Cue Robert Goulet. The impossible dream came true.

Oh, that's right, he's not around anymore.

Same for Mom and Dad. Ditto for Aunt Hazel, Uncle Tolly, Uncle Stanley and Aunt Demetra, too.

I wish they all could have seen what happened Tuesday night, as they all spent the great share of their lives working to make this happen.

I grew up in the 1960's in a house fully involved in The Movement. You didn't have to ask WHAT movement -- it was simply The Movement, the civil rights movement. My aunts and uncles were local activists for either the Urban League or the NAACP and politics was all around me.

So, when I think of someone like me -- the product of a black father and white mother -- becoming President, I am beyond enthusiasm, beyond intoxication. The audacity of hope, indeed.

Yet, like Jesse Jackson Sr. at Grant Park the other night, my tears are both of joy and sorrow. Joy, of course, at living to see this day but also profound sorrow at so many people who didn't live to witness the culmination of all their hard work.

Oprah had it right, too. She said, if you were part of this, you spent most of the night calling people.

"Did you call Reggie? Did you call Janie? Did you call Mikey? Do you know if they're watching on TV? Well, you better TELL THEM to turn on their TV!"

For most of Wednesday, black and white people smiled knowing smiles at each other, flashing our Obama buttons and actually feeling like we shared a common citizenship.

Now, I was going to vote for Obama, anyway. Still, when he appeared on Countdown with Keith Olbermann in September, the host ended the interview with the quip, "we'll see you at the Cubs-White Sox World Series."

Obama sighed and replied, "well, I'm a little concerned about my White Sox."  His White Sox? Hey, they're MY White Sox, too. A White Sox fan in the White House! Holy cow!

Still, what we don't need is to gloat. I had to talk somebody down at the bus transfer point, who was taunting everybody who looked remotely like they may have voted for McCain. We don't need that, I told him, that's what they've been doing to us. We need to be above all that nonsense.

No, what we truly need to do is what Maya Angelou asked us all to do some sixteen long and bitter years ago. Now, more than ever, we all need to look each other in the eye and say, good morning.

Thank you, Mr. President, for finally dispatching the division of 1968 and proving Gil Scott-Heron wrong.

On Tuesday night, the revolution truly was televised.

Do this, don't do that. Can't you read the sign?

Baseball's winter meetings are taking place in California this week and the biggest topic of conversation is the San Diego Padres' presumed trade of ace pitcher Jake Peavy, with the Atlanta Braves the alleged frontrunner.

David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Braves made it clear they won't trade top pitching prospect Tommy Hanson, the right-hander that Padres GM Kevin Towers craves as the centerpiece in a trade package for Peavy.

The Braves have at least $40 million to spend on 2009 additions and hope to land two proven starting pitchers and a power-hitting outfielder this winter. They are looking far and wide, including to the other side of the Pacific Rim, where a Braves representative met over the weekend with hard-throwing Japanese free-agent pitcher Junichi Tazawa.

Boston and Seattle also are vying for the services of Tazawa, whose price tag won't be nearly as prohibitive as some Japanese stars coming the majors. Tazawa pitched in the Japan's Industrial League and was passed over by the country's 12 highest-level teams after making it clear he wanted to come pitch in the United States.

Peavy, an Alabama native, has a no-trade clause and told his agent the Braves were among five NL teams he'd want to be traded to if he can't stay with the Padres, whose owner is going through a divorce and wants to slash Padres payroll in advance of a team sale.

St. Louis was also on that list and is expected to make an offer for Peavy, but doubts have been raised over whether Cardinals have enough young talent to entice the Padres.

Milwaukee could present a package to compete with a Braves offer, but some who know Peavy doubt he'd waive his no-trade clause to be dealt to Milwaukee. He has homes in San Diego and Semmes, Ala., outside Mobile, and also owns a lodge on the Alabama River in the northern part of the state.

A person familiar with the Peavy situation said Braves officials met with Padres general manager Kevin Towers on Sunday night and again Monday, and the two sides discussed several proposals that didn't include Hanson, whom the Braves refuse to part with.

Braves general manager Frank Wren spoke only in general terms. "We had some conversations with general managers and also some conversations with [representatives of] free agents," he said.

Towers wants two young pitchers in any package for Peavy, 27, the 2007 National League Cy Young Award winner who is under contract for $63 million over the next four seasons, or $81 million for five if an option is exercised.

Even with Hanson off the table, the Braves might be able to do a trade that included two from among other young pitchers including Charlie Morton and James Parr, left-hander Jo-Jo Reyes and prospects Kris Medlen and lefties Cole Rohrbough and Jeff Locke.

