Hi, my name is Brian, and I am a Chicago Cubs fan. Sports didn't begin or end for me in the moment that fly ball was hit into left field on October 14, 2003, but the way I viewed sports was never the same after this moment. Welcome to Life from Left Field - a blog about sports, politics, and everything in between (and sometimes outside) the foul poles of life.
While a brief summary can be found on the "About Me" section of the blog, since this is the first "real" post, let me take a second to talk about who I am. My parents were Christian born and raised in India and moved to the suburbs of Chicago in the early 80s, where my my older brother and I were born and raised. My dad has spent most of his career in the pharmaceutical industry and my mom has been a nurse for over 30 years, including the last 10+ years in the spinal cord unit at a VA hospital. I am fortunate to come from a great home and a strong, supportive, and loyal family. Our loyalty extends to most Chicago sports teams, including the Bulls, Bears, Cubs, and Blackhawks. In addition, they have graciously adopted my affinity and love for my undergraduate alma mater, the University of Connecticut Huskies.
I graduated from UConn in 2010 with a B.S. in Sport Management and a Minor in Business Administration. I also recently earned my M.B.A. from the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University with concentrations in Sport Management and Marketing. In addition to sports, I love politics, I am a supporter of President Obama and the Democratic Party, and I generally approach issues from a liberal perspective. If you're still reading - thank you, and welcome to LfLF.
Sports from Left Field
That fly ball (clip is the preview for Catching Hell, an ESPN Films original documentary) changed my worldview in terms of sports. It was the start of a collapse of moments unlike any I had witnessed at the time, and in some ways was a coming of age for me as a fan.
I was a spoiled sports fan growing up. Born in 1988 in the suburbs of Chicago, the fondest sports memories I have from childhood are all of Michael Jeffrey Jordan, and most are of him (and the Chicago Bulls) winning. Basketball was my favorite sport as a kid and still is to this day, and Jordan played hero in the Bulls fairy tale of the 1990s. Sure, I really like baseball, football, hockey, and other sports, but basketball is my obsession. I didn't fully grasp or appreciate the sports that I have since come to love today until Jordan retired.
The main reason I fell in love with basketball is my parents. They are both big basketball fans and my dad also likes football and baseball, which is how I became a Bears and Cubs fan. That, and the Sosa-McGwire home run chase in the summer of 1998. I'll never forget a parody of Love Rollercoaster that a local radio show did with Sammy Sosa that summer and fall, which recently resurfaced online. My love for the Cubs grew with the steroid era, bringing more home runs and zero world series rings to the North Side.
There is no way to describe the feeling in Chicago on that fateful day in October 2003 with the Cubs on the cusp of reaching the World Series. You could argue that every city knocking on the door of any championship series or game has that feeling, but none of them have the same history of losing. It was all set to change on that day, and through 8 1/3 innings, it was. Then the Bartman incident happens, and Alex Gonzalez bobbles a sure double play ball, and the Cubs lose that game and game 7 at home. What was set to change remained the same - the Cubs lost, and they haven't won a playoff game since.
Even after Jordan retired, I never stopped being a Bulls fan - I didn't know how to stop. I knew Jordan was irreplaceable, but I never gave up on the Bulls. I always thought they would make a big move in the offseason or at the trade deadline, or develop stars with their draft picks, anything that would make the team respectable again. Maybe I was naive, but I stuck with them through the losses because I love basketball, I love that team, and as a Cubs fan, losing was something I've grown used to. You can imagine how excited I was when the Bulls started winning again with Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, and Joakim Noah. That excitement grew when the Bulls got a really, really lucky bounce in winning the 2008 NBA Draft Lottery with just a 1.7% chance of doing so. They drafted hometown kid Derrick Rose, he became the youngest MVP in league history, and then broke the hearts of everyone in Chicago when he tore his ACL in Game 1 of the playoffs this year. Adidas has started a marketing campaign called #TheReturn, and their latest ad released just a few days ago. I think I can speak on behalf of all Bulls fans and say that we can't wait for him to get back on the court again.
