The Cleveland Haemosporidians?

 

The Cleveland Indians will always be the Cleveland Indians for me. The Indians’ mascot will always be Chief Wahoo.  But over at PJ Media, Robert Spencer explains what's really going on:

With skyrocketing crime and inflation, a steady exodus of sane people from her state, and test scores of students in the state plummeting, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-Planned Parenthood) and her henchmen have turned their attention to the most burning issue of our day: sports team mascots that offend the woke. Now New York’s remaining residents can look around at their smoking ruin of a state, as they watch the people who broke into their house drive off in their car and console themselves with the thought that nowhere in their formerly green and pleasant land is anyone being traumatized because there’s a sports team around called the “Indians.”

The Albany Times-Union reported Tuesday that “the New York Board of Regents has officially banned all uses of images and names for school mascots related to indigenous people.” At this late date in the woke-ification of America, there wasn’t even any controversy over this: “The board voted unanimously Tuesday morning, without discussion.”

This was the culmination of a process that has been going on for a good while: “The proposal was announced by the state Education Department in November, and education officials have been urging school boards to begin the process to change mascot images and names ever since.” Why is anyone on the New York Board of Regents paying attention to this matter at all? Because, you see, fans of teams called the Indians and Chiefs and Braves and even Redskins never realized it, but all the time they were rooting for their teams, they were really indulging in an act of hate.

In the Left’s view, you see, people name their sports teams after things they despise. 

. . .

The war against mascots is also completely inconsistent. There are ongoing efforts to force the Minnesota Vikings to change their name because the name “Viking” supposedly glorifies colonialism and white supremacism. But if the “Viking” name glorifies whiteness, why don’t the “Chief” or “Warrior” or “Indian” names glorify Native Americans? The war against mascots is, in other words, simply another Leftist effort to make Americans generally ashamed of their own culture and heritage. A nation that is ashamed won’t have the will to defend itself. . . .

Read the rest here. 

Exit question:  In the interest of keeping fans ashamed of themselves and their team, why did not the Tribe owners select The Cleveland Worms instead of the Cleveland Guardians?  Or, if it was important to keep “dians” in the new name, well then, how about

The Cleveland Haemosporidians?

(For utterly fascinating information about the “avian haemosporidian parasite,” click here.)

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Indians hit a snag with name change to Guardians

 

Via @clevelanddotcom on  Twitchy, Indians hit a snag with name change to Guardians

There's already a #Guardians team in town, a roller derby club, leading

people to ask whether the #Indians have done their homework.

 

Babylon Bee has a solution:

Problem Solved: Cleveland Indians Mascot Replaced
By Apu From The Simpsons

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Chief Wahoo on unemployment

To follow up on yesterday's news announcing the Cleveland Guardians, here's the Babylon Bee with another good one:

Unemployment Up 800% Among Ethnic Mascots

And from Paula Bolyard at PJ Media:

RIP Cleveland Indians:
Brave New Name Will Honor Traffic Pillars
on a Crumbling Bridge

. . . The name change depresses me. I’m sad that my grandkids will never know the joy of cheering for the Cleveland Indians—like their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents before them. If they even bother to watch the team, they’ll be cheering for a stupid traffic pillar. I feel the same way I did when Art Modell up and moved the Cleveland Brown to Baltimore in 1995, leaving fans with an empty stadium and the rights to the name. A part of our collective history died that day and the team has never really recovered. “The Move” joined a long and storied line of disappointments for Cleveland fans (there’s an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to the topic). But it’s more than just the Indians’ name change. Our history is being erased by a small minority of noisy activists, statue by statue, logo by logo, name by name. They’re using 1984 as an instruction manual to shove our entire history down the Memory Hole. Meanwhile, their fellow travelers are inundating our schools with fake history, heavy on social manipulation and light on education.

I refuse to accept the premise that I’m a racist because I love the Cleveland Indians—the name, the logo, and Chief Wahoo. I’m sick and tired of having my motives called into question at every turn because of my skin color. I will never EVER cheer for the Cleveland Guardians. Instead, I’ll join the many loyal Tribe fans who will no doubt continue to cheer for the Indians. And we’ll wear our black-market Wahoo gear proudly, celebrating the history of the team and the bravery of our Native American brothers and sisters.

I grew up with the Cleveland Indians, and when I read the change to “Guardians” – I made no connection between that name and these “guardians on the Hope Memorial bridge.  No, it's just another politically correct decision that will sadden and irritate the fans. 

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Out: Indians. In: Guardians.

