Capitol Fax: Post gubernatorial job opportunities?

Changing subjects slightly I saw today that the Capitol Fax had a question of the day involving Pat Quinn. The Governor of Illinois made it known recently that he wouldn't run for another term if he won a 2nd term this year. This is his idea of term limits. ;)

So the community over at CapFax were forced to come up with "snarky" post-gubernatorial job opportunities. I decided to consider what some of Illinois' former Governors have been doing since they left the job.

Daniel Walker - he was involved in a savings & loan scandal thatresulted in him being one of three of our recent governors of Illinois sent to prison. Although what sent him to jail had little to do with what he did as governor. It was basically what he did after he served as Governor.

James Thompson - Illinois' longest serving Governor was a US Attorney before his election in 1976 and ultimately he left the governor's office to practice law. His law firm was involved in the defense of another Illinois Governor sent to prison, George Ryan.

Jim Edgar - after serving two terms as Governor, he served as a distinguished fellow at the University of Illinois Institute of Government and Public Affairs. There were attempts to enlist Edgar back into politics for example to run for the Senate seat that ultimately went to President Barack Obama and to run against Rod Blagojevich when he ran for re-election. It's safe to say though that Edgar doesn't seem interested in running for political office again.

George Ryan - another Governor who served time in prison in this case for activities that happened before he became governor. His time out of office certain involved his trail in federal court, but not certain of his activities before going to prison and after his release. I'm sure he did a lot of speaking after commuting all death row sentences and putting a moratorium on the death penalty in Illinois. Just to note the death penalty has been abolished here.

Rod Blagojevich - another Governor who is currently serving his prison sentence for activities that he engaged in as governor is another governor who's time out of office involved his trial and conviction. Of course before he trial he kept himself in the public eye with appearances on reality shows such as The Apprentice. Another note he's the only Illinois Governor removed from office as a result of his activities in office.

Now if Quinn loses his office this year or does survive until 2018 at least, what would be the Governor's future. Could it be any of the answers provided in the Capitol Fax? There were some good ones especially those capitalizing on his time as Governor. It was even suggested he could purchase the LA Clippers from Donald Sterling although I never knew that Quinn was wealthy!

Want to hear the alleged recording of Donald Sterling?

[VIDEO] TMZ shared the actual alleged conversation between LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling and his lady friend V. Stiviano. Allegedly, Stiviano provided the recording that is causing this controversy. Reason - from whom I found this recording - opined on the subject asking one main question, "Should Sterling be fired for racist remarks?"

If I could answer that question, he should be. Other owners in other major leagues found themselves in hot water and ultimately were removed. If not by a major league itself, the fellow owners took action after a PR nightmare. If it's not good for business, then someone must go right?

Hat-tip Instapundit!

#Blackhawks beat the #Blues #becauseitsthecup

GO BLACK HAWKS

The image you see above I often posted whenever the Black Hawks posted a victory in the playoffs in 2010. Usually it was done after a win in an individual game but usually it was posted when the Hawks finally one a playoff series. So now it's makes it's return to this blog.

So on Sunday, the Chicago Black Hawks have beaten the St. Louis Blues and the series ends at 4 games to 2. In keeping with another playoff tradition involving the Hawks it's time for more game highlights. The first three games were already posted, now to post the last three.

Stanley Cup Playoffs

Game 4 @ Chicago [VIDEO]

Game 5 @ St. Louis [VIDEO]

Game 6 @ Chicago [VIDEO]

Being a racist owner in the NBA?

Donald Sterling

We're going to be on the topic of sports again later in light of the Black Hawks victory over the St. Louis Blues to advance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs yesterday. Now we're going to discuss a controversy in the NBA.

The LA Clippers used to be known as perennial losers over the years and lately have become winners and are currently in the playoffs. They're not in the news for their playoff contention, but for the actions of their owner.

Donald Sterling has found himself in the news because of tape that allegedly has him querying his girlfriend - who herself is Black & Mexican - about her association with "minorities". Apparently Mr. Sterling didn't like the fact that his young girlfriend had a picture taken and then deleted from Instagram with Magic Johnson. Then it goes further:

"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people. Do you have to?" the man believed to be Sterling says. He continues, "You can sleep with [black people]. You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games."