There were reports the Braves might go for Peavy with a trade package including shortstop Yunel Escobar and one of their center-field prospects, Jordan Schafer or Gorkys Hernandez.

Meanwhile, the LA Times claims that free agents CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira are drawing the most interest at the meetings. Sabathia received an offer from the Milwaukee Brewers over the weekend that is believed to be worth about $100 million, according to multiple reports. He is expected to fetch more on the open market.

Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman confirmed that while that's an incredible, unprecedented move for the small-market team, and Sabathia remarked several times during the season how much he liked playing and living in Milwaukee, the Brewers are still viewed as a major long shot in what promises to be a spirited derby.

Brewers GM Doug Melvin this morning confirmed that an offer was made to Sabathia but declined to discuss the dollar figure for the 28-year-old left-hander who went 17-10 with a 2.70 ERA overall and 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA with Milwaukee. Word here is that the proposal was for four or five years and between $20 and $25 million, and quite possibly for $100 million over five years.

"We've given him a proposal,'' Melvin confirmed.

The competition will be stiff. The Yankees, desperately hoping to upgrade their rotation, are expected to make a big play for Sabathia, and at least the Dodgers and Angels are expected to show strong interest in the Vallejo, Calif. native as well. The world champion Phillies could also emerge as a surprise entrant in a derby that's expected to wind up well into the nine figures. He could beat Johan Santana's record $137.5-million Mets contract, though probably not with the Brewers.

Melvin declined to categorize the Brewers' chances but acknowledged the difficulty of any team retaining a major free agent once it gets to this stage.

"I don't remember the last time a club re-signed their own free agent,'' Melvin said. "We have a better opportunity than we would have thought. We probably wouldn't have made an offer for CC if he didn't do what he did for our club and seen what kind of individual he is.''

While everyone agrees Sabathia is a fine person, it still will be difficult to overcome a major dollar deficit. The other 29 teams are disallowed from making offers to Sabathia until 15 days after the World Series ended (Nov. 14), but the Brewers and Sabathia both understand they won't be the high bidder in this derby. The Yankees will most likely be that team.

"We know he liked the experience and he liked some of his (Brewers) teammates,'' Melvin said. "We'll just have to wait to hear from his guy. There are a lot of questions. Is it the right money? Is it where he wants to be?''

Tennessee fans are getting what they've been clamoring for -- the dismissal of head coach Phillip Fulmer at seasons' end. Still, Tony Barnhart, perhaps the South's top college football writer doubts whether the scholl can land the rock star coaching talent that would satisfy the fan base and compete in the SEC.

Tennessee is one of the toughest jobs in all of college football. It's because the expectation is that Tennessee will be on par with Alabama, Florida, and Georgia on a yearly basis without some of the built-in advantages that those programs have, especially in recruiting. When Tennessee had it going in the 1990s, Fulmer and his staff were able to dip down into Georgia and Alabama for great players. Now Richt and recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner, a former Tennessee assistant, have put up a wall around Georgia. Saban is doing the same thing at Alabama.

The new head coach at Tennessee has to accept the fact he will have to recruit nationally and work significantly harder in order to get the talent to compete with those three schools. Can it be done? Absolutely. Tennessee will spend whatever it takes to recruit. But it is hard.

The other names I see out there are younger coaches who would want to step up. Here is where it gets tricky and where, if Hamilton hires the wrong guy, he could be the next guy out the door.

Do you turn the keys to the Tennessee football franchise over to a Mike Leach (Texas Tech), whose offense is entertaining but plays in a league where the best defense (Texas Tech) is ranked No. 54 in the country?

Do you hire a young up and comer like Will Muschamp, 37, who looks like the next Bob Stoops or Mark Richt but has no head coaching experience?

Do you completely step outside your comfort zone and hire a Todd Graham (Tulsa) or Chris Peterson (Boise State) with no ties to the South?

Jon Gruden? Lane Kiffin? Are you kidding me?

Here's the point. You can't just plug anybody into a job like Tennessee, no matter how successful they might be elsewhere. There is a cultural component to this job that must be taken into account. Some Tennessee fans say they want to find the football version of Bruce Pearl. Pearl is a brilliant combination of basketball coach/promoter. But basketball and football in this part of the world are like Venus and Mars. What works on one planet does not work on the other.

That is why this is going to be such a tough hire. Let's put it this way. Alabama, for all its great tradition, had to go through a painful process with some very public turn downs (Rich Rodriguez) before it convinced Nick Saban to come. Saban and his agent, Jimmy Sexton, had all the leverage and were able to extract one of the best contracts in college football history. Tennessee now finds itself in the same situation.

