Bob Gibson!

When I was a kid in the 1960's I could pick up baseball games on the transistor radio late at night (which to a kid and to an old guy about 9pm)and the 3 teams I could listen to were the Kansas City A's, the Minnesota Twins and on occasion when the wind was blowing just right, the St Louis Cardinals. When Bob Gibson pitched, that transistor took a beating as I rolled the little wheel around trying so hard to find Harry Carey's growling voice. Gibby was THE man. He was from Omaha, he lived in Omaha and he was one of my heroes.

Goddamned cancer has picked a fight with Bob Gibson as it has with so many. Cancer dont care who it attempts to destroy. It takes so many people every day and somebody somewhere is devastated either by a diagnosis of a loved one or a diagnosis to themselves. God it sucks.

Bob Gibson got that bad news a few weeks ago and per reports will begin chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer this week. Its devastating to see all this happen to childhood heroes of mine.

I am a fan of so many things. But baseball is my jam. I love its history, I love its stories, its movies, its legend, its stadiums and its players. My heroes, like Harmon Killebrew, Willie Mays, Catfish Hunter, Roberto Clemente, Willie McCovey, Ernie Banks, Hank Aaron, and Bob Gibson. Most of those are gone now (hang in there Willie and Hank) but Bob Gibson is special to me in so many ways others cannot be. Besides being from my hometown, Gibby was a pitcher as was I. He owned the mound as did I. He taught me how to pitch by watching him and reading his book. Now my abilities and his are far different but when I was on that mound, I let him into my mind. I emulated his style by falling off the mound towards first base at times when I needed that extra ooomph. I told catchers to leave me alone when they came out to calm my emotions. But I couldnt be him because I didnt have the talent and I also didnt have the experience of growing up in the Omaha ghetto.

Bob Gibson is an angry man. He always has been. His first book, From Ghetto To Glory was an angry book for 1968. Most sports bios were sweet and inspirational and sugary. Bob Gibsons bio was angry and resentful and not flattering to his hometown, my hometown. He spoke of segregation and racism and riots and other things nobody from here wanted to hear about. I loved it. It taught this white suburban kid a thing or two about something other than throwing a baseball. I remember my Mom thinking I shouldnt be reading it for some reason. Too bitter. Too angry. But she let me read it anyway. In fact she bought it for me cuz I was a little kid with no money.

So in this cancer fight I am rooting for Bob Gibson. Yeah. he is still not the warmest man or even a nice man. They put a statue of him up at the local minor league ballpark and he looked like he'd rather be anyplace else. I get that, I hate attention also. So lets leave him alone in this fight.

Bob Gibson, a man who should knock any batter on his ass for any kind of slight. A man who once told catcher Tim McCarver to get the fuck off HIS mound when he came out to unrattle Gibby. A guy who pitched like he was double parked per Vin Scully. A guy who umpire Doug Harvey said would have put a pitch in Barry Bonds ear if he'd hit a home run and admired it.

And lastly an athlete who said he didnt want to be a role model for YOUR kids when that was YOUR job.

Fight on Bob. I'm with ya. And I'll stop there. Its YOUR mound man.

USWNT !

When Megan Rapinoe offered an off the cuff truism that she wasn't going to the fucking White House it caused conservative America to hem and haw and blow their offense meter up and openly root against the USWNT in favor of much more right wing nations like oh, Holland or England or France? I watch soccer every couple of years when the World Cup happens whether it be men or women. I pick a team oh lets say the United States in Womens World Cup and say oh Germany or anybody else in Mens World Cup because the United States Mens team just plain sucks.

Rapinoe has always been the US soccer player you notice first, you follow on the pitch, and dominates. The short hair, the pixie like presence, the grit and determination , the tough as a gas station steak personality. She suffers no fools and doesnt give a rats ass what you think of her. She's the AOC of soccer. For that I admire her.