Sheesh! Sterling is in the wrong business to harbor these feelings. Besides he's largely employing Blacks and how can his girlfriend associate with a man. It was reported via TMZ that she provided these recordings. The NBA is also investigation whether or not this is actually Sterling.

You know I'm reminded of Cincinatti Reds owner Marge Schott. She had been suspended from her ownership role at one point because she held controversial - racial and anti-semitic - views herself. It appears this article from the Washington Post is also reminded of Ms. Schott.

So now the NBA if the evidence suggest that Sterling did say what he say about Blacks has to make a decision. Perhaps Sterling could be suspended from his ownership or perhaps forced to sell his longtime stake in the Clippers.

He may have to anyway, especially if Magic Johnson was forced to make this tweet. Who else might engage in a boycott against the team as long as Sterling remains owner.

Cliven Bundy racist?

To be honest I haven't given much thought to Mr. Cliven Bundy's story. He was at the center of a dispute with a federal government agency over lack of payment for grazing rights for his cattle. For those who generally distrust the federal government he galvanized them until I hear about this:

“I want to tell you one more thing I know about the Negro,” he said. Mr. Bundy recalled driving past a public-housing project in North Las Vegas, “and in front of that government house the door was usually open and the older people and the kids — and there is always at least a half a dozen people sitting on the porch — they didn’t have nothing to do. They didn’t have nothing for their kids to do. They didn’t have nothing for their young girls to do.

“And because they were basically on government subsidy, so now what do they do?” he asked. “They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never learned how to pick cotton. And I’ve often wondered, are they better off as slaves, picking cotton and having a family life and doing things, or are they better off under government subsidy? They didn’t get no more freedom. They got less freedom.”

OOOF!

Now, this man has become a racist and some Republican politicians, activists, and talking heads who supported him are starting to back off.

I can never say for sure what's in a man's heart. Perhaps the more he started talking to the press the more likely something like this would come out. Does he really believe this about Blacks? Is this what he truly believes? Could he have made his point without saying Blacks should just remain slaves?

I don't know but that's not to deligitimize some of the questions he brought up in the first place. Especially in light of his conflict with the federal government over grazing rights for his cattle. Besides while he was illegally allowing his cattle to graze over federal land without compensating them, I suppose it's right to fight against the government when they attempt to take away a man's livelihood - that is being a cattle rancher.

I only wish I knew what to say about this. Is Mr. Bundy just another extremist with unfortunate racial views?

Change of Subject: Boxed Out

Well, I've fantasized about getting a safety deposit box at my local bank. Especially to hold my "investments" the day I get some. Particularly, gold and silver and let them appreciate over years!

Anyway, as things change who knows if any bank will offer these services anymore. People have safes and safety deposit boxes at home these days. If you want to keep something safe they're available in stores and probably cheaper in the long run.

So at least Tribune columnist Eric Zorn notes in his recent blog post found via Newsalert!

Chicago Reader: It's getting harder to snicker at Obamacare

Check out those cartoons over there at the Reader. They're not just directed at "Obamacare" but other aspects of Obama administration policy. For example you will even see something about the President's policy with regards to Ukraine. Ouch!

Excuse the ouch, the first cartoon takes aim at the Republican inability to make an issue of Obamacare.

Term limits

Now that I find out that Gov. Quinn is on board with term limits at least for statewide officials. His Republican opponent Bruce Rauner already worked to get signatures for a term limits for members of the state legislature onto the November ballot. Generally I'm not a huge fan of term-limits although I understand why it gains traction, that is it seems incumbents are difficult people to dislodge in this state especially in the legislature.

Either way, this makes me wonder if the Governor running for re-election this year is only attempt to outflank Rauner. Rauner wants to shake things up in Springfield and may have some support for his message and that support could be at the expense of Quinn. Think about it Quinn is unpopular and also remember the Governor barely eked out a win four years ago!

So far it appears that the Senate President - one John Cullerton - is not on board with term limits even with Gov. Quinn's support.