Out: Indians.  In: Guardians.

That's the Twitchy announcement.  The Cleveland Guardians.   Synonyms:  Protectors, Godparents, Custodians, Caretakers, Keepers, Wardens, Guards, Sentinels.  Such fun words for nicknames and mascots, huh?   Say goodbye to the Tribe and Chief Wahoo.  

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More reasons to not play ball

 

Kaylyn Hlavaty at WEWS TV has more bad news:

In a long list of what fans can expect at Progressive Field for the 2021 season, the Cleveland Indians announced it will not allow fans into Progressive Field with “headdresses and face paint styled in a way that references or appropriates American Indian cultures and traditions.”

Anyone wearing inappropriate or offensive images, words, dress or face paint must be covered or removed, and failure to do so will constitute grounds for ejection or refusal of admission, the organization stated.

The new policy comes after the announcement from the team last year that professional baseball in Cleveland will be played by a team with a different name.

The Cleveland Indians held discussions in the summer 2020 about the possibility of a name change after years of protests calling the team name and former Chief Wahoo logo “derogatory,” “racist” and “offensive.”

And yes, the list of do’s and don’ts is long – click here.  Sure takes the fun out of it – what little fun there was left.  And no, this is not an April Fool's joke -- wish it were.

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Cleveland Indians name change

 

 

More politically correct news at The Daily Caller:

Cleveland’s Major League Baseball team will reportedly drop “Indians” from its name as early as this week.

“For the past 105 years, the team was called the Indians. That will be no more as Cleveland has decided to change its name,” New York Times reporter Michael Schmidt tweeted.

. . .

Although the report indicated that the official news could come as early as this week, a full transition away from the name Cleveland’s American League team has used since 1915 might not be as immediate. One source told Schmidt that the name and current logo — the previous mascot Chief Wahoo was phased out in 2019 — would likely remain through the 2021 season with the change taking effect as early as 2022.

The report is here.  These team names (Indians, Braves, Bengals) and mascots (such as Chief Wahoo) were chosen because they represent the competitive spirit, strength, bravery and other positive qualities.  The fans cheer and have fun with the team name and mascots.  As my husband says, would they rather call them The Cleveland Worms?

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Every Sports Team Must Change Its Name

Daniel Greenfield’s article “Every Sports Team Must Change Its Name” highlights the insanity of this craze to re-name sports teams.  And of course it won’t stop with sports teams.  Mr. Greenfield begins:

Every name is racist. Every name must change.

The Washington Redskins agreed to change a name that offended no one except white leftists, but the media, which always speaks with forked tongue, is demanding more sports scalps.

The Cleveland Indians have issued a statement whining that "the recent social unrest... has only underscored the need for us to keep improving as an organization on issues of social justice."

Remember when the Indians were just known for being cursed with the second-longest championship drought in sports, now they can be cursed for their commitment to social justice.

The curse used to be known as the Curse of Chief Wahoo, but he's already been purged for political incorrectness. And now the Indians announced that they're "committed to engaging our community and appropriate stakeholders to determine the best path forward with regard to our team name.” Those stakeholders won't be their fans or anyone who knows what baseball is.

. . .

Some media editorialist will, eventually, link the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Southern cavalier mythos and accuse them of white supremacy. The English Civil War would seem to have little to do with a Cleveland team, but King Charles I was involved in the African slave trade.

“The name Cleveland Cavaliers represents a group of daring fearless men, whose life's pact was never surrender, no matter what the odds,” the fan who won a contest to name the team wrote.

We’ll see how long that lasts.

. . .

The simplest solution might be for every team to change its name to Black Lives Matter.

And when the Pittsburgh Heinz Black Lives Matters play the New York MetLife Black Lives Matters, it’ll be a little bit confusing, but that’s okay because no one will be watching.

Read the full article here.

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Meet the HodgeTwins

Our household recently discovered the Hodge Twins – two very funny fellows who employ humor to comment on current events.  If you enjoy this short video on the subject of cancel culture and the Washington Redskins (especially in view of the similar brouhaha over the Cleveland Indians), you’ll want to visit other videos that they have posted.  Warning: this video is not for the faint of heart.  Contains, um, bad language.

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The Cleveland Indians cave to the mob

scorecard from yesteryear

Say goodbye to the Cleveland Indians and Chief Wahoo.  Claire Russel at Liberty Headlines reports:

MLB’s Cleveland Indians to Change Team Name, Mascot

The Cleveland Indians baseball team said on Sunday that the team will change its name, citing concerns over racial division and tension.

