So Daley Plaza cleared out fairly quickly after the first-round TKO of the Chicago 2016 bid — all that remained after a couple of hours were roadies, and a fountain filled with orange soda.

And the people who left in a hush had a serious case of sad.  They believed in the bid — truly and completely, and notwithstanding all of the inherent problems of handing off billions of dollars to the Daley machine, when such money can pay for other useful things.  (On this score, the objections to the bid by Chicagocentric Stinquers were well-documented and, on the whole, well-founded.)

But: Rush Limbaugh?  Glenn Beck?  Weekly Standard hacks?   And, also, a guy who dialed into WGN Radio after Chicago got spiked and blamed Black Eagle for badmouthing America overseas — just after he gave America a big, wet, sloppy kiss?  All of whom were elated not so much that Chicago lost, but that America lost?

Look: I didn’t want the Games to come here.  My reasons were out of broader concerns about the well-being of the city I live in.  These guys just wanted Barack Obama to be embarassed.  That’s all they care about.  And this — something that is positively trivial compared to health care, or Afghanistan, or all the other things Barry couldn’t think about while he was in Denmark for four hours — proves where these people are, mentally, beyond any doubt.

Note to Harry Reid and similarly spineless Democrats in charge of things: the guys whose asses you want to kiss are in league with people who were cheering when America lost at something.  These are the bastards you are dealing with.  A thought: why don’t you call ’em out on something like this?  For once?  And not wishy-washy, but in earnest?  For me?  PLEASE??

My grandfather smelled like Chesterfields and Vicks Vaporub. Who knew one of those smells would endure?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kj4I2f0ZO6g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SriJ3WOZaXU

We haven’t been a regular Letterman watcher since the early days of the CBS show — his best moments were on NBC, and even those started to, er, peter out near the end.

So we don’t really have a take on his admission — in the face of a $2 milliion extortion attempt — that he had a self-described “creepy” habit of diddling the staff. Some are comparing it to Monica Lewinsky, although Dave’s not the President of the United States (hell, he’s not even a senator), and there’s no indication yet that any of the women were interns. Others are saying that fucking the help is bad news, whatever the circumstance.

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Back at the Book Birther Beat, the National Journal asks Bill Ayers whether he really did ghostwrite Obama’s first book, which would constitutionally disqualify Barry from holding office:

“Here’s what I’m going to say. This is my quote. Be sure to write it down: ‘Yes, I wrote Dreams From My Father. I ghostwrote the whole thing. I met with the president three or four times, and then I wrote the entire book.'” He released National Journal’s arm, and beamed in Marxist triumph. “And now I would like the royalties.”

We applaud his forthrightness, but we suspect he’s still holding back. We’ll just have to wait until publication to prove that Ayers also ghostwrote Going Rogue.

Bill Ayers: Sure, I Wrote Obama’s Book. Now How ‘Bout Those Royalties? [TPM]

The cream of the GOP continues to rise to the top:

And here’s a report on this episode:

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In what is surely the most awesome thing to hit the Internet since the Stinque Zombie Bible, the University of Florida has published a Zombie Preparedness Guide, in the event Gainesville is overrun by the Undead.

Besides College Republicans.

The document is structured as a training exercise, since you don’t want to lose your head while everyone else is, um, losing theirs. In addition to properly identifying “difficult to kill, flesh-eating perpetrators”, staff are advised in appropriate armaments:

Some employees may prefer weapons such as chain saws, baseball bats, and explosives that have been shown to be effective against zombies. Given the stress on staff to be anticipated during a zombie outbreak, employees should be given the flexibility to choose their own weaponry thereby diminishing anxiety. However, the University will need to consider the savings gained at economies of scale as well as enhanced ability to support a standard anti-zombie weapons “kit.”

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Hello Canada, and Stinquey fans in the United States and Newfoundland! Welcome to October, referred to here in Chicago as “Hockey Season.”  But also: welcome to a special, 0-dark-30 liveblog of the Chicago 2016 presentation to the International Olympic Committee and Chowder Club.  (I will be out of action once the vote gets called.  Ah, work.)

The big guns are out in force, of course, trying to sell Chicago on the world.  Everybody’s looking to see if Barry and Michelle can close the deal, or if Dick Pound jumps on Oprah’s couch.  (NB: Dick Pound = Canadian IOC member, anti-doping crusader, Montreal lawyer, and guy with the BEST NAME EVER.)  That’s the sideshow.  The real story here is that the stakes could not be higher for Richard M. Daley, Mayor.  Dude’s basically put all his chips on this one day.  If Chicago wins, he’ll be Benevolent Monarch For Life, doling out millions upon millions of Olympic dollars to his pals.  If not, his days as Mayor are just about done — his career effectively nailed to a cross of discarded parking meters.

So: showtime for Chicago is set for — oh God — about 0130 (CT).  Will Mayor Daley be able to Make The Connection?  Let us watch, try to stay awake, and ponder.

PRE-SHOW: The voting process is intriguing.  Majority rule, with the last-place town getting spiked after each round.  Everyone figures that of the four, Toyko will get tossed at the start.  Which brings up an interesting prospect — Japan and Brazil seemingly have a history, with many Japanese immigrants going to Brazil in the early 20th Century.  Madrid is likely to go next, with sympathies possibly going to Rio.  So for all the talk about how Chicago has a leg up, the process might cut against Chicago, hard.

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