October 2007 Archives

Awhile back, Vernon Jordan had posted a story about the Republican lies about their "Big Tent" strategy of conning, erm, convincing non-Confederate-apologist types to join their party. I thought it wasn't timely to talk about it out of context. Thankfully, Republicans being the miscreants they are, it didn't take long to collect new material showing their racist and bigoted beliefs.

The major GOP candidates have even more "scheduling conflicts" and plan to miss another Black voter forum.

Meanwhile, Cheney ran off over the weekend to go "hunting" at a lodge that proudly flies a Confederate flag. But hey, he didn't get drunk and shoot any of his friends this time. And why did we originally have any issues with the idea of people who like Cheney getting shot anyway? Sounds like another of those dumb ideas we have like "Texas should be a state!" and "Let's make the South rejoin the Union!".

In Louisiana, Democrats have bungled things up so bad that a Republican Indian-American has been elected governor. This would be a feel-good story except that the state GOP chair is a David Duke crony. Apparently, the "Big Tent" allows for minority figures of small, under-represented groups and outright racists in positions of power.

To wrap up this particular segment, one conservative is rightfully disgusted with his colleagues who are ripping Laura Bush for accepting - and gasp! wearing - a headscarf given to her by Saudi cancer survivors. Look, I'm obviously not a Bush family fan, but even I'm not going to accuse them of being racist against anyone - at least not for religious purposes. The fact that they have risen to power based on the hate and vile speech and actions of the racist, sexist, and bigots in their party doesn't even justify the crap that even they have to put up with.

Yeah, they built the monster that is biting them for being tolerant, but you almost have to feel bad for them. They obviously had no clue exactly how hateful Republicans can be. Too bad they show no inclination to stopping these assholes.

The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh at it.

- Bill Nye, Interview with Wired.com, April 2005

As mentioned, I was in Arizona last week and worked some long hours. I spent the weekend recovering from that and then just plain hit a writer's block wall. Strange, considering I usually just link to stuff with little commentary but that's my excuse. Deal with it.

Some technology news and assorted oddities for you today. We start off with the return of vinyl records and how they and downloadable MP3s may finally kill the CD. Turns out - big surprise - that CDs are increasingly not as musically rich as records were. They started off that way by necessity and never got any better as record labels kept finding ways to cut costs - they seem to make money by suing their customers.

Hell, I can't even remember when I last bought a CD.

Coming soon: terabyte flash drives. I don't stand in line for a lot of new technology, but I might make an exception for this.

Miniaturization on the battlefield.

This one is kind of disturbing. Turns out human beings are technically a human-bacteria hybrid.

Discussing the supposed eco-friendly diapers and the idea of going through an airport without showing ID.

Plus, a story about the history of the Toyota Prius.

A post about the top conspiracy theories plus one about the all-time worst plagues.

Plus, being Halloween, a story about the science of making scary movies.

(Republicans will spend money) "to blow up innocent people if we can get enough kids to grow old enough...to send to Iraq to get their heads blown off for the president's amusement."

Adding, later, "I have nothing but respect for our brave men and women in uniform and wish them the very best. But I respect neither the Commander-in-Chief who keeps them in harm's way nor the chickenhawks in Congress who vote to deny children health care."

- Rep. Pete Stark, CA on how Republicans can waste the lives of our young in Iraq, but won't provide poor children healthcare

I wonder when Rush is going to denigrate these soldier's service? Twelve career Army captains wrote an editorial in the Washington Post this week, describing the Iraq War from their point of view. Hint: it isn't about being hailed as "liberators".

I'm sure the conservative chickenhawks will find a way to discredit them.

The recent head of the National Counterterrorism Center verified what we already knew: Bush's actions have made us tactically less safe than we were before invading Iraq. And then he resigned a few days later, probably to avoid a pack of draft-dodging Republicans from dragging his name in the mud.

Also, someone for the warmongers to keep in mind. Black recruitment has dropped 58 percent since 2000. Guess our young African-Americans don't want to go fight a war for the Party of Racism. Go figure.

Want proof? Obama would like Bush's head of the DOJ's Voting Rights Division fired for saying that poll taxes only hurt the elderly "because our society is such that minorities don't become elderly the way white people do. They die first." So nice of you to say, asshat.

