blue state so that's the choice.

Miami v. St. Mary's. Hurricanes v. Gaels. St. Mary's because hurricanes are bad and Miami is in Florida and we all know how Florida impacted the national election the last 10 years or so.

Mississippi State v. Oregon. Bulldogs v. Ducks. Oregon is the choice. Ducks are nice and Mississippi is the home of Trent Lott, who said mean and bigoted things a few years back.

Phoenix Regional

UCLA v. Miss. Valley State. Bruins v. Delta Devils. Miss. Valley State because a) they're a Historically Black college and b) we don't want to offend devil worshippers.

Duke v. Belmont. Blue Devils v. Bruins. Duke are Devils but they're the home of the accused lacrosse guys who were mean to that girl a couple of years ago, so Belmont is the winner.

Xavier v. Georgia. Musketeers v. Bulldogs. Georgia because Musketeers are DWEM's and Xavier is in Cincinnati, home of Bill Cunningham who was mean to Barack Obama. Moreover, they're soldiers which reminds us of the war in Iraq so Georgia is the choice.

Connecticut v. San Diego. Huskies v. Toreros. Toreros are bullfighters, so they harm animals, pick UConn.

Drake v. Western Kentucky. Bulldogs v. Hilltoppers. Hilltoppers are probably small minded folks who listen to Rush Limbaugh, so Drake is the choice.

Purdue v. Baylor. Boilermakers v. Bears. You'd think Baylor, because they're Bears. However, Baylor is in Texas, home of Big Oil and the GOP, so Purdue is the winner.

West Virginia v. Arizona. Mountaineers v. Wildcats. Arizona because Mountaineers messed up the environment and John McCain is from Arizona and he's a Responsible Republican unlike Fred Thompson and other right-wingers like Jeff Sessions.

BYU v. Texas A&M. Cougars v. Aggies. BYU is a Mormon school and the Left doesn't like Mormonism, as evidenced by their treatment of Romney in the Campaign, so A&M. However, A&M won't go far b/c they're from Texas.

Enjoy.

college hoops

2008-03-18T16:48:00.000-07:00

Well, since this is my first post since the field of 65 was announced, I have a few thoughts.

First of all, only two or four teams have gripes, Florida and Ohio State, as the finalists from last year should have gotten more consideration. To see someone repeat or have the chance to adds to the intrigue of the tournament.
The other two teams that could or should have gotten in are Arizona State and Illinois State. Arizona State swept Arizona. Arizona has 14 losses, case closed, I don't care how tough their schedule was, that's too bad. Kentucky and Arizona got in on reputation.

Kentucky and their fans are a bunch of spoiled Southerners who don't belong in this tournament.

Good job by the Illini in reaching the Big 10 title game. I know they lost, but they did better than expected.

Memo to Northwestern and DePaul, your teams stink and your coaches are MAJOR LEAGUE LOSERS. Fire them NOW!!!

Washington reached the CBI (College Basketball Invitational), a smaller tournament which allows them to say that they made post-season play. Next year is an ENORMOUS year for Romar and the Huskies. I don't want to be worse than those hayseeds in Pullman.

stuff

2008-03-16T11:08:00.000-07:00

Great wedding last Monday in Seattle. It was a nice wedding with two great people and their families. I wish the chasan and kallah much success in their marriage together. Eventually I will have pictures.

Today, I hope to get a new tv in time for my favorite spring sports event, the Men's NCAA basketball tournament. Locally, unless Illinois State makes it, we Land of Obama folks have no one. However, if you're Catholic or listen to WLS, Notre Dame will be in the tournament.

Great coaching job by Bruce Weber for getting his team into the Big 10 final today against Wisconsin. Jeff Dickerson and Harry Teinewitz must be proud.

Memo to Jerry Angelo, trade for Donovan McNabb. He is the answer to your QB problems.

two coaches who need to be replaced

2008-03-13T06:35:00.000-07:00

There are two coaches of teams that I care about in college basketball who need to be replaced because their teams had lousy years. First is Washington, who went 16-16 and lost in the first round of the Pac-10 tournament. They have lost 7 in a row to Washington State, a team that they should beat like a drum simply because they're in a bigger city and have access to better recruits. My suggestion is that Washington should go get Dave Rose, the coach of BYU, whose team WILL make the tournament. I feel that Washington should have won a minimum of 19 games, maybe even twenty or twenty one. Romar is an ordinary coach and the AD needs to recognize that both the football and basketball team need to improve or Washington will be the Northwestern of the Pac-10.