Politics from Left Field
My parents have always been Democrats and that's how I was raised, but I never really cared for politics when I was younger. I was in high school when then-U.S. Senate candidate Barack Obama gave the keynote address at the 2004 DNC Convention, and I didn't watch. In fact, the first time I heard of Barack Obama was when he visited my high school for a town hall meeting in 2005, where he was asked if he would run for President one day. For me, change began on that day.
I began to pay more attention to politics, particularly when I started undergrad at the University of Connecticut. When Obama officially entered the Democratic primary race in February 2007, I was still a freshman and in my second semester, but I definitely believed he would be president. I was taking a public speaking course at the time, and throughout the semester we had to give three kinds of speeches: informative, narrative, and persuasive. My persuasive speech was on "Why Barack Obama is the Best Presidential Candidate." Safe to say I fell for hope and change, voted for him in the primary and the general election, and will never forget talking on the phone with my dad right before he gave his acceptance speech in Chicago. Since that day, change has happened for the better - in the US economy, in healthcare reform, financial and consumer protection, saving the auto industry, ending the war in Iraq, and many other accomplishments - and the importance of this election has led me to why I am writing this blog today.
Why write LfLF?
The main reason I am writing this blog is to try to make a difference in the 2012 election. I know that their is no shortage of media attention or information about the election, but I do know that there are many people who are uninformed or misinformed about politics today. Instead of taking the time to learn and understand the facts and just keeping them to myself, I think it would be best to have a conversation about them with as many people as possible. I think a blog is the best way to present a consistent, organized dialogue and it is the proper format to have such a conversation. At the very least, I hope that having this conversation will persuade more people to vote and participate in the election process.
My Bias
In terms of politics, I hope that I've made it pretty clear that this blog is not pretending to be "fair and balanced." My opinions will generally be liberal, and my support will generally favor Democrats. Regardless of my opinions, I will provide context and facts, and in cases were I do make an error, I will correct them.
In terms of sports, much of my coverage will focus on the Chicago Bulls, Chicago Bears, Chicago Cubs, Chicago Blackhawks, UConn Huskies, major sporting news and events, and unapologetic, blind support for Derrick Rose (get well soon, D-Rose!).
Goals & Expectations
I know a lot of people hate to talk politics. I also know that I have family, friends, and colleagues that hold different political views and may prefer to abstain from participating - and that's completely fine. Here are some of my primary goals and expectations for this blog:
- My main goal is to present my opinion, facts that support my opinion, and present an opportunity for you to respond, if you choose. While my opinion is provided, I know it's not the only opinion or the best opinion. The key is to be inform and discuss, not tell you what to believe.
- My secondary goal is to build a consistent dialogue through this medium - giving readers an opportunity to discuss their thoughts and opinions with one another.
- I also hope that this blog can inform people about voter registration and information on how to register to vote.
- Finally, let's be civil in our discussion. I expect that everyone who participates is respectful of others and their opinions.
Format
Sticking with the baseball theme, I've come up with a few title categories that you can expect to see regularly on the blog:
First Pitch* - Mondays: a recap of weekend events in politics and sports (*In honor of this being the first "real" post on the blog - this post is the honorary "Opening Day Edition" of First Pitch)
Line Drive - General posts
7th Inning Stretch - Thursdays: what's on tap for the weekend
Final Score - Fridays: weekly summary/recap of major events
Foul Ball - Reactions to unexpected events
In addition, you'll notice several pages titles that run across the top of your screen:
Videos - These are clips that I think are relevant and important, and sometimes funny and entertaining, depending on the topic.
Register to Vote - LOOK AT THIS PAGE. I cannot stress this enough. Check your registration today, and if you aren't registered, REGISTER RIGHT NOW. If you're not sure if you are going to vote in November, register anyway so that you will have that option available to you.
2012 Presidential Debate Schedule - A quick and handy breakdown of this year's debate schedule. Topics will be updated as they become available.
About Me & Contact Information/Photo Credits - General information about me and ways to contact me, along with photo credits for background images on this blog.
I'm really excited to get started with this. Thank you all for your support. Let's play ball.
Follow @brianthomas12
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