Blackwater may get kicked out of Iraq for doing things like, oh, shooting packs of unarmed civilians, for instance. NPR inexplicably gave Eric Prince (o'Darkness), head of Blackwater, a fluff interview where he stated that his boys are on the sides of the angels. It would be instructive to remember that the angel known as Lucifer Morningstar is now better known as Satan.

More, and worse, news on the cholera epidemic we inadvertently helped create in Iraq.

And with news that our "Coalition of the Willing" is increasingly less - well, willing - to let our foreign policy blunders kill their citizens soldiers, at least one nation is actually (and temporarily) increasing its military commitment: Georgia. You know, the place where someone tried to assassinate Bush a couple years ago but used a dud grenade? Yeah, them.

England is already planning to halve its forces there. And after today's election, Poland will likely just leave entirely.

Awhile back I had some bloodwork done and the doctor pretty much freaked out and told me I need to be eating better. Well, I knew that but being given some really stern reminders of it have gotten me to change some of my ways. Like, I drink like a Coke a month as opposed to a gallon a day, for instance. And while I miss a good steak, that's been off the menu for awhile too. So, while I'm not entirely happy about all these changes, they are probably good for me, plus I'm still alive to bitch about it.

Anyway, I've been reading up on eating better, mostly from LifeHacker - and if you aren't going to that site by now, you're just plain missing out. Here's some highlights I linked from there:

- 10 foods we aren't eating, though I do have some of these regularly

- 11 mood lifting foods

- Foods that help prevent disease

- 8 foods we should eat every day

- Healthy snacking

- The ultimate grilling guide, plus a bonus link to grilling the perfect steak

- What a 300 calorie meal looks like

- A healthy lunch, healthy fast food, and healthy choices at your favorite Chinese take-out joint

- How to shop for healthy food, how long food stays fresh in the fridge

Also, useful diet tips, an article on how to use chopsticks, plus one on ways to prevent bad breath.

Michael Chertoff is part of the Bush vanguard to rejoin the racists in the conservative movement. He recently lamented the fact that illegal aliens make a mess as they cross the border, apparently this "degrades the environment" in the worst possible way.

Moreso than carbon emissions from exhaust pipes, or illegal waste dumping, or stacking nuclear fuel rods on a fault line.

Yeah, he's talking about "dirty Mexicans". Apparently Bush is secretly planning on a third term.

The RIAA is trying to avoid paying the legal fees for a woman they knowingly falsely sued for copyright violations. So wait, basically they can sue everybody, know they have the wrong people, and then think they can get away with it? And hell, they probably will win the challenge. The total legal fees could be over a quarter million dollars. Have they no shame?

Never mind, I already know the answer. I mean, these idiots have so far sued a 12 year old and a grandmother without a computer amongst others.

In Portland, Maine the local school board has authorized a middle school to distribute birth control to it's girls. Now before you get all sanctimonious, the girls' parents have to authorize them to use the clinic before they can even get a pill. Also, the school has had an issue with teen pregnancies in recent years. Guess all that abstinence-only without any further education isn't quite working. Maybe they should all take to the "Christian" solution: anal sex.

Our Terminator future: a robot anti-aircraft gun opened up on a group of its military masters in South Africa. Nine dead, 14 wounded before they could shut it down. And to think of all the Predator drones just northwest of town here....

Then again, Leslie just called to warn me of a sniper at the Hilton. Thankfully that's not on the drive home. More proof that we *still* haven't created a greater threat to humanity than, well, humanity.

Garry Trudeau has been very supportive of our troops, even changing his Doonesbury cartoon to address some of the major personal issues of the war. He's also updated his Sandbox element of his website to allow the troops themselves to express themselves. He's collected the best of it in a book and here's a snippet on that.

Wilkinson let me know earlier about a mom trying to get Silly String to her son in Iraq. Apparently, you can shoot some into a doorway or threshold and it will snag on any tripwires. It is a cheap and easy way to save the lives of our troops. He's followed up on this story and she was finally able to ship about 80,000 cans of the stuff to our troops. Here's an audio story on the subject as well.

A horrible story about a unit in Iraq who still haven't found two of their own, and are shipping home in a couple weeks. you have got to feel for these guys.

In somewhat sunnier news, the tale of an Iraqi interpreter and his family who have been allow to

You know, I keep trying to find a good place to put this next story, and I haven't yet so I'll just post it on its own. We use a lot of four legged friends in Iraq to take care of our troops, and unfortunately some of them get as injured as our soldiers. Here is how we care for our dogs of war.