ADDING: If we remain with this idea of incumbents being at times difficult to dislodge people have been passing petitions for changing the way redistricting is done in Illinois. As illustrated in this post from CapFax we see who's attempting to protect what from this necessary reform.

Black Hawks in the playoffs!

As has been a tradition in both of the Black Hawks' Stanley Cup wins in 2010 and 2014 it's time to start showing highlights of the playoff games. Unfortunately I haven't done a great job of following the Hawks during their playoff run so far. Still the Hawks were down by two games until their victory last night at the United Center last night over the St. Louis Blues. The earlier games were both determined with OT wins by the Blues.




Game 1 @ St. Louis [VIDEO]

Game 2 @ St. Louis [VIDEO]

Game 3 @ Chicago [VIDEO]

Wired: Free iPhone 5s deal proves Apple isn't so special

I wonder if this article indicated whether the general excitement over Apple's iPhone is over. Now Radio Shack is offering an iPhone 5s for free with a cell phone contract upgrade. Really? This was supposed to be the "premium" model and now they want to give em away for free.

I'm looking forward to the iPhone 6 it's time for an upgrade for me. I'm not entirely excited about a "phablet" thought. I want a phone I can carry around on my person not some big "jalopy" that won't fit in a pocket!

Via Instapundit with headline "APPLE IPHONES now subject to discounting."

Today's Easter weekend message: "That's My King!"

[VIDEO] Since it's now Easter weekend perhaps it's appropriate to show an religious message. This video I got wind of via Mancow's radio show is an edited clip of a sermon delivered by Dr. S.M. Lockridge. It was certainly a great message and caught my attention when I saw it on TV - Mancow had a daily simulcast on local TV of his radio show.

In any event inspite of the bible quote you see in the subtitle above, this is a long way from a religious blog. Indeed I do not consider myself a religious person. However, just as easily as now I want to put more focus onto Cubs games, perhaps it's time to focus on doing religious things. Crack open a bible or go to church services.

Perhaps now is the time for that, again, in my life.

Also if you want to hear Dr. Lockridge's full sermon - apparently a whole hour - you can watch it here.I have yet to hear the full sermon, but hopefully it's as good as that 3 minute video you see above.

One last question in relation to this video: "Do you know him?"

Conan: Bill Tull's Budget Easter tips

[VIDEO] Aired on Conan Wednesday night just in time for Easter. Very funny and very unexpected. Yet, very timely and what one could expect from Conan O'Brien. LOL!

Sun-Times: State Rep. admits to FBI he screwed up over bribe

Here's the sad thing about this story. In 2012, not long after his arrest the Illinois House of Representatives voted to expell Derrick Smith from that chamber. Unfortunately even after recruiting a Democrat - and having him run as a member of a new party - the voters of Smith's district sent him right back to the seat he had been expelled from.

In this year's primary he was supported by his party leaders. While it seems quite counterintuitive, it may well make sense if you want to protect the overall numbers of your caucus and without causing a circus of finding someone to replace one of your members. So it is now, while he's waiting to stand trial Rep. Smith remains a member of the Illinois General Assembly!

It's interesting that he knew he was wrong and said as much to the FBI agents who interviewed him. Now this is certainly one of those times where instead of running your mouth you may need to talk to an attorney.

So the #Cubs are headed to Yankee Stadium

Cubs.com

I've been doing a good job of following the Cubs this season starting with making a more concerted effort to follow the games on TV. For the past few years I haven't done a very good job and wanted to change that this year. Win or lose if the Cubs are on TV I will watch!

And at that I intended to follow their progress using Twitter or FB. Well worthwhile project, unfortunately there aren't a lot of wins to rack up so far.

Hell, a twitter account covering the Cubs simply tracking whether or not the Cubs won a given game has proven to be ingenious. Should've seen their tweet for the result of yesterday's game in St. Louis against the Cardinals:

Nooo
— Did the Cubs Win? (@CubsWinOrNah) April 13, 2014

How many ways can a twitter account simply say yes or no during the course of a season. HAHA! Anyway, the Cubs will be going to New York this week to face another storied and most successful team in the New York Yankees. A consistent championship team that I understand is worth $1 billion.

