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JAY L LINER 

This Sunday past, I had the great thrill of sojourning to the City of Brotherly Love and after plunking down $340, I got to witness Paul McCartney do his thing with his current band.  I went with my wife, who had seen the Beatles back in 1966 at the Baltimore Civic Center and who now wanted to reprise the opportunity to witness the genius who was the tour de force of the Fab Four.  I’m talking about the incomparable Sir Paul McCartney.

Before I get into the show, let me digress a moment. I would be remiss if I didn’t comment on the fiasco that took place at the PGA and express my opinion on what happened. Since I have declared myself the official golf writer for the Organ with my previous columns about Tiger and Phil and the Majors, I’m your man when it comes to opining about the golf scene. Actually, there was at one time a terrific golf writer on the staff of the Baltimore Sun named John Stewart, who was first-rate. We certainly could use his expertise now.

I was listening to the tournament on XM satellite radio on my way up to Philly when the controversy erupted.  I frequently dial into the PGA Network when I’m in the car and a tournament is being broadcast.  The lead anchor for the broadcast is a former touring pro named John McGuiness, who went ballistic over the ruling. It was total chaos and confusion at first. I was parking my car when the official ruling was announced and the playoff began sans the forlorned Dustin Johnson. I found out who prevailed, The German and not Bubba, when I was headed home after the show somewhere on I-95 around Chester, Pa.

Ok, so we're not perfect all the time. Here’s our Mea Culpa on some of our opinions that didn’t work out, or on positions that we’ve taken that may have come a-cropper. Confession is good for the soul…sometimes.

1.       Picking Rick Dempsey over Buck Showalter to manage the Birds. Not that this excuses Andy McPhail for his general incompetence since taking the reins, but watching the team play since Buck Showalter was installed has become fun again. Who knows if this will carry over into next year, but you can see that he has this team playing well.

2.       Mocking Sarah Palin for everything she does. She’s dumb like a fox. She’s laughing at us all the way to the bank and has the ability to get her message out to her minions, even intruding into the Maryland Governor’s race by endorsing Bob Ehrlich’s opponent in the primary—an unknown named Brian Murphy who has absolutely no shot. She’s the pied piper, and will be a factor in the political landscape for a very long time.

3.       Heaping too much praise on the President. He’s enigmatic, and hasn’t pushed any of my buttons lately. I thought he had “c” word (charisma) when he ran, but instead he’s been too low-key and aloof, and he should be pushing his agenda harder by using the bully pulpit. He’s betwixt and between in helping out some of the Democrats who are in tight races this fall because he can’t show his face in some areas since he’s not the savior that can pull the country out of the doldrums we had hoped for. He was way too laid-back on the BP fiasco. He better get it together soon, or he may be more vulnerable than previously thought.

I don’t know about all of you, but lately, I’ve been wired more than I’ve been in a long time and I’m ready to blow. As one of my idols, Howard Beale, who was deftly portrayed by the late Peter Finch in the cult classic Network, said “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore.”  I have been ranting to you on this page for the last few weeks with my assholes of the summer shtick, but even that hasn’t assuaged my anger and frustration. Here are a few more examples of why there’s a burr up my ass.

The latest crime caper in Baltimore, where a young man was stabbed to death by some career criminals who should have been jailed long before this tragic event occurred, has now evolved into a political subplot and scenario that makes you want to puke. Two total incompetents, Martin O’Malley and Patricia Jessamy, formerly estranged as Mayor and State’s Attorney of Baltimore, are now kissing each other’s asses and joining forces to survive their upcoming electoral challenges. O’Malley badly needs the black support in the city to hold off Bob Ehrlich, and Jessamy needs O’Malley to help her in her primary challenge against contender Greg Bernstein.

Formerly, these two never jived and sparred quite openly about how to resolve public safety issues.  Jessamy has never distinguished herself on the job, and wins because of her political skills, and not with her ability to make the streets safe. My take on O’Malley has been reinforced and corroborated by this latest maneuver. He’s total bullshit.