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Posts in category "History"

Why Wrigley Field must be destroyed

Here’s a great read about why the Cubs won’t win until they tear down Wrigley Field. The real “curse” isn’t Billy Goat, but the ball park itself. I always thought it was a dump anyway, offending the sensibilities of certain fans who regarded the place as some sort of shrine. A shrine for losers, if... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
May 15, 2012 at 9:14 pm
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Publication date set for my historical novel about the War of 1812

My first book, Madness: The War of 1812, will be in paperback in bookstores, including Amazon, and also in ebook form on Kindle and other media in summer of 2012, the bicentennial of the start of the war. At least that’s what my publisher, Tate Publications, tells me. It’s a story about what it was... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
December 12, 2011 at 12:12 pm
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My best friend forever and ever

I first met Paul in fifth grade, about when he began smoking, drinking and messing with women. Well, that came a few years later, but I did meet Paul in fifth grade, where we became instant friends, although it would have been hard to find two more unlikely pals. He was a country kid, from McHenry County... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
November 29, 2011 at 9:03 am
• 1 comment
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Let's dump on Christians

From the far and not so far left comes a concerted attack on the religious choices of presidential candidates. Belief in  the Second Coming of Christ and Armageddon now are considered to be warning signs of dangerous candidates. I thought we settled this issue with the election of John F. Kennedy. During his presidential campaign... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
October 6, 2011 at 9:31 am
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The disappearing American frontier itch

In 1893, historian Frederick Jackson Turner argued that the American frontier had closed, raising an important question: Absent the frontier, what would fuel the audacious, inventive and energetic nature of the bold American character? Arguably, imperialism created the new frontier: the Spanish-American War with the acquisition of Cuba and the Philippines blossomed into the American... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
October 4, 2011 at 10:51 am
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Reliving the 1960s through retro TV shows

Living through the 1960s was weird enough for a lifetime, now television gives us a chance to relive it. Do we have to? Earlier, we were eased into the decade with “Mad Men,” the award-winning AMC show set in the 1960s. It is self-described as a “sexy, stylized and provocative . . . drama (that)... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
September 20, 2011 at 7:13 pm
• 1 comment
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Public workers' pension funds are eating Illinois alive

We keep hearing about how the state has “borrowed” cash from money set aside in the Illinois public pension funds to help balance the state budget, in effect, spending their pensions to pay for such things as state aid to schools.  But the Kankakee Daily Journal, in an excellent editorial, points out that it’s a... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
November 12, 2010 at 5:44 pm
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Casino near Gettysburg battle field?

That would be about a mile away from the historic battle field’s southern borders, where sit the Big Round Top and Little Round Top where hundreds died. A proposal to build a casino near there eclipses the idea of building a mosque near Ground Zero. A mosque is constitutionally protected; a gambling joint is not... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
August 31, 2010 at 11:23 am
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St. Pat's Day reflection: Attempted English genocide of the Irish

This, more than St. Patrick, is the story of the real Ireland. Tenant Irish being evicted from their hovels by the English during the Great Famine, to die in the fields and roadside ditches. Gather round ye celebrants of St. Patrick’s Day and listen to what it’s really about. Not your green beer or your... Read more »
By Dennis Byrne,
March 16, 2010 at 2:33 pm
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