If the Cubs are my team in the National League I consider myself a low-key Yankees fan as far as the American League goes although I don't necessarily follow their games. You know I recognize that I should just stick with Chicago teams in baseball. Perhaps I could just say Cubs for the NL and the White Sox for the AL.

Anyway, I enjoy watching the Yankees in the post-season and they seemed to have made regular trips not just in the post-season but to the world series itself. Although it appears that they only won two World Series titles last decade one in 2000 and the other in 2009.

The Cubs don't frequently face the Yankees. In fact at one point the only way that happens is during Spring Training perhaps or the World Series. And the Cubs have faced them in the World Series 1932 and 1938 as noted to in this NY Times article.

That article - or essay as it's noted at the link -  seems to partly cheerlead for the Yankees and at the same time trashes the Cubs. Or does it instead seems to have an honest conversation about the shortcomings of the north siders?

All the same, I want to believe the current state of the Cubbies is only due to the fact that it's early in the season yet. Yeah 4 out of 12 games won so far, perhaps a turnaround is coming. Hopefully it will be sooner than later.

As I stated already if 2015 is to ever be the year - yes I recognize it as wishful thinking - there needs to be some evidence of that this season!

ALSO, I took the accompanying quiz and well I've got a lot of Cubs trivia to brush up on!

Why is that?

I'm reading this article almost three months later and it causes me to ask a question.

According this article a Black state legislator was forced to resign as Chairwoman of her state's legislative Black caucus because she dared to appear with a Lt. Governor who just so happen to be of the opposite party. Now this state legislator Missouri State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed a Democrat stood with a Republican Lt. Governor of Missouri Peter Kinder.

Reading the articles and while not explicitly states - besides it's what I look for - my conclusion was that this was very partisan. The issue was over low-income tax credits for housing.

The question I'd have to ask is what's wrong with supporting someone across party aisles on an issue such as this? Shouldn't there be more bi-partisanship such as this? Besides, there are a lot of issues facing low-income people and minorities why not reach across the aisle to the other other party?

So CBS "Late Show" now has a new host

This announcement a week after David Letterman announced his retirement surprised me. Not that I perused all the media speculating on whom CBS wanted to replace Letterman sometime next year. I heard Craig Ferguson and John Stewart but never Stephen Colbert.

Stephen Colbert? Really? Well it's in the news now so yeah, it appears he'll be the next one making moves on late-night on broadcast TV.

Just like Stewart who hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show, Colbert is known for his TV program also airing on Comedy Central - The Colbert Report - where he plays a faux-conservative. I'm not a regular watcher of Colbert but it was OK some of the times I have seen it.

Anyway Colbert will now have to host not as a character, but as himself. He won't be much different than the other late night hosts from Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Conan O'Brien, Craig Ferguson, Seth Meyers, or even Arsenio Hall. What will Colbert bring that will make his mark on late night TV?

I shall look forward to Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

The Ultimate Warrior...

[VIDEO] It was very cool watching the Ultimate Warrior on Monday Night Raw this week. I didn't immediately recognize him when I tuned in because for some reason I still got his youthful appearance in my head still. What I saw was a gray-haired man with a goatee running around with a red-tie and suit along with an airbrush painted overcoat.

He even spoke like Ultimate Warrior and even donned an Ultimate Warrior mask. Hmmm didn't he usually paint his face? Anyway little did I realize that Warrior - which was his legal name he was born James Brian Hellwig - would share this one last moment with his fans. He died on Tuesday! :(

I've understood over the years that he's had many disputes with the WWF's owner Vince McMahon. Only recently did he return to not only become a member of the WWE hall of fame, but to become an ambassador for the company that made him famous.

Well wrestling fans, I hope you saw the last appearance of the Ultimate Warrior in a WWE ring. It's sad, but the appearance on Monday was truly a treat!

Ideological prejudice

I was really late to this story. Late last month Raffi Williams was in a twitter match with senior editor of Ebony magazine Jamilah Lemieux. What is displayed here are strong opinions especially on Ms. Lemieux's part.