“I know in the past, when I’ve been asked about, whether it’s our name or the Chief Wahoo, I think I would usually answer and say I know that we’re never trying to be disrespectful,” said the team’s manager, Terry Francona, according to CNN.

“And I still feel that way,” he continued. “But I don’t think that’s a good enough answer today. I think it’s time to move forward. It’s a very difficult subject. It’s also delicate.”

The baseball team announced last week that it was considering changing its name, since its “among the most visible ways in which we connect with the community.” 

The team had previously removed its “Chief Wahoo” logo, a caricature of a Native American that activists argued was racist.

The team name, however, was in part a tribute to the success of Louis Sockalexis, a former Native American star in Cleveland, according to Cleveland Magazine. 

Despite this, the team admitted that its name does not “advance social justice and equality.”

Suggestions from our household include the Cleveland Worms or the Cleveland Cave-Dwellers.

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World Series: It's a tie!

art credit: pinterest

This just in:

Everyone gets a trophy!!!

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Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs

art credit: Ms. Yackle's 5th Grade

But there is no joy in Mudville Cleveland . . .

#Believeland

Game One of the World Series tonight at 8pm. 

Go tribe!

Cartoonist A.F. Branco via Sizzle

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GO TRIBE!

The Cleveland Indians 

are going to the World Series!!!

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Is the Professional Sporting Event Ticket You Buy Really Yours? Nope!

Now that the election is over and our groups have had a chance to regroup from the election season there is an issue that may not be on your radar, but deserves some serious attention. 

Did you know that most ticket companies, team owners, venues, and artists they work with don’t believe that the ticket you buy to their event actually belongs to you? As a fan, a ticket, like any other product you buy should carry with it inherent ownership rights, including the right to sell, give away, or donate that ticket. When you purchase a ticket, the ticket becomes your property. Once you buy it, you own it!

A recent op-ed by Cleveland State University Law professor Christopher Sagers exposes some of the most egregious acts by the highly subsidized NFL and NBA franchises in Cleveland. Serial government handout seeker, and owner of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, Dan Gilbert, and convicted fraudster and Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, are two of the biggest abusers of Cleveland taxpayers.

The article mentions several examples of anti-competitive practices that are anti-free market and place undue restrictions against ticket owners. For example, the Cleveland Browns impose an arbitrary price floor on its affiliated resale website, Ticketmaster’s TicketExchange.

The use of a hidden price floor on the official resale site of the Browns should concern taxpayers in Cleveland and around Ohio. The Cleveland Browns stadium is owned by the city of Cleveland and leased to the team. Taxpayers have contributed heavily to the upkeep and renovation of the stadium. 

According to a November 2013 report by Cleveland.com renovation on the Browns stadium, approved last year, will cost upwards of $120 million and of that $30 million will be paid for by the city at the expense of taxpayers.

The Browns are not the only one using taxpayers. Dan Gilbert, owner of the Cleveland Cavs, who has received millions in tax payer handouts and supported the extension of the sin tax, to the tune of a $1.8 million collective effort is a proponent of restricting the resale market. 

Instead of competing for a chunk of the $10 billion a year resale business Gilbert wants to destroy the entire market by restricting fans to only use the resale Flashseats, the resale platform operated by his ticketing company, Veritix. 

Fans who are unaware of the restriction and use any other platform have been stripped of their season tickets and threatened with further action. Rather than compete against other platforms, Glibert is seeking to prevent competition and the end result will be higher ticket prices for fans.

The amount of money taxpayers shell out for all three major teams is astronomical. The Browns, Indians and Cavs cost the taxpayers millions annually. This was compounded by the extension of the Sin Tax which was extended to the tune of $260 million last year.

Whatever your political leanings may be, this issue is about personal property rights, your right as a ticket buying consumer and rigging of the free market. Gilbert, Ticketmaster, and others are using their power and influence to destroy the market and strip fans of their basic ownership rights. Ticket resale should be protected and consenting adults should have every right to sell their tickets where they choose and for a price they agree on, without restriction.

That is why you will soon see a broad coalition of grassroots activists from the left & the right, think tanks, nonprofits and consumer groups are teaming up to call on Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine to look into these anti-competitive practices and put a stop to them.

As taxpayers we should have a voice against these abuses. Attorney General DeWine should know that these issues exist and do whatever it takes to stop them. We hope you will join us as we continue to push forward with this fight and look forward to working with you to protect the free market and personal property rights of fans.