Election Aftermath

Donald Trump managed to repeat history and become the second U.S. president ever to return to the Oval Office after losing reelection four years earlier. (The first was Grover Cleveland in 1893.) 

While he lost the (irrelevant) popular vote the first two times he ran for office, he won it this time, along with the necessary Electoral College votes.

To say we are disappointed is an understatement. We knew our votes didn't really matter in Mississippi-Stan. Our in-laws alone canceled our votes 2-1. But there was a glimmer of hope these last few weeks, and to use the coin of the phrase, we were nauseously optimistic. 

In the days and weeks to come, Pundits will explain why Kamala Harris lost to the Fanta Menace.  Among the list will be:

• Racism
• Misogyny
• Muslim and Arab Americans disappointment with Biden's policy re: Israel and Palestine
• The democratic party's inability to appeal to the progressive left
• Voter suppression
• gerrymandering
• 3rd party siphoning votes
• Not having a legitimate primary where people could truly choose the nominee

It's a combination of all of the above.

Furthermore, he has the House the Senate, and SCOTUS.  We are truly screwed.

2024 Bears Predication Update: Second Quarter Results

The NFL season is about halfway over, and the Chicago Bears are 4-4. I predicted them to be 5-3 at this point, and they would have been had it not been for a boneheaded lapse of focus in the last 30 seconds of the game against Washington.  

 My prediction had them going 3-1, making them 5 - 3 overall. This may have been too optimistic.  Anything less than 2-2 makes their playoff hopes a little tougher.

As always, I'm sticking with my predictions.  For their next four games, I predicted the following:

Patriots W

Packers W

Vikings W

at Lions L

Despite the Bears' last two losses, the NFC North is the only division in which every team has a winning record. It's a tough division. Let's look at their next four games. Through a fluke of scheduling, the first three are at home.

The New England Patriots are playing better than their record would indicate.  The Bears have won all of their home games this year and the last few last year.  On the other hand, until yesterday, the Bears' defense held opponents to under 21 points (an average of 16.5 pts).  Yesterday's loss brings the average up to 18 pts, which is phenomenal unless your Offense doesn't show up.

Next will be the Packers at home.  Other than yesterday's blowout against the Lions, the Pack has been in every game it lost but also hasn't really dominated any team in their wins.  They almost lost to the Jaguars.  They will be coming off a Bye and that usually helps.  Another tough one.

The following week the Bears host the Vikings.  Minnesota started the season strong but seems to be coming back down to earth.  However, they play Jacksonville and Tennessee before facing the Bears and two almost guaranteed victories will infuse a lot of confidence.  This will probably come down to who has the last possession.

Finally, the Bears go on the road to play the Lions in Detroit.  I have this down as a Bears loss.  The only hope is that it's a trap game for the overconfident Lions.  

My prediction had them going 3-1, making them 7 - 4 at this point.  Again, this might have been too optimistic.  Anything less than 2-2 likely kills their playoff but even if they are 6 - 6 at this point, they might need help backing into the playoffs.

I'm certain that the loss to Washington will come back to haunt them.  Missing the playoffs because of tiebreaker rules is so very Bears.