One suggestion to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Badger Blog was for the Wisconsin Badgers to pick up Fulmer and send suddenly-embattled Bret Bielema off to Knoxville.  Long-time beat reporter Jeff Potrykus isn't convinced that the UW should dump him, but does ask fans for their thoughts.

Call me an apologist (that's been done) or tell me I'm walking on egg shells around the head coach (been accused of that, too) but I just don't believe one very disappointing season out of three warrants a pink slip.

I believe that holds true for all workers -- from football coaches to ditch diggers and even lawyers.

I wonder if the same folks calling for Bielema's head were calling for Alvarez's head after UW finished 4-5-2 in 1995. That sub-.500 finish came after an 8-3-1 finish in 1994 (helped by a Michigan State forfeit), which came after a 10-1-1 finish in 1993.  

It seems some folks have chosen to ignore that dip, or the dip in 2001 and '02.

Not everyone is calling for Bielema's head, though.

Many of you are calling for my head because of my failure to hold Bielema "accountable."

So I ask today: What in the world does that mean?

According to the Associated Press, Bielema says he lost some credibility with his players after being penalized while complaining about a call at a critical point in the team's 25-24 loss to Michigan State.

But he says the penalty is not an indication of a lack of maturity. At 38, Bielema is the fourth youngest coach in NCAA Bowl Subdivision football.

Bielema agreed when asked if he lost some credibility with his players because of the penalty. Bielema was penalized late in the game for arguing a call.

He says his reaction was a poor example to the players. But he says that they understand a single play or penalty doesn't determine the outcome of the game.

Bielema says it's something that he will remember and use to become a better person.

Finally, if you think people aren't swayed one way or the other by those political yard signs, then you don't know Shirley Nagel, the Grosse Pointe Farms, MI lady who made a name for herself on Halloween for her refusal to pass out candy to the kids of Obama supporters.

As the Detroit Free Press reported, Nagel planted a sign in her yard that read, "No handouts for Obama supporters, liars, tricksters or kids of supporters". Nagel, according to media reports, brought tears to the eyes of some of the young trick-or -treaters that she turned away.

Isn't American politics great? Not only are the people you disagree with to be vilified; now their children are to be shunned? Forget the notion that reasonable people can disagree, politics is "war" and if a few children get caught in the crosshairs, well, what's "war" without a little "collateral damage"?

So Nagel has made history for having the only presidential election yard sign in America that may actually switch a few votes. But probably not in the way she intended.

Hey, she even made Keith Olbermann's list as Worst Person in the World. As Don King would say, only in America!

Bielema kicks another game away.

The phrase, "on any given Sunday" usually refers to the National Football League and the ever-present possibility of an upset. Still, on any given Sunday, there are dozens of heartbreaks all over America due to college football losses on the previous day.

I can't begin to comprehend the sorrow in Austin, TX -- where the Longhorns' dreams of a national championship were broken with a loss to rival Texas Tech. And I can even feel some sympathy in Ann Arbor, MI -- where their Michigan Wolverines are eliminated for bowl eligibility for the first time in 33 years.

Still, there is also some sadness and anger here in Madison, WI -- after the Badgers' second collapse in the state of Michigan. For the third time, Wisconsin lost a 4th quarter lead and lost a winnable game, this time to the MSU Spartans, 25-24.

If you're wondering, the poll on http://www.firebretbielema.com/ is running 77% in favor of dismissing the UW head football coach. And before last Saturday's loss, I probably wouldn't have agreed with them.

That was then and this is now. And now, I am convinced that Wisconsin will never reach the Rose Bowl, much less compete for a national title, as long as Bielema is coaching this team.

Yes, you can point to his overall record, but you can also make the argument that most of those wins were stacked up with Barry Alvarez' recruits. And I'm not at all advocating a campaign of discouraging good kids from coming to play for Wisconsin.

And yet, I ask this question: What does a coach do?

To me, a college coach does three things:

1. Prepare his/her players to succeed -- both in the game and in life.
2. Instill team discipline -- that is, by repetition and enforcement, make sure the players know the rules and can play with passion but under control.
3. Finally, after all of that, the successful coach makes adjustments during the game to put his/her team in a position to win the game.

And in all phases of that assessment, Bret Bielema fails miserably. This recent loss to Michigan State is a microcosm of what's gone wrong with this program.

As in the loss to Michigan, the coaching staff prepared the Badgers with a good gameplan. But the Spartans made adjustments and Wisconsin did not. With the Badgers leading the Big Ten in penalties -- including 12 for 121 yards vs. MSU -- it's apparent that Bielema's team is sorely lacking in discipline.