The equal pay argument? It is a matter for free markets and revenue production and television ratings to decide. Nahhhhhhh Im just blowing smoke up your goal. The sport is run by old white crooks who would just as soon have the women play in lingerie and pat them on the head as they shove a dollar into their soccer shorts. These men dont care about womens soccer. Unfortunately for them, a helluva lot of people do. The inspiration to young girls everywhere is worth everything. If these young girls, who finally have heroes, who finally can say I wanna be just like Megan Rapinoe, can solidify a movement, can maintain that inspiration, this issue will be resolved in a positive way. The women, who have dominated international soccer for years, can overcome the sexist assholes and gender traitors of Fox News not to mention the criminal in the White House, they will get the pay they deserve. In fact, they may get more. And they should. Look, WINNING pays off. At least in sports. You win, you get money. These women deserve whatever they can grab.

Grab it now. Before everyone forgets about this World Cup and moves on to the Mens World Cup where Americans can watch Brazil and Germany and Russia and Argentina and Spain and everybody EXCEPT The United States, who couldnt even beat Trinidad-Tabago to qualify. Take ALL the money, USWNT. You deserve it.

Stonewall!

Out of the closets and into the streets! 50 years ago the Stonewall "riots" occurred when the NYPD did what the NYPD did best at the time, acted like assholes and raided a bar called the Stonewall Inn. Some of the patrons of Stonewall had had enough and did what others had done in other parts of the country before, they fought back. It was about time.

The Stonewall Inn is generally regarded as the beginning of the gay rights movement because every rights movement has to have a starting point. Oh I know that other gays fought back before 6/28/69, and I know Rosa Parks wasnt the first black woman to refuse to give up her seat, and I know that there were other women before Susan B that fought back, but we need a start. Lets not get too deep into the woods here. Thats the problem with people too close to movement, they know too goddamned much and cant wait to let you know. Democrats take note.

Stonewall may have been a beginning, and to think its 50 years ago boggles my mind. I mean back in 1969 I probably still thought the Stonewall Inn was some confederate bar named after Stonewall Jackson. I didnt know. Christ back in 1969 I am not sure I even knew what a homosexual was. Hey there was no internet then and I was in Catholic school in the Midwest so give me a break.

The difference here is that after Rosa Parks and Selma and King legislation to protect blacks came relatively quickly. Voting Rights Acts and Civil Rights Acts were passed with relatively little opposition. Though it was and still is not as effective as it should be, it was at least an effort. Gays cannot say that. There was a "riot" but nothing changed. It just meant that certain courageous folks suddenly didnt give a rats ass what you thought and let it be known this who I am and if you dont like it fuck off. But that was in big cities.

Those of us in the sticks never saw that progress. Throughout the 70's and 80's the 90s the 2000s and right up to today there is still opposition to any kind of protection for the rights of people born gay. And lets face it, its one party that blocks this kind of progress. The Party of Trump. Living in the Midwest, the out of the closet and into the streets attitude is not 50 years old. It is getting better. I mean the number of openly gay co workers I have and the corporate acceptance of this fact is heartening. Its progress and for tghis part of the country I will take anything I can get.

Thats why when the Annual Gay Pride was held today in Omaha I was there cheering on my fellow human beings. The sheer size of this parade in 100 degree heat was outstanding. The people lining the streets were 6 and 7 deep cheering on their brothers and sisters and aunts and uncles and moms and dads and friends and co workers. It was a day to celebrate diversity. Even the Jesus people attempting to convert you were polite and left you alone if requested to do so. The number of corporations sponsoring delegations marching was so vast in number the heat got to me before it was even over and I had to leave. I did not march with my corporate sponsored delegation first of all because I'm old and hate the heat but also because this day isn't about me. Its about others who need to celebrate who they are without being insulted or worse.

So if Stonewall is not technically the start of a movement, it certainly is one of them. Its been 50 years and Im sure its not gone fast enough.
But if the tremendous size of a Pride March in Omaha, Nebraska is any indication, lets hope it goes faster.

The highlight? Not the drag queens or the dykes on bykes or the everyday folks marching, it was the Giant Baby Trump in a crib being paraded down Harney Street and getting reactions from "hey thats great" to "Fuck You Trump!"

