Box Score of the Week (Final one of 2019)

Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Bill Mazeroski ended the 1960 World Series with a homer in the bottom of the ninth inning against the New York Yankees. 

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I was talking with a friend of mine, said a woman had hurt his pride....

Another Sunday, yet another edition of my radio program The Closer. A lot to get to this week, so the 2-hour blitz will begin at 1:00 PM Central Time.

I'll spend a couple of segments exploring NBA superstar LeBron James' ridiculous comments regarding Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey's support for protesters in Hong Kong. The NBA is definitely enduring a public relations crisis when arguably its biggest name is bungling questions about the leagues business relationship with China. 

I will also look back at the latest Democrat presidential debate where front runner Elizabeth Warren was the focus of other Dems' ire. And while she's hardly registering in the polls, Tulsi Gabbard made perhaps the biggest splash by hammering CNN during the debate telecast on......CNN. 

So please call (651) 289-4488 if you'd like to weigh in on any of the topics we plan on addressing.

You can listen live in the Twin Cities at AM 1280 or, if you're near downtown Minneapolis/West Metro area, 107.5 FM on your radio dial. In and out of the Minneapolis-St Paul area you can listen to the program on the Internet by clicking this link, or check us out via iheart radio as well as Amazon Alexa (just say "Alexa, play The Patriot Minneapolis"). If you're unable to tune in live, please check out my podcast page for the latest show post.

And if you're so inclined, follow along on Twitter at #NARNShow or "Like" our Facebook page.

Until then.....

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The jokes sometimes just write themselves

Former president Barack Obama waded into a certain foreign election on Wednesday.

I was proud to work with Justin Trudeau as President. He's a hard-working, effective leader who takes on big issues like climate change. The world needs his progressive leadership now, and I hope our neighbors to the north support him for another term.

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) October 16, 2019

C'mon, y'all know what the first thought is that leapt to mind.

Well yes, Obama endorsing another black man over a white man isn't really something controversial. https://t.co/ZN10m9exR8

— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) October 16, 2019

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From woke to joke

I believe it was Abraham Lincoln who declared "I'd rather be silent and assumed a fool than to speak and remove all doubt."

That may not have been a bad philosophy for NBA coach Steve Kerr to adopt last week. When pressed about the human right abuses in China (with whom his league has a very lucrative business partnership), Kerr glossed over that in favor of America's own sins. In Kerr's mind, a kook going on a shooting rampage in an American mall is on par with a system of government which literally imprisons (and sometimes tortures) its own people for having the audacity to dissent.

Not to be outdone, the National Basketball Association's most recognizable player came off as even more tone deaf. When asked about Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey posting a tweet showing support for those protesting China's tyrannical government, LeBron James didn't exactly cover himself in glory.

I think when we all sit back and learn from the situation that happened, understand that what you could tweet or could say... We all talk about this freedom of speech. Yes, we all do have freedom of speech, but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you're not thinking about others, and you're only thinking about yourself. I don't want to get into a word or sentence feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn't educated on the situation at hand, and he spoke. And so many people could have been harmed, not only financially, but physically, emotionally, spiritually. So just be careful what we tweet and what we say, and what we do. Even though yes, we do have freedom of speech, but there can be a lot of negative that comes with that too."

Lakers’ LeBron James on NBA’s China controversy: “I don’t want to get into a ... feud with Daryl Morey but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand and he spoke.” pic.twitter.com/KKrMNU0dKR

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) October 15, 2019

There is so much to unpack in that awful statement that I don't even know where to begin. How about where LeBron indicated that Morey was only thinking about himself? Seems to me that Morey showing support for the citizens of Hong Kong who are literally putting their lives in peril for the sake of liberty (resulting in such support negatively impacting his employer's bottom line) is the antithesis of selfishness.

But the bit about "many people could have been harmed not only financially, but physically, emotionally, spiritually" is perhaps the most elitist thing said to date. I'm going to hope LeBron is just woefully ignorant of the literal physical and emotional harm being heaped upon the pro-liberty crown in Hong Kong. After all, to compare the plight of multi, multi millionaires (and, in the case of NBA owners governors, billionaires) being a tad lighter in the pocketbook isn't in the same stratosphere as those being shot at point blank range, having organs harvested, etc.

