NWINFan

The problem is many remain in denial even after over 160,000 deaths. The fears you list here are very real. We should be getting out ahead of these things. We are not.

There isn't excuse for not funding the postal service. Like you stated people needed it for various and important reasons. Additionally, there is no evidence of any substantial fraud in mail-in voting. Regardless of motivations, this is another action not thought through. Just like many other decisions regarding the pandemic.

You're probably right about the vaccine although I would hope it would be of significant help. Learning to live with this will be and has been the hard part. First of all, the debate and discussion around the vaccine hasn't been healthy. Too much on the political side and too much on the out-and-out wacky side. All kinds of challenges lay ahead, and the simple act of coping remains the biggest challenge.

If my daughter was grade school age, I'd tell Trump I will decide when she goes back to school and otherwise he can just shove it.

If other players have said things in the past, does this mean this is a persistent problem? Isn't this something a manager should address? Maybe even publicly?

I like what McCann said, too. There has to be a sense of urgency for two reasons. The first and obvious one is that the season is short. Slumps and losing streaks have to be short. The second one is obvious, too. No winning seasons since 2012. I didn't and don't expect the team to go to World Series this season. But it's time we see a competitive team. It's not like off-season moves weren't made. No more talking rebuild. It is time to produce at some level.

I didn't see the August 10th game so I don't know what prompted Keuchel to come out like this. Maybe he was pissed that he had another good start without a win. I do know when teams don't hit, they look flat. I recall a Tribune story back in 2013 when the team had really gone south. Several board members were interviewed and they basically said they left everything to JR. Now they were older, financially secure, and if they weren't losing money from their investment in the White Sox, they didn't care too much about the win-loss record. But their statements left the impression few in the organization cared that the team was its way to its worst season in 43 years. Not the best PR in the world. Things start at the top, but I truly don't know what JR's mindset is. The team just got done with a terrible decade, but Williams and Hahn are still here. So is Renteria, Cooper, Boston and others. Right now, I don't know if anyone knows what a winning baseball culture is. We fans haven't had expectations lately because of the rebuild. That excuse can't be used anymore. Seven straight losing seasons is enough. It is not too much to ask to play slightly over .500 for 60 games.

I agree with a lot of this especially about Ozzie in his last season with the Sox. If I was the owner, I would have fired him in May and Williams right with him. The rebuild should have started years earlier. I am still not high on hiring ex-Sox players. There can be exceptions to that, but, in my mind, AJ would not be one of them. Again, I would like someone outside the organization to take over.

I wonder about this myself. A case can be made for Guillen, I guess, but some act like he is the only one capable of managing this team. I still think it is time for the team to cut ties with him. 2005 was great, but the franchise truly needs to move forward.

I agree that the impact is long-term, and the country is still in denial about it. Either you have those who think this is a hoax or not serious, or those who believe a vaccine will solve everything. We as a country need to start thinking in the long-term. Promises made during an election cycle are worthless. This is not going to go away nor will the effects be short-lived. Solutions are hard to come by, but it would be nice if the country had a rational discussion about this. However, we can't even get past the debate about masks.

If and when the White Sox make a change, I would at least like them to interview multiple candidates and strongly consider someone outside the organization. Please no more ex-White Sox players. JR will get attached and he won't be able to fire them no matter how badly they perform. But it doesn't seem to me that the White Sox thinking about any major changes soon.

The trouble was Ozzie is that he enjoys the public image of being the guy who will say just about anything. That will endear him to some fans, but if he goes too far, as he often does, he will find himself in some kind of trouble. He just doesn't learn.

Bummer to the IL. What a bummer.

And he hasn't done a good job since. Besides, I thought this thread was about how lousy Ozzie was on TV. I hope we hear no more about Swisher. He's not a part of the 2020 White Sox.

WSI stated that it was going reformat its home page and then never did. No one has posted on its board since May. There was a lot of weird stuff going on behind the scenes at that site for years. One time I started a thread and the guy running things got real nervous and said he would monitor the thread. What controversial subject did I bring up? I stated the Sox were not doing a good job getting men home from third with less than two out. I know the guy who originally started WSI. It was decent site at one time and had some potential. But it went through multiple changes and things worsened. Glad I have somewhere else to go.

I am a journalist, and I interviewed Ozzie when he was near the end of his playing career and was on the Braves. He came across as approachable and open. He more than willingly talked about his "we don't owe the fans anything" remark. He told me some fans had yelled some racial taunts at Frank Thomas and so he felt he had to speak up. Guillen also spoke about how he loved playing for the White Sox. He praised the organization, and it was obvious he wanted the manager's job as he knew his playing days were coming to an end. I knew one fan who used to belong a fan group, and Ozzie often came to speak to the group. Apparently the fans and Ozzie enjoyed each other. Jon Garland told me that one reason he had a good 2005 season was because Ozzie believed in him, and that allowed Garland to believe in himself. But then came the end of 2011 and the disaster in Miami. At SoxFest in 2015, the team had players from the 2005 club come in to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the World Series winners. Guillen wasn't there, and from what I understood, was not even in the country. Guillen was a good short stop and he had a nice playing career with the White Sox. He is still the only Sox manager to win a World Series in the past century. I think he wants to connect with Sox fans again, but that doesn't appear to be working out. None of this should be happening. In a past post, I said Ozzie should move on. What I meant is that he needs to deal with the bitterness and disappointments of the past. He made contributions to the franchise. His legacy should focus on that. Not this, whatever this is.

I didn't hear what Ozzie said, but I fail to see what relevance Swisher has to the 2020 White Sox. The pre-and post-game is for analysis, pure and simple. It is not about Ozzie or past grievances he may have. I really think it is time for Ozzie to move on.

Scary article about what went wrong and what continues to go wrong. It also points many other problems facing this country that have not been addressed. Yet, we are still debating about wearing masks. At the moment, this election cycle is doing little to confront and debate important issues.

I agree with this suggestion. The idea that this season, even a shortened season, was going to last was a long shot. Things need to stop for a time so problems can be further addressed. This should be done not only for the baseball season, but to show the rest of the country what kind of crisis we are in. No, it isn't a wise thing to go to Covid parties or dance around in night clubs. Things are only going worsen if we remain in denial. And people in responsible leadership positions should stop with the horse shit macho stuff. Too bad for the White Sox. The rebuild is finally showing results.

There is no doubt that Tim is an extremely talented player. That is what is so frustrating about his play at short. He doesn't execute on some of the most routine plays. And a defender must first make the routine plays first. It's nice to see some outstanding plays, but it is frustrating to watch an easy grounder go past or through him. He needs to work on the simple stuff; the great stuff will eventually take care of itself. We see that Tim contributes in many ways. If his play at short improves, he can be a true superstar.

I can't argue with any of this. But, as John Oliver has asked, why hasn't anyone punched Jared is his self-entitled face?

What boggles my mind is why Jared is making any decisions regarding the largest crisis to face the country in its history. What doesn't boggle my mind is the total lack of compassion and empathy.

It is no doubt impossible to know, but it illustrates how misguided that rally in Tulsa was.

All I can say is that Louie Gohmert is the biggest idiot in Congress. And that is saying something since there are so many. His state is being ravaged, and all he is doing is trying to spread the virus more. His idiocy otherwise leaves me speechless.

I just wish Ozzie would go away and never come back.