Next is DePaul. They didn't even make the Big East tournament, because they lost a game they needed to win at Pittsburgh, 98-79 on Sunday. Jerry Wainwright's 3 year record at DePaul is 43-48, and has missed the Big East tournament two of three years.

If DePaul wants to be taken seriously, then they need to get a coach that can handle the pressure of a big time conference.

response to if we should be Sameach in Adar

2008-03-10T08:55:00.000-07:00

If you read my blog recently, you know about the massacre in Jerusalem where a Palestinian gunman killed 8 yeshiva students and wounded 9 others. Someone posted a question of if we should be happy and rejoice on Purim, which is less than two weeks away.

Here is my response.

Efrem,
You are right in the sense that we need to daven and learn and get closer to Hashem, especially in troubling and catastrophic times. However, we should still celebrate Purim, maybe just a bit more muted.Perhaps one less shot of schnapps than normal.Our holidays are different from the Non-Jews in that we try to include all people. On Purim, we have Matanot L'Evyonim. On the Shalosh Regalim, we are commanded to invite the less fortunate to our homes.Perhaps the events of the last couple of weeks are a reminder to us that reaching out to our fellow Jews is what is needed.
Just my thoughts,
JMN

This season for the Dawgs

2008-03-09T21:16:00.000-07:00

Despite the fact that Spencer Hawes went to the NBA, instead of staying in Seattle for another year to get stronger and better, I thought that Washington would have a good year and possibly get back to the tournament. Not only won't they make the NCAA tournament, they won't even make the NIT. Yesterday was the nadir, losing in Pullman in double overtime to those hayseed Cougars. How can a team from a large city like Seattle be 16-15 while those hayseeds in Pullman be 23-7? This is unbelievable to me. Lorenzo, you better have a really good year next year or UW will be looking for a new coach. I am sick of big city schools flopping. DePaul stinks, Washington stinks, the Illini stink.

Thank the lord for Gonzaga. They're a good solid team. Unfortunately, Spokane is a five-hour drive from Seattle.

BTW, to the UCLA fans, I can't stand your team, do they have some favors with Hansen and the other Pac-10 suits. How else do you explain their controversial wins over Stanford and Cal?

attack in Israel

2008-03-06T16:01:00.000-08:00

There was a terrorist attack in Israel today as a gunman went into a Yeshiva in Jerusalem and killed eight and wounded others. Another sad episode in Israel.

Hopefully as Adar II (or Sheni) starts, it will be much better than this.

Sad to see him go

2008-03-05T16:37:00.000-08:00

I must say that Tuesday was a sad day for the NFL. Brett Favre retired after 17 years in the NFL. He is one of the 10 greatest quarterbacks in the last 25 years.

Go to www.packers.com for more on this.

NCAA example

2008-03-04T16:08:00.000-08:00

Here's an example from last year. Let's take Texas and USC, a second round match-up. USC is the Trojans, who are named for the Greek warriors of Troy. The Greeks are Dead White European Males or DWEMS. You might think, perfect, pick Texas. Not so fast. Remember, USC is playing Texas, home of Bush and Big Oil, including Halliburton, and Jenna Bush went there, so we pick USC. If USC was playing Wisconsin, then we'd pick against USC because of the offensiveness of their nickname.

potpourri

2008-03-04T15:55:00.000-08:00

Well, it's the first post of March.

First of all, it is time that the citizens of Chicago and Cook County RECALL Todd Stroger. This man is a liar when he said that he wouldn't raise taxes and moreover, he is going to drive middle-class people out of Chicago. I would like for those residents of West Rogers Park and elsewhere to give me one good reason to NOT RECALL this man. By November, the sales tax in Cook County will be over 10%. Way to go, Cook County. By the way, where is Andrew McKenna, the Illinois State GOP Chairman? Does he have anyone worth challenging Stroger or is he too focused on Oberweis retaining Denny Hastert's seat?