There's just a mess of good stories in there worth giving a read to.

And yeah, I'm a sucker for a good dog story too.

"We're not done yet. we're gonna keep it going."

- Todd Helton, Rockies first baseman

You've read all the stories. They're now 21 of 22 games since near the end of the regular season. Beat the Padres in a one-game playoff. Swept the Phillies. And now the Diamondbacks. The Colorado Rockies are going to the World Series.

My true joy though, is watching Eric Byrnes come up in the top of the 9th, 2 outs, and a chance to come back from a 6-4 deficit with a guy on second. After all the trash talking he'd been doing, if anyone who had gone 0-for-3 in his potential last game of the season would try to redeem themselves, it would be him.

Then again, I gave a chuckle when I saw this way-too-late slide.

Put up or shut up Byrnes. You've got all winter to think about that. And to think I had him on my fantasy league. Such classless behavior is usually suited for just the Yankees.

So, that moron douchebag Warren Jeffs came up today and the following occurs to me.

Nevada has legalized prostitution. You can get married (or divorced) in the time it takes to get a good buzz on. We damn near legalized pot in the last election.

AND STILL it was up to us to bust a guy who is basically either endorsing pedophilia or mandating sex slavery - depending on how you want to look at it - in the name of God.

So yeah, not "moral" Utah, not Republican Arizona, not Psycho-fringe Texas where they let him hide out for years.

He had to go get busted, sentenced, and jailed in Vegas. "Sin City". The "moral values" asshats have quietly let this behavior go on for years and have for over a century without interference. Now, I'm probably not qualified to judge those who want multiple partner relationships. It is not for me and I personally find something a bit odd with it. I *do* however find something wrong with forcing a child who hasn't even stepped into high school into an arranged marriage where they are supposed to immediately start chucking out infants.

It took Las Vegas, and Nevada at large, to make a dent into trying to stop the abuse and basically rape of children. There's so much work left to go, but it will take the so-called "compassionate conservatives" to step up to the plate and join us Nevadans in ending this particular brand of twisted evil.

That said, I'm not banking on them to do it. Hypocrisy is a powerful drug.

So, yeah, go Nevada.

"If the general remains silent while the statesman commits a nation to war with insufficient means, he shares culpability for the results."

Lt. Col. Paul Yingling

Army officers are assessing the military's role in Iraq. Namely, the administration couldn't have done all this without some complicity from their leadership. It's a sobering conclusion, and a discussion that needs to be had if we are to get out of this war.

"There has been a glaring and unfortunate display of incompetent strategic leadership within our national leaders."

Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez

Case in point, the former general in charge of US forces in Iraq, is harshly criticizing the Bush Administration for its mishandling of the war. Should he have done it sooner and risked his career by complaining while still in theatre? I don't think there's a good answer for that, but you've got to wonder. More on his comments here.

Speaking of other black marks that inadvertently affect our military, despite the fact that Bush and company is completely backing Blackwater, there is more proof emerging that no one was shoooting at them when they decided to go full auto on a crowd of civilians recently.

Income inequality is rising, no thanks to Bush's policies I'm sure. Robert Reich discusses this and other issues between our democracy and our economics in his new book Supercapitalism (read a review and an excerpt).

Bush continues to be bad for GOP candidates and that's still good news for me.

Oh, and some Republicans are retiring because the Democratic-led House is making them work five days a week. Oh no! And some even go as far as to blame Dems for being against families for making them work and travel. Look, I don't have a lot of sympathy for asshats who refuse to give kids health insurance, send our young adults off to war without end, rape the environment, give their cronies tax breaks, try to turn our country into a Christian version of Iran, and then bitch about having to work more than three days a week.

Screw those whiners and good riddance to them.

Here I am, giving yet *another* reference to that evil wench Ann Coulter. Apparently she has decided that Jews need to just get over it and convert to Christianity. You can read the actual transcript of her hate here, but I wanted to give you the Maxim approach to how she can be "perfected":

She also apparently thinks all inter-racial couples have "a chip of their shoulder" and compares life to a Seinfeld episode. And she calls herself a Christian. Then again, so do Bush and Cheney.

I was hoping for the "if we ignore her, she'll just go away" bit, but considering I work just across from a guy who believes her crap, plus declared today that he'd "love to run a sewage pipe into Mexico so all his shit can go there", I guess hate and intolerance ain't going anywhere fast.

