Justice should be blind

 I've said it forever. No matter what side of the fence you exist, if you break the law, pay the price and let's move on.

In Chicago, on an almost monthly basis, some politician is caught with his hand in the till and after initial protestations of innocence, most find their way to a plea bargain.

HUNTER BIDEN is pleading guilty to funky tax returns and being fined and put on probation. He has already paid back $100,000 in bad deductions to the IRS and will avoid jail time. (just what the hell kind of deductions were those?)  Case closed. Move along.

Now on the other side of the fence. DONALD TRUMP has a total of two indictments in his pocket totaling 71 charges, 37 of which are federal and he faces a real possibility of jail time on those charges. Plea? No chance. Protestation of innocence? All day long.

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I have been advising everyone to avoid the city of Chicago for several years due to the ongoing and increasing levels of violence and I was stunned when several people responded that I was being too harsh . So I decided to keep track starting with Memorial Day weekend and every subsequent weekend thru Labor Day. And the news is not good for the tree huggers who are defending the city.

Memorial Day weekend           53 shootings    11 dead    pretty fair start for the jungle

June 4 weekend                                46 shootings   10 dead

June 11 weekend                            30 shootings   4 dead (well, it was graduation weekend)

June 18 weekend          62 shootings   13 dead (warming up for when the weather really gets hot)

For those who are mathematically challenged     191 shootings      38 dead  spread across 14 different neighborhoods in just 13 days! Freaking incredible. AND THIS DOESN'T INCLUDE WEEKDAY SHOOTINGS!!

Chicago is a cesspool of thugs, ghetto rats, criminals, gangs and convicted felons. Which category are you? Correct, none of them. STAY OUT OF CHICAGO. There are plenty of summertime activities in Lake & McHenry counties. Fairs, carnivals, swimming, village celebrations, concerts, picnics in the park, boating and many other activities to fill your summer safely. ENJOY!

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TEEN TAKEOVERS? Excuse me but labeling criminal behavior with a cute name doesn't mitigate the damage they do on a nightly basis by raiding a quick-mart and stealing the inventory and then jumping up and down on the roofs and hoods of cars while blocking intersections.

 Apparently, they gather at the 31st beach and as darkness falls, the ghetto rats take to the streets to begin the nightly damage parade. Solution?? First, take away their gathering place with posted signs and close it at 6 p.m. Second, anyone who enters the beach area after 6:00 is immediately arrested and if they resist, use the force necessary to effect the arrest. Take a few people to jail every night and maybe the hospital......and the rats will disappear because you've eliminated the easy pickings and taken away the outdoor clubhouse. The beach belongs to the city of Chicago, not the animals who reside in the jungle.

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That van sized submarine that holds 5 people in the area of the Titanic? Did you know the doors are all bolted closed from the outside and cannot be opened from the inside? No escape.

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My acrobatic family once again visited the emergency room after BIL ROY took a tumble while walking their dog, who also doubles as a dust mop in the house. Roy now has a brand new shiny pin in his hip and was forced to withdraw from the Senior Hopscotch Competition. Yeesh. Another senior slowing up the lines at airport security. Get well soon Roy!

And brother Terry finally got his lazy ass home from the hospital and was last seen popping wheelies in his living room in his state of the art wheel chair. He looked good (as good as an ugly brother can look) and awaits the next decision on his foot. Feel better.

And speaking of lazy asses, Nephew Harpo is still milking it at home while Andrea is doing all the work. He apparently thinks it's a big deal when the surgeon puts both of his hands into your stomach cavity....and wiggles his fingers for a few minutes. Keep healing.

Did I miss anyone??? What a family. 😵😵

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Finally, Mayor Johnson says you don't have the right to talk or write negative things about Chicago unless you live in the city. Watch me, Mr. Smiley Face.

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4th of July is on the horizon so please be safe and careful. If you're local, Grayslake has fireworks this Saturday across from Central High School June 24.  

Fox Lake and Round Lake Beach both on July 1.

Antioch July 4th.     ENJOY!!!