Yet, the kicker was the fact that Bielema can't even show discipline himself. The game was essentially lost when the coach mouthed off to an official and was assessed a 15 yrd. unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. And after all that, the Badgers were still in a position to win the game by getting one last first down and running out the clock. But instead, they were socked with two straight penalties and had to punt the ball back to the Spartans.

Still, the clock was running out -- literally -- on MSU as they scrambled to get their field goal squad on the field. That's when the head coach called a time-out, allowing the other team to regroup and kick the winning score.

Last week, I suggested that the Motor City Bowl might not be such a bad thing. It's closer and therefore, much more affordable than a trip to Florida. But now, I feel that it would a waste of my time and money to return to the great state of Michigan to watch yet another Badger meltdown. I also wonder aloud, whether there are more UW fans who will vote with their pocketbook and skip that Detroit trip as well.

I'll say it again, the Badgers will NOT win the Big Ten with this man as head coach. If Bielema actually turns this program and takes the UW to Pasadena, I will print this column out and eat it with american fries at Mickey's Dairy Bar.

The schedule says that Wisconsin has three games left in this season. But I won't be watching them and I wonder how many others will find something, ANYTHING better to do than waste time on an undisciplined football team.

 

 

 

I can probably sing better than Joe The Plumber too!

The new guy in Milwaukee is the old guy that the players couldn't wait to get rid of in Oakland.

When the Oakland Athletics fired Macha after the 2006 season despite the team claiming an American League West championship, general manager Billy Beane said there was a "disconnect on several levels." Reports surfaced that Macha had poor relationships with some of his players.

None of that mattered much to Milwaukee Brewers general manager Doug Melvin, who made Macha the franchise's 17th manager Thursday when he announced a two-year deal for the 58-year-old career baseball man.  As he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel...

"I had received calls from people that said it wasn't that much of an issue," Melvin said. "If you look in the paper, every ballclub will have issues over the course of the year.

"You're going to have that whether you're a winning club or a losing club. Of all the people I interviewed during this whole process, almost every manager felt they were let go for the same reasons and said there was a disconnect of communication with the players."

At his introductory news conference at Miller Park, Macha said those reports made the situation appear worse than it really was.

Based on comments from several Oakland players after his ouster, it appeared that Macha wasn't well liked and didn't back his players. Jason Kendall, Macha's catcher for two seasons in Oakland, was quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle as saying, "Maybe Billy saw the same thing the players saw. If Billy gets blasted in the media, it's ridiculous."

On Thursday, Kendall, now the Brewers' catcher, said there was more of a communication gap between Beane and Macha than one with the players.

"That whole thing got blown way out of proportion," Kendall said. "His track record speaks for itself. He's a great baseball man.

"I think it was more miscommunication between him and the general manager."

Kendall also said he enjoyed playing for Macha, and Macha said "Jason Kendall won't be a problem."

"When you get dismissed, there has to be a reason, and whatever reason that might be, it sticks with."

A JS-online.com poll has a slight majority of fans thinking that Macha's selection is a good thing. I just don't.

Now that he's made his managerial choice, Melvin's next job is trying to re-sign CC Sabathia. Macha said on Newsradio 620 WTMJ's "Greenhouse," Melvin is preparing an offer to Sabathia that likely will turn into a four-year, $100,000,000 attempt to keep him in Brewers blue and gold.

"We knew when we acquired him, the chances of keeping him were slim, but he enjoyed it here, and because of that, we feel we have at least that opportunity," said Brewers general manager Doug Melvin.

A week ago, it looked like the Wisconsin Badgers had little chance of making even the Motor City Bowl -- the reward to the Big Ten 7th place team. Now, with a victory over Illinois and a 4-4 record, fans are letting themselves dream of a return trip to Florida, albeit to the Champs Sports Bowl.

Vince Sweeney, UW senior associate athletic director, doesn't think those Florida trips will preclude UW from being considered for the Champs Bowl.

"We think we've got fans that follow us," Sweeney told the Badger Beat. "(Florida Citrus Sports') experience with us has been a positive experience. We haven't had any indications come our way that the folks in Orlando are looking for somebody other than us.''

Still, let's not dismiss that Dec. 26 trip to Detroit. Ken Hoffman, the executive director of the Motor City Bowl, never expected to be talking in late October about the possibility of the Wisconsin Badgers football team playing in his bowl.

Yet, one of the many reasons the Badgers would be so appealing to the Motor City Bowl is because they've never been there.

"When you have a chance to have new teams ... that kind of variety is just good for the game," Hoffman said.

"It's good for the city in which the game is played. I think it's really good for the fans who are coming to the game, to see something a little different."