I was excited to be browsing the BBC site the other day and saw a promo for Long Way Down. Basically, it is the actor Ewan McGregor and his pal Charley Boorman and their story of riding their motorcycles from the tip of Scotland to the Horn of Africa. Hopefully I can catch some of the episodes as they start this month. Here's the BBC site for the show.

Also, a link to the Long Way Round site, where Ewan and Charley rode their bikes literally around the world. Good stuff. Go find the book as I got to read it out of our public library.

In other McGregor news, he was in Iraq recently to present a hero award to a female bomb disposal expert for her feats of bravery back home.

So, my co-worker who downloads talking points from the RNC, Limbaugh, O'Reilly, and - what the hell? - Ann "SuperBitch" Coulter is gloating about Limbaugh's latest response to the Senate trying to get Clear Channel to get him to straighten up and stop denigrating troops who don't agree with him, aka his "phony soldiers" comment.

Apparently he received the letter from Harry Reid sent to Clear Channel head Mark Mays and is planning to auction it off and give the proceeds to a Marine Corps support group. That, on the surface, sounds admirable.

Think about it for a second though. He insults some soldiers, despite bragging about what a big military supporter he is, and denigrates their service. Then his pal at Clear Channel and he have a big joke at the expense of elected officials who get a bit miffed about his actions. Yeah, it's political all around, but you don't see Democratic officials wiping their ass with pages from his books. That said, at this point, they might as well given the contempt he's showing them.

He's also apparently challenging those who oppose him to "step up" and match his winnings.

Yeah, he's going to make money insulting the US government, then try to guilt others into matching his earnings without contributing a dime himself.

And my co-worker is delighted that Rush is supposedly on the moral high ground here.

I don't see it. Why? Because it's a patently false argument. Not to mention dumb.

More on conservative hypocrisy when it comes to the military.

UPDATE: Follow-up to this brouhaha. Read this editorial from a self-professed political independent and then the first few comments. He makes a valid point about both camps in American politics but gee do his conservative ranters prove his argument right almost immediately.

Marcos at work sent this out. I'm speechless. Enjoy.

A few of the items I've heard on NPR over the past couple days.

First off, a discussion of TV torture and its bleed-over to our soldier's conduct in Iraq on Fresh Air. Seriously, if you've got the time, give this a listen. In short, not much of a salute to Jack Bauer.

Assessing the impact of the fall of the US dollar, despite what Bush keeps calling a "strong economy". Supposedly he's for a strong currency, but results show otherwise. Then again, he thinks Jesus tells him to torture people and spy on American citizens and that we're winning in Iraq. What do you expect?

The scourge of Oxycontin addiction in Kentucky. Seems those dittoheads are taking their cues from Limbaugh a little too literally.

Speaking of dimbulbs, Bush is opposing a resolution that would condemn the Turkish genocide of Armenians back around World War One. Seems he'd rather keeps the Turks happy than recognize a long-ignored atrocity.

Then again, it might not matter since Turkey isn't really bothering to consult with us about crossing into Iraq to bomb Kurds. Hey! That's our quagmire!

A story on the evolution of language you should give a listen to. Then head over to Nature and delve into the articles mentioned in the story if you choose to.

Finally, with all the commemoration of Sputnik, another anniversary is coming up. That is the launch of Sputnik II and the sad tale of the cosmodog known as Laika.

Some architects are giving us a look at a world with rising sea levels. A lot of prime real estate is destined to be crab beds if we aren't careful.

A lot of reports have come recently about the possible opening of the Northwest Passage for shipping as polar ice melts above Canada. Here's another, more detailed story plus this one about the emergence of dragonflies at the top of Hudson Bay.

The Canucks are improving a port and beefing up their icebreaker fleet. Russia and Norway are among others planning for the realities of Arctic shipping lanes.

And what is the US doing? Well, apparently we're watching our 30-year old icebreakers rust and fall apart, with zero planning for the future.

I've linked to NPR and National Geographic's Climate Connections website before, but there's the main link to the NPR one and this is the National Geographic one. Same info, different formats. A lot of really interesting stories and research there for you to pick over.

Both Wired and National Geographic magazines had articles related to biofuels this month.Give both of them a read if you have any interest in the subject.

This seems like really, really bad timing.

Bush, who couldn't find an inmate he didn't want killed when he was governor, is suddenly worried about the rule of law as he tries to stop an execution in Texas. Now, granted, this guy seems to have gotten the short stick as far as the legal process goes, but he *did* help gang-rape and strangle two teenaged girls.

