BITS & PIECES

the items below were previously printed in my sports blog but i  think it also belongs here because it's more than sports.

KUDOS to the 13 kids from the JACKIE ROBINSON LITTLE LEAGUE on the south side of chicago who won the UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP on saturday before falling to SOUTH KOREA in the sunday title game. let's hope they go on to be upstanding citizens.

but if they stay in that neighborhood, the sad reality is that two of them will be shot sometime during the next five years, six of them will drop out of high school and four will father children while still a teenager. ELEVEN of them will be the victim of a crime and seven of them will be in the criminal justice system before they turn seventeen. 

mom & dad, you can change their futures but you can't win the battle long term in your current neighborhood because the gangbangers will just keep on shooting until they hit someone. this week it was a nine year old & a ten year old being shot in your neighborhood. Gangs, guns, drugs and unemployment is what your neighborhood offers. IF YOU WANT YOUR KID TO GROW UP, THEN MOVE OUT OF THE SOUTH SIDE. he could be the nicest kid in the world but stray bullets don't have a conscience, just a landing zone.

and the paragraph below was published 5 days later......

remember my little story about the little leaguers from JACKIE ROBINSON WEST? well, the sadness begins as it was revealed this week that one of the players has been staying at a cousin's house since May because he's homeless due to mom & dad getting reduced hours at work.  exactly why i hope they enjoyed their summer in the sun because winter is fast approaching.
**************************************************************************************

republican governor hopeful BRUCE RAUNER hasn't been seen in a black neighborhood since he got lost on the way to indiana but he suddenly turned up last week in one of the poorest sections of chicago and deposited $800,000.00 in their local credit union to "help out with small business loans."  he then donated $200,000 to a community chest. a very nice gesture but most of the black residents were saying "bruce who??"
***************************************************************************************

KAREN LEWIS has put up $40k of her own money to 'test the waters' to see if she can be a viable candidate for mayor of chicago. a recent poll indicates that the head of the teacher's union would beat RAHM EMMANUEL by 9% if the election was held today.
verrrrrrrrrrrry interesting.
******************************************************

the NFL finally got it right with RAY RICE when they  suspended him indefinitely for his elevator knockout of his then girlfriend JANAY PALMER. the sad part is that palmer, who is now mrs. ray rice, is berating everyone associated with rice's long overdue suspension. she doesn't want to testify in the criminal hearing and says that rice simply "made a mistake."

the foundation of her outburst matches many women who suffer from 'battered wife syndrome' and often recant their accusation or simply refuse to testify. as a police officer, i saw it at least two dozen times and most of the men were repeat offenders with the same victim! 

an interesting sidebar of this story: rice was indicted on assault charges and eventually entered a 'deferred prosecution' program in which he admits his guilt but after completing the counseling program, the arrest will be stricken from his record.  he was then suspended for two games by the nfl. case closed, right? but now the nfl has suspended him indefinitely because of additional video of the same incident. sure seems like double jeopardy to me.  you don't get two bites at the apple. my guess is a judge will overturn the second suspension by the nfl and claim that 'a deal is a deal.'
***************************************************
i see where the DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE is expecting her second child and henry or elizabeth are the bettor's choices for the baby's name at 10-1.  i took ELVIS at 850-1.
*************************************************
ILLINOIS ATTORNEY GENERAL LISA MADIGAN came up with a pretty good idea to protect residents of nursing homes.  under the proposed law, the family of the resident could install cameras in the nursing room and the video would be monitored at the family home to ensure the safety & proper care of the elderly family member.  
****************************************************
remember MO'NE DAVIS, the twelve year old girl from the little league world series? her signature on a baseball from the series will set you back about three hundred dollars.  that's right....three.....zero....zero DOLLARS! what a world.
***************************************************
if you like history or politics or very interesting families, KEN BURNS' new series on the ROOSEVELT FAMILY will air seven consecutive nights on PBS starting this sunday night. if you can't wait, the dvd will be availble on tuesday.
************************************************
ladies, it's time to shed a tear.......one of the great bachelors of all time bites the dust in venice, italy. GEORGE CLOONEY, 53, marries international law attorney AMAL ALAMUDDIN, 36, in a couple of weeks and they will reside in los angeles while still keeping house in italy & mexico.

that's it for now. adios