SO YOU WANT TO BE MAYOR??

 New Chicago Mayor Brandon 'big smile' Johnson got a rude awakening over the Memorial Day Weekend when the summer carnage arrived in full force as 11 people were shot & killed while 43 others were wounded. Now Johnson says this level of violence is 'unacceptable' so I'm wondering what number would be ok.

Note to Mayor: New York has 3 times the amount of people and half the homicides.

ENTER rich guy JAMES CROWN (think Arie Crown theatre) who thinks he has the answer. Get a bunch of Chicago rich people to toss in a bunch of money to create jobs for the ghetto thugs and INVEST in the low income communities. They will laugh at twenty bucks an hour because a street corner drug dealer makes about $200 for 5 hours-tax free.

You really want to help? Have all your rich buddies underwrite hiring 10,000 more police officers and the construction of 10 more prisons in Illinois. In 3 years, you would see quite a difference in your crime stats.

I'm pretty sure that Crown was raised in Wilmette, Glencoe, Lake Forest or the Gold Coast and has NEVER walked one step in the neighborhoods in which he wants to invest. I'm sure he means well but it's time to go back to your grey poupon and linen tablecloths

And exactly what type of jobs are you going to offer to thugs who haven't seen the inside of a school since 9th grade?

Recent History....Over the last five years, grocery stores have 'invested' in those neighborhoods and all but one are now gone. Theft, vandalism, parking lot crime and night time break-ins have sealed the deal and what makes Mr. Crown think HIS money is going to make a change?? It's not. 

These people are ANIMALS and that will never change. FIFTH GENERATION GANG MEMBERS rule the neighborhoods and unless the gangs are paid off for protection, nothing goes anywhere.

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GET WELL wishes AGAIN to my brother Terry who is still reeling from an ankle reconstruction 5 weeks ago. Repeated infections, swelling and blood clots have knocked him on his butt and most of that 5 weeks has been spent in the hospital where he is currently resting. They did 2 more procedures this week and another scheduled two weeks out. Hopefully, he can spend some time at home before then.

And WELCOME HOME to nephew HARPO  who had a return visit to the hospital to clear up some gastrointestinal issues but is now doing well.

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Well, the politicos finally came to their senses and approved raising the debt ceiling before June 5th to avoid rocking the financial structure of our country. It's a terrible game of "chicken" they play every few years but no one party wants to be responsible for a default because they would surely get crushed at the next election.

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RIP to singer/dancer TINA TURNER who tore it up on stage when she was in her prime. Who can forget those long legs going wild when she belted out "PROUD MARY" and worked harder in those 5 minutes than we do all day. Google it and enjoy with the volume all the way up!

Another RIP to Hall of Fame running back JIM BROWN who played 9 years in the NFL and won the rushing title 8 times. He is also enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame and was a 9 time All-Pro. Additionally, he was so good at lacrosse that they had to change the rules on carrying the ball because no one could get it away from him.

And finally, RIP to poker hero DOYLE BRUNSON, winner of 10 bracelets in the World Series of Poker and two main events. He also authored two very successful books on poker and was married 62 years before his wife passed in 2021. Brunson is a member of the Poker Hall of Fame.

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That's it for now. Have a safe summer and stay out of Chicago. Plenty of things to do in the suburban counties. 

AND SO IT ENDS.....

CHICAGO SPORTS SUCK! NO OTHER WAY TO PUT IT. 

I am so sick & tired of Chicago baseball on both sides of town. The south side bangs the drum every year and convinces us the division title is in their grasp and 8 miles north, they bamboozle the fans with yet another rebuild after dumping the core in 2021. Both teams currently have a 10% chance of making the playoffs. I will take that wager.

So we welcome the month of June but say adios to the White Sox as they are now closer to last place than first place and are the model of inconsistency. NOW I HOPE THEY PROVE ME WRONG BUT this team has no chance to win the worst division in the American League where the 1st place team is just one game above .500 and that is so sad because the Sox have talent (and I normally save this for the north side) BUT they have no heart and no leaders in the club house. They don't have a single player hitting over .270 and the last time they caught anything, it was a cold. Just terrible.