So let me get this straight. You can invade a sovereign nation illegally. You can legalize torture (more on that later), hire mercenaries to shoot Iraqi civilians without punishment, detain people indefinitely in cages, let soldiers bait people into sniping incidents, guards to piss on religious books, strip civil rights from your own citizens, leave Louisiana to drown, screw children out of health care and a decent education, and squander our national fortune of giving billionaires more benefits, but NOW you are worried we are giving a man who raped and murdered children a bum rap in our legal system?

If Democrats aren't running on this next year, they're idiots. Once again, "compassionate conservatism" at its worst.

And here is a list of all the unfinished business and outright screwups that Bush is leaving his successor.

Guess on top of being a C student, he never finished his homework either.

And hey, we're still shuttling our prisoners to secret overseas prisons, just like we keep getting told we "never" do.

Oh, and Bush and company was secretly authorizing torture techniques even as Bush had and has as late as Friday declared that, "This government does not torture people." He's a liar in this as he is in so much else. Unfortunately, his crimes are what the world thinks of all of us.

Here's a awful stat. The cost of insuring our nation's children under the SCHIP plan Bush vetoed would be the same as funding 41 days of the Iraq War. So...if we get our guys and gals out of harm's way in Baghdad, we could fund health care for our children many times over.

Bush really can't quite explain his priorities to me in a way I understand. More on the GOP's problems.

Speaking - briefly - of Iraq, all our efforts to restrict access to chlorine so it can't be used in bombs has led to over 7,000 cases of cholera. Um, oops?

Oh, and I know I shouldn't give this wench the time of day, but I can't express enough how much she symbolizes a large portion of Republicans. Here Ann Coulter wants to strip the vote from American women so that the Democrats can be hamstrung nationally. Nice.

In other news, the Colorado History Museum temporarily pulled a t-shirt promoting a tongue-in-cheek view of Homeland Security.

The "offending" shirt can be seen below:

Considering all the racist crap I've heard from conservatives since 9/11, I really don't think they have a leg to stand on here.

In other shirts and culture news, today is the 40th anniversary of Che's death. Here's an article on the occasion.

Then again, as I type this, the Yankees just lost. So, not everything is bad in the world.

The Cubs blew it. No way around it. Give the D-backs credit for stepping up and the Cubbies the blame for letting it happen unopposed. No goat, no black cat, no Bartman. Just the Cubs choking.

It sucks. Badly. I will watch the rest of the postseason and hope the NL can find a team that will take it. Probably the Rockies, but Arizona made a case for itself this week.

It isn't enough. This article helps a bit though. Just a bit.

But hey, wait 'til next year, right?

Cubs lose, but at least I was there to watch the damned debacle.

Ted Lilly is childish antics did not represent the Cubs in any glowing light.

But it was good to land some tickets and actually watch the Cubs in the postseason. Long odds from here on out that they get to the next round, but why would you want it any other way for the Cubs?

"As yesterday's positive report card shows, childrens do learn when standards are high and results are measured."

- Bush, promoting his good-idea-gone-bad, unfunded mandate No Child Left Behind

As quoted above, Bush just should stop trying to be the "education president". A C student who had to be grandfathered into Ivy League schools (boy, aren't they proud of that!), who ignored a terrorist attack on America by reading a kid's book, and an all-around illiterate-sounding fool, he's not exactly the poster child for leading education reform. Looking at his pet program's results, you'd question why we should keep it going too.

"Is our children learning" indeed.

To top it all off, Bush's speech to the UN recently was heavily modified with phonetic pronunciations of various countries and world leaders. For someone who discredits Hollywood and the mass media, he sure is taking a lot of cues from them.

It was apparently necessary too. He stumbled on a name left out of the Hooked on Phonics version right out of the gate.

I can't wait until we get a president who actually sounds less like Cooter from Hazzard County and more like a leader. You'd think the racist English Only wing of the Republican Party would have tried to run him out of town already.

Wait. I forgot. They're Republicans, so being hypocrites is already assumed.

Inspiration for the title from Aqua Teen Hunger Force, of course.

Today the Cubs either strive for greatness or give me another reason to hate the fact I'm a fan of their's. Here is a look at the playoff series against the Diamondbacks.

Jayson Stark says, why NOT the Cubs?

