The [Fourth Of July 2017] Papers

For completists, there was no column on Friday or over the weekend. I'm cat-sitting in Bucktown among other pressing matters. I'm really, really behind . . . in all phases of life. I hope to catch up this week, but I've been saying this exact thing for 11 years now . . . which reminds me, I've been telling people lately the site is in its 13th year but it's actually its 12th . . . . . I think. We went live in February 2006. That means we completed our 11th year last February, right? We're in our 12th year!

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I am totally working on the state budget, police reform and other goodies, including continuing media malfeasance! For now, let me post this placeholder column, good for however long I need it to be!

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The Cubs Are Team Trump Now
Hell Week exposes this franchise for what it's become. Plus: The White Sox Rebuild Is Not Going As Well As You Think.

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Joe & Mika Owe America An Apology
"Scarborough and Brzezinski are hardly emblems of journalistic integrity or political courage. Let's not forget that the Morning Joe cohosts, particularly Scarborough (a former Republican Congressman from Florida), are partly responsible for Trump becoming president. They've known Trump for over a decade and were once among his biggest fans."

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What Me & Tim Watched Last Night
Including: The Voluntary Human Extinction Movement.

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Beachwood Photo Booth: S&M Carpets
Shag & Mahal?

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The White Sox Report: Art Of The Walk-Off
Plus: Revisiting the idea of Todd Frazier leading off. Yup, still a good idea!

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Last Week In Chicago Rock
Featuring: King Crimson, Jaga Jazzist, William Elliot Whitmore, Halo Circus, Reckless Order, Toto, OKGO, Ted Wulfers, and The Dead On.

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The Audacity Of The Dems' Cynical Opposition To Single-Payer
"Notwithstanding the shortcomings of the Affordable Care Act, former president Barack Obama claimed that progressives who backed Sen. Bernie Sanders' (VT) presidential campaign and Medicare-For-All proposal undermined the popularity of the program and contributed to its vulnerability. The irony of Obama's later challenge in his farewell address and claim to support a program that would insure more people at lower costs than the Affordable Care Act was palpable: 'If anyone can put together a plan that is demonstrably better than the improvements we've made to our health care system - that covers as many people at less cost - I will publicly support it.'

"Obama's challenge has already been met by almost every other industrialized country, where universal health care plans like single-payer and national health service systems cover everyone at far lower costs than our current privatized system."

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BeachBook
A sampling.

Chicago's Elected School Board Stalls Again.

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Muslim Doctor In Small Minnesota Town That Welcomed Him, Then Voted For Trump, Tries To Understand His Totally Fucked-Up Neighbors.

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Confirmation Bias Goggles.

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TweetWood
A sampling.

LOL. Fake news.

Rahm Emanuel touts the CTA in an NYT op-ed today: "In Chicago, the Trains Do Run on Time" https://t.co/HmCeIP5wD3 https://t.co/HmCeIP5wD3

— Robert Loerzel (@robertloerzel) July 3, 2017

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The media can adopt the governor's disingenuous 32% rhetoric or discuss the 1.2 percent increase in the IL income tax that just passed the General Assembly. But clearly, being spun in this scenario is willful. Also, the increase we're talking about is still below the "temporary" rate in place when Bruce Rauner took office, so the Democrats, with a dozen Republican votes, have actually "permanently" lowered taxes - at a time when the state desperately needs revenue.

I'll join @GoodDayChicago at 7:30 am on @fox32news. Topic: IL Senate's vote today on proposed 32% increase in IL income tax.

— MikeFlanneryFOX32 (@PoliticalEditor) July 3, 2017

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If you oppose AHCA but also oppose single-payer, you support killing Americans for profit, and we're just haggling over numbers

— David Klion (@DavidKlion) June 26, 2017

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The Beachwood Tronc Line: Gin, tacos.

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