It's time to back up the truck and start dismissing personnel because we all know that JERRY REINSDORF won't sell the team so you have to start just below him and dump GM RICK HAHN and VP KENNY WILLIAMS, who have accomplished NOTHING during their time as administrators.

You keep position players GAVIN SHEETS, ELOI JIMENEZ, TIM ANDERSON ANDREW VAUGHAN,  ANDREW BENINTENDI, LUIS ROBERT and JAKE BURGER and dump the rest of these mutts. 

Pitchers??? Give LANCE LYNN directions to the nearest all-you-can-eat buffet and you'll never see him again. HE STINKS!  Tell mental midget MICHAEL KOPECH to catch a bus and also waive public relations disaster and over the hill weirdo MIKE CLEVENGER.

You keep LIAM HENDRICKS, LUCAS GIOLITO, DYLAN CEASE, MIDDLETON, SANTOS, CROCHET, LAMBERT, KELLY and dump the rest.

DONE. FINISHED. FINAL. OVERPAID UNDERACHIEVERS.

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 And it doesn't get any better on the north side where they are in last place while playing in the worst National League division. They have 5 position players who would qualify as major leaguers in HOERNER, SUZUKI, HAPP, BELLINGER and SWANSON. And don't campaign for Patrick Wisdom because he's a 31 year old career minor leaguer who's a .220 hitter who hits homers every once in a while.   And that's it. make a big trade with the other 9 on the roster and PLEASE get rid of high school cheerleader Christopher Morel.

Pitchers?  This is easy. Just remember the letter 'S' and keep SMYLY, STROMAN and STEELE and flush the rest of the crap. 

The front office sold cub fans a bill of goods in 2021 when they traded all the stars because "it was time to retool this team so we can compete again."     Still waiting................while owner Tom Ricketts continues to count his money because all of the boot lickers keep buying tickets and packing the Clark street bars.....and he OWNS most of that including all of the roof tops. Not to mention all cub sycophants paying ten bucks a month for the much maligned MARQEE NETWORK, A.K.A. 'rerun city'. Exactly how many times can you watch '15 best 2nd basemen of all time'???

But I digress. They, too, are an embarrassment to the city of Chicago.

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Explain this to me. Why is it that the YANKEES, DODGERS, BRAVES, RAYS, ASTROS & MILWAUKEE are fighting for division titles EVERY FREAKIN YEAR??? and the JAYS, RED SOX, METS, CARDINALS are also normally there. EVERY YEAR.

White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf once said, "When you win, fans expect it every year but if you finish second or third, their optimism stays high but their expectations low." And this guy owns two of our major teams in Chicago. Wonderful.

But it COULD BE WORSE. The Oakland A's are 11-45 and averaging 8,800 fans with only two players ranked as 'major league ready'  and they are currently on pace to lose 117 games. The major league record is 120 by the 1962 New York Mets.  Ouch. 

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Now let's move to the Bears, who have almost everyone drinking the Kool-aid but not old Uncle Dan. Let's see what we have so far. 

One defensive back refusing camp unless he gets a new deal and one wide receiver who was a major disappointment already injured. They have no edge rushers which means the other QB has all day to throw passes and the DB's can only cover for so long. And today they said they're going to highlite running the football in a pass crazy league. Perfect.

 But here is the cherry on top.....LAS VEGAS HAS SET THE WIN TOTAL AT 7.5  and the last time I checked, Vegas was not in the habit of giving away money so figure 7-10 or 8-9 and that doesn't look like playoffs to me.

History Lesson---last year, Vegas set the number at 6.5 and the Bears won 3. So with all the supposed improvements, sin city moved the Bears ONE GAME up from last year.

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The Blackhawks got lucky in the draft and will chose wunderkind CONNOR BEDARD with the #1 pick. Now all they need is 19 more players...........the good thing is that ticket sales for the downtrodden Hawks have skyrocketed. Money is good.

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I have to get some fresh air. Bye for now.