Also, looks at the Rockies and Phillies plus the Angels and Red Sox.

USA Today takes a look at the postseason at large.

Plus, since I'm in D-Backs land, some discussion pops up of the 2001 World Series and I refer to Jim Caple's excellent writeup of Game 7 that he did the next spring.

Plus, there couldn't be a discussion of the Cubs in the postseason without mentioning Steve Bartman. The Sun Times covers the human manifestation of The Curse.

Looking too far ahead, a a glance at the future of the Cubbies. Scary.

If we take the Republican side at their word that last week's vote on another controversial statement related to the war was truly about patriotism, not politics, then I have no doubt that they will stand with us against Limbaugh's comments with equal fervor.

- Harry Reid, on Limbaugh's "phony soldiers" comment

Limbaugh continues to get a free pass from his conservative pals, even when he attacks the service and opinions of our soldiers. I seriously doubt we'll see anything come of it. Seriously, if this doesn't prove the Republicans as hypocrites, Bush as an anti-troop fiend, and the media as decidely NOT liberal, I'm not sure what does. If Al Franken had said this - and I'm sure he's more patriotic than Limbaugh to even think it - he'd already have psycho conservatives taking pot shots at him.

But nothing we can say can top this post on the Army of Dude blog.

Hey, wanna know what "scheduling conflict" Giuliani had that caused him to miss the debate at Morgan State University? He was hanging out with Bo Derek and Dennis Miller trying to scrounge up some dough for his campaign. Yeah, sure, I understand. Why speak to a large minority audience when you can safely collect cash from millionaire celebrities? Bush has set the trend for ignoring the groups of Americans he feels uncomfortable around and the GOP is following suit.

What democracy?

Moving on to gun-happy Republican mercenaries, turns out Blackwater has a shoot-first-and-ask-questions-later approach to dealing with Iraqis, initiating 84 percent of shooting incidents they have been involved in.

Hmm? And we're supposed to take it for granted to take your word over the Iraqis?

McCain is getting called out for suggesting that we pretty much mandate that only a Christian can be president. Meanwhile, "values voters" have altered the words to one of our national songs. You can view a rendition and the lyrics to the sickening "Why should God bless America" here. And why aren't *these* asshats not labeled defeatist traitors?

One person asks if the GOP is actually commiting political suicide. Given the disaster of the past few years, you really have to hope they are.

(Damn Internet Explorer, why do I even use it at all? Didn't notice I was posting in it and, of course, the browser crashed. The previous version of this post was better. Sorry.)

Of course, this is my favorite time of year, the baseball postseason. And this one *could* have actually been weirder but it is strange enough as it is. Seven of the eight teams in are decided, with a one game playoff today. Trust me, the possibilities were frightening to behold.

So, I won my fantasy baseball league yesterday. More to the point, my adversary, who was behind in wins, was trying to beat me in that stat by picking up Tommy Glavine of the Mets, who was trying to get his team into the playoffs and avoid one of the most spectacular team collapses in baseball history. He got hammered for seven runs and only managed to get one out prior to getting yanked. The Mets lost 8-1 and lost the division and a chance at the playoffs to the improbably impressive late run by the Phillies.

In doing so, Glavine put up awful numbers, as did Cordero and Burnett for my opponent, all who shot his ERA into the stratosphere - or at least past me, which won me a tie-breaker. Yay me!

So, today is game 163 of the season. The Padres lost at Milwaukee and the Rockies won at home against the D-Backs. Colorado has won 14 of their last 15 and seem damn near unbeatable. Should they win the day and move on, there is the outside chance that we could actually have snow ball in Denver later this month. Frightening. The Dugout takes a look at this.

All that said, and despite the Red Sox vs. Indians and Angels vs. Yankees (go Angels! and anyone against the Yankees!), the series I'm ready for are the Cubs vs. the Diamondbacks. Here's a preview.

Whew!

And I'm on a big project back in Arizona - again. Wish me luck, but send some good vibes towards Chicago. I'd really, really like to see the Cubbies in the Series before I die and this has been their best chance in my lifetime (and yes, I'm refusing to discuss 2003). To put it in perspective, my dad was two the last time they even were in the Fall Classic. Of course they lost.

A couple human interest stories to end the regular season on related to two new amazing players in the majors. They are both Native Americans and are rising stars on the Red Sox and Yankees rosters. Read more about Jacoby Ellsbury and Joba Chamberlain.