Guess which one was my reaction?

When They See Us!

Korey Wise. Antron McCray. Kevin Richardson. Yusef Salaam. Raymond Santana Jr. Thats their names. The Central Park 5.

Donald Trump deserves to rot in hell for a lot of things. Oh so many things. But he deserves to rot in hell alone for his demagoguery displayed in 1989-1990 against 5 innocent teens in the Central Park jogger case. Filmmaker Ana DuVernay uses Trump in the only way to use him. Let him hang himself with his actual words and his actual video. And it works to see the 40 something cheat and deadbeat openly state he wants them killed, he hates them and that "the blacks" have all the advantages. The exact blueprint he used to win over his racist dumb base in 2016. It was there.

Ana DuVernay's film about the Central Park 5 will make your emotions swing like a 10 year old trying to wrap the swing around the set. Buoyed by young actors who express the fear of being railroaded in their faces alone, this 4 part series is basically 4 different films.

Episode 1 concentrates on the crime. In 1989 a young white female jogger was found in Central Park, raped and beaten, barely clinging to life. The NY press goes wild. The NYPD goes crazy. The DA's office goes crazy. Get somebody, anybody to pay for the crime. Oh it was days of "wilding" and "predators" and fear. It was tabloids and racism and Koch. 5 young black men are taken in for questioning, including one who simply went to support his friend. Deprived of lawyers, deprived of sleep, deprived of parents presence, berated and threatened, these young teens all eventually did what they were told. Rat out their friends, confess, tell stories given to them by the cops. All so they could go home. They didnt get to go home, they got to go to prison to satisfy the soulless blood lust of one Linda Fairstein (played with a dryness only Felicity Huffman can pull off) and prosecutor Elizabeth Lederer. It will make you angry.

Episode 2 features life inside. The teens grow into men. The families cope. The lawyers fail. The hatred of the public continues. It will make you sigh.

Episode 3 walks with then teens as they are released. Exceot one. But thats for later. They cant get jobs. They cant leave their houses. They cant be free. Their parents are fired for being their parents. One of them cannot forgive his dying father. One has to cope with a new family who fails to accept him. Two others keep mostly quiet and attempt to survive. It will make you shake your damn head.

Episode 4. Oh my. Episode 4. Episode 4 is the story of Korey Wise. Korey Wise is the oldest of the teens and was the one who simply agreed to accompany his buddy, Yusef Salaam. Korey goes to real prison. He is beaten, humiliated, marked for death, forced into solitary. His mother goes nuts with Jesus. His brother is murdered. Korey is a mess. This episode will make you tear up. The way in which this horrible miscarriage of justice is solved. Its all so unbelievable yet so true. This episode will also make you go whaaaaaa

Now to the acting. Jharrel Jerome.This actor plays Korey Wise from teen to adult and it is a marvel to watch. This guy acts with a sense of wonderment and confusion on his face at the same time. It really is impossible to not admire the performance for the award winning act it is. He is a gift we better enjoy. Whether it be in Moonlight or this. This kid is fantastic.

Kevin Richardson is played as a teen by a doe eyed youngster named Asante Blackk. He is the kid you most worry about at first. He looks 12, he is scared to death. This kid plays it for all its worth.

Michael Kenneth Williams plays the father who berated young Anton McCray to confess and then abandons the family. Williams is one of the best actors of our time and he goes from confident to pathetic over the course of 4 episodes. He is a wonder also.

Hey look. Theres nothing about this 4 part series that drags. Despite the criticism from the ones who perpetrated this tragedy and still refuse to accept responsibility, theres a helluva lot of truth here. Yeah the film does have its nobody is that sweet moments, nonetheless if youve seen the Ken Burns doc or k now of the story you know its 90% true. 90% true is about 90% more than you get from the current occupants of the White House.

Certain events make me wish there was a hell. This event is one of them.

Please watch it

Random Thoughts!