It's bad enough when she has strong opinions against Black conservatives, it was made worse because she mistaked Raffi Williams as another white conservative telling her what to do. For this exchange Ebony magazine was forced to apologize for the comments of their senior editor on twitter.

Since Mr. Williams works for the Republican National Committee, it made it much easier for RNC Chairman Reince Priebus to get involved. Also noted is that Raffi, is the son of FOX News contributor Juan Williams who is decidely liberal in his own views.

Either way, we see how media types get their jobs. Often if you're a person with a platform in this case anything from a print magazine magnified by social media it's very easy to spout off with strong opinions. Sometimes depending upon the ferociousness of the dialogue things are said that could be used to drive controversy. That's what happened in this case Williams and Chairman Priebus were able to turn this into a controversy.

That's not to say that what Ms. Lemieux expressed isn't often uncommon amongst a certain segment of Blacks. She was obviously very hostile to Williams thanks to his political affiliation and this match started off with her spouting off about a proposed Black conservative publication to be started by neurosurgeon Ben Carson.

I was reminded of this incident via the Field Negro blog who referred to this incident in this way: "'Ideological prejudice'? Yes. 'Racial prejudice'? Not so much." That comment was directed at Priebus who refered to this twitter match as much as an ideological one as it was racial.

David Letterman announces his retirement

[VIDEO] I never thought I'd see the day when David Letterman would retire from his program. Perhaps that day was coming as Letterman is a senior citizen already and spent a long time in the public eye with 12 years as host of NBC's Late Night show and then 20 years as host of CBS' Late Show. Without a doubt he has had a good run.

Over the years I have considered myself a Letterman fan starting with his Late Night show. In the case of Late Night with David Letterman it was safe to say I was not in the target audience of his show. I was too young, but that show made me laugh in more ways than one when I did get a chance to see the show.

When Letterman left NBC for his CBS show I followed him and consistently found him more interesting than Tonight Show host Jay Leno. There are some bits from the Late Show I still find myself reciting and remembering today even though he no longer does those bits.

Even better if you look on YouTube you will find nothing but Letterman clips from his TV programs over the years. The funniest ones involve his Late Show announcer Alan Kalter who is treated terribly. Kalter is either a pervert or a temperamental guy who goes off at the slightest provocation. Sometimes for humorous effect Kalter is assaulted, but kudos because any bits involving Alan is often very hilarious!

Now it's time to figure out who shall succeed Letterman on Late Show. Could it be Late Late Show host Craig Ferguson? My personal idea would be to bring Conan O'Brien back from basic cable to broadcast TV. Well at least no one from CBS would likely read this so my idea may not see the light of day. Still Conan could be as likely a successor as Ferguson.

Anyway, the future without Letterman on TV will be here before I know it. The late night landscape has changed over the years and will continue to change. We saw it with Jimmy Fallon hosting Tonight and we'll surely see it with the future evolution of the Late Show.

Own a share of the Cubs to finance stadium renovations...

Postcard of Wrigley Field via Chicago Argus

I damn near fell out of my chair finding out that the Ricketts family who currently owns the Chicago Cubs are exploring selling shares of this historic franchise in order to fund some renovations to the "Friendly Confines" of Wrigley Field. The renovations have been talked about since the Ricketts purchased the Cubs and are part of the public debate here in Chicago.

Yup, major league baseball owners in my fair city have to go through the Chicago City Council and Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Especially if at one point during this process the Ricketts wanted to procure public financing to fund Wrigley renovations

Now, I read Chicago Argus who discusses this further. Granted, Gregory Tejada is solidly a Chicago White Sox fan and hence this will explain some of the dismissive tone you will read in his write-up. At the same time he like a lot of baseball fans have an opinion about this development.

It would be cool to own a share of the team. In fact years ago I'd have been keen on owning a piece of the World Wrestling Federation. However even in those instances it would be a share and not necessarily a controlling interest in such a business. Plus the different between the Cubs and the now WWE is that one of them is publicly traded. No major sports franchise in this country has shares available for purchase on the NASDAQ or NYSE for example.

To ask for it and/or to follow-up...

