Kass on Obama: The Chicago Way

John Kass, one of the few really good newspaper columnists still out there, has a great column in today’s Chicago Tribune, highlighting the political cesspool that spawned the One. Go check it out.

The Downright Mean Sarah Palin and the Affirmative Action (Would-Be) President

If Barack Obama wins the presidency in November, he will be America’s first affirmative action president. Grossly unqualified, dangerously radical and completely unvetted by an adoring news media, Obama will have ascended to the highest, most powerful office in the world, carried on the willing backs of squishy mainstream liberals and dedicated hard line communists hoping for change. It is probably safe to say that if Obama did in fact look like “all the other presidents” on our money, that he would have been laughed off the national stage a very long time ago. Cases in point: Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinich, both of whom are just as far to the ideological left and yet significantly more experienced politically.

Still, Obama’s wife Michelle apparently believes that the US is a “downright mean” country, and Obama himself is never afraid to throw out the always-useful race card. After all, it’s something he assuredly learned to do well during his days as an Acorn-affiliated Chicago community agitator, a significant chapter of his carefully guarded past… A past which includes long term friendships and affiliations with the likes of Jeremiah Wright, Tony Rezko, Bill Ayers and Franklin Raines, to name four.

Aside from the Democrats’ culpability in the housing market collapse and the subsequent financial meltdown, no single weapon of truth is more valuable in the fight against the Obama campaign than a fair and open assessment of his close allies – the very people who the “change agent” with the “judgement to lead” has surrounded himself with and sought counsel from. For months, the McCain campaign has failed to capitalize on Obama’s shady ties. So when Sarah Palin recently touched on Obama’s connection to unrepentent domestic terrorist Ayers, it didn’t take the mainstream media very long to scream racism.

Why? Because Palin had this to say…

“Our opponent … is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so imperfect, imperfect enough, that he’s palling around with terrorists who would target their own country,”

The Associated Press, in an article linked on Drudge, countered with…

And though she may have scored a political hit each time, her attack was unsubstantiated and carried a racially tinged subtext that John McCain himself may come to regret.

and went on to say…

Her reference to Obama’s relationship with William Ayers, a member of the Vietnam-era Weather Underground, was exaggerated at best if not outright false. No evidence shows they were “pals” or even close when they worked on community boards years ago and Ayers hosted a political event for Obama early in his career.

Huh… What? I am missing something or did the AP just validate Palin? I don’t know too many people who host parties for people that they don’t really know or care too much about. And what race has to do with any of this is beyond me. Is Ayers not white? Is Ayers now the first person in America to be awarded victimhood status based on the fact that he is a white male? Was it somehow wrong of Palin to call Obama out for hanging around with a treasonous anti-America criminal, just because Obama is black?

But let’s not forget the infamous Jeremiah Wright situation. For twenty years, the Obamas attended Wright’s church, sat in the pews and soaked in the violent rantings of a blatant racist. But that’s okay. Palin mentioning a legitimate connection between Obama and an unrepentant domestic terrorist who once attacked the US Capitol Building, the Pentagon and New York City  police officers… Now that’s just plain racist.

Cubs Choke in Playoffs… Again

A year ago, the Chicago Cubs won less than 90 games and quietly backed into the post season, aided by the Milwaukee Brewers second half meltdown. Not surprisingly, they quickly exited the playoffs, getting swept by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL division series.

This year was supposed to be different, and all through the regular season, everything appeared to be on track. The Cubs got solid (not lights out, but solid) starting pitching from Zambrano, Ted Lilly and Ryan Dempster. The bullpen was shaky at times, but still managed to get the job done on a reasonably consistent basis. The acquisitions of Kosuke Fukodome and Jim Edmonds proved useful in the outfield, even though Fukodome really didn’t get on base during the second half.

Mark DeRosa, Ryan Theriot, Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez and others came up big. Alfonso Soriano had his moments and Geovany Soto shined throughout. All told, this years Cubs racked up 97 wins en route to claiming the best record in the National League. But in the end, it was all for naught. Once again, it was three quick losses to a western division team that should have been beatable and it was good night Chicago. The Cubs world series drought will continue, now entering its second century.

On some level, this must be what it was like for those Atlanta Braves teams of the 1990’s and early 2000’s. Of course, the Cubs do not anywhere near that kind of pitching. Still, the results are the same. Unstoppable in the regular season, yet completely unable to step up and deliver when it really mattered most. On the bright side, the Cubs still did better this years than St. Louis, so at least all the Cardinals fans don’t have anything to gloat about for once.

Here we go!

Welcome to the all-new Daily Soybean! The purpose of this blog is to discuss the political and cultural issues that affect us on a local, state and national level from a uniquely Central Illinoisan perspective. Current news and politics will be the primary focus of the blog, with a reasonable amount of sports and weather – yes, weather – thrown into the mix. After all… Sports and weather are local obsessions here in Decatur. …And sometimes the only thing to get excited about.

Author biases: Social and fiscal conservatism (and some times even the Republican Party), the Chicago Cubs (for what that’s worth), anything that’s good for Decatur agribusiness, and common sense in general. Okay… Let’s get this thing underway!