This is exhausting. I'd be pounding on this keyboard 12 hours a day if every time something pissed me off made me grab the laptop. This administration is draining my will to live. I can honestly say I wish I was younger because I'd leave. No country wants an old guy without skills and thats me. So I'm stuck here. All I can do is try my best to rid this country of ignorant politicians. Onward.

1) D-Day. My Dad. Trump.

The thought of the 75th anniversary coming and going and the story was not the thousands of deaths and the unbelievable courage of young men who knew they were going to die but instead some orange motherfucker representing my goddamned country at a ceremony is beyond infuriating. This scumbag elected by 3 million less votes than a woman monotoned his way thru a written speech and to the complicit press it was a turning point in his Presidency. Yet another time when this vile turd did not expose himself or call people names that the press wonders aloud if he has suddenly become human. No you dummies. Within hours the peasant who represents America was sitting with another vile racist with the gravestones in the background and attacking Nancy Pelosi and a Purple Heart winning prosecutor named Mueller. STOP normalizing this out of control nitwit, in fact STOP humanizing this monster. The man is beyond hope. A mentally ill dementia ravaged fiend. It was disgraceful.

My Dad used to drag me to WWII movies. Patton. The Longest Day. A Bridge Too Far. Battle of the Bulge. The Big Red One. Maybe "dragging" is the wrong word. I liked the movies too and it was time spent with my Dad who had spent 4 years trudging around Europe fighting Nazis. Something I couldnt possibly understand. Then came Saving Private Ryan. My god Dad, this one is right in your wheelhouse. D-Day. Spielberg. Tom Hanks. When shall we go Dad? The first excuse was let it play out so theres not so many people. The second excuse was I dont have time. So I went to the movie myself and the horrors of that first 10 minutes was stunning. People werent getting shot and falling down dead. They were suffering. They were drowning. They were having limbs blown off. They were being shot in the head. They were crying for their Moms trying to hold their guts in. It was horrific. It was realistic. So I told Dad about the movie and how great it was. The third excuse was in reality the only excuse. I already saw it I dont need to see it again.

2) Las Vegas

Ive been there a lot. It was fun. Eventually you run out of things to do. Thats if you dont gamble, drink or like hot weather. I hadnt been there in 7 years. I should have stayed away. Oh its still the same old place. The problem is that corporate greed has completely absorbed the place. When you pay for your hotel hold onto your wallet. That $125 a night has become a lie. You have "resort fees", a fancy way of fucking you over for "free" Wi Fi, health clubs, and the right to just walk around. That going to add $35-$45 to the $125 a night. And if you rent a car? Watch the hell out. It will cost you $15-$25 a night to park at the very special falling apart parking garage that used to be free. Return the rental car you got for $25 a day? Watch out because rental car companies now can charge you what is in effect their own "resort fee". Add another $15 to your daily bill. Got the car on Priceline for a reasonable amount? Har Har! Why do owe you the car rental scammers another $50 for 3 days? Cuz you just fucking do thats why.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Along with a lot more of your money than you thought. Hard pass from now on. If I want to experience corporate greed, I can stay home and work.

3) The Trump Crime Family

The Traitor in Chief dragged his entire family along with him to Europe. He subjected England to not only his bloated Penguin self but to his grifter plastic daughter and her husband, the Middle East whisperer. He subjected England to his two sons, Fredo and Beavis. And the other daughter he wanted to abort was also along triggering the Creep in Chief to many "who is that again" moments. And of course the illegal immigrant was also along squinting her way along.

Ivanka kept posting pictures of herself. One with a maxi pad on her head. Another of her and her vampire hubbie gazing out a window in true Omen like fashion. The narcissism doesnt fall far from the tree.

Beavis and Fredo did a pub crawl in Ireland like a couple of aging frat boys with money. Initial reports indicated they deadbeated out on paying the bill which everyone believed because it would be sooooo Trump like to not pay a bill. That was later denied. However Im sure that the two wastes of sperm will somehow bill the taxpayers for their fun soon. Wheres a barroom brawl when you need one? Taking a punch at one of those smug punks would be every Irishman's wet dream.