Secondly, Barack Obama or John McCain is pretty thin-skinned if calling someone by their full name is offensive. Imagine if these folks were around when Abraham Lincoln or Thomas Jefferson ran for President.

Three: I like Rosenblum's and hope it stays on Devon, as opposed to moving to Touhy or near there. I lost a couple of kippot recently, so I went there the last Sunday in February to get some kippot and it was good. Rosenblum's is a different type of a store than Kesher Stam.

Lastly, for the folks who disagree with me on the death penalty, I am curious to know what your alternatives are, especially with respect to sentencing. Even if I agree with your premise that state-sanctioned killing is wrong, the crime in Connecticut deserves a swift punishment. What would that be?

Thanks to all and have a good day.

social life dilemma illustrated

2008-02-29T05:52:00.000-08:00

One of the reasons why I get annoyed or frustrated with the social life among the Orthodox people in West Rogers Park/Skokie can be illustrated by some events of this week. Recently, I found out that someone in Rogers Park was "single and available". A friend of mine back East was supposed to go out with her because he was coming to Chicago on business, but at the last minute, he was sent elsewhere and couldn't go out with her. He suggested that I try to go out with her. I contacted this young lady's brother to find out if she was available and it turns out that she is seeing someone.

The problem in this neighborhood that information is rarely shared and people don't communicate with each other. I have a few single friends but we don't always communicate about who's dating who and it makes me wish that I was in New York, specifically Washington Heights or the Upper West Side. Singles in the hood rarely shmooze with each other, especially at shuls or even at meals in the hood.

There are six unmarried women who I don't care for and respect. Obviously, the one I was referencing earlier is not part of that group. Well, I think that the singles here and I need to reconcile with each other or else it will be really rough.

Hussein-gate

2008-02-28T16:47:00.000-08:00

In case you didn't know or weren't aware, a talk show host whom I admire riled up a crowd in Cincinnati, Ohio by referring to the Democratic presumptive nominee by his full name, Barack Hussein Obama. Rather than pout, cry, etc. I will whole-heartily support Xavier University's men's basketball team during the NCAA tournament. It was Bill Cunningham of WLW in Cincinnati. Bill, you and I are XU fans for this spring.

A couple of notes before I do my PC picks. Number one is any team that has a Native American mascot such as Illinois (not getting in this year) or Florida State is politically incorrect. Two: mascots with dead white males are not PC. Three any reference to the military is obviously not PC.

One last thing, I don't pick women's games, but if I did, I would root for Rutgers U because of the whole Imus flap.

my top 25 for 2/25/2008

2008-02-25T06:10:00.001-08:00

Here is my college basketball top 25 for this week

1. Tennessee
2. Memphis
3. North Carolina
4. UCLA
5. Duke
6. Kansas
7. Stanford
8. Xavier
9. Butler
10. Texas
11. Wisconsin
12. Drake
13. Georgetown
14. Connecticut
15. Purdue
16. Louisville
17. Vanderbilt
18. Notre Dame
19. Indiana
20. Michigan State
21. Kent State
22. Gonzaga
23. BYU
24. UNLV
25. St. Mary's

reason I am lukewarm on the Cougars

2008-02-24T08:26:00.000-08:00

To all of the Basketball fans from Eastern Washington, this post's for you.

I grew up in Seattle and followed the Sonics, Seahawks and Mariners. In addition, since the University of Washington is in Seattle, and had a good football team, I rooted for them. Basketball is a different story. UW had two good years in 1984 and 1985 when they made the Tournament, in 84 they beat Duke to make the Sweet 16.

Washington State University is about a six hour drive from where I grew up and later events in life took me to New York City and Chicago. There aren't a lot of Cougar fans in those places. Moreover, even the non-observant Jews in Seattle didn't go to WSU. So it's a cultural thing with me.

If they win or have a run like Gonzaga did in 1999, then I am open to changing my mind. I am not a Cougar hater or hata like some would say. But I am a big city person. For example, one of my friends who roots for New England teams grew up in Toronto, but his father or grandfather grew up in Connecticut, so he roots for the Celtics, Red Sox and Patriots. He loves UConn and I don't like UConn but I respect them. One of my brother's friends is a huge Syracuse fan. Those are teams that I gravitate towards.