[VIDEO] Since I've started job hunting, there has been a lot of time used for Googling advice. Then one morning I found this link via Ask a Manager which linked to an article from The Onion which contained a video. We know that The Onion is satirical and as a result it's safe to say that what's included herein isn't fact. Perhaps gumption isn't or wasn't the way to find a job at least as the above grandfather attempted to state.

This leads me to the next topic I want to discuss, following-up. In my current job hunt, I have been loathe to do that and it seems always have been. It hasn't been entirely true however as there have been times where there were attempts on my end to follow-up on applications and such.

Thankfully with tools such as e-mail available and you know some contacts at a particular employer it should be made easier. Although another question is whether or not the employer will respond and give you an up-or-down vote.

Since I've been looking recently there have only been only two attempts at following-up. Both times I learned that I wasn't going to get the job and one of those situations was illustrated here. The other one was spur of the moment at the encouragement of a friend and it feels even worse getting the bad news in person!

In that spur of the moment instance, I only talked to the hiring manager and never the manager who interviewed me. While the hiring manager gave me information that suggested I likely didn't get the job, he did give good advice that I never took thanks to my disappointment. He suggested that I call the interviewer to follow-up and never did so.

Another way I've followed-up over the years is straight asking if an employer - mostly stores - were doing any hiring. This was primarily done via e-mail - as stated I find that easier - and got some responses although not always. This helped guide me as I continued my search.

Years ago I made a crude attempt at following-up by sending in resumes and applications via "snail-mail" and unfortunately netted utterly no response. Then again that was when I knew very little about job hunting and it's various nuances as there's a way to follow-up that would allow for someone to actually talk to you.

It's really tough out there, but the bottom line is that there is advice that suggest that you shouldn't follow-up. However, there are managers who are approachable enough to ask about opportunities and even with regards to following-up on applications or even hiring timetables. Again there is a way to do this to gain some success however whether you do or you don't should be done on a case-by-case basis.

BTW, at the end of The Onion article the grandfather interviewed also found his wife at the place where he found his job. I suppose it all takes initiative doesn't it?

So Cubs fans are hoping for a World Series victory in 2015...

[VIDEO] Lately I've been seeing that Cubs fans are hoping that 2015 will finally be the year the "Loveable Losers" finally win their World Series after more than a century of futility. Yeah, believe it or not the the last time the Cubs made it all the way in the major league post season was in the year 1908. It makes you wonder what's been going on 100 years plus where the Cubs just can't go beyond getting a World Series berth.

All the same, I appreciate the optimism and it's always a good trait to have. Unfortunately if 2015 would be the year we'd have to see some evidence of that now. Although I recognize that at times it seems a team could do so well one year and then be terrible the next. Them's the breaks I suppose.

Why 2015, you may ask? Well in Back to the Future II, Marty McFly time travels to the year 2015 where at some point the Cubs won the world series. Alas 2015 is next year and none of us are traveling around in a flying DeLorean vehicle.

And if you believe Steve Rosenbloom - sports columnist for the Chicago Tribune - the Cubs of 2014 aren't looking so promising. Bummer! I'm not very knowledgeable about sports - perhaps the rules and perhaps the business side - beyond that don't expect me to be an expert player scout. The best way for me to judge a team if they got the right won-loss percentage. Of course on field play is very important but don't ask me to evaluation them unfortunately I got to have enough of an attention span to focus on almost all games the Cubs play.

Here's one bright spot, the longtime home of the Cubs - Wrigley Field - is celebrating one hundred years of service this year. It's still one of the oldest parks in the majors and baseball fans who appreciate history are probably booking their trips to the Wrigleyville neighborhood. Now to the owners - the Ricketts family - how about insuring that the Cubs will be contenders for a World Series before it's time to hit the old "friendly confines" with a wrecking-ball!

Happy April Fools' Day

Ya know, today is April Fools' Day. Not only that baseball season has started finally although I rarely kept track of spring training during the month of March. It just lets me know that much warmer weather is coming around the corner and thank goodness.

You know this is the time for a humor based post in keeping with this special day. I've learned over the years that I'm not that good with humor, all the same it's just another mark after this really harsh winter we've had. So now I'm glad that this day has come around the corner!