4) The Avengers Movie and the Godzilla Movie

I have no idea what is going on in either movie. The desperate attempts for a plot really dont interest me. The movies are not great cinema. The fact these movies make billions and only encourage more of the same and less movies about real life makes me nervous about the future of movies. But for the 2 1/2 to 3 hours you sit there, it is strangely entertaining.

Godzilla is special effects and loud noises and craziness. Monsters I forgot about show up. Its all about the climate change now. Look, Godzilla has been around since before I was born so its a really old franchise but in spite of the schlock and over the top loudness it does make a point about what pieces of garbage human beings are. Good for Godzilla.

The Avengers has a moment during its climactic battle scene when the bad guy, Josh Brolin, exclaims to suddenly appearing Elizabeth Olsen, "I dont even know who the hell you are" that summed it up, I didnt even know who the hell half of these people are. I actually had no interest in who the hell they were, I had no idea what was going on, yet the 3 hours went quickly. Strangely entertained. Cant explain it.

5) Brokeback Mountain

I was flipping channels while taking a break from whatever it is I was doing and came upon this Ang Lee masterpiece on a movie channel. I decided to watch a bit of it before resuming duties. The next thing I knew it was 90 minutes later and Ennis was in his trailer looking at Jack's jean jacket and I was tearing up again.

The fact this movie lost a Best Movie Oscar to Crash is a disgrace. Brokeback Mountain is such a classic love story and I know it made people shudder and feel uncomfortable for whatever reason I cannot understand, but if you dont feel what this movie says you are a true dullard. Everyone talks about Heath Ledger as the Joker and yes that was a performance I could watch constantly in admiration, but his performance here as the self hating Ennis is just as good. I hadnt seen this film in years, but watching it again was just as stunning as the first time.

Dig it out. Watch it. It is truly one of the greatest tragic love stories of all time. If you dont weep, you are again, a dullard.

Thats all for today.

In conclusion. Trump bad, Love ya Dad. Vegas sucks. All Trumps bad. Dumb Movies sometimes good. Brokeback great.

See ya.

MYOFB!

Didya hear? The Republicans, either in their death throes or so empowered by cheating and lying, are going all in to oppress the women they can never have. Republican dweebs all over the country, elected to state legislatures thanks to gerrymandering, are passing laws like crazy to stop the chicks from controlling their own lives. Powered by white male geeks and gender traitors, these laws are becoming easier to pass. Signed by Republican nerd Governors and almost immediately overturned by the courts, the end game is clear. Get one of these laws to the Supreme Court where professional Catholic Samuel Alito, own the libs and unqualified turd Clarence Thomas, folksy fascist Neil Gorsuch, Justice Ragey Boy and beer swilling loudmouth Brett Kavanaugh, and possibly Chief Justice John Roberts will vote to turn Roe V Wade on its ear and send the country back to the Dark Ages, ya know, when America Was Great.

This blast to the past I think is inevitable. The white people of this nation, led by a proto fascist reality show clown, are in the midst of throwing a tantrum not seen since. well when they think America was great. The fantasy 50's where whites lived in suburbs with perfectly manicured lawns, the blacks knew their place, the gays lived in those suburbs hiding who they were, the Mexicans were all in California, the women all stayed home and drank, the children all went to segregated schools and kids had measles parties where they got dangerous diseases and liked it. Great.

Idiots who believe that the 1950s rocked are strangely delusional. Oh fuck it, no they arent, they are just unwilling to give up their white male privilege. Their collaborator gender traitors, who just cant seem to get their shit together, are the rock in the road forward that allows this to happen. Women, and their male supporters not threatened by them, are the key to this nonsense coming to an end. Im just afraid its too late. If RBG or Breyer leave, its over my friends. Back to the hangers and bleach and suicides . The Handmaids Tale will be a reality. That absurd novel and absurd Hulu show aint so absurd any longer.