Finally, LeBron decries the fact that there "can be a lot of negatives" that come with free expression. Given what he's expressed in the past, it would stand to reason he believes its worth the risk.

Not only has the NBA been hampered financially in this whole kerfuffle, it has also gone from having a reputation as the most "WOKE!" pro sports league to a vast collection of elitist virtue signaling cowards. I hope whatever remains of the prosperous deal with China was worth it.

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Box Score of the Week (Postseason edition)

Back when the American League Championship Series was a "Best of 5," the Oakland A's defeated the Detroit Tigers in the fifth and deciding game of the 1972 ALCS.

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Oakland A's pitcher Vida Blue earned the save in this game. As such, he became the first reigning Cy Young award winner to notch a save in a postseason game. 

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"The problem is all inside your head", she said to me.....

It's only mid October but the weather feels as though it's Thanksgiving time. Regardless, we'll be in a festive mood for today's edition of my radio show The Closer. The 2-hour festivities get started at 1:00 PM Central Time.

At 1:15, I will be joined by political wonk Matt Mackowiak. Among the topics Matt will address include the latest in the impeachment of President Trump as well as the Trump administration choosing to cease military operations in Syria.

In the non-guest segments I will weigh in on the NBA's kowtowing to the tyrannical Chinese government as well as look back at Trump's visit to Minneapolis this past week.


So please call (651) 289-4488 if you'd like to weigh in on any of the topics we plan on addressing.

You can listen live in the Twin Cities at AM 1280 or, if you're near downtown Minneapolis/West Metro area, 107.5 FM on your radio dial. In and out of the Minneapolis-St Paul area you can listen to the program on the Internet by clicking this link, or check us out via iheart radio as well as Amazon Alexa (just say "Alexa, play The Patriot Minneapolis"). If you're unable to tune in live, please check out my podcast page for the latest show post.

And if you're so inclined, follow along on Twitter at #NARNShow or "Like" our Facebook page.

Until then.....

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Bye, Beto

Let's get rid of the wiggle room: There is zero chance Robert Francis "Beto" O'Rourke (D-TX) will be the Democrat nominee for President, much less POTUS. In a way, that's incredibly liberating for him in that he can employ the obligatory "kitchen sink" strategy when outlining his "progressive" utopia.

We all recall his declaration last month of "Hell yes, we're going to take your AR-15," a stance he could not have taken when running for U.S. Senate out of Texas last year.

Then on Thursday when participating in something called a "Equality in America" town hall, Bobby emphasized further how he desires to toss the Bill of Rights into good ol' File 13.

When the former Texas congressman was asked if religious institutions -- "colleges, churches, charities" -- should be stripped of tax-exempt status Thursday night by CNN anchor Don Lemon during the LGBTQ town hall, he immediately responded, "Yes."

The crowd erupted in applause before O'Rourke further explained.

"There can be no reward, no benefit, no tax break for anyone or any institution, any organization in America, that denies the full human rights and the full civil rights of every single one of us," he said. "So as president, we're going to make that a priority, and we are going to stop those who are infringing upon the human rights of our fellow Americans."

Ironic that he decries organizations which would deny human rights when he has consistently touted an agenda of infringing upon the majority of Americans' civil liberties. The fact of the matter is tax-exempt organizations have absolutely no ability to deny anyone's rights of any kind. But what Bobby is proposing here is to force religious institutions to bend the knee towards the almighty deity called government, essentially denying them their freedom of expression.

But like I said, Bobby has no shot be the next President, so he's basically become a useful idiot for Dem front runners Fauxcahontas Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders. That is, he can convey the true goals of progressivism while the top tier candidates swoop in with a more incremental approach, thus coming off as slightly less insane.

Truth be told, I kinda echo the sentiment of Steve Deace if by some miracle Bobby emerges as our Commander in Chief.

This almost made me want to donate to Bobby's campaign. Almost.

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