Hoffman might have one of the toughest jobs among all bowl representatives in convincing a Big Ten team that a trip to Ford Field for a Dec. 26 game is a reward.

"Perception is reality," Hoffman admitted. "Some people will have a perception of coming to Detroit that's not what we believe it is. Detroit is so vastly improved from five or 10 years ago. We had the Super Bowl here two years ago.

"While some people understand it's not 75 degrees here in December, we have an awful lot of great things to offer for the winter fans. And the game itself is going to be in perfect weather conditions.''

Finally, I am NOT Joe The Plumber! Some woman at happy hour last night asked if I was and it threw off my whole night.

Sheesh, let me count the ways.

• I'm not a plumber.
• I'm not a Republican.
• I'm not pretending to buy out my boss' business.
• I'm not hiring a publicist. (Although, you think I should?)
• And I am NOT considering making a country-western recording.

Yes, I shave my head, but that's as far as it goes, lady. I'm having a bad hair life, okay?

Absorbant and yellow and busted is he...

It was Opening Night in Oklahoma City as the hometown Thunder took to the NBA hardwoods for the first time. The Commish was there along with a full house in the Ford Center. There was a huge celebration. And then they went out and got rolled by the lowly Milwaukee Bucks.

John Rhode of the Oklahoman observed, "This season could be longer than originally thought, Thunder fans. Given what transpired Wednesday night at the Ford Center, patience not only will be a virtue with the Thunder, it will be a minimum requirement.

The Thunder got rolled by the Milwaukee Bucks 98-87 on opening night inside the Ford Center.

The home team trailed by double-digits for the final 29 minutes and trailed by as many as 24 at one point.

Granted, it's only one game, but is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Keep in mind, people, the Bucks aren't very good.

Much like the Thunder, no one is picking Milwaukee to play more than 82 games this season.

The Bucks wore green, but they hardly resemble the world champion Celtics, who next Wednesday will make their only visit here.

"We didn't play like we were capable of playing, and that's a shame," Thunder coach P.J. Carlesimo said afterward.

The Thunder struggled from the very beginning. The effort in the first half was questionable.

All summer long, we've been selling this team as a group that might not win, but it will at least play hard.

The Thunder did neither, and that's unacceptable, even to a bunch of forgiving, impressionable newcomers like us.

As for the Bucks, it appears that new coach Scott Skiles' patience with Charlie Villanueva lasted all of two games. Already, Charlie V is in the doghouse for his intermittant style of defense.

 

The Phillies finally won that World Series that wouldn't end last night and I'm truly happy for Geoff Jenkins, one of the good guys in the game. The former Milwaukee Brewer was always decent and available to the press. Even though, he didn't play that much, he was a major part of the deciding game.

Many, including ESPN's Mike and Mike In The Morning (yes, THEM again), noted that Ryan Howard became part of an illustrious crew: among the few to win a championship while HR and RBI leader of the season. Babe Ruth was the first and Roger Maris was the most recent before Howard.

But then, some dummy listed Henry Aaron -- which is true, but they listed it as:

Hank Aaron - ATL - 1957

No. no, no, no, no, NO! The MILWAUKEE BRAVES won in 1957.

Yeah well, this same dummy will reply, they're in Atlanta now, so?

SO?!

You don't say the Baltimore Ravens won the 1964 NFL title. You don't say (or at least, you shouldn't say) that the Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA title in 1979?

Get it right, sheesh...

 

While we're talking on-air blunders , former Minnesota football coach Glen Mason claimed on the Big Ten Network that -- in his mind -- Michigan State is probably the 3rd best team in the league as "they've beaten Notre Dame and Michigan and Wisconsin..."

Uh, coach? Psst...the Spartans play the Badgers THIS SATURDAY!!  Maybe, that attention to detail is why you're a former coach on the moribund Big Ten network, eh?

 

Finally, tomorrow is Halloween, which here in Madison means that we locals get to exclaim, "AARRRGGGH, what are you doing to my lawn???!!!"

October 31 in Madison means that thousands of drunken college kids ( I know what you're thinking now, there are other kinds?) decend on the city to get arrested as fast as possible. Think, a white trash, colder version of Mardi Gras, with none of the good food.

One year, Sponge Bob -- or some drunk kid -- got busted across from my porch. I saw this as I sat there -- after having 10 or 12 beer bottles thrown at my house. After the 12th, I took my lawn chair and a baseball bat, sat there and just kept saying, "just keep moving, kids."

Anyway, I don't live downtown anymore and October 31 is one of the major reasons why. Still, if you're in town for the festivities, DON'T think you WON'T get arrested.

If they'll bust Sponge Bob, you're toast.