I cannot believe that the only abortion policy that makes any sense isn't world wide. That abortion policy is MIND YOUR OWN FUCKING BUSINESS Dont want an abortion, dont fucking get one. And men, well us men. Shut the fuck up! We cause the "problem". We should have no say in its conclusion. Until a man has pushed a bowling ball out of his ass and then wanted to do it again, just be quiet. You should have no say, but instead you elect these Republican assholes to not only control womens bodies, but at the same time get great pleasure in killing death row inmates.

Look, we have a Governor in this state, a cue ball looking jackass named Pete Ricketts (yes that Ricketts of the Chicago Cubs) who bought himself a Governorship with Daddy's money, who wants nothing to so with fun of any kind. He likes to kill people, in fact when the Nebraska Legislature repealed the death penalty and overrode his veto, Pete forked over millions of his own money to get a ballot proposition to bring back the Middle Ages and of course, in this Middle Ages loving state, the death penalty was restored. In fact, Pistol Pete got his wish later when he presided over the killing of a cab driver murderer. Pete hates abortion. Pete likes lethal injection with illegally obtained drugs, but he hates Plan B or the pill or any other contraceptives that prevents future Nebraska Republicans from being born. Unfortunately for Pete, the Nebraska Legislature, a band of Republican hicks, Democratic centrists, and one black guy who keeps them from passing this kind of shit wont pass a heartbeat law. So Pete expresses support for Alabama and Georgia rubes like a helluva lot of us want him speaking for us.

Look for most of these Republican misogynists and their female Aunt Lydias a heartbeat bill would mean one thing. These fuckers could be aborted NOW because to have a heartbeat you must have a heart. These pricks and their dumb bunnies dont.

Cher!

When you get a $20 groupon to get tickets to see a living legend you grab the opportunity. Cher! Ive never seen Cher, never really had the desire to see Cher, but at my age what the hell.

Nile Rodgers and Chic opened the show with a barrage of hits you didn't see coming. Wait he wrote that? And that? Rodgers is a hit machine with songs he wrote and produced for Diana Ross and David Bowie, Daft Punk and of course his own band, Chic. The 50 minute show was a hoot, a throwback to the late 70s funk and disco played by real musicians and damn good musicians. Horns and guitar, a kick ass drummer and a keyboard player who performed Lets Dance with a perfect imitation of David Bowie. Two wonderful singers who could belt out the high notes and take it down to the soul vibe of Rodgers slower songs. Nile Rodgers is a genius from way back, and his personal story of overcoming cancer was inspiring.

Cher!

Hey look, I love Cher. I was a 10 year old boy who didn't really know why but I found Cher very fascinating. She was one of the reasons I knew I liked girls. When the Sonny and Cher show was on, the family watched it. Cher was hot, sarcastic, funny and baby she was my type. A strong woman who didnt take shit from that dweeb Sonny. Little did I know she was not strong and Sonny was a dick.

When I turned into a young adult Cher became a clown to me. Wild hair, questionable choices, overrated acting, she was I hate to say it, irrelevant to me. And it stayed that way for years. But then came the night when she went head to head with one of my heroes, David Letterman, and won. Holy shit, she upset Dave? Ok then, Cher is hot and sarcastic and strong again.

Last night, Cher came to Omaha and put on a 90 minute show that covered a legendary career both in songs and in film. Opening with Womans World and proceeding along thru Strong Enough then came what could be argued was the highlight of the show. Cher told everybody to sit down and began a 15 minute story that went thru her life with Sonny, tax troubles with the IRS, her 40th birthday and the 90's encounter with Dave. Hey, the woman could do a one woman show and I'd go. Write a damn tell all book, I'll read it. The woman is fascinating. I was 10 again.

She sang with a film of Sonny, she did a trio of songs from ABBA, they showed a montage of her movies, she did Elvis, and ended with the re-creation of the If I Could Turn Back Time complete with her bare ass.

This show is worth a Groupon. In fact I feel like, dollar for dollar I won big here. No 73 year old in the world can do what she does. Cher is it, man. If I could turn back time, I'd go back and